Category: Praising God thro Hymns

I’d Rather Have Jesus

Backgrounder: This poem written
in 1922 by Rhea Miller, was left
on a piano in the Shea home by
Bev Shea who wanted her son to
find it and change the course of
his life. The words, I’d rather have
Jesus moved George so much
and spoke to him about his aims
in life. He sat down at the piano
& began singing them with a tune
that seemed to fit the words.
George’s life direction did change
He was offered a popular music
career with NBC, but a few years
later chose to become associated
with evangelist Billy Graham and
sang this hymn around the world.

Lord Jesus, I rather have You:
Then Jesus said to his disciples,
‘If anyone would come after me,
he must deny himself and
take up his cross and follow me.
For whoever wants to save
his life will lose it, but whoever
loses his life for me will find it.
What good will it be for a man
if he gains the whole world,
yet forfeits his soul? Or what
can a man give in exchange
for his soul? (Matt 16:24-26).

Dear Father God, forgive us when
we seek after temporal things
to meet the deep yearnings of
our heart. Your eternal plan was
to send Jesus, Your Son, to give
us a life that is no longer empty
or imprisoned by sin’s chains.
Thank You for Jesus who came
that we might have abundant life
through His sacrificial death
on our behalf. Nothing on earth
and no person deserves our
allegiance more than our Savior.
Remind us to be always grateful
to Jesus for loving so sacrificially
and for saving us from our sin.

Lord, You have great things in
store for each of us if we would
just fix our eyes upon You. And
we are created in Christ Jesus
for good works which God has
prepared for each of us to live
a life of purpose and of destiny.
Grant us grace to find out & do
the heavenly things that You God
wants us to do while still on earth.
Help us Lord to have the attitude
of Apostle Paul who considers
everything rubbish, that he may
know and gain Christ. Grant us
resolve in each of us to truly say:
I’d rather have Jesus… for I’d
rather be true to His holy name.

Lord, we know this hymn is about
dedication and commitment for
to follow after Jesus is costly.
Grant each of us will always
be able to sing from our heart,
and truly mean it, the words of
the hymn: I’d Rather Have Jesus.
So help us God. Thank you for
hearing & answering our prayer.
Gratefully in Jesus’ name, Amen.

I’d rather have Jesus than
silver or gold;
I’d rather be His than have
riches untold;
I’d rather have Jesus than
houses or lands,
I’d rather be led by His nail
pierced hand.

Refrain:
Than to be a king of a vast domain
Or be held in sin’s dread sway,
I’d rather have Jesus than anything
This world affords today.

I’d rather have Jesus than
men’s applause;
I’d rather be faithful to
His dear cause;
I’d rather have Jesus than
world-wide fame,
I’d rather be true to
His holy name.

Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God

Backgrounder: Karen Lafferty:
I was raised in a Christian home,
but like many young people
I wanted to discover life and did
some drifting. I was working as
a nightclub entertainer in New
Orleans when a friend visited me
& got me back on the right track.
After that I began to write Christian
songs. It was back in 1971. I had
quit my entertainment job and
was trying to support myself with
teaching guitar lessons to three
students! When my savings were
all gone and I had no money to
make my car payments, I became
very discouraged and confused.
One evening I went to a Bible study
and we talked about Matthew 6:33.
I was tremendously encouraged
and challenged by the words.
So I went home, wrote the tune,
recorded it on a tape recorder.
I taught the song at church the next
week and it caught on right away.

Lord, we’ll Seek Yr Kingdom First:
Therefore do not worry…For after
all these things the Gentiles seek.
For your Heavenly Father knows
that you need all these things.
But seek first the kingdom of God
and his righteousness, and
all these things will be added
to you (Matthew 6:31-33).

Dear Lord, complete consecration
is not easy. While we love You, it’s
not easy to give up things of this
world when U call us to serve. So,
Help us to genuinely Seek first the
kingdom of God by Surrendering
all that is required to be yielded.
Help us seek You First that God is
the Priority of all things in our life.
Help us to Relinquish our selfish
worldly ambitions to You today.
Help us that we may give our all
to God and Live by Him always.
Help us to Commit daily to give
You our all & take U at Your Word.

Lord, U know & care for our needs.
And U desire your children to ASK.
Help us to Ask so that we be given,
Seek so that we we shall find,
Knock and the door be open to us.
Help us to start each day Seeking
God and You will direct our path
every step throughout the day.
Help us to have Faith that U will fulfill Your promises in our lives &
Help us Put You Above all else!!
In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Seek ye first the kingdom of God,
And His righteousness,
And all these things, shall be
added onto you,
Alleu, alleuia.

