Musings: Sunday, September 1, 2024

Each week, you may find information here about the music in the traditional worship services at First United Methodist Church in Lewisville, Texas. Some of this information is original; most of it is copied from other websites such as Wikipedia, GBOD, and hymnary.org. It is my hope that this information will enhance your understanding and enrich your worship experience.

About the Organ Music:

Voluntary on "Lasst uns erfreuen" - Robert Lind

(c.2011, Paraclete Press)

The words of the hymn were initially written by St Francis of Assisi (1181-1226) in 1225 in the Canticle of the Sun poem, which was based on Psalm 148. The words were translated into English by William Draper, who at the time was rector of a Church of England parish church at Adel near Leeds. Draper paraphrased the words of the Canticle and set them to music. It is not known when Draper first composed the hymn but it was between 1899 and 1919. Draper composed the hymn for his church's children's Whitsun festival celebrations and it was later published in 1919 in the Public School Hymn Book. The hymn is currently used in 179 different hymn books. The words written by St Francis are some of the oldest used in hymns after "Father We Praise Thee", written in 580 AD. The hymn is set to the tune of "Lasst uns erfreuen herzlich sehr", a German Easter hymn written by Friedrich Spee, published in 1623 in his book Auserlesene, Catholische, Geistliche Kirchengesäng. It was first used in English hymn books in 1906.

St. Francis is famous for many things, including love of animals. Pictures of him usually have birds flying nearby and small animals at his feet. A popular story tells of him stopping to preach a sermon to a flock of birds. He reminded them that God had blessed them with beautiful clothing even though they had never learned to spin or weave–– and that God had blessed them with food even thought they had never learned to sow or reap. Then he called them to sing their songs as praises to God. St. Francis wrote this hymn near the end of his life. Sick and suffering bouts of blindness, he was going home to die when he stopped to visit friends at the St. Damien monastery. While there, he felt the inspiration to compose this joyful hymn. It calls all God's creatures ––sun and moon ––wind and water––fruits and flowers––and all who are of tender heart––to sing, "Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!" to honor our God.

LASST UNS ERFREUEN was originally published in the Jesuit hymnal, Ausserlesene Catlwlische Geistliche Kirchengesänge, in 1623 in Cologne, Germany. The tune is believed to have been composed by Friedrich Spee, a Jesuit priest and hymn writer who was most well known as an activist who opposed trials for witchcraft. Spee’s 1631 book, Cautio Criminalis, or a Book on Witch Trials, is one of the first written works to present strong arguments against the use of torture. Spee’s opening melodic phrase in “LASST” has its origins in a setting of Psalm 68 in the Genevan Psalter, a collection of psalm settings composed between 1539-62 in Geneva, Switzerland. While its original publication featured an Easter text, “Lasst uns erfreuen herzlich sehr” (“let us rejoice most heartily”), its most well-known version appeared in the English Hymnal in 1906, edited by Ralph Vaughan Williams. Vaughan Williams reharmonized the tune and set it in a triple meter.

All creatures of our God and King, lift up your voice and with us sing alleluia, alleluia!

Thou burning sun with golden beam, thou silver moon with softer gleam,

O praise him, O praise him, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

Thou rushing wind that art so strong, ye clouds that sail in heav'n along, O praise him, alleluia!

Thou rising morn, in praise rejoice, ye lights of evening, find a voice,

O praise him, O praise him, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

Thou flowing water, pure and clear, make music for thy Lord to hear, alleluia, alleluia!

Thou fire so masterful and bright, that givest man both warmth and light,

O praise him, O praise him, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

And all ye men of tender heart, forgiving others, take your part, O sing ye, alleluia!

Ye who long pain and sorrow bear, praise God and on him cast your care,

O praise him, O praise him, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

Let all things their Creator bless, and worship him in humbleness, O praise him, alleluia!

Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son, and praise the Spirit, three in one,

O praise him, O praise him, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

Robert Lind studied at North Park College at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago, majoring in organ, composition, and music theory. At the age of 20, he worked with Leo Sowerby and became his assistant at the Cathedral of St. James, Chicago. He succeeded his mentor, Dr. Sowerby, as organist-choirmaster at the Cathedral two years later. After serving in the US Army during the Vietnam era, Lind entered the publishing world, while continuing to serve various churches in the Chicago area. He is currently organist at Lord of Life Lutheran church in Schaumburg, IL. He has played recitals in Chicago area for several decades, has presented organ repertory workshops for the American Guild of Organists, and has composed extensively for the church. Mr. Lind has approximately 180 works published for the organ.

