Prince of Peace! Control My Will -- Mary A.S. Barber or Mary S.B.D. Shindler

She evidently spoke the English language, but there is little more than that which is known about this poetess/hymnist from the 19^th Century. Her first name was Mary, and she felt like praying, so she chose to let others know what was going on inside her when she wrote “Prince of Peace! Control My Will”. This woman felt a conviction that she needed to surrender herself to God, but admitted she struggled with some inner turmoil. Could she overcome the misgivings she sensed within herself? Her questions were probably no different than ones we might ask ourselves nearly two centuries later. Is it OK to believe God’s purposes are perfect, yet shrink from submitting to His way? This Mary wanted to say this was her dilemma, while drawing just a little closer to Him.

The Mary who called out to the Prince of Peace, and for His will and control in her life, was either Mary Ann Serrett Barber or Mary Stanley Bunce Dana Shindler. Mary Barber was a poetess from England, where many of her works were published in the Church of England Magazine, so when “Prince of Peace! Control My Will” appeared in that journal in 1838, she may well have been the source. We can assume this woman, in her mid-to-late 30s, was a member of the Church of England, though what other specific circumstances may have prompted her poem are unknown. Mary Shindler was likewise a poetess and the author of a handful of hymns, but in America, where she was in her mid-to-late 20s in 1838. She’d married Charles Dana in 1835and had a son by the time the words appeared in print, and shortly thereafter they all moved to Iowa, where she lost both her husband and son. (She later returned to her native South Carolina, where she was remarried, to a college professor named Robert Shindler.)Whether Mary was a 30-something Englishwoman or a 20-something American, this woman voiced a prayer. She longed for peace, amid a life that evidently left her feeling that some inner disorder was still present. She hints at or notes clearly this extant condition in the first three verses, so she plainly did not yet feel she’d conquered what troubled her. Sound familiar? Everybody needs order, but where does one find it?

Does anyone in their 20s or 30s ever think they’ve got it all figured out? If everyone is honest, they’d admit lots of hurdles bang their shins as they attempt to jump over the issues that block their paths. Mary Shindler and Mary Barber may have been an ocean apart, but there’s no reason to doubt that either could have authored the words of “Prince of Peace…”. The words this poetess used are so universal, that no one could feel they are foreign to his experience. Wherever I am on my timeline, I cannot divorce myself from certain reservations. I want my own agenda, but recognize that I can be indulgent and harmful to myself. Yet, can I be sure my own needs will be met if I turn to Him more completely?  Is it possible to have everything align on my timeline, with some nexus making it all work perfectly? This Mary, whether she was 25 or 35, had decided that she’d been too focused on herself, and was turning in another direction. She’d decided where, or who, nexus was. Exit doubt, enter God, was her message.    

Some information on the possible author of the hymn’s poetry is here: http://www.hymnary.org/text/prince_of_peace_control_my_will

See this site also: http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/p/p/c/ppcontmw.htm

No Longer Slaves -- Brian Johnson, Joel Case, Jonathan David Helser

Call it a collaboration, one that developed across centuries. No less than five people were originators of the words that came together in “No Longer Slaves” around 2014. Its inception is a familiar one for those people like the Helsers (Jonathan David and Melissa) and their friends Brian Johnson and Joel Case, musicians who delve into the bible’s pages for inspiration. These four wanted to share a message of confidence, and their musical genesis was an apostle-writer’s letter they must have been reading or remembering as they thought about how to make this process fruitful. How they decided to proceed is a story of synergy, between themselves and undoubtedly directed toward those whom they wanted to communicate, in a generation some two millennia removed from the original thoughts that captured their own imaginations. Slavery is an old institution (see picture here of some Christian slaves in 19^th Century Algeria), one that we humans have been fighting for a long time.