Man shall not live by bread alone,
But by every word,
That proceeds from the
mouth of God
Alleu, Alleuia.

Ask and it shall be given unto you,
Seek and ye shall find.
Knock and the door shall be
opened onto you.
Alleu, Alleuia.

Jesus Calls Us

Backgrounder: Cecil Alexander
(1818-1895) was the wife of a
parish minister in an impoverished
rural area of Northern Ireland.
She loved the people. From
one house to another she went,
wrote one historian. She especially
loved children and most of her
hymns were written for them.
Jesus Calls Us was one of the
few hymns she wrote for adults,
and it illustrates her ability to
apply scripture devotionally.
She wrote the hymn at her
husband’s request to accompany
a sermon he was preaching about
the calling of Peter and Andrew
by Jesus on the shores of Galilee.

Lord, we purpose to Follow You:
One day as Jesus was walking
along the shore of the Sea of
Galilee, he saw two brothers –
Simon, also called Peter, and
Andrew – throwing a net into the
water, for they fished for a living.
Jesus called out to then: Come,
follow me, and I will show u how
to fish for people (Matt 4:18-19).

Lord, You call us to follow;
to turn away from our own
selfish interests, and to take up
our cross and follow after You.
Forgive us for being so quick to
question & so hesitant to follow.
Grant us the grace to trust You
even if the path is difficult to see,
or is heading in a direction we
would not choose for ourselves.
Help us to see with the eyes
of faith, rather than from our
own human point of view.
Teach us to follow without fear,
knowing that You are always
with us, leading the way.
Grant us grace to say “Yes”
when you come to us calling:
“follow me” or “love me more.”
Grant us grace to Give our hearts
to Thine obedience, so that we
Serve and love Thee best of all.
In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Jesus calls us; o’er the tumult
of our life’s wild, restless sea;
Day by day His sweet voice
soundeth,
Saying, “Christian, follow me.”

Jesus calls us from the worship
Of the vain world’s golden store,
From each idol that would keep us,
Saying, “Christian, love me more.”

In our joys and in our sorrows,
Days of toil and hours of ease,
Still He calls, in cares & pleasures,
Christian, love me more than these.

Jesus calls us– by Thy mercies,
Savior, may we hear Thy call;
Give our hearts to Thine obedience,
Serve and love Thee best of all.

Alas & Did My Saviour Bleed
(At the Cross)

Backgrounder: Isaac Watts
(d1748) was an English Christian
minister, hymn writer & theologian.
He was a prolific and popular
hymn writer and was credited
with some 750 hymns. This hymn
in particular has touched the hearts
of millions through the centuries.
After drawing the start contrasts
between the sacrificial death
of the mighty Maker and the
unworthiness of the sinful creature,
he concludes with consecration:
Here Lord, I give myself away,
’tis all that I can do.

Lord, thanks for yr redemptive love:
He was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins. He was
beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could
be healed. All of us, like sheep,
have strayed away. We have left
God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on him the
sins of us all (Isaiah 53:5-6).

Dear Father God, you brought
your son Jesus to earth to bring
wholeness to a broken world;
not only spiritually, but also
mentally, emotionally & physically.
Lord Jesus, Thanks for taking
every of our transgressions –
when You went to the cross.
Your death gave us eternal life.
Your death brought wholeness
to our body, mind, soul and spirit.
Yr death released peace to our soul
Your sacrificial death brought us
a complete deliverance once You
paid the penalty of sin for us and
overcoming death victoriously.

Lord, we receive yr total healing:
We receive spiritual healing
and have the connection with
you through the Holy Spirit.
We receive healing to our soul
so that we do not need to be
emotionally tortured anymore.
We receive healing to our minds
& choose to reflect on that which
is pure, noble & praiseworthy.
We honor you by daily renewing
our minds on your living word.
We receive deliverance from
demons for at the name of Jesus
they must all flee and Jesus’
blood cleanses us completely.
We receive healing to our
physical body because when
Jesus was crucified He took
all of the illnesses, sickness
and disease upon Himself.