About the Piano Music:

I Will Arise and Go to Jesus - Heather Sorenson

(c.2008, GlorySound, div of Shawnee Press)

Joseph Hart (1712-1768) was never voted "most likely to become a minister" by the friends of his youth. Though raised among Christian influences, he was not serious about spiritual matters and soon fell into, as he put it, the "vanities and vices" of youth. But as an adult he began to feel a concern for his soul, running what he described as "an uneasy restless round of sinning and repenting." Frustrated by his inner turmoil, he looked for answers elsewhere; and listening to all the wrong voices of the age, fell captive to a doctrine that taught grace unfettered by any responsibility. Among his scholarly writings during this period was a scathing attack on John Wesley titled The Unreasonableness of Religion (1741), which reveals his adherence to the rationalist critics and to a certain extent to deism. But approaching the age of forty, he became convicted of the error of his beliefs and reformed his ways. Over the next few years he began in earnest to seek a truer path, and eventually became a minister to a Congregationalist body in London.

Hymns composed on various subjects (1759), which went through countless editions as "Hart's Hymns," was written during this period of deep soul-searching and repentance beginning around 1757. According to Hart, "They are published not only in the same order, but also in the same manner in which they were first written: for though they have since undergone a cursory revisal, and have been lightly retouched, the alterations I have made in them are neither very numerous nor material." His collection is therefore not only an anthology of his work, but a spiritual journal of this period in his life. And for a body of hymns so quickly got together, his work well stood the test of time. Augmented by his supplements of 1762 and 1768, "Hart's Hymns" became a staple in Calvinist circles.

"Come, ye sinners" is held by many to be Hart's greatest hymn. It is #100 in his original 1759 collection, and falls within the last group of hymns in that work, probably written in the spring of that year. These hymns as a group seem to look back in review of Hart's spiritual journey, though they still shows flashes of that "disorder and darkness of soul" that plagued him over his sins. Frequent themes are the assurance of salvation, our hopelessness without the atoning work of Christ, the majesty of Christ revealed in His humble sacrifice, and encouragement to the weak in faith. To this extent, then, "Come, ye sinners" is as much autobiography as invitation.

Come, ye sinners, poor and needy, Weak and wounded, sick and sore;
Jesus ready stands to save you, Full of pity, love, and pow'r:
He is able, He is able, He is willing: doubt no more.

Come, ye thirsty, come and welcome, God's free bounty glorify;
True belief and true repentance, Ev'ry grace that brings us nigh,
Without money, without money, Come to Jesus Christ and buy.

Come, ye weary, heavy laden, Bruised and broken, full of sin;
If you tarry till you're better, You may never enter in:
Not the righteous, not the righteous; Sinners Jesus came to win.

Three additional verses are found in some hymnals by an unknown writer:

View Him prostrate in the garden; On the ground your Maker lies;

On the bloody tree behold Him; Sinner, will this not suffice?

Lo! th' incarnate God ascended, Pleads the merit of His blood:

Venture on Him, venture wholly, Let no other trust intrude.

Let not conscience make you linger, nor of fitness fondly dream;

all the fitness he requireth is to feel your need of him.

The chorus that follows each stanza, however, is by an entirely different hand:

I will arise and go to Jesus, He will embrace me in His arms;
In the arms of my dear Savior, O! There are ten thousand charms.

Raymond Glover has identified this as a variant on one of the stanzas of Caleb Jarvis Taylor's "Don't you see my Jesus coming?" Caleb Jarvis Taylor (1763-1816) was a schoolteacher from Maryland who served as a fill-in preacher for Methodist churches in western Virginia and Pennsylvania. In 1792 he moved to north central Kentucky, where he continued to teach school as his primary support, but preached wherever and whenever he could. Sometimes he preached as an official circuit rider sponsored by a Methodist association, but more often it was his willingness to fill vacancies for other preachers that kept him in the pulpit. He was the founder of the Mt. Gilead Methodist Church just north of Paris, Kentucky, also known as the Old Matheny Meeting House, probably the earliest Methodist congregation in that area northeast of Lexington. By 1795 he relocated to the vicinity of what is now Maysville, Kentucky, along the Ohio River.

The Mt. Gilead meeting house was less than ten miles from the famous Cane Ridge meeting house, so it was inevitable that Taylor was right in the thick of the Second Great Awakening. And though he was known to be a successful revivalist, he was noted by his contemporaries as well as by modern historians as one of the chief songwriters of this watershed moment in American religious history.

