HOTM ~August

In Thy wrath and hot displeasure,

chasten not Thy servant, Lord;

let Thy mercy, without measure,

help and peace to me afford.

Heavy is my tribulation,

sore my punishment has been;

broken by Thine indignation,

I am troubled by my sin.

With my burden of transgression

heavy laden, overborne,

humbled low I make confession,

for my folly now I mourn.

Weak and wounded, I implore Thee;

Lord, to me Thy mercy show;

all my prayer is now before Thee,

all my trouble Thou dost know.

I am prone to halt and stumble,

grief and sorrow dwelt within,

shame and guilt my spirit humble,

I am sorry for my sin.

Lord, my God, do not forsake me,

let me know that Thou are near,

under Thy protection take me,

as my Savior now appear.

In Thy Wrath and Hot Displeasure was written by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry. He lived from February 17, 1848 until October 7, 1918. The son of an artist, he grew up in England and went to school at Oxford University. He became the professor of music at Oxford. He became a composer and married Lady Elizabeth Maude Herbert; they had two daughters together. This hymn is based on Psalm 38 which says,

O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath! For your arrows have sunk into me, and your hand has come down on me. There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin. For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. My wounds stink and fester because of my foolishness, I am utterly bowed down and prostrate; all the day I go about mourning. For my sides are filled with burning, and there is no soundness in my flesh. I am feeble and crushed; I groan because of the tumult of my heart. O Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you. My heart throbs; my strength fails me, and the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me. My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague, and my nearest kin stand far off. Those who seek my life lay their snares; those who seek my hurt speak of ruin and meditate treachery all day long. But I am like a deaf man; I do not hear, like a mute man who does not open his mouth. I have become like a man who does not hear, and in whose mouth are no rebukes. But for you, O LORD, do I wait; it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer. For I said, "Only let them not rejoice over me, who boast against me when my foot slips!" For I am ready to fall, and my pain is ever before me. I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin. But my foes are vigorous, they are mighty, and many are those who hate me wrongfully. Those who render me evil for good accuse me because I follow after good. Do not forsake me, O LORD! O my God, be not far from me! Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation!

In Christ,

Micaela

HOTM ~July

O sacred Head, now wounded,

with grief and shame weighed down,

Now scornfully surrounded with thorns,

Thine only crown;

O sacred Head, what glory,

what bliss till now was Thine!

Yet, though despised and gory,

I joy to call Thee mine.

What thou, my Lord, hast suffered,

was all for sinners' gain;

mine, mine was the transgression,

but Thine the deadly pain.

Lo, here I fall, my Savior!

'Tis I deserve Thy place;

look on me with Thy favor,

vouchsafe to me Thy grace.

What language shall I borrow

to thank Thee, dearest friend,

for this Thy dying sorrow,

Thy pity without end?

O make me Thine forever;

and should I fainting be,

Lord, let me never, never

outlive my love for Thee.

O Sacred Head Now Wounded was written by Bernard of Clairvaux, author of five hymns. Bernard was born sometime in 1091 and died August 21, 1153 in France. His father was a knight and vassal of the Duke of Burgundy. Not following in his father's footsteps, Bernard entered the monastery of Citeaux in 1113. Well-known in Rome and rising in eminence in Church politics, he founded 163 monasteries throughout Europe and later became embroiled in papal schisms. He was the first Cistercian monk to be placed on the calender of the saints and was canonized by Pope Alexander III. Pope Pius VIII bestowed on him the title of Doctor of the Church. He is also remember as the Honey-Sweet Doctor, for his eloquence.

An interesting statement really tells how he viewed Mary and salvation, " No one can enter Heaven unless by Mary, as though through a door." He also strongly believed that prayers should be made to Mary.

Dante Alighieri, in his Divine Comedy: Paradise, places Bernard as the last guide for Dante. Most likely because they both were devoted to Mary and mysticism.

Martin Luther, 400 years later, said of him, "the best monk that ever lived, whom I ad­mire beyond all the rest put to­ge­ther.”

In Christ,

Micaela

HOTM ~June

We have looked in faith to Christ,

Beholding God's atoning Lamb.

He for our sins was sacrificed,

Thus we, though dead, have been born again.

Refrain:

Jesus, Your beauty fills our eyes--

First looking, we were justified;

Now gazing deeper sanctifies,

Till face to face, we are glorified.

