Harry Emerson Fosdick is the author of “God Of Grace And God Of Glory.”  Fosdick was ordained in 1903 as a Baptist minister.  Fosdick was a man of great talent and perhaps the most vocal proponent of the social gospel of his time—a position that brought both wide acclaim and broad disdain...

“Jesus Shall Reign Where’re the Sun” is considered by many to be the first great missionary hymn.  It was written at a time when the church was doing little missionary work....

Edward Plumptre served for years as chaplain and professor at King’s College in London.  He taught biblical exegesis and theology, which can be pretty dull subjects—but this hymn proves that Plumptre had a common touch. ...

To Philip Bliss, the song, “Wonderful Words Of Life,” did not seem special. Bliss had written many songs but never thought this composition “possessed much merit.” He never told anyone about it. He carried it around for more than two years...

“For The Beauty Of The Earth” was written by Folliott Pierpoint, a classical scholar who lived a rather leisurely life in the lovely town of Bath, England.  It is thought that the loveliness of the area inspired Pierpoint to write this hymn.  While he wrote other hymns and poetry, it is only for this hymn that we remember him today...

Author Kenneth Osbeck wrote about ‘Tis So Sweet To Trust In Jesus in his devotional book Amazing Grace 365 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions.      

Out of one of the darkest hours of her life – the tragic drowning of her husband – a young mother proclaimed through her tears, “’Tis So Sweet To Trust In Jesus…and I know that thou are with me, wilt be with me to the end.”  As Louisa Stead, her husband and their little daughter were enjoying an ocean side picnic one day, a drowning boy cried for help.  Mr. Stead rushed to save him but was pulled under by the terrified boy.   Both drowned as Louisa and her daughter watched helplessly.  During the sorrowful days that followed, the words of this hymn came from the grief stricken wife’s heart...

"Maker, in whom we live" is well-known in the Methodist tradition. The text was written by Charles Wesley in 1747.

Originally, Wesley titled the hymn "To the Trinity" and published it in the Hymns for Those that Seek and Those that Have Redemption in the Blood of Jesus Christ in 1747…

We must never underestimate the power of love in our human relationships – whether marriages, family, business associations, or friendships.  The divine love of God for man far excels all other forms of love…

The Church’s One Foundation

The tune to this well-known hymn is called “Aurelia,” composed by the son of Samuel Wesley and the grandson of the hymn writer Charles Wesley  

A 27-year-old Anglican priest ministering in a poor district in England wrote the lyrics to this song in 1866. Samuel John Stone was inspired by the ninth article in the Apostles’ Creed: “I believe in the holy catholic (universal) church, the communion of saints…”

"Spirit Song," written in 1979, was written by John Wimber, founder of the Vineyard Christian Fellowship. It appears widely in hymnals and is one of the more popular new hymns in The United Methodist Hymnal. 

It might seem unlikely that a blind writer of hymns living in a slum and a wealthy woman living in a mansion would have anything in common — but Fanny Crosby, the blind hymn writer, was a humble woman with a number of distinguished friends. Grover Cleveland, who later became President of the United States, met Fanny Crosby as a young man, and they became lifelong friends.

Isaac Watts (1674-1748) wrote “O GOD, OUR HELP IN AGES PAST,” a paraphrase of Psalm 90, in 1714 when England was in crisis, faced with another wave of religious intolerance.

Robert Robinson was known as an unruly child while growing up.  At only eight years old his father died, and he was raised by his loving mother. In spite of Robert’s intellectual giftedness, he had a penchant for mischief. Robert’s mother sent him off for an apprenticeship when he was only 14, but once he left home his life got worse. Instead of working and learning, Robert chose drinking, gambling, and carousing with the wrong crowd. Caught up in his reckless life, Robert and his friends decided to go to an evangelist meeting one night just to heckle the preacher, George Whitfield. Sitting in that meeting, however, Robert felt as if the preacher’s words were meant for him alone. He couldn’t shake the feeling that God wanted him to surrender his life and serve him.

There are songs that very nearly sing themselves - songs that unite our minds and hearts, and in a matter of minutes transport us to a lofty place and another time. Such is the hymn “My Country ‘Tis Of Thee.”  

Samuel Francis Smith, age 24, was thrilled as he heard a children's choir at Park Street Church in Boston sing, for the first time in public, a song he had written several months earlier. The presentation was on July 4, 1832. 

Love Lifted Me was a joint effort of James Rowe and Howard E. Smith.  The two friends wrote the hymn together.

 James Rowe was born in Horrabridge, Devonshire, England in 1865.  He was the son of a copper miner.  James worked for the Irish government for four years, before immigrating to America.  He was 24 years old when he settled in Albany, NY and went to work on the railroad for the next ten years.  During this time he married and had at least one child.

Timothy Dwight, the author of the hymn, “I Love Thy Kingdom, Lord,” was an amazing man. He is best known as the President of Yale University. Yale has had many presidents in three centuries, but only a few have been memorable. Timothy Dwight was one of those few. He came to a university that had strayed far from its religious roots and he initiated a great religious revival there.

Samuel Wolcott was the pastor of the Plymouth Congregational Church in Cleveland, Ohio when the local branch of the YMCA (Young Men’s Christian Association) asked to hold a meeting in his sanctuary.  Wolcott not only agreed to allow their meeting, but also made it a point to attend.  As he listened to the speakers, he couldn’t help but notice the large banner that the YMCA sponsors had hung over the pulpit to announce the theme of the rally.  The banner read, “Christ for the World and the World for Christ.” 

The author of “Praise To The Lord The Almighty,” Joachim Neander, was born in Bremen, Germany in 1650.  In his early years, he lived a lusty, immoral life.  Then he and a group of friends decided to attend a service conducted by a visiting preacher, Pastor Under-Eyke, and Neander was quickly converted.  He was then influenced by Philipp Jakob Spener, a Pietist who sought to return vitality to the Lutheran church, which in his opinion had become staid and barren.  The Pietists emphasized individual piety, and instituted small groups for prayer, scripture study, personal accountability, and good works.  They believed that trust in Christ rather than correct theology constituted the core of the faith.  This de-emphasis on theology brought the Pietists into conflict with the more traditional Lutherans.

“Holy, Holy, Holy” was written by Reginald Heber, an Anglican clergyman, nearly two centuries ago.  He wrote hymns in an attempt to improve the singing in his little congregation at Hodnet, near Birmingham, England.

There’s a sweet, sweet Spirit was written by gospel songwriter Doris Mae Akers.   She was born in Brookfield, Missouri on May 21, 1923. She was one of ten children and developed an interest in music at an early age. By the age of six, she had taught herself to play piano by ear. She wrote her first song, “Keep the fire burning in me,” at the age of ten and two years later organized a five piece jazz band.