‘We Will Not Be Shaken’ is the title of the album that Brian, Joel, and the Helsers were bouncing off of each other in 2014. They’re part of Bethel Music in California, where they spent an evening in a live recording of the album, sharing with the audience what they felt about their conviction. The words of “No Longer Slaves” speak about their own certain feelings, as well as recall a history of belief in the Red Sea episode (Exodus 14). You can tell from a video story (see link below) by the Helsers how the song’s ideas helped spur them to creativity. Brian’s immediate positive reaction to the Helsers’ suggested inclusion of “No Longer Slaves” was a sign that its words had struck a chord between the group’s members. From Brian to Jonathan, and then from Jonathan to Melissa, with Joel included also, the four of them teamed up to bring to life the song about freedom from slavery. Jonathan says he had a powerful mental image of the Red Sea story that stirred him, and the great apostle’s words to Roman people (chapters 6-8) from the first century likewise resonated with these composers, too. They concluded that what worked for themselves, as 21^st Century musicians pondering ancient words, would be an effective transmitter to a larger audience. But, one cannot merely mouth thoughts without first personally engaging in their meaning, Melissa says. ‘This is my testimony’ she declares, regarding the song’s title words. Evidently, she herself spent some time prostrate considering what freedom meant, before she took a stab at singing ‘You rescued me’ and ‘I am a child of God’, the song’s finishing cries. Was this a reenactment of what that 1^st Century writer might have done, as he considered his own liberation?

Perhaps boring into, and identifying with the 1^st Century writer’s story would be an effective strategy for all of us. An educated Jew like Paul would have known the story of Israel fleeing the Egyptians via the Red Sea, and how that motivated a nation to devotion. But, in his time, Paul must have been puzzled at times that a nation freed from slavery in one era (during Exodus) could still be in physical bondage (to Rome) centuries later. He really didn’t get it either, until a Damascus Road light opened his eyes to another plane. Get beyond the physical, he discovered. Find the spiritual. The Red Sea was just a prelude to something greater. We could say that Paul, like the Helsers and friends have written, was ‘unravel(ed) with a melody…surround(ed) with a song…’ when he met God for the first time. Had an encounter like that, yet?          

The following link tells the story of the song by the Helsers:  https://bethelmusic.com/videos/no-longer-slaves-song-story-jonathan-and-melissa-helser/#

Video of the composers performing the song:  https://bethelmusic.com/videos/no-longer-slaves/

Shall We Gather at the River? -- Robert Lowry

He had what someone might say was a vision. And, there was lots of death about him that summer of 1864, so was he getting a preview of Revelation? Robert Lowry was a 38-year old minister who was doing what his profession required when he felt overwhelmed, and as a result wrote a musical question,“Shall We Gather at the River?” Was it the Jordan River, of biblical renown, that he envisioned (and shown here)? He must have helped many grieving families cope with death at that time in Brooklyn, New York, so he wouldn’t have been ridiculed for feeling a bit apocalyptic. Was it just a coincidence what happened to Lowry, the confluence of events that compelled his poetic spirit amidst the tragedy he was witnessing? Was his God present? These and perhaps many other questions may have occurred to this composer, and he had at least one question’s answer as he wrote out the hymn’s words that day.

Robert Lowry was, ironically, a composer who might have preferred to have not been, compared to his other role as a minister. It is reported that Lowry once noted he felt a sense of loss as he came to be more well-known for his hymns than for his sermons. Nevertheless, he wrote some 500 texts over his lifetime, including collaboratively with Fanny Crosby and Annie Hawks, two fellow hymnists in the New York area. Lowry was ordained as a minister by 1854 upon his graduation from Bucknell (central Pennsylvania), and his subsequent role in multiple churches may in fact have played a part in what took place 10 years hence. He was the lead pastor in two churches in the New York City area, as well as in others in West Chester, Pennsylvania and in New Jersey. One can imagine that Robert may have had plenty on his plate at any one time, given all these church tentacles! Indeed, one sultry July 1864 day, Lowry was apparently very fatigued as a result of overwhelming events related to his ministry to the people. A plague was killing many in the region, including members of one church and a family to whom he spoke one day. When Robert comforted them with images of Revelation and the symbolic River of Life that the beloved apostle records in a vision, his own words must have lingered in his thoughts later, as he lay collapsed on a couch. It was there that the words to “Shall We Gather…” occupied his thoughts, first as a question, and then as the answer ‘Yes…’ that he recorded in the hymn’s refrain. It must have been exhilarating to hear the question and then the answer in his mind’s eye as he lay, trying to physically and emotionally recover from the day’s and the summer’s pestilential events. Maybe that episode was one that spurred him to continue hymn-writing, seeing it as a worthy extension of his ministry. His musical career did continue for some time, as he not only wrote hundreds of hymns, but also co-edited dozens of songbooks in the subsequent years.      

