Author: Chiasochris

Victory in Jesus
Backgrounder: Eugene Bartlett
was born in December 1885 in
Missouri and grew up in Arkansas.
He was educated as a music
teacher at Hall-Moody Institute
in Tennessee and William Jewell
College in Missouri. In 1918,
he established Hartford Music
Company. Over his career, Bartlett
wrote more than 800 songs.
In 1939, Bartlett had a stroke
that left him partially paralyzed.
After the stroke he was bed ridden.
Bartlett continued to study his Bible
during this difficult time. Although
he dealt with the physical strains,
he also looked towards the eternal
victory he knew was approaching.
During this difficult time after his
stroke, Bartlett wrote the words
to Victory in Jesus, which was the
final song he wrote. The hymn is
an optimistic reminder of the hope
of heaven. In the second stanza,
there are references to the
healing ministry of Christ.
Continue reading “Prayer Thot for the Day (Nov 9)”

We Shall Overcome

Backgrounder: We Shall Overcome
is synonymous with the African
American Civil Rights Movement
(1955-1968). And is frequently
sung today after hate tragedies.
Most ascribe the origin to a gospel
hymn by Methodist preacher
Charles Albert Tindley (1851-1953),
who penned 50 hymns while
ministering in Philadelphia; and
credit the lyrical origins of “We
Shall Overcome” to the refrain of
Tindley’s “I’ll Overcome Some Day.
Guy Carawan (b.1927), a white
folk musician introduced the song
to the Civil Rights Movement
by teaching it to the Student
Nonviolent Coordinating Comm
in North Carolina, in 1960.
The song was then picked up
by folk singers such as Joan Baez
in the early 1960s and sung at
folksong concerts & protest rallies
where it became adapted for the
Civil Rights Movt with new stanzas.
Continue reading “Prayer Thot for the Day (Nov 8)”

Pass It On

Backgrounder: Kurt Kaiser was
born in 1934 in Chicago. While
known primarily for his youth
musicals, Kaiser has composed
more than 60 hymn texts & tunes,
the most famous is “Pass It On.”
Kaiser provided the background
to the hymnal song: In 1969,
I collaborated on a musical, Tell
It Like It Is. It was written to get
young people involved in Church.
On a Sunday night I was sitting
in by the fireplace where there
were remnants of a fire, and it
occurred to me that it only takes
a spark to get a fire going . . .
and the rest came very quickly.
My wife suggested that I should
say something about shouting
it from mountain tops, and that
ended up in the third verse.
Pass It On gained traction in
congregational circles when it
appeared in Hymns for the Living
Church (1974). Since then, the song
has appeared in about 10 hymnals.
Continue reading “Prayer Thot for the Day (Nov 7)”

God of Grace & God of Glory

Backgrounder: God of Grace was
written in 1930 by Harry Fosdick
for the dedication of the famous
Riverside Church in New York City.
The hymn was written while the
US was in the throes of the Great
Depression between the two world
wars. Fosdick was a champion of
social gospel, a movement that
recognized the plight of the poor
during the Industrial Revolution.
The hymn is essentially a petition.
Grant us wisdom, grant us courage
concludes each stanza with the
effect of a refrain. A petition begins
stanza 3 with Cure thy children’s
warring madness, bend our pride
to thy control.” The final stanza
begins with “Save us from weak
resignation to the evils we deplore.”
Continue reading “Prayer Thot for the Day (Nov 6)”

Wise Words from the King
(Prayer Walk thro Prov 25-31)

Backgrounder: In his closing
contribution to the book of
Proverbs, Solomon records
the riches of righteousness and
the fatal danger of foolishness.
False witnesses and friends,
the corrupt and the righteous,
the foolish and the wise,
the slothful and the diligent,
the deceitful and the dependable
– Solomon has something to say
to each! God’s wisdom gives
a proper perspective of things
and guidance in choosing the
right response to life’s situations.
Continue reading “Praying thro Proverbs (Nov 5)”

Wise Words for People in Authority
(Prayer Walk thro Prov 22-24)

Backgrounder:The final 11 chapters
of Proverbs contain sound counsel
for those in positions of authority.
The key to the section hangs
on Prov 21:1-2: The king’s heart
is in the hand of the Lord, like
the rivers of water; He turns it
wherever he wishes. Every way
of a man is right in his own eyes;
but the Lord weighs the hearts.
Today’s reading contains wise
counsel for anyone in a position
of responsibility: from parents
to princes, pastors to monarchs.
Leaders need to know God’s
precepts if they are to direct their
charges into God’s honouring
paths of conduct and character.
Continue reading “Praying thro Proverbs (Nov 4)”

I Have Decided to Follow Jesus

Backgrounder: The lyrics are based
on the last words of Nokseng, a
Garo man, a tribe from Meghalaya
in Assam India, who along with
his family decided to follow Jesus
Christ in mid 19th century thro
the efforts of a Welsh missionary.
Called to renounce his faith by the
village chief, the convert declared,
“I have decided to follow Jesus.”
His two children were killed and in
response to threats to his wife, he
continued, “Though none go with
me, still I will follow.” His wife was
killed, and he was executed while
singing:’The cross before me,
the world behind me.’ This display
of faith is reported to have led to
the conversion of the chief and
others in the village. The fierce
opposition is possible, as various
tribes in that area were formerly
renowned for head-hunting.
The formation of these words into
a hymn is attributed to the Indian
missionary Sadhu Sundar Singh.
Continue reading “Prayer Thot for the Day (Nov 3)”

At Calvary

Backgrounder: William Newell
(1868-1956) was best known
as a Bible teacher, pastor and
professor. While on his way to
teach a class at Moody Bible
Institute, the words of this hymn
began to form in his mind.
So he went into an unoccupied
classroom and there scribbled
the words on the back of an
envelope. A few minutes later
he gave the words to Daniel
Towner, the director of music
at the school. Within an hour
Towner had composed music
for them. The first three stanzas
tell the testimony of the Christian
and the final stanza praises God
for the greatness of divine love,
the depth of grace and
the breadth of mercy.
Continue reading “Prayer Thot for the Day (Nov 2)”