Lord Jesus, We remember You
through communion and thanking
you for all the deliverance.
We honor you with obedience
which is the least we can do
for Your deep sacrificial love.
Guide us each day by your
Holy Spirit and the word so that
we will make the right choices
and live in complete freedom.
Let us not to forget the cost of
your love. And stir in us abiding
memory of yr redemptive grace.
In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

The Hymn:
Alas, and did my Savior bleed?
And did my Sovereign die?
Would He devote that sacred head
For such a worm as I?

Refrain:
At the cross, at the cross where
I first saw the light,
And the burden of my heart
rolled away,
It was there by faith I received
my sight,
And now I am happy all the day!

Was it for sins that I had done
He groaned upon the tree?
Amazing pity! grace unknown!
And love beyond degree!

Well might the sun in darkness hide,
And shut His glories in,
When Christ, the mighty Maker, died
For man, His creature’s sin.

Thus might I hide my blushing face
While His dear cross appears.
Dissolve my heart in thankfulness,
And melt mine eyes to tears.

But drops of grief can ne’er repay
The debt of love I owe;
Here, Lord, I give myself away,
‘Tis all that I can do.

Here I Am Lord

Backgrounder: When The United
Methodist Hymnal was published
in 1989, one of the most popular
hymns was Here I Am, Lord (1981)
by Daniel Schutte (b. 1947). Many
Protestants are unaware that this
hymn represents Roman Catholic
renewal music resulting from the
2nd Vatican Council (1962-1965).
Schutte is a native of Wisconsin.
He received his master of divinity
degree in 1979 at the Jesuit
School of Theology, Berkeley.
Following graduation, Mr. Schutte
served as the director of liturgy
at Marquette Univ (1982-1986)
and then entered parish ministry
in two Milwaukee parishes.

An unusual attribute of this hymn
is the change in point of view
that the singer makes between
the stanzas and the refrain.
The stanzas speak from the
perspective of God in the first
person singular, while the refrain,
though remaining in first person,
is from the perspective of
the singers of the hymn
offering their lives to God.

Lord, we offer our lives to You:
In the year that King Uzziah died,
I saw the Lord sitting on a throne..
So I said: Woe is me… Because
I am a man of unclean lips…
For my eyes have seen the King,
The Lord of Hosts. Then one of
the seraphim flew to me, having
in his hand a live coal from the
altar. And he touched my mouth
with it and said: Your iniquity is
taken away. And your sin purged.
Also I heard the voice of the Lord,
saying: Whom shall I send. And
who will go for US. Then I said:
Here am I, send me (Isa 6:1-8).

Lord, whenever I sense Your holy
presence, I am greatly aware of
my own unworthiness. And that
makes me even more grateful for
how much You sacrificed for us,
so that I can come to Your throne
with confidence and find Your
mercy and grace in time of need.
Touch me and purify me, and
help me to separate myself from
all that is unholy, unpleasing to U.
And help us to have a tender
heart to respond positively to
your perfect plans for our lives,
so that we do the good works
that you have prepared for us &
live a life of destiny for your glory.
In Jesus’ precious name, Amen.

I, the Lord of sea and sky
I have heard my people cry
All who dwell in dark and sin
My hand will save.
I who made the stars of night
I will make the darkness bright
Who will bear my light to them
Whom shall I send?

Refrain:
Here I am Lord; Is it I Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night
I will go Lord; If you lead me
I will hold your people in my heart.

I the Lord of snow and rain
I have borne my people’s pain
I have wept for love of them
They turn away.
I will break their hearts of stone
Fill their hearts with love alone
I will speak my word to them
Whom shall I send?

Jesus Paid It All

Backgrounder: What do you do
when pastor rambles on too long?
Elvina Hall wrote a hymn (1865).
Seated in the choir loft at the
Monument Street Meth Church of
Baltimore, she wrote the stanzas
on the flyleaf of the hymnal.
The composer of the well-known
tune was John Crape,the organist
and choir director of the church.
He had called the tune “All to
Christ I Owe”. His wife like it but
no one seemed to. It was the
pastor George Schrick who put
the words and tune together,
and she added the chorus
to fit with his tune title.

Lord, U Paid It All & we Adore You:
Come now, and let us reason
together, says the Lord,
Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson,
they shall be as wool.
If you are willing and obedient,
u shall eat the good of the land;
But if you refuse and rebel,
you shall be devoured by
the sword; For the mouth of the
Lord has spoken (Isaiah 1:18-20).

