Dear Friends and Family,
This morning I was so joyed to join with you in worship. As our friend Dave reminded us this morning, the congregational singing is a rare and treasured experience in our week. I am looking forward to my responsibilities this week.
Summer Spirit starts this Wednesday night at 7pm. This is for kids going into first grade through going into sixth grade. In our first week, we are going to look at two questions: what does it mean to follow Jesus and what does it take to follow Jesus? I am happy to announce that Chelsea Freeman will be joining our team. Please continue to pray for Chelsea and the other members of my team: Nicole Polohonki, Robby Walsh, and Hannah Wallace. You can be praying specifically for God to provide for Nicole as she needs of a new car, and for Chelsea’s job hunt and safety in her surgery on the 26th.
The song I shared with you this morning is one that I wrote as my final project in Hymnology class. It comes from Psalm 51, which is the psalm I will be preaching on at the evening service on the 24th of this month. I would like to use this song as a congregational hymn. In order to let you familiarize yourself with this song, here is a link to a lyric video of it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dVNMtt8HEU . I hope that it ministers to your heart.
On Tuesday the 26th, the Bible and Book Study of Why God Created the World by Ben Stevens will begin. It will be meeting at 7pm in room 103, the room beside the school office and behind the coffee and donut tables in the back hallway. Again, the ISBN is 978-1612915869. Please bring your book and Bible to the Study. There will be a Keurig set up if anyone would like coffee.
As I mentioned before, I will be preaching for the evening service on the 24th. We will be studying Psalm 51. This psalm has had a significant impact on my life and gives us some great principles on how to deal with sin in our life. In preparation, if you would like, feel free to read the psalm and also 2 Samuel 11:1-12:23.
I would like to take a portion of this blog each week and introduce you to a songwriter whose works I find to be helpful and beneficial. I hope that for many of them you are familiar with their works. Understanding these people’s lives is important and can help us sing their songs with better appreciation. This week I would like to introduce you to the English song writer William Cowper. He was born November 26th, 1731. When he was only 6 years old, his mother died. He was not very good in school, but he played cricket and football at Westminster. He frequently wrote love poems, but was plagued with depression even from the years he was in school. Then, his father too died. After his schooling had ended he tried to take his life three times. Eventually Cowper was institutionalized. He wrote the poem “Hatred and Vengeance, My Eternal Portions” in response to these attempts on his life. After he was released, he lived with a retired pastor, Morley Unwin. It was through this family that he met John Newton. Soon after this, Unwin was thrown from a horse and killed. Cowper then was asked by Newton to write for the hymnal Olney Hymns. From this book came one of my favorite Cowper hymns, “God Moves in a Mysterious Way”. In 1773, insanity again attacked Cowper. He believed that he was eternally condemned to Hell and that God wished him to take his own life. Unwin’s widow looked after Cowper during this dark time. After a year he began to write again and recovered. Eventually Cowper translated Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey into English. In 1796, Unwin’s widow, Mary, died; this caused Cowper great grief, and he fell into another bout of depression which lasted until his death, caused by dropsy, in 1800. While his life was rarely bright, Cowper managed to pen some of the greatest hymns. His experiences influenced the way he understood and appreciated salvation.
Here is a link to a video produced by Discover the Word. It is a great explanation of Cowper and the hymn “God Moves in a Mysterious Way”. This is well worth your time. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXSyymBNJ98
Here is another link. This video tells William Cowper’s story in a vivid and poignant way. Warning, there is blood in this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPKcOeRoTKA
Hymnary.org is a great resource I have used. This is a link to their page on William Cowper. http://www.hymnary.org/person/Cowper_W
I hope that William Cowper’s story will strengthen your faith and give you a better understanding of his hymns.
Lastly, today begins my summer Bible reading program. I will post my progress and thoughts each day on this blog. I encourage you to follow along, if you would like. May God bless your week and encourage you in your faith.
No comments:
Post a Comment