We still look each day to Christ

And by the unveiled view are changed.

The Spirit wields the Truth with might,

Conforming us to the Son unstained.

We will look one day on Christ

When He appears, triumphantly.

That blessed hope now purifies,

Till seeing Him, we like Him will be.

Your Beauty Fills Our Eyes was written by Chris Anderson and the tune was composed by Greg Habegger. I'm pretty sure it was written this year but the website wasn't clear on the exact date. Usually the HOTM is written by a deceased person but this one is written by a living person :-). Here is an excerpt from an overview of the meaning behind this hymn:

"This hymn celebrates the wondrous truth that each part of our salvation—justification, sanctification, and glorification—centers on the person and work of Jesus Christ. The three verses and they refrain allude to New Testament texts which teach that gazing on our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, is the means of our salvation."

In Christ,

Micaela

HOTM ~May

Glorious things of thee are spoken,

Zion, city of our God!

He, whose Word cannot be broken,

formed thee for His own abode.

On the Rock of Ages founded,

what can shake thy sure repose?

With salvation's walls surrounded,

thou may'st smile at all thy foes.

See! the streams of living waters,

springing from eternal love;

well supply thy sons and daughters,

and all fear of want remove:

Who can faint while such a river ever will their thirst assuage?

Grace which like the Lord,

the giver, never fails from age to age.

Blest inhabitants of Zion,

washed in our Redeemer's blood!

Jesus, whom their souls rely on,

makes them kings and priests to God.

'Tis His love his people raises,

over self to reign as kings, and as priests,

His solemn praises for a thankful offering brings.

Savior, if of Zion's city,

I though grace a member am,

let the world deride or pity,

I will glory in Thy Name.

Fading is the worldling's pleasure,

all his boasted pomp and show;

solid joys and lasting treasure

but Zion's children know.

It's hard to sum up all John Newton did in his lifetime. Here's a brief sketch on him: Glorious Things Of Thee Are Spoken was written by John Henry Newton, author of the famous hymn Amazing Grace. He was born on July 24, 1725 in London and died on December 21, 1807. An Anglican clergyman, former slave-ship captain, and an encouraging friend, John Newton was known by many names. He began sailing on voyages with his father at age eleven and went on a total of six voyages with his father before his father retired. Though he continued to run his slave-ships after his conversion to Christianity, he later came to repentance on that issue. He stopped running slave-ships and participating in slave trading after a severe stroke in 1754. He was accepted and ordained into the Church of England in 1764, seven years after he had originally applied for Anglican priesthood. His words to William Wilberforce, in regards to whether or not William should enter into the ministry, were especially commendable, "Serve God where he was".

In Christ,

Micaela

Hymn of the Month~April

Stricken, smitten, and afflicted, see Him dying on the tree.
'Tis the Christ by man rejected; yes, my soul, 'tis He, 'tis He.
'Tis the long expected Prophet, David's Son, yet David's Lord;
By His Son, God now has spoken; 'tis the true and faithful Word.

Tell me, ye who hear Him groaning, was there ever grief like His?
Friends thro' fear His cause disowning, foes insulting His distress;
Many hands were raised to wound Him, none would interpose to save;
But the deepest stroke that pierced Him was the stroke that Justice gave.

Ye who think of sin but lightly nor suppose the evil great
Here may view its nature rightly, here its guilt may estimate.
Mark the sacrifice appointed, see who bears the awful load;
'Tis the Word, the Lord's Anointed, Son of Man and Son of God.

Here we have a firm foundation, here the refuge of the lost;
Christ's the Rock of our salvation, His the name of which we boast.
Lamb of God, for sinners wounded, sacrifice to cancel guilt!
None shall ever be confounded who on Him their hope have built!

Stricken, Smitten, and Afflicted was written by Thomas Kelly, an author of over 760 hymns. Thomas Kelly was born on July 13, 1769 in Ireland and died on May 14, 1855. Planning to be a lawyer, he attended Trinity College and got his BA in 1789. After his conversion to Christ, he changed plans and became in Anglican priest in 1792.

This hymn was written based on Isaiah 53:4 which says, "Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted."

In Christ,

Micaela

Hymn of the Month--March

The church's one foundation

is Jesus Christ her Lord;

she is his new creation by water and the Word.

From heaven he came and sought her

to be his holy bride;

with his own blood he bought her,

and for her life he died.