Lord, we’re grateful for your Grace.
Nothing stains quite as sin, for
it not only leaves a stain in our
heart but a residue in our minds.
But Your grace is shown in that
you don’t just forgive our sins,
You banish them; the stain is
removed & the guilt taken away.
We are clean by your grace.
O what joy your grace give us
merciful God! We can never really
thank you and praise you enough.

Lord, Thank you that you do not
see my sins, rather you see me
righteous because of the work of
your precious son, Jesus Christ.
Help me bring the prayers out of
your word, reason with You and
really appreciate yr love & mercy.
Thank U for yr loving kindness &
I want to eat the good of the land.
Help us follow the Holy Spirit
so that we’ll remain obedient.
And help us have deep gratitude
to You for Jesus Paid It All. Amen.

I hear the Savior say:
Thy strength indeed is small;
Child of weakness, watch & pray,
Find in Me thine all in all.

Refrain:
Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.

For nothing good have I
Whereby Thy grace to claim;
I’ll wash my garments white
In the blood of Calv’ry’s Lamb.

Lord, now indeed I find
Thy pow’r, and Thine alone,
Can change the leper’s spots
And melt the heart of stone.

And when before the throne
I stand in Him complete,
I’ll lay my trophies down,
All down at Jesus’ feet.

To God Be the Glory

Backgrounder: It was hard to
discourage Fanny Crosby; for
though blind, her heart can
see splendidly in the sunshine
of God’s love. Written in 1872,
this hymn was taken to England
by Ira Sankey, who led singing for
Moody’s evangelistic campaigns.
The hymn became immediately
popular in England, but was
published in only a few American
hymnals until Billy Graham
rediscovered the hymn during
his I952 British crusade. It then
became as popular in America
as it had been in England,
and then around the world.

Lord, to You be praise and glory:
I will exalt you, my God and King,
and praise your name forever
and ever. Every day I will bless You,
And I will praise Your name
forever and ever. Great is the
Lord, and greatly to be praised;
No one can measure his greatness.
Let each generation praise your
works to another, and declare
Your mighty acts (Psa 145:1-4).

Mighty God and loving Father,
today I want to tell you how
marvelous & wonderful you are.
You are faithful, holy & merciful.
You are tender, loving, and
yet magnificent in glory and
incomparable in strength.
You have redeemed me from
my sin & given me hope beyond
my own death. You have filled
my life full of good people & have
promised me a home with you.
Father God, are without peer:
You are awesome and majestic.

And Lord, thank U for revealing
thro v2 that the way we praise
God forever, the way we honor
our pledge to give him glory
for all the days of our life,
is simply to start doing it today.
As long as we praise God today,
the forever takes care of itself.
So, we lift Your name on high.
not only in the things we say,
but also in the way that we live.
To God be the Glory!
Great things He hath done!!
In Jesus’ name we praise You,
today and forever. Amen.

To God be the glory –
great things He hath done!
So loved He the world that
He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His Life
an atonement for sin,
And opened the life-gate
that all may go in.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father
through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory –
great things He hath done!

O perfect redemption,
the purchase of blood!
To ev’ry believer
the promise of God;
The vilest offender
who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus
a pardon receives

Thy Word

Backgrounder: Amy Grant and
Michael Smith wrote this hymnal
song in 1984. Michael came up
with the melody & some words for
the chorus straight from David’s
Psalms about being a light into
my path. But as Michael had
no idea what the verses were
supposed to say, he gave it to
Amy & told her to finish the tune.
So that night she starts walking
back to her cabin,” Michael said.
Caribou Ranch is 8,000 acre and
it’s very dark, And she got lost.
There’s bears & that sort of thing.
“She finally saw a lamp & started
walking towards that light, didn’t
realize that that was her cabin,”
he continued. “And she walked
into that little cabin and sat down
with a notebook and pen and
wrote the verses to ‘Thy Word.'”

Lord, we’ll feed & Follow Yr Word:
Your word is a lamp for my feet,
a light on my path. I have taken
an oath and confirmed it, that
I will follow your righteous laws…
Preserve my life, according to
your word..Though I constantly
take my life in my hands, I will not
forget your law..Your statutes are
my heritage forever; they are the
joy of my heart. My heart is
set on keeping your decrees to
the very end (Psa 119:105-112).

Dear Lord, Your Word is perfect &
it makes us Wise. Thank you for
giving us the Truth thro Yr Word.
Thanks for giving us the blueprint
on what to follow and what
to believe in this fallen world.
Help us to delight in your Word,
to obey it and to commit to
walk in the light it provides.
Help us to continue reading,
absorbing & following Your Word
daily so that we be transformed
to be more like Christ.