The earliest appearance of the tune RESTORATION in print appears to be that found in William Walker's Southern Harmony. As was typical of the old colonial singing-school music, Walker's arrangement places the melody in the tenor voice; he added a bass part below and a "treble" above. The Sacred Harp version has an alto part, added in later years, to fill out a more typical voicing. William "Singing Billy" Walker (1809-1875) was a Baptist song leader from Spartanburg, South Carolina. His Southern Harmony (1835) is one of the most important hymn publications in American history, because it preserved many of the melodies of the camp-meeting folk hymns at a time when the generation that created them was passing away. (Earlier publications of camp-meeting songs did not include the music.)

Heather Sorenson entered the church music industry in her twenties, and her name quickly became a welcomed fixture in the publishing world. Diversity is the characteristic that makes Heather somewhat of an anomaly in the industry: she easily maneuvers both the traditional and contemporary genres of Christian music, often combining the two for a unique blend that has become her artistic fingerprint. Initially recognized for her skill as a pianist, Heather is now known for her compositions in choral anthems, solo piano collections, and orchestrations. She taught all elementary levels of music at Grace Academy of Dallas for 4 years, served as an adjunct music professor at Baylor University, and has served on many master class panels in piano and songwriting. Heather regularly is a guest speaker and conductor at churches across America and leads scores of sessions each year at various worship conferences, schools, and universities. Heather makes her home in the Dallas, TX area with her beloved (and very vocal) beagle, Lucy.

About the Vocal Solo Music:

Orphans of God - Joel Lindsey & Twila LaBar

(c.2006 Bridge Building Music, admin by Brentwood-Benson Music Publishing)

Joel Lindsey is one of the most celebrated and award-winning writers in the genres of Contemporary Christian music and Southern Gospel. He has penned over 800 songs for a “who’s who” list in both genres. Over the years he has earned a staggering twenty No. 1 songs on Christian radio. His songs have been recorded by mainstream artists like Chris Mann, Clay Aiken, and The Backstreet Boys.

Twila LaBar is an award-winning songwriter with songs recorded by Avalon, (Orphans of God), Point of Grace, Jeff and Sheri Easter with Vince Gill, Dottie Peoples, Karen Peck and New River, and more. Twila's extensive background in songwriting and music production made transitioning into filmmaking a natural next step. Twila made her narrative film directorial debut in the independent feature film "Blanche." Twila received "Best First Time Filmmaker" and "Best Woman Filmmaker" awards in the Royal Wolf Film Awards. Twila is also the recipient of the Hollywood Gold Awards Silver Award for Best Original Song for "The Miles Don't Even Matter." In 2020 and 2021 “Blanche”received 16 film festival awards. In addition to directing Blanche, Twila composed background music for the film and wrote and recorded two songs for the “Blanche” soundtrack, "Saddle Up" and "The Miles Don't Even Matter." Country artist Jordan Kirkdorffer, a contestant on The Voice 2018, is featured on "The Miles Don't Even Matter." “Blanche” is available on Amazon, iTunes, and Vimeo on Demand. Twila is currently in post-production on the documentary film "Where the Horses Heal the Soul."

“Orphans of God" is a song of hope by Joel Lindsey and Twila LaBar that was first performed by Avalon, a contemporary Christian music group. “Orphans of God” was recorded and released as a single by country artist Ty Herndon and singer and actress Kristin Chenoweth, going to #1 on the iTunes Christmas Songs chart.

Who here among us has not been broken?

Who here among us is without guilt or pain?

So often abandoned by out transgressions,

If such a thing as grace exists, then grace was made for lives like this.

There are no strangers, there are no outcasts,

there are no orphans of God.

So many fallen, but, hallelujah,

There are no orphans of God.

Come ye, unwanted, and find affection,

Come all ye weary, come and lay down your head.

Come, ye unworthy, we are a family.

If such a thing as grace exists, then grace was made for lives like this.

There are no strangers, there are no outcasts,

There are no orphans of God.

So many fallen, but, hallelujah,

There are no orphans of God.

O blessed Father, look down upon us,

We are Your children, we need Your love.

We bow before Your throne of mercy,

and seek your face to rise above.

There are no strangers, there are no outcasts,

There are no orphans of God.

So many fallen, but, hallelujah,

There are no orphans.

There are no strangers, there are no outcasts,

there are no orphans of God

So many fallen, but, hallelujah,

There are no orphans of God.