   

Robert’s experience is once again a testimony that death’s impact can nevertheless have a silver lining for those listening to their insides. Robert apparently did not try to avoid what he encountered. He embraced it. He must have advised and comforted many people whose lament he heard, telling them what they needed to hear. It’s reported that Lowry had thought about death and crossing the Jordan, and perhaps therein lay his exhaustion, in the multitude of people he and others thought of as lifeless. He said he’d wondered why more writers had not focused instead on life in the crossing of Revelation’s river. The mental anguish was real in his experience, as he asked ‘Shall we gather’ – in other words will we all face death? But, in saying ‘Yes’, Robert was coaxing his listeners and himself that it’s better to think about the reality of what else, besides death, will accompany us and others in that experience. Try on a little of Revelation. It’s more than somebody’s dream.  

See information on the song story in these sources: The Complete Book of Hymns – Inspiring Stories About 600 Hymns and Praise Songs by William J. Petersen and Ardythe Petersen, Tyndale House Publishers, 2006; Then Sings My Soul – 150 of the World’s Greatest Hymn Stories, Robert J. Morgan, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2003; and A Treasury of Hymn Stories – Brief Biographies of 120 Hymnwriters with Their Best Hymns, by Amos R. Wells, Baker Book House, 1945.

Also see this link, showing all five original verses:

http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/s/w/g/swgatriv.htm   

See link here for biography of composer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Lowry_(hymn_writer)

Friends - Michael W. and Deborah D. Smith

His name was Bill, and he must have been a pretty special friend. Deborah and Michael Smith were willing to wear their hearts on their sleeves one day in 1982, and with feelings that made them ache, “Friends” was the result. If you’ve lived among people and ever had to leave a buddy, a comrade, or perhaps someone you might have even called ‘family’, then you’re no stranger to what Michael and Deborah felt that day. Maybe you were even as close as the biblical David and Jonathan. (See this depicted here in von Carolsfeld’s 1860 painting.) The circumstances of leaving friends might be different each time, but the bottom line is the same – you miss them. How can one avoid the anguish? Maybe that was at the root of what Deborah was thinking, as she crafted the words that Michael would marry to music in just a few moments. Does our Creator know what it feels like to leave, or to see somebody special depart from us? What’s His solution?   

Both Michael W. and Deborah D. Smith had no doubt experienced this situation before, as they prepared to say ‘so long’ to their friend Bill Jackson. They’d been bible studiers together, probably providing insights and helping hands to one another spiritually and otherwise. Perhaps they might say there was even something like synergy when they were together. The rest of us might use the word ‘special’. It was Deborah who suggested they write a song for Bill’s going-away that would take place later that same day, and Michael the doubter that they could accomplish such an endeavor in time. But, once his wife – with an apparent God-given talent – gave him the poem within the hour, Michael must have known there was something exceptional in it. It captured something deep inside – could it have been the Spirit? He put it to music in minutes, and said it pricked the hearts of all who heard its debut that night. It hasn’t stopped doing so in over 30 years, he says, even inside himself when he performs it repeatedly for audiences today. Michael says kids who’ve lost friends tragically (as in car accidents, or otherwise in death), or just miss each other after summer camp, can identify with the song’s lyrics. ‘Everybody cries’, Michael says. It was part of the first album he put together, and it remains Michael’s signature song. And, its unique kind of genesis remains extraordinary, as Michael says almost all his other songs have developed with the music first, followed by the lyrics. Isn’t that interesting, perhaps even metaphorical for human friendship?

