Be Thou My Vision
This song is truly one of the most stirring and beautiful hymns in existence. The lilting, soaring melody is a traditional Irish tune. The text the hymn is based upon comes from the eighth century, and was translated into English prose by an Irish woman named Mary Byrne. In 1912, another gifted lady from England, Eleanor H. Hull, shaped the prose into the verse form that we know today. — Allan << To Music Page Great Is Thy Faithfulness
When I sing this song, I am reminded of God’s sovereignty and consistency. Sometimes it feels like God doesn’t know what He’s doing, or that He isn’t faithful. However, I’m shown over and over how His will is best even when I don’t understand. I would like to dedicate this song to the memory of my professor, Dr. David King, and to his wife and family. Our school lost a professor, a friend and a great man of God. — Todd << To Music Page Bika Mono Ve (Pass Me Not, O Gentle Saviour)/It Is Well With My Soul
My brother Todd and I spent a good deal of our growing years (1978-1986) in Zaire, where our parents are missionaries. “Bika Mono Ve” is Kituba for “Pass Me Not, O Gentle Saviour.” I remember hearing this song during the time when a close friend of ours in Congo, almost an adopted member of our family, was put in jail for a crime he did not commit. When Dad and a group of friends went to visit him there, this was the song they sang over and over again. — Nicol The inspiration for many of the great hymns came out of incredibly painful experiences. Many times that is when writers compose their greatest works. Horatio Spafford wrote “It Is Well With My Soul” after receiving word that his four precious daughters had drowned in the Atlantic Ocean. While en route to meet his grieving wife in England, he wrote these words as the ship passed over the waters where their lives were lost … “When sorrows like sea billows roll, it is well with my soul.” — Todd << To Music Page There Is A Fountain
Sometimes it seems as though we can never relate to the writers of the great hymns of our faith—that these authors are on an entirely different “spiritual wavelength” than the rest of us. However, William Cowper, who wrote these strong and assuring words of God’s love and mercy, was never able to rest in that security in his own troubled life. He suffered a nervous breakdown, attempted suicide several times, and was even confined to an insane asylum for a time, where he was placed in a straitjacket for his own protection. Cowper was plagued throughout his lifetime with the feeling that God would someday turn His back on him, a feeling that we have all shared at one time or another. It is said that on his deathbed, however, William Cowper looked upward with amazement on his face and said, “I am not shut out of Heaven after all.” His words of assurance, based on Zechariah 13:1, have comforted and encouraged Christians the world over for two centuries, and will continue to give comfort to doubting Christians throughout the ages until we all have the great assurance and indescribable joy of seeing our Savior face to face. — Allan << To Music Page Amazing Grace
The author of this beloved hymn, John Newton, was a living example of how no one is beyond the mercy of God. Years before he wrote it, he had been a first mate on an English slave ship and plunged into a world of violence, rape, and merciless oppression. Not only did he refuse to believe in God, but he made it a point to destroy the faith of any believing crewmember. At one point, his own vile behavior landed him in chains for many weeks, where he found himself at the mercy of slaves who took pity on him in his helplessness. On a ship back to England, a terrible storm took the life of one of the sailors, and John could not shirk the question of death and where he stood with God. He knew he was not deserving of God’s forgiveness, but he also remembered hearing that Christ had died for sinners. “I see no reason why the Lord singled me out for mercy … unless it was to show, by one astonishing instance, that with Him nothing is impossible.” His epitaph well reads: “John Newton … once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, pardoned, and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to destroy.” — Nicol << To Music Page How Great Thou Art
This hymn is undoubtedly one of the most famous worldwide, which is fitting, because the song as we know it today comes from different parts of the world. A Swedish minister named Carl Boberg wrote a poem in 1885 entitled “O Store Gud” (“O Mighty God”). A few years later, the poem was being sung to the tune of an old Swedish melody, but did not achieve widespread fame. However, a British missionary, Stuart K. Hine, heard the hymn while traveling in Russia in the Carpathian Mountains. He changed the melody a bit and expanded the words into the verses that we know today. Mr. Hine wrote the first verse after being caught in a powerful thunderstorm in a Carpathian village that he wasn’t sure he would survive. In 1954, George Beverly Shea learned the song during a Billy Graham Crusade in London, and he introduced it the following year at the Toronto Crusade. The song gained even greater fame at the 1957 New York Crusade when Bev Shea sang it 99 times with a mighty choir behind him!! We’ve all been singing it ever since. — Allan << To Music Page His Eye Is On The Sparrow
1980 … 400 miles into the Congo bush … our brother, Jack, then a baby, was so sick that we weren’t sure he would make it … the nearest hospital was six hours away and Dad had gone on an evangelism trip for a few days. Mom took Jack down to the church and wept, asking God to spare his life. When the rain stopped, his fever broke, and he was healed. Living in the bush, we were reminded every day of how little was in our control, which was never easy or by our choice. But one of the things I miss about life out there is the opportunity to see God answer prayer in a way that happens when we have no other option but to depend on Him for our survival. This song reminds me of those times. — Nicol << To Music Page Be Still My Soul/What A Friend We Have In Jesus
