The Sweetest Name of All – Tommy Coomes

 He was trying to rinse the bitter taste of failure out of his mouth, and he cried out in his prayer the relief he felt in savoring Him. That’s the short version how Tommy Coomes first sensed, and then frantically composed “The Sweetest Name of All”. He’d had success that he could recall when he felt low, but most of the time he spent regretting his shortcomings and the missed opportunities. But in his melancholy, Coomes surprised himself, for in his prayer, the words he uttered were without a thought toward music-writing. Something like a resonant chord, like milk chocolate on one’s tongue after days of fasting, revived him. Fortunately, for us believers, God doesn’t keep his sweets to himself (unlike in the picture – see a Mayan chief protecting his can of chocolate).

Tommy Coomes  spent a decade writing and producing great praise worship music in the 1970s, following his departure from the army. A stint with a group of musical friends, called Love Song – appropriately named, for the Jesus movement of the time – accompanied Coomes’ conversion to Christ. His enthusiasm spilled over into music-making, and he wrote and later produced hit after hit. One might imagine that this energetic, on-fire music man composed “The Sweetest Name of All” while on a high from all his success. But, Coomes confesses that the opposite is true. By 1980, he descended from the mountain, of a sort, that he’d been standing on. In the valley, he was unable to find solace in the things he’d done well, probably because the hectic pace had left him fatigued. ‘What have you done lately’ might have been the refrain that buzzed in his head, and Coomes says he saw gaps in other unspecified areas of his life, too. In his anguish, he didn’t realize that he was about to create more music. Who would, in that state of mind? He thought about God’s goodness, and about his own insignificance.        

His low-point discovery must have been a revelation to Coomes. Maybe he’d assumed he was not useful at that point. In fact, he was still putty, moldable material in His hands. When he realized a melodic moment was at hand, Coomes fought through his gloom. An hour later, it was done, another hit. He admits that he marvels about that hour still, about how He can turn an utter collapse on its head. There he was, on a high again. But, Coomes didn’t forget what it took for him to compose – it was the pit. You can see it in all three verses of the song’s words. He tells me he falls, frequently; that he still feels shame; that he needs God’s unique care. It’s a prayer of emptiness, filled with Him. The song is at once a microcosm of the believer’s life, and a self-portrait of a Tommy Coomes moment, one day in 1980. Take a look in the mirror…what does your portrait look like? Maybe your portrait is one God wants you to share, too.

The source for Tommy Coomes’ song story is the book “Celebrate Jesus: The Stories behind Your Favorite Praise and Worship Songs”, by Phil Christensen and Shari MacDonald, Kregel Publications, 2003.