May your Christmas be filled with the joy of the season!
Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee
1. Joyful, joyful, we adore thee,
God of glory, Lord of love;
hearts unfold like flowers before thee,
opening to the sun above.
Melt the clouds of sin and sadness;
drive the dark of doubt away.
Giver of immortal gladness,
fill us with the light of day!
2. All thy works with joy surround thee,
earth and heaven reflect thy rays,
stars and angels sing around thee,
center of unbroken praise.
Field and forest, vale and mountain,
flowery meadow, flashing sea,
chanting bird and flowing fountain,
call us to rejoice in thee.
3. Thou art giving and forgiving,
ever blessing, ever blest,
well-spring of the joy of living,
ocean depth of happy rest!
Thou our Father, Christ our brother,
all who live in love are thine;
teach us how to love each other, l
ift us to the joy divine.
4. Mortals, join the mighty chorus
which the morning stars began;
love divine is reigning o'er us,
binding all within its span.
Ever singing, march we onward,
victors in the midst of strife;
joyful music leads us sunward,
in the triumph song of life.
Sunday, December 24, 2006
Sunday Hymn
Sunday, December 17, 2006
Sunday Hymn
Last year I remember my MIL talking of a hymn she would be singing in church. I had never heard of the hymn and didn't think of it again until I was looking through our book, Come Let Us Adore Him, for our Christmas hymns to ponder in the coming week.
Cecil Frances Humphreys was the hymnwriter. She and her husband, the Rev. William Alexander, were quite a dynamic duo in British Christianity. Her husband was the Bishop for all Ireland, but her song writing eclipsed his fame. Mrs. Alexander had quite a heart for children ..teaching Sunday School, helping establish a school for the deaf and founding a Girl's Friendly Society.
Mrs. Alexander, after encountering a boy who was having difficulty understanding the Apostle's Creed and portions of the Catechism, began to mull over writing simple little hymns to explain the phrases and truths of the Christain faith to little ones. Some examples of her work include, "All Things Bright and Beautiful", "There is a Green Hill Far Away" and today's post "Once in Royal David's City".
Once in Royal David's City
Once in Royal David's city
Stood a lowly cattle shed,
Where a mother laid her Baby
In a manger for His bed;
Mary was that mother mild,
Jesus Christ her little Child.
He came down to earth from Heaven,
Who is God and Lord of all,
And His shelter was a stable,
And His cradle was a stall.
With the poor, and mean, and lowly,
Lived on earth our Savior Holy.
For He is our childhood's pattern;
Day by day, like us He grew;
He was little, weak and helpless,
Tears and smiles like us He knew;
And He feeleth for our sadness,
And He shareth in our gladness.
And our eyes at last shall see Him,
Through His own redeeming love,
For that Child so dear and gentle
Is our Lord in Heav'n above,
And He leads His children on
To the place where He has gone.
You can listen to the tune here.
Related tags: hymns, Christianity
