As I was thinking about writing this blog post, I was caught up into so many thoughts and meditations about the gift of memory. But for this post, at least, I would like to just share one—one that my family members have heard MORE than once. This past Sunday we sang the wonderful old hymn There’s Something About that Name and a joyous memory came to my mind. For one treasured year, our son, his sweet wife and our first grandchild, Merry, who is now eighteen and graduating from high school, lived in a small apartment on our country property down a sloping hill from our house. When we were all together in our house, I would take her into the bedroom away from distractions and rock her and sing to her untill she fell asleep. I sang the same four hymns over and over in succession until she fell asleep. Jesus Loves Me, God Is So Good, Fairest Lord Jesus, and There’s Something About That Name. One day my son called me at the church and asked, “What songs are you singing to Merry at night?” I told him and he said, “Oh, it makes sense now. She was sitting on the foot of our bed this morning and woke us up singing the words, kings and kingdoms may all pass away. We wondered where in the world that came from.” She had just turned two years old. Unknown to us until that time, she had learned all four hymns by heart (first verse only, of course). She sang them all for some of the older ladies of our church one day and instantly became their darling, repeating her performance many times for them. One night when we took her to Sunday night service, where we always did about thirty minutes of hymns by request and she was always the only child present, she raised her little hand and said so sweetly and oh so grown up, “Could we sing There’s Something About That Name, please?” And, of course, we did. And everyone loved her all the more! Such a delight she was then and still is!
This Grace In Which We Stand
Meditations and Remembrances—-Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. Romans 5:1 -2
Meredith, you are so fortunate to belong to a church that honors and features those beautiful old hymns. Too many churches today only schedule “7-11” songs at today’s services…7 melodies/lines repeated 11 times. If only music ministers/music directors would include just ONE of those golden musical and scripturally accurate treasures on a Sunday morning, the over-50 attendees would be ecstatic, and might make a greater effort to stay after Sunday School, or Senior get-togethers, and take part in the 11am worship service. One can only hope…..(by the way, I’m so pleased to find that you’re writing this blog), Ted Shaw
Ted,
I am not as regular posting on my blog as I would like to be and I am, frankly, not used to getting comments on the blog. I am just seeing this lovely comment from you. I agree that the old hymns are chocked full of wonderful scripture and theology. Hymn books have been added to and revised for generations to make way for new church music. Every generation has had its Christian music. Hymns educate God’s people as well as praise Him for all things. All children in the church can learn a bit about music as well by just following the notes and words in the hymn books. It raises the literacy level of God’s people. But now we have technology and screens and usually the first thing a new pastor wants to do is get rid of the pew bibles and the hymn books, if indeed they still exist in his church.
The music in our church is not different in that way. But I will say that we have gained a new appreciation for the praise and worship music of today even with their sometimes seemingly never ending repititons and loudness. I think the words of those songs and their repetiions keep a strong focus of praise to God, who He is, and all of his magnificent attributes, lifting our spirits to a higher level off of ourselves. (Of course, some are better than others, and we do have an excellent music leader.) Still, I am so pleased that we usually sing at least one lovely hymn usually at the end before the pastor’s call to prayer. There is a big loss, though, to the church and our children to so completely exclude hymns and hymnals. We live in the day of “take-out”. Thank you, Ted, for reading and commenting. It was such a nice surprise to open my blog and see your comment. It’s encouraging to me.