16 | May | 2013 | Thoughts of Grace

May 16, Today’s thought – A Favorite Hymn

Dutch Iris at Grandma Crain’s

Good Morning

Once again we come
It is number 9 in the Hymnal of the Church of God.

When I was a young girl,
my family attended the Church of God in Kerman, CA.
Brother C. Craig was the pastor.
One of the members, Brother Armbrewster
(forgive me if the spelling is wrong),
was a German who didn’t speak much English;
but he had a strong faith in God.
He must have been in his sixties.
Whenever the song leader asked
if anyone wanted to pick a song to sing;
Brother Armbrewster always picked #9.
I don’t know if he didn’t know the numbers to any other songs
or if this one was his favorite.
I always think of him when we sing #9 as a congregation.
It is one of my favorite hymns.
I remember that his daughter
was one of my Sunday School teachers;
and that in that little country church
was where the seeds of my faith in God were planted.

1 Once again we come to the house of God,
To unite in songs of praise;
To extol with joy our Redeemer’s name,
And to tell His wondrous ways.

Refrain:
To Thy house, O Lord, with rejoicing we come,
For we know that we are Thine;
We will worship Thee in the Bible way,
As the evening light doth shine.

2 In the days gone by, Thou hast been our stay,
Thou hast led us safely on
To the blessed light of the present day,
Where the darkness now is gone. [Refrain]

3 May our hearts, O Lord, e’er united be
In true fellowship and love;
May Thy will be done by us here on earth,
As by angel hosts above. [Refrain]

4 May our prayers ascend as an incense sweet,
And our praise accepted be,
As in gratitude all our hearts o’erflow
In a tribute unto Thee. [Refrain]
~~Charles W. Naylor