Lord, we praise you that Your
Word lights the path at our feet
so that we don’t have to wander
in the wilderness. Thank you that
Yr Word acts as spiritual compass
to guide and direct our paths.
Help us to remember that we
can always count on Your Word
to guide, lead and keep us on
the right track. All Thanks to You
Lord for your wonderful Word.
In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet
And a light unto my path
Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet
And a light unto my path

When I feel afraid, think I’ve
lost my way
Still You’re there right beside me
Nothing will I fear as long as
you are near
Please be near me to the end.

Refrain:
Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet
And a light unto my path
Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet
And a light unto my path.

I will not forget your love for me
And yet my heart forever
is wandering
Jesus be my guide, hold me
to Your side
And I will love You to the end.

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty

Backgrounder: The author of the
original German text is Joachim
Neander (1650-1680), who studied
theology in Bremen. Neander’s
life was tragic – a life of great
potential cut short by tuberculosis.
However, he wrote 60 hymns.
“Praise to the Lord, the Almighty”
is based on Psa 103 & 150. It was
also inspired by the beauty of
the hills and rivers that Neander
experienced on his walks
through the German countryside.
We owe a debt of gratitude
to Catherine Winkworth, who
translated this and other German
hymns during the 19th century.

Lord, we praise yr lovingkindness:
Let all that I am praise the Lord,
with my whole heart,
I will praise his holy name.
Let all that I am praise the Lord;
may I never forget the good
things he does for me.
Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases,
Who redeems your life from
destruction, Who crowns you
with lovingkindness and
Who satisfies your mouth
with good things (Psa 103:1-5).

Lord, we praise You for Your
lovingkindness, and thankful
for providing all that we need.
In times of difficulty, we will
Ponder anew What the Almighty
can do. We will ponder “What need
or grief ever had failed of relief”
For indeed our mighty God is not
limited ever & He has sustained
us with wings of an eagle.
And he is our friend and
defender. Praise indeed to
the Lord – The ALMIGHTY!!
In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Praise to the Lord,
The Almighty, the king of creation!
O my soul, praise Him,
For He is thy health and salvation!
All ye who hear,
Now to His temple draw near;
Praise Him in glad adoration.

Praise to the Lord,
Who o’er all things so
wondrously reigneth,
Shelters thee under His wings,
Yea, so gently sustaineth!
Hast thou not seen
How thy desires ever have been
Granted in what He ordaineth?

Praise to the Lord,
Who doth prosper thy work
and defend thee;
Surely His goodness And
mercy here daily attend thee.
Ponder anew
What the Almighty can do,
If with His love He befriend thee.

I Need Thee Every Hour

Backgrounder: Annie Hawks,
a homemaker from Brooklyn,
was busy with her household
chores when the words came
to her. She later wrote: I was so
filled with a sense of nearness
to my Master that, wondering
how one could live without Him
in either joy or pain, these words,
‘I need Thee ever hour’ were
flashed into my mind. Seating
by the open window in Apr 1872
& possibly inspired by Psa 86,
the words were penned to paper.

Lord, hear me for I need yr help:
Bend down, O Lord, and hear
my prayer: answer me, for I need
your help. Protect me, for I am
devoted to you. Save me, for
I serve you and trust you. You
are my God. Be merciful to me,
O Lord, for I am calling on you
constantly. Give me happiness,
O Lord, for I give myself to you.
(Psalm 86:1-4).

Lord, we humbly come before
Thee thanking you for your peace
for our soul will be in helpless
condition without your grace.
We need your strength to
overcome temptations and
the challenges that we face.
Indeed save and deliver us for
we serve you and trust in You.
And we need your blessings so
that being blessed we in turn can
be source of blessings to others.
Lord, we need Thee in every way,
in joy or in pain, so help and bless
us even as we come to Thee!!
In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

I need Thee ev’ry hour,
Most gracious Lord;
No tender voice like Thine
Can peace afford.

I need Thee, O I need Thee;
Ev’ry Hour I need Thee!
O bless me now, my Saviour,
I come to Thee.

I need Thee ev’ry hour,
Stay Thou nearby;
Temptations lose their pow’r
When Thou art nigh.

I need Thee ev’ry hour,
In joy or pain;
Come quickly, and abide,
Or life is vain.