About the Hymns:

In the Garden

(c.1989, United Methodist Publishing House)

"In the Garden" (sometimes rendered by its first line "I Come to the Garden Alone" is a gospel song written by American songwriter C. Austin Miles (1868–1946), a former pharmacist who served as editor and manager at Hall-Mack publishers for 37 years. Austin Miles used the -word vision to describe the encounter that led to his writing "In the Garden." The setting was Philadelphia, where Miles was employed as an editor for a music publisher. March 1912. At home Miles sat in a window-less room of his own-—-a combination study, photo lab, and music parlor. He reached for his Bible. "It opened at my favorite chapter, John 20," he later explained. John's account of the Resurrection: two angels and then a "gardener" ask a distraught Mary Magdalene why she is crying. Because "they" have taken my Lord away. And then gardener Jesus says one word that transforms the scene: "Mary." He speaks her name, and she knows who he is. Rabboni. As Miles read the familiar story, he felt as if he were a bystander on-site. In another century, as if this were an episode of the old Walter Cronkite television series: "You Are There: At the' Garden Tomb.”

"Under the inspiration of this vision," Miles explained, he wrote "In the Garden," the words coming to mind as quickly as he could write them down. (And the text stands as first written, never being revised.) Later in the day Miles wrote the music. Miles described his activity as "reading" John 20; some would say he was praying. It's an ancient art lost on many Christians intent on studying the Scripture. One prayer pattern involves imagining oneself in a gospel scene. "You Are There." Ignatius of Loyola advised believers to "see the persons in your imagination, contemplating and meditating in detail the circumstances surrounding them, and then draw some spiritual profit from this scene." He goes on, suggesting that we imagine the sounds, smells, tastes, and touch "always endeavoring to draw some spiritual fruit from this" application of the senses. Though Austin Miles described himself as an observer in the story, he wrote "In the Garden" in first person, as if he had stepped into Mary's shoes: Jesus is walking and talking directly with him—and you and me. Calling us by name.

I come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses;

And the voice I hear falling on my ear, the Son of God discloses.

He speaks and the sound of His voice is so sweet the birds hush their singing,

And the melody that He gave to me within my heart is ringing.

And He walks with me, and He talks with me, and He tells me I am His own.

And the joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known.

I’d stay in the garden with Him though the night around me be falling,

But He bids me go; through the voice of woe His voice to me is calling.

Bringing in the Sheaves

(c.2004, Sheet Music Digital)

A song which compares the idea of preaching the gospel and winning souls to bringing in sheaves of grain is "Bringing In The Sheaves". The text was written by Knowles Shaw (1834-1878) and was dedicated to the memory of Augustus Damon Fillmore (1823-1870), a fellow preacher and songwriter, the patriarch of a significant American musical family. The source of this hymn’s imagery is Psalm 126, verses 5-6: “Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy! He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, Shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.” It was first published anonymously in his 1874 work The Golden Gate for the Sunday School and first appeared with his name in The Morning Star, A New Collection of Sunday School Music of 1877. Shaw was a well-known evangelist and song-writer among churches of Christ and Christian Churches during the late 19th century who lived in Ohio and Indiana, Shaw was a prolific evangelist, known for his wit, knowledge of the Bible, and ability to generate and maintain rapport with an audience. He baptized over eleven thousand people in his ministry. Shaw died in a train wreck in McKinney, Texas, and a Methodist minister on board said that Shaw saved his life in the wreck. His last words were: "It is a grand thing to rally people to the Cross of Christ.”

The tune (Harvest) that we use is usually identified as having been composed by George Austin Minor (1845-1904). Educated at a military academy in Richmond, he served as Chief of Ordnance and Hydrography of the Confederate States Navy in the Civil War. Afterwards, he taught singing schools in VA, and co-founded the Hume-Minor Company of Richmond and Norfolk which manufactured pianos and organs. A member of the First Baptist Church of Richmond, he led singing for the Sunday school and published several volumes of Sunday school music, including Golden Light for Sunday Schools No. 1 of 1879, which first included this melody. Shaw had published his own music with the poem, but most books credit Minor with the present tune. Actually, Minor’s tune is quite similar to Shaw’s original melody and almost seems to be based on it, so that it could be called somewhat of an arrangement. In the 1927 Cross and Resurrection in Song Revised and Enlarged, editor Flavil Hall wrote, "’Bringing in the Sheaves’ was written, both words and music, by Knowles Shaw….Mr. Geo. A Minor later made a few ‘minor’ changes in it, transposing it from C to B-flat, and published it in a little leaflet with a few of his own pieces.”

A fourth stanza was added by Charles R. Scoville in 1911 which emphasizes the invitation to grace extended in sowing the seed.

Sowing in the morning, sowing seeds of kindness,

Sowing in the noontide and the dewy eve;

Waiting for the harvest, and the time of reaping,

We shall come rejoicing, bringing in the sheaves.