Friendship seems to be an integral part of the human condition. We don’t know exactly what’s in store for us when we encounter a new group of people, so we necessarily experience at least a few, but most likely numerous, times together before we develop true camaraderie. That’s kind of a metaphor for “Friends”, wherein experiences and the words shared between people precede the bonhomie -- the music -- of relationship. It’s glue-like, so that’s probably why it hurts to be taken apart – as when someone moves away. ‘I wish we didn’t have to say good-bye to Bill!’ Can you hear Michael and Deborah saying this about their pal? Yet, they didn’t run from it; they chose to sing about it. That was the Smiths’ solution. Lean upon the One who made us all this way. Trust the One that knows about our lifetimes, and that we can aim toward a time when friends never have to part, ever (alluded to in refrain of ‘Friends’). Do I hear ‘Amen!', somewhere?   

See biography of the composer here: http://www.michaelwsmith.net/biography.html

And here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_W._Smith

This link is the primary source for the song story: http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=12244

Just Beyond the Rolling River--H.W. Elliott

This Kentuckian was a 34-year old minister and-or leader in a church in the latter portion of the 19^th Century, in a small place known as Walton (see an early 20^th Century picture of its main street, perhaps not too different than what the composer may have seen some 15-20 years earlier). He was also apparently involved with a music company in Texas with a few others, while he also travelled to New York for a convention on another occasion, so H.W. Elliott (perhaps spelled Elliot, with one ‘t’) was certainly not as anonymous to his contemporaries as he is to us today. And, the message he delivered in his own era in“Just Beyond the Rolling River” is still familiar to us, his descendents. Elliot got around. And, he thought about, planned for, and wanted others to join him on another journey he knew he would take one day.  

We in the 21^st Century have researchers and preservers of history to thank for the little that what we know about H.W. Elliott. He is nearly completely anonymous, except for a few details. Another music-lover and fellow blogger (see link below) has indicated that Elliott may be the same fellow mentioned in connection with a Walton Christian Church in Kentucky he pastored there. Another mention is made of perhaps the same Elliott, from Sulphur, Kentucky who attended and reported on mission work to a convention in New York City in 1910. Elliott also apparently wrote several songs and associated with others at the Trio Music Company in Waco, Texas. It was there that “Just Beyond the Rolling River” made its appearance in print, giving us some insight into what Elliott was thinking about his and his fellow Christians’ existence, as one century’s close drew near and another one approached. Could that circumstance have been on his mind, a dwelling on time’s passage and civilization’s eternal destiny? The ‘rolling river’ was neither a time nor occasion that Elliott dreaded, as one can fathom from his words. Indeed, he must have longed to witness the Jordan and to realize his inheritance, a place he called ‘bright and sunny’ (v.1), ‘fair’ (refrain), ‘holy (and) happy’ (v.2), and adorned with ‘pearl and gold’ (v.3). He makes it sound grand! Something else is evident in his thinking. He wanted to be there because of the others he expected to join. Elliott, we can guess, did draw others toward this goal.

The ‘saved’, ‘united happy band’ (vv.1,2) are also part of Elliott’s lexicon -- lyrical, rousing metaphors for another word he employs. We. Does anyone eagerly anticipate the hereafter alone? H.W. Elliott, this 34-year-old Kentuckian, could be described as a mystery. Did he marry, or have kids? How about other family? Frankly, we don’t know. Or do we? He thought of his next life in terms of others he expected to be with him. So, whether he had a spouse or any others who were given his name as a mortal matters not. When you’re headed in the direction Elliott looked, those in the same path become your family. Elliott says it’s ‘just beyond…’ too, so he thought it was close, something to grasp. We all have each other, and an amazing hope. What more do I need?              

Another blogger has written of the scant information on this composer at this link: https://hymnstudiesblog.wordpress.com/2009/03/18/quotjust-beyond-the-rolling-riverquot/

Reference to the hymn is noted here: http://www.hymnary.org/text/just_beyond_the_rolling_river_lies_a_bri