This is my favorite hymn. It is so reassuring. It has definitely spoken to me through the highs and lows and anxieties of life in the music business. This song is dedicated to Mrs. Clifton and Joseph. — Nicol << To Music Page By And By
In 1948 my grandfather Laban and grandmother Marcella started the mission station of Nkara-Ewa. This is where Nicol and I grew up in Congo, Africa. So many people were coming to know Jesus as their Savior that the Belgian government outlawed baptism for two years. They thought the people were excited and didn’t know what they were doing. My grandparents continued to disciple and share the gospel during those two years. The recording you’re hearing is of my grandfather in our lake on the first day he was allowed to baptize. The Belgian government didn’t realize how real Jesus was to the Congolese, because on this day over 1,000 people were baptized. In the background you can hear my grandmother and the Congolese singing the old hymn “We’ll Understand it Better By and By” which she and my father Jim translated into Kituba. I also had the privilege of having my dad sing with me on this recording. — Todd << To Music Page When I Survey The Wondrous Cross
The words of this hymn are sheer poetry, describing in majestic and poignant phrases the sacrificial gift of Christ and the ramifications of that gift for us. When we truly ponder this awesome moment, that the Creator of all things would willingly give His life to redeem His creation, we can only agree with the hymn writer that such a love “demands my soul, my life, my all.” I would like to dedicate this song to Cynthia Clawson, on whose Hymnsinger album this arrangement first appeared. Cynthia, thank you for being such a wonderful influence and inspiration, and for serving the Lord unfailingly with one of the most beautiful voices He ever made. — Allan << To Music Page Part The Waters/I Need Thee Every Hour
The first half of this medley is the chorus of a song recorded by Evie Tournquist in the 1970s. Todd, Nicol, and I have always appreciated the many great artists who have “paved the way before us.” Today’s Christian music industry owes them all a great debt: Russ Taff, Cynthia Clawson, Evie, Andrae Crouch, and many, many more. The second half is the beautiful old hymn, “I Need Thee Every Hour”, written by Annie S. Hawks in 1872. Annie was a homemaker and mother of three children. One morning as she was going about her regular household work, she felt a very sudden sense of “nearness to the Master,” as she described it, and “the words were ushered into my mind.” She then showed the four stanzas to her pastor, Dr. Robert Lowry (who also was a fine poet and musician). Dr. Lowry wrote the tune for the lyrics and added the stirring chorus. The song was published later that year and was met with immediate acclaim and appreciation. Sixteen years after she wrote these comforting words, Annie’s husband died. Her own words capture beautifully what this hymn has meant to many later generations: “I did not understand at first why this hymn had touched the great throbbing heart of humanity. It was not until long year after, when the shadow fell over my way, the shadow of a great loss, that I understood something of the comforting power in the words, which I had been permitted to give out to others in my hour of sweet serenity and peace.” — Allan << To Music Page Precious Lord, Take My Hand/Just A Closer Walk With Thee
How many of you have been so hurt that the last thing you wanted to do was to turn to God? That was Thomas A. Dorsey’s first reaction after he lost his wife and child. Unfortunately, when we separate ourselves from the arms of Christ, we draw farther and farther away from being healed and comforted from our suffering. Although he was devastated, Mr. Dorsey knew his loneliness would only increase without the help of Jesus. While in the healing process, he wrote this song. — Todd << To Music Page There Is Power In The Blood
This is a great old hymn written during a camp meeting in 1899 by Lewis Jones. Lewis graduated from Moody Bible Institute and worked for the YMCA. He wrote hymns on the side, and this song has endured for over 100 years now, encouraging many generations to overcome temptations through the “precious blood of the Lamb.” — Allan << To Music Page O Sacred Head Now Wounded
We originally recorded this song for the Next Door Savior CD that was a companion piece to the book of the same name by Max Lucado. This hymn is a perfect blend of lyric and melody, but it took approximately 600 – 700 years to get that way!!! The text comes from a 12 th century poem attributed to St. Bernard, abbot of the monastery in Clairvaux, France. The text was translated into German in the 17 th century by Pal Gerhardt, and was set to a tune that was originally a German love song written in 1601 by Hans Leo Hassler. The tune was harmonized for church use by none other than J.S. Bach himself! This version first appeared in 1644 in a German hymnal. The hymn finally appeared in English in the 19 th century after being translated by a Presbyterian minister, James W. Alexander. I love the fact that God moved through several centuries and used the gifts of a number of people to create this stunning work—reminding us here in the 21 st century of Christ’s suffering and great love for us. — Allan << To Music Page Be Thou Near To Me
We were very excited when Jim Brickman asked us to join in on this song with him. Jim has worked with many wonderful artists during his career, and we were honored that he liked us enough to add us to his list!!! Also, this is a recording that features the beautiful vocals of Melodie Crittenden, who many of you have seen in concert with us. — Allan << To Music Page |
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