PRAY Lord, thank you for your amazing and unending Grace. For redeeming even the worst of sinners, for seeing us through the most difficult of situations, and carrying us all the way Home. LYRIC Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see. Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved; how precious did that grace appear the hour I first believed! Through many dangers, toils and snares I have already come: 'tis grace has brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home. The Lord has promised good to me, his word my hope secures; he will my shield and portion be as long as life endures. Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail, and mortal life shall cease: I shall possess, within the veil, a life of joy and peace. The earth shall soon dissolve like snow, the sun forbear to shine; but God, who called me here below, will be forever mine. SCRIPTURE Psalm 103:8 BACKGROUND If ever there was a story of a life being pulled in to Christ, the testimony of John Newton is it. Although his mother was a strong Christian influence on his early years, she passed away and he joined his father on a sailing ship at age 11 where he endured both flogging for a desertion attempt and captivity by a slave trader. Over the course of his escape, he himself became a captain of a ship in the slave trade for many years. However, through his friendship with both William Wilberforce and Mary Catlett (who he eventually married), he not only left the slave trade but became a staunch abolitionist and eventually entered the ministry. In addition to becoming ordained in the Church of England, he also helped publish a hymnal to which he contributed 280 hymns including his most famous, "Amazing Grace." As with many hymn-tunes, NEW BRITAIN is a folk-tune that has been passed down through generations. Although it has been paired with other hymn-texts on occasion, it is best known for its affiliation with Newton's Amazing Grace. One account noted that "if America had a national folk-hymn, this would probably be it." PERSONAL A few years ago when Kelly Minter was filming her "All Things New" Bible study, we chose to include this tune as a tag on the end of another song we were doing and this arrangement was born. There is something so stilling about this melody and as I was researching the birth of the lyric it hit me what a statement of faith this song is. While we can't control our circumstances, we can control our reactions to them. Circumstance led Newton to some pretty bleak surroundings, but he chose Christ anyway and became a man who share the good news. The apostle Paul comes to mind in this story too. Formerly Saul, Paul had a rap sheet a mile long of offenses against humanity that were contradictory to Christ. But through a radical conversion he became one of the most powerful evangelists of the Gospel in history and his words remain a huge influence on people even today. I've found verse three to be an especial comfort in these times to help me remember that Christ has already brought us through difficult things in the past, and He has NO plans on stopping until He brings us Home with him forever. Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come: 'tis grace has brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.
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PRAY Lord, there is no situation too bleak, no tragedy too deep, and no storm too fierce to separate us from you. Thank you for the kind of peace that can only come to our soul through your love and grace, no matter what trials may come. LYRIC When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, "It is well, it is well with my soul." It is well with my soul; it is well, it is well with my soul. Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, let this blest assurance control: that Christ has regarded my helpless estate, and has shed his own blood for my soul. It is well with my soul; it is well, it is well with my soul. My sin oh, the bliss of this glorious thought! my sin, not in part, but the whole, is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more; praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul! It is well with my soul; it is well, it is well with my soul. O Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight, the clouds be rolled back as a scroll; the trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend; even so, it is well with my soul. It is well with my soul; it is well, it is well with my soul. SCRIPTURE John 14:27 BACKGROUND Because their account of the story says it best, I am sharing with you verbatim the hymn history from Hymnary.org. In November, 1873, Horatio Spafford sent his wife and four daughters on the French ship Ville du Havre from their home in Chicago to a vacation in France, planning to set out a few days later himself. Somewhere in the Atlantic, the Ville du Havre collided with a British ship coming the other way, and sank in just 12 minutes. Of his family, only Spafford’s wife survived. Spafford took the next boat over, and as he passed the spot where the ship went down, began to write, “When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll,” and continued until he had the text, “It is well with my soul.” His good friend, Philip Bliss, composed the tune for his words, naming it after the ship, VILLE DU HAVRE. In this hymn, Spafford has given all of us words of comfort and assurance in times of physical and spiritual crisis, paraphrasing those familiar words of Julian of Norwich: “And all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.” PERSONAL In addition to once again having Michelle Margiotta on keys, tonight's featured guest performer is incredibly accomplished cellist, string arranger, composer and all-around musician, Cara Fox. I won't even try to list her accolades as her album credits alone are a mile long, but it's safe to say that if there's a cello line you've loved in a song...any song recently, it might just be her. Cara is married to accomplished producer Jared Fox and they live in Nashville with their toddler son. I knew that having Cara and her cello lend their voice to this tune would bring to life the hope that we each can have in Christ no matter our pain or loss. I'm grateful for her as a musician and a friend and I know you'll be blessed by her artistry.