Elect from every nation, yet one o'er all the earth;

her charter of salvation,

one Lord, one faith, one birth;

one holy name she blesses, partakes one holy food,

and to one hope she presses,

with every grace endued.

Though with a scornful wonder

we see her sore oppressed,

by schisms rent asunder, by heresies distressed,

yet saints their watch are keeping;

their cry goes up, "How long?"

And soon the night of weeping

shall be the morn of song.

Mid toil and tribulation, and tumult of her war,

she waits the consummation of peace forevermore;

till, with the vision glorious,

her longing eyes are blest,

and the great church victorious

shall be the church at rest.

Yet she on earth hath union

with God the Three in One,

and mystic sweet communion

with those whose rest is won.

O happy ones and holy!

Lord, give us grace that we

like them, the meek and lowly,

on high may dwell with thee.

The Church's One Foundation is a Christian hymn written in the 1860s by Samuel John Stone.
Samuel John Stone lived from April 1839 until November 1900. He was an ordained minister in the Church of England and is mostly remember for this hymn. He attended Pembroke College, Oxford and gained his BA in 1862 and later, was awarded his MA in 1872. He served as a curacy at two churches before he became minister of Haggerston.

The hymn was written as a direct response to some teaching, considered unorthodox at the time, by John William Colenso, first Bishop of Natal, which created schism within the church in South Africa.

In Christ,

Micaela

Hymn of the Month...for November

I know, this hymn was for November and it is now January but hey, I'm only a couple of months off :). This hymn is probably my favorite one so far; the lyrics, music, and length. Everything about it. I hope you enjoy it too.

Let all mortal flesh keep silence,

And with fear and trembling stand;

Ponder nothing earthly minded,

For with blessing in His hand,

Christ our God to earth descendeth,

Our full homage to demand.

King of kings, yet born of Mary,

As of old on earth He stood,

Lord of lords, in human vesture,

In the body and the blood;

He will give to all the faithful

His own self for heavenly food.

Rank on rank the host of heaven

Spreads its vanguard on the way,

As the Light of light descendeth

From the realms of endless day,

That the powers of hell may vanish

As the darkness clears away.

At His feet the six winged seraph,

Cherubim with sleepless eye,

Veil their faces to the presence,

As with ceaseless voice they cry:

Alleluia, Alleluia

Alleluia, Lord Most High!

This hymn was originally composed in Greek during the fourth century A.D. and is most commonly known as a French folk medley. It is based on Habakkuk 2:20. Nothing is known about the composer of this hymn.

In Christ,

Micaela

Hymn of the Month....

At my church we focus on a new hymn each month in addition to the other songs we sing on Sunday mornings. It's wonderful because we are able to learn new a lovely hymns that we may not have heard before; so I thought it would be interesting to do something like that on this blog.

Each month there will be a post on the background of a certain hymn: when, by whom, and why it was written. This month will be one of my favorites, Come Thou Fount...

1. Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of Thy redeeming love.
2. Sorrowing I shall be in spirit,
Till released from flesh and sin,
Yet from what I do inherit,
Here Thy praises I'll begin;
Here I raise my Ebenezer;
Here by Thy great help I’ve come;
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home.
3. Jesus sought me when a stranger,
Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood;
How His kindness yet pursues me
Mortal tongue can never tell,
Clothed in flesh, till death shall loose me
I cannot proclaim it well.
4. O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.
5. O that day when freed from sinning,
I shall see Thy lovely face;
Clothed then in blood washed linen
How I’ll sing Thy sovereign grace;
Come, my Lord, no longer tarry,
Take my ransomed soul away;
Send thine angels now to carry
Me to realms of endless day.

It was written by Robert Robinson in 1757 when he was twenty-two; those were the original verses which have sadly been revised in recent decades.

Mr. Robinson's father died when he was young and as he grew up, he lead a reckless and fruitless life. However, he heard a sermon by George Whitefield that filled him with the dread of God's wrath, and in response he became a Methodist minister.

Later in life he turned to Unitarianism because he doubted the full divinity of Christ. It was after this that a lady approached him while in a stagecoach, and asked him what he thought of his well-known hymn. He gave this response,

"Madam, I am the poor unhappy man who wrote that hymn many years ago, and I would give a thousand worlds, if I had them, to enjoy the feelings I had then."

He died on the 9, June 1790.

Although the story of the hymnist is very sad, it is still one of my favorite hymns.