Through The Hymnbook

Carol Jones Saint: The happy chimes are ringing and my name is Carol Jones Saint, and I welcome you to the Organ Loft to enjoy some beautiful hymns. In this edition, Reverend Bert Jones will be playing some beautiful hymns that you will know and it may be you just want to sit back and listen, or I think you might want to sing along as Bert plays some of your favorites in this edition.

Reverend Bert Jones: Our faith is a very personal faith. When one has a personal encounter with Jesus Christ, then that faith is extremely personal and you have a personal testimony because you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ your Lord. Therefore, many gospel songs and hymns express that personal faith by beginning with that little personal pronoun "my", M-Y, my. For instance, one has written "My Faith Looks Up to Thee, Thou Lamb of Calvary."

Or again, personal faith is expressed in the beautiful old gospel song and hymn that says, "My Jesus, I Love Thee, I know Thou art mine; If ever I loved Thee, Lord Jesus, 'tis now." My Jesus, I Love Thee. It's very personal. It begins with "my".

This time we're going through the hymnbook looking for songs which speak of one's personal faith by having a title or first line that begins with "my", M-Y. And here's a good one. It says, "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness."

I think early in lifetime, most boys and girls and young people get a little training that says don't ask questions about a person's faith or person's politics or person's finances because those matters are personal. Well, I guess it's a good idea for boys and girls to learn that pretty quickly in life. If you don't learn it from mom and dad, then if you ask the wrong questions about faith or politics or finances, you may learn it some other way from somebody else. So better to learn it at home, that these are matters that are very personal.

Well, in this journey through the hymnbook, I'm not worried about personal finances and I'm not worried about your personal politics, but we're looking for songs that speak of personal faith. And all the songs I've played thus far have started with the personal pronoun "my". And here's a beautiful one: "My life, my love I give to Thee, Thou Lamb of Calvary; I'll live for Him who died for me."

And here's a song of great personal faith as it says, "My anchor holds, no matter how the angry surges roll, my anchor of faith grips the solid rock and my anchor holds."

Carol Jones Saint: Just pausing to let you know that you are enjoying Through the Hymnbook, a time when you go into the Organ Loft and hear some delightful music as played by the late Reverend Bert Jones. Sometimes you will hear chimes, sometimes you hear a canary singing, our canary singspiration, and he's such a joy. And then Bert goes through various hymnbooks.

Now, I would like to remind you that it would be wonderful to hear from you knowing that this music is a blessing and an inspiration. And when you're writing, it's either email organhymns@aol.com and it would mean so much to know that the music is a blessing to you.

Reverend Bert Jones: And this time songs of personal faith, songs that have titles or first lines that begin with "my". Here's a beautiful one from the 19th century. "My faith is found a resting place, not in device nor creed; I trust the ever-living One, His wounds for me shall plead. I need no other argument, I need no other plea, it is enough that Jesus died and that He died for me."

Here is a well-loved song, "My God and I," and you'll notice it begins with "my". That makes it very personal. The experience between one and his Lord. And this song is a very personal one as it says, "My God and I, we even walk the fields together and we have communion sweet."

Here's one of the most beautiful songs about heaven. It's called "My Home Sweet Home." Jesus made heaven very personal. Jesus made heaven very real as He said, "In my Father's house are many mansions and I will go to prepare them for you. And if I go, I will come again and receive you unto myself." No more beautiful concept of heaven than to think of it as home. "My Home Sweet Home," written by our friend of many years ago, Jack Vandal.

"My Redeemer" is the title used in many, many songbooks for this song that begins "I will sing of my Redeemer." Notice all these songs are extremely personal. They all begin with the personal pronoun that says "my".

This song you will remember was in the briefcase, the suitcase, the luggage of Philip Bliss when he perished in that great Ashtabula disaster of 1876. The train had crashed through the bridge and fell down some 90 feet into the ravine of the Ashtabula River.

And among the many who were killed, more than a hundred, was Philip Bliss the songwriter. He'd written these words, "I will sing of my Redeemer." They were rescued somehow from the tragic fire and his friend William McGranahan set it to music as the last testimony of the well-known songwriter, Philip Bliss.

A great song with a military feeling expresses Christian faith as it says, "My soul, be on thy guard; ten thousand foes arise. The host of sin are pressing hard to draw thee from the skies. Fight on, my soul, till death shall bring thee to thy God; He'll take thee at thy parting breath to His divine abode." Great hymn, "My Soul Be on Thy Guard." Notice it starts with "my".

And still another song based on the Word of God, based on words of the Psalmist as we find them, "My times are in Thy hand." How good to know that our times can be in His hand when we are in His hand too. "My times are in Thy hand, my God, I wish them there; my life, my friends, my soul, I leave entirely to Thy care."

With this great hymn of personal faith, "My times are in Thy hand, I will always trust in Thee; and after death at Thy right hand, I shall forever be." It's the answer to the riddle of life when you and I can say personally with David the Psalmist, "My times are in the Lord's hand." Until next time, hope you've enjoyed these very personal songs of personal faith, all beginning with "my". Bye.