Notes on the Notes – October 28, 2018
This week’s theme:
“Job and Bartimaeus – When to keep quiet?”
This week’s scripture readings:
Job 42:1-6 – 10-17
Psalm 34
This week’s music:
“I Sing the Mighty Power” (VU #231)
“I sing the mighty power of God that made the mountains rise;
That spread the flowing seas abroad, and built the lofty skies.
I sing the wisdom that ordained the sun to rule the day;
The moon shines full at God’s command and all the stars obey.
I sing the goodness of the One who filled the earth with food;
Who formed the creatures with a word, and then pronounced them good.
O God, your wonders are displayed where’er I turn my eye;
If I survey the ground I tread, or gaze upon the sky!
There’s not a plant or flower below but makes your glories known;
And clouds arise, and tempests blow, by order from your throne;
While all that borrows life from you is ever in your care;
And everywhere that I may be, You, God, are present there.”
This hymn in praise of the Creator is from Divine Songs Attempted in Easy Language, for the Use of Children (1715), a collection of songs which Isaac Watts wrote for children, at the request of a friend. Australian hymnologist Wesley Milgate comments, “Watts shows in this hymn a readiness rare in his time to credit children with intelligence and imagination, so that it is a fine hymn for adults also.” The words assure us of God’s power as Creator, as well as the ever-present nature of God. The tune, HAYDN, has been attributed to Franz Joseph Haydn, but, despite its name, the association has never been proven.
“Sing Praise to God, Who Reigns Above” (VU #216)
“Sing praise to God, who reigns above, the God of all creation,
The God of power, the God of love, the God of our salvation;
With healing balm my soul is filled, and every faithless murmur stilled;
To God all praise and glory!
What God’s almighty power hath made, God’s gracious mercy keepeth;
By morning glow or evening shade God’s watchful eye ne’er sleepeth;
Within the shelter of God’s might, Lo! all is just and all is right;
To God all praise and glory!
Our God is never far away, but through all grief distressing,
An ever-present help and stay, our peace, and joy, and blessing;
As with a mother’s tender hand, God gently leads the chosen band;
To God all praise and glory!
Thus all my gladsome way along, I sing aloud thy praises
That all my hear the grateful song my voice unwearied raises.
Be joyful in your God, my heart! Both soul and body take your part;
To God all praise and Glory!”
This “hymn of Thanksgiving” is based upon Deuteronomy 32:2. The words were written by Johann Jakob Schutz and translated by Frances Elizabeth Cox (1864). The lyrics remind us of God’s faithfulness through both times of joy and times of sadness. The tune is a Bohemian Brethren hymn which had been in use since the mid 1700s.
Hear the song sung in worship at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swOYIL5gOoU
“I Have Called Your By Your Name” (MV #161)
The lyrics of this hymn by Daniel Charles Damon have their root in Isaiah 43:1. This hymn is written from God’s perspective, saying “I have called you by your name, you are mine” and goes on to speak of God’s hope for us. It commissions us to have the courage to follow where God leads and reminds us of everyone’s innate value in God’s eyes.
“I have called you by your name, you are mine;
I have gifted you and ask you now to shine.
I will not abandon you; all my promises are true.
You are gifted, called, and chosen; you are mine.
I will help you learn my name as you go;
Read it written in my people, help them grow.
Pour the water in my name, speak the word your soul can claim,
Offer Jesus’ body given long ago.
I know you will need my touch as you go;
Feel it pulsing in creation’s ebb and flow.
Like the woman reaching out, choosing faith in spite of doubt,
Hold the hem of Jesus’ robe, then let it go.
I have given you a name, it is mine;
I have given you my Spirit as a sign.
With my wonder in your soul, make my wounded children whole;
Go and tell my precious people they are mine.”
“10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord)”
“Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul; worship his holy name.
Sing like never before, O my soul; I’ll worship your holy name.
The sun comes up, it’s a new day dawning, it’s time to sing your song again.
Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me, let me be singing when the evening comes.
You’re rich in love and you’re slow to anger.
Your name is great and your heart is kind.
For all your goodness, I will keep on singing; ten thousand reasons for my heart to find.
And on that day when my strength is failing, the end draws near and my time has come; still my soul will sing your praise unending; ten thousand years and then forevermore!
The words and music for this week’s anthem are by Jonas Myrin and Matt Redman. The choral setting is by Lloyd Larson. The lyrics are a testament to a life of praise to God. The anthem was dedicated in memory of Sharon Field.
See the Matt Redman video for the song at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtwIT8JjddM
Read about ideas behind the theology of the song at: http://singingchurch.blogspot.ca/2013/10/matt-redman-and-theology-of-10000.html
“Great is Thy Faithfulness” (VU #288)
“Great is thy faithfulness, God our Creator;
There is no shadow of turning with thee;
Thou changest not, thy compassions, they fail not;
As thou hast been thou forever wilt be.
Great is thy faithfulness!
Great is thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed thy hand hath provided.
Great is thy faithfulness, ever to me!
Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon, and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness to thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love.
Great is thy faithfulness!…
Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide,
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow –wondrous the portion thy blessings provide.
Great is thy faithfulness!…
Thomas O. Chisholm, a Methodist minister, wrote the poem in 1923 about God’s faithfulness over his lifetime. The conviction that God is always with us, through good times and bad, has always been a great source of comfort and strength for the faithful. William Runyan set the poem to music, and it was published that same year and became popular among church groups. The song was exposed to wide audiences after becoming popular with Dr. William Henry Houghton of the Moody Bible Institute and Billy Graham who played the song frequently on his international crusades. The version in Voices United is from the Hymnal of the Evangelical United Brethren (1957).
Listen to Chris Rice singing this hymn with guitar at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0k1WhFtVp0o
Hear a quiet instrumental version of the hymn at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MoFJzsEF3ZM
Watch the Gaither version of the hymn with Wes Hampton at: https://youtu.be/yNZS5H9aNlY
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