I honestly can't remember when I actually first met Cara, but what sticks out in my mind as the "official" beginning of our friendship was when she graciously agreed to be the cellist at our wedding when Keith and I got married 10 years ago. She rocked out both a Bach cello suite and a YoYo Ma/James Taylor arrangement of "Here Comes The Sun" when I came down the aisle and I'll be forever grateful for the literal tone that she set for the rest of our marriage: rich, deep, and sunny. Since then we've had the opportunity to play together at sessions, on a music video and at various events...she's on the short list of people I can say I have played with onstage at the Ryman auditorium...but on the non-musical front, we've also been blessed to get to walk through motherhood together as our sweet little ones were born on the same day in the same hospital. My earliest memory of the hymn "It Is Well" is a tragic one but it is so deeply etched in my head that I truly think about every time I hear the song and it was present on my mind as I recorded this version I'm sharing with you tonight. Growing up, a boy my own age that I was acquainted with accidentally killed his cousin with a gun that the two boys were playing with but didn't realize was loaded. Although I did not attend the service, I remember my mom and a friend crying and recounting how the divorced parents of the deceased child sang this hymn together as a duet at the funeral. Processing this situation now as an adult, wife and parent, although I can't possibly understand how these grieving parents would have been able to share this message under those circumstances, the impact on my soul is heavy as I realize the extreme faith it must have taken to claim Christ as the Healer of all souls. Whatever loss or hardship you are facing right now, even if it seems insurmountable and impossible that you will ever be able find life again on the other side, I promise that there is One who has given His life to redeem yours. PRAY Jesus, mold our hearts so that You are all that we desire. May we rather have You than anything this earth has to offer. LYRIC I'd rather have Jesus than silver or gold; I'd rather be His than have riches untold; I'd rather have Jesus than houses or lands. I'd rather be led by His nail pierced hand Than to be the king of a vast domain Or be held in sin's dread sway. I'd rather have Jesus than anything This world affords today. I'd rather have Jesus than men's applause; I'd rather be faithful to His dear cause; I'd rather have Jesus than worldwide fame. I'd rather be true to His holy name. He's fairer than lilies of rarest bloom; He's sweeter than honey from out the comb; He's all that my hungering spirit needs. I'd rather have Jesus and let Him lead SCRIPTURE Philippians 3:8 BACKGROUND I'd Rather Have Jesus was written by Rhea F. Miller. She grew up the only child of an alcoholic father and a devoutly Christian mother who faithfully prayed for her husband's deliverance from addiction. Eventually he did get clean and turn his life around to the point that he even became a Baptist preacher. One day when she was 28, Miller was out for a walk and began to reflect on how her father had said he would, "rather have Jesus than all the gold and silver in the world, and all the houses and land that money could buy." Thus she composed these lyrics and even her own music although her tune would soon be replaced by another one. The tune that we sing this statement of faith to goes by the same title as the song and was written by the great George Beverly Shea, most famous for leading the music at Billy Graham's Evangelistic crusades. PERSONAL I first met Kelly Minter in the summer of 2012. I had felt the Lord beginning to shift me into a new season and mentioned this to a friend I bumped into one day while running errands. Through what can only be the Lord, she told me to dust off my resume that night and she'd be happy to recommend me as her replacement as she was actually moving on to another opportunity as well. To this day I'm not entirely sure why Kelly took a chance on me, but for the next 6 and a half years I had the privilege of being Kelly's assistant/road manager/violinist until I "retired" to stay home with Clare when she was born. (And thank goodness she hired me, because there aren't too many "assistant/road manager/violinist" jobs to be had out there.) Kelly and I often laugh about how neither of us had a clue what we were getting into when she first called me about taking the job with her. Since then we've traveled to 31 states and 1 foreign country together on more trips than most families take together in a lifetime and gotten into too many shenanigans to recount here. Kelly is many things: an author, a speaker, a Bible scholar, a chef, a green thumb...her mind never stops dreaming up amazing things and keeping up with her pace is all but impossible for the rest of us around her, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Her depth of soul, kind and generous heart and drive to accomplish the work she's given herself to inspire me to be the kind of person who makes everything I do count, loves her friends fiercely, and serves the church in both the local and global sense. If you've ever been to one of her Cultivate: A Gathering Around The Word events, or done her "All Things New" Bible study, you'll recognize her beautiful arrangement of "I'd Rather Have Jesus." I chose it partly because it's become so dear to me over the past few years, and partly because it could be a subtitle for Kelly's life. She truly lives each day choosing Him first in all things and it's beautiful to have a front row seat to watch it all. During these strange times, Kelly is graciously providing some fantastic free resources that I know you will find encouraging and uplifting. We would love for you to take advantage of these and I've listed them below. I know you will be blessed by them.
