How Great Thou Art

O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder
Consider all the world thy hand hath made
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder
Thy pow’r throughout the universe displayed;

Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee
How great Thou art! How great Thou art!
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee
How great Thou art! How great Thou art!

When through the woods and forest glades I wander
I hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;
When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur
And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze;

And when I think that God, His Son not sparing;
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;
That on the Cross, my burden gladly bearing
He bled and died to take away my sin.

When Christ shall come with shouts of acclamation
And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!
Then I shall bow in humble adoration
And there proclaim, “My God, how great Thou art!”

What a powerful hymn this is, and so timely with the theme of this Easter weekend.  I grew up singing this hymn in church all the time, but I think it’s so easy to overlook the incredible history behind it and so many others that have stood the test of time in our church hymnals. The life of this song actually spans over 100 years, and has a really cool story behind it. Apparently the original version, written in 1885, came to life after a massive storm in Kronobäck, Sweden. Its writer, Carl Boberg, was said to have been walking home from a church service when a sudden awe-inspiring storm gripped his attention, and then subsided to a peaceful calm which stirred up the lyrics to his song. I actually found a quote from the writer himself about the inspiration behind it:

Carl Boberg on the inspiration behind his song “How Great Thou Art”:

“It was that time of year when everything seemed to be in its richest coloring; the birds were singing in trees and everywhere. It was very warm; a thunderstorm appeared on the horizon and soon thunder and lightning. We had to hurry to shelter. But the storm was soon over and the clear sky appeared.

“When I came home I opened my window toward the sea. There evidently had been a funeral and the bells were playing the tune of ‘When eternity’s clock calling my saved soul to its Sabbath rest.’ That evening, I wrote the song.

Chris Rice did a beautiful version of this song, and it seemed like the perfect free download for this weekend with our celebration of all that Christ did for us on the cross. Scroll down to get the song for free, and have a wonderful Easter weekend celebrating our savior!

From the album “Peace Like A River” by Chris Rice

Preview the rest of the album & get your copy!

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Jonny Diaz gets us thinking about the “beauty of the cross” in this week’s bible study as we approach Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Check out his special video message, and written devotional below.

The “BEAUTY OF THE CROSS” Is Found In The Resurrection
By: Jonny Diaz

Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven. . .  1 Peter 1:3b-4 (The Message)

There is a song on my new record called, “Beauty Of The Cross.”  This title may not sound very strange or contradictory to you.   After all, we’ve been singing songs such as “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross,” and “How Beautiful the Cross” for decades.  However, if you step back and check this out from a non-churched perspective, you have to admit that it seems a little, well . . . weird!

That’s because to this day the cross is known as one of the most torturous killing devices ever conceived.  No one would ever sing a song called “The Beauty Of The Electric Chair,” or “The Wondrous Lethal Injection.”  Songs like these would not only get puzzled looks, but they would enrage many listeners.  And yet, we sing songs proclaiming the wondrous beauty of the cross, and no one bats an eye.  How do we explain this?

Well, it was on that ugly, barbaric cross that God’s amazing love for us was demonstrated.  It was on that cross that Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice for us was made.  It was on that cross where the forces of evil and the grace of God battled for supremacy.

At first glance, it would appear that evil was victorious . . . but three days later, when Jesus’ tomb was found empty, everything changed!  You see, it was the resurrection that brought beauty to that blood-stained cross.  It was the resurrection that turned tragedy into triumph and sacrifice into salvation.  It was the resurrection that transformed condemnation into redemption.

Without the resurrection the cross would remain just a horrific symbol of suffering and shame.  Instead it is a symbol of love and life and beauty.  And, when we believe that Jesus died on that cross for our sins and that he rose from the grave on the third day, our lives become beautiful too.