Also, Kelly works closely with Justice & Mercy International, an organization that seeks to meet the physical and spiritual needs of the poor, the orphaned and the forgotten. The awesome "JUSTICE + MERCY" sweatshirts that we are wearing in tonight's video can be purchased HERE in their online store. (along with lots of other cool items.) ***Please note that the entire amount of money earned from any merchandise purchases goes directly to the work of JMI. Kelly and I do not receive any kickbacks. PRAY Lord, we do truly need you EVERY hour of each and every day. Do not pass us by, but hear us calling out Your Holy Name for who have we but You to call on in our times of need? LYRICS
The lyric for "I Need Thee Every Hour" was written in 1872 by Annie S. Hawks, a prolific hymn-writer from New York and Robert Lowry added the refrain as well as the tune aptly called [I Need Thee Every Hour (Lowry)]. Lowry was the type of person who seemed to do absolutely everything; a preacher, church administrator, musician, writer...the list goes on. In the middle of reading his biographical information it mentioned he took a 4 year sabbatical in the middle of his life to which I thought, "Thank goodness! He needed one!" and then when that sabbatical wasn't long enough he immediately took another one after which he resumed his life's work in the church until his death. "Pass Me Not O Gentle Savior" was penned by none-other than hymn-writing superstar Fanny Crosby. Despite losing her sight at age 6 through an illness, Fanny went on to get a full education and become a teacher as well as writing some of the greatest hymns of all time. The tune (Pass me not, O Gentle Savior (Doane)), was written, unsurprisingly, by W. Howard Doane. One source described him as an "amateur composer," but then went on to note that he "wrote over twenty-two hundred hymn and gospel song tunes, and he edited over forty songbooks." As my dad would say, "not bad for an amateur." PERSONAL This 14-hymns-in-14-days project has honestly been one of the most fun but also most challenging creative projects I've undertaken. Either creating an arrangement of a song, or learning an arrangement one of my friend's has written alone is no small task, but couple that with trying to get a no-mistake-"take" without the cat meowing, or a loud car driving by, or did I mention that my 2 year old has decided to give up napping during this shelter-in-place-order? And writing these blogs takes time as well to research the hymn, and put together thoughtful sentences about the song or my guest. It's one of the most fulfilling projects I've undertaken, but I definitely underestimated how difficult it would be to accomplish. To be honest, I woke up this morning with absolutely no clue what I was going to post tonight. I have a few collaboration videos coming up but none of those were ready to go for today. I have a list of potential hymns, but nothing was really jumping out at me and then I got a text from my mom with a request for "I Need Thee Every Hour" and it just made sense. "Pass Me Not..." has always been a favorite and I thought they would pair well together, and this was born. Isn't life like that? I'm in a group text with 13 other incredible women who I've walked through alot with over the past 10 years. Today has been especially heavy for our crew for a host of reasons and my screen keeps lighting up with prayer requests and admissions of how hard things are and it is a reminder of how much we truly need the Lord...Every. Single. Hour. But the texts of encouragement keep coming as well, one after another, holding each other up virtually with our words. And I know that our Savior will not pass us by. PRAY Jesus, thank you for being the constant friend we can run to in times of trial and in times of joy! Thank you for listening to our prayers, and shielding us in your arms so that we may find solace. LYRIC What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer! O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer! Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere? We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer! Can we find a friend so faithful who will all our sorrows share? Jesus knows our every weakness; take it to the Lord in prayer! Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge-- take it to the Lord in prayer! Do your friends despise, forsake you? Take it to the Lord in prayer! In his arms he'll take and shield you; you will find a solace there. SCRIPTURE John 15:14-15 BACKGROUND Joseph M Scriven penned the well-known hymn "What A Friend We Have In Jesus" and the testimony that he found comfort and healing in Christ is a powerful one given that he lived a pretty tragic life from beginning to end. He battled depression and his dedication to the poor and disabled in the community often left him an outcast and without a place to lay his head himself. He had not one but two fiancés die before he had the chance to wed them and he himself met with an unfortunate end by drowning. One account of the origins of the lyric says, "A neighbour, sitting up with him in his illness, happened upon a manuscript of 'What a Friend we have in Jesus.' Reading it with great delight, and questioning Mr. Scriven about it, he said he had composed it for his mother, to comfort her in a time of special sorrow, not intending any one else should see it." The tune this lyric is most often set to is entitled "CONVERSE" after it's composer Charles C Converse (although he published it under the pseudonym "Karl Rede"), and is also sometimes called "Eerie" or "Friendship." Converse was a lawyer as well as running an organ company, and composed several hymns. The factoid I found most interesting about him is that a "Doctor of Music degree was offered him by Sterndale Bennett of Cambridge University in England for the five-voice double fugue at the end of his Psalm-Cantata on Psalm 126, but he declined the offer." He did accept an honorary "Doctor of Laws" degree however a few yeas later. This arrangement and closing motive were written by Dr. Michelle Margiotta, a contemporary multi-instrumentalist, Professor of Music Composition, music educator, worship leader, composer, and arranger. In addition to having released several albums of her own music, her past accomplishments include leading worship at Times Square Church in Manhattan, playing many concerts with contemporary Christian artist Kathy Troccoli and composing orchestrations for Kathy Lee Gifford. PERSONAL I could not be more excited to have my dear friend Michelle Margiotta back with me again tonight for her second round of Hymns From Home. Her enthusiasm for this project has remained unparalleled from the start...on our initial phone conversation about this project Michelle interrupted me at one point and started listing off all the hymns she wanted to play! "What A Friend" was the second title she rattled off and as several folks had requested it I was definitely interested. However, I was initially concerned that this brilliant arrangement would be too "peppy" for the tone I was trying to set; space to close your eyes and pray. But after reading the story behind the hymn, that it was born out of a place of gratefulness for the refuge Jesus is from our pain, it made perfect sense for this season.
It also made sense to record a song with "Friend" in the title with Michelle as she is such a dear one. I know I already shared a bit about how we met a few blogs ago when we did "Be Thou My Vision," but she is truly a gift. One of my most favorite memories of our friendship was a few years ago when I had a day off on a trip to the East Coast. I grew up spending large chunks of the summer at my grandparents' house "down the shore in Jersey" and some of my sweetest memories are rooted in that house. They moved about 23 years ago and are now both deceased but I had dreamed of a day that I could drive by and see that home, which Michelle knew, so when I had a day off, she drove from her then-home in Long Island to Laguardia airport (which, if you've ever flown in and out of that place, you know is a sign of a true friend), picked me up, and drove me to South New Jersey to eat with my cousins and see this home that held such a special place in my heart. When we finally got back to Long Island after one of the sweetest afternoons "strolling down memory lane" so to speak, her parents' had a Friendly's Wattamelon Roll waiting for me - also a childhood favorite that they knew I liked. In addition to being an encourager and playing on two episodes of this project, Michelle volunteered to take on all the video editing, which thank goodness because I honestly had asked people to do duets with me before it really occurred to me that I didn't know how to mash them together into one video. But that's just the kind of friend Michelle is...she wants to see her friends thrive and she's ready to help make that happen without being asked. |
#lifeontheroadStories and thoughts and current happenings in music and life Archives
January 2022
CategoriesAbout BethanyBethany is a freelance violinist/fiddler and tour manager who works with artists & events such as Kelly Minter, Cultivate: A Gathering Around The Word and Laura Story. She and her husband Keith live in Nashville, TN with their daughter Clare, cat & 6 backyard chickens. For more info on Bethany, visit her bio page!! |