Alton Howard was thinking about God in two ways in 1971 when he composed a declarative statement – “God Still Lives”. Alton looked around where he lived on planet Earth, and then he looked to the heavens. His fingerprints are on both, Alton said. Though Alton did not explicitly reveal what moved his lyricism and tune-writing energies that resulted in this firm statement of belief, it’s not really necessary to investigate his motives. The evidence is in Alton’s life, and what Alton expressed was something that he could also have gleaned from opening his bible and reading the first few pages about creation and imagining Him at work in the very beginning (as depicted in this work of art by Lucas Cranach the Elder, in 1564). Given the creative genius that he saw in the Creator, perhaps that is what ultimately motivated the life of Alton Howard, a man who had so many talents and who sought to reflect this indescribably great God to others. ‘Be a mirror’, might be one way of saying what Alton was up to, to show others what He can do.
It’s all over Alton’s life, as a lifelong Louisianan, church elder, entrepreneur, and ultimately a communicator of God’s character to others, including in the songs he wrote and published widely. If someone said a wealthy man was blessed by God so that he could pass along those blessings to others, that would be another way to describe Alton. This translator and communicator of God to others did it through a radio ministry and church camp, but also through the songs that flowed from his inner being and into the 18 songbooks that he published or authored. It could be said that this was a conscious decision of Alton to inform as many as possible through God’s music medium about Him. Splashing across the music score what he felt about God was just a natural expression for Alton, one that he spent a lifetime exercising. It was as if he was trying to mimic in his own way the everlasting nature of the One who he could see in so many ways. If Alton ran out of ways to see impressions of Him here on Earth, he saw him in the heavens when he looked up (probably not unlike this photo of the heavens captured by the NASA and ESA Hubble telescope).
Alton saw the ‘heart(s) of…men’, and knew of God’s work among men in ‘ages past’ (v.1), and said that spoke volumes about this living God. He was also evident in nature – ‘rocks’, ‘hills’, ‘birds’, and the ‘rippling brook’ (chorus) – as a constant reminder of Him and His marvelous handiwork that excites our senses. The other three verses of Alton’s praise to Him suggest he was looking upward much of the time that he considered His being. ‘Space afar’ (v.2), ‘ten thousand worlds’, ‘the order of the universe’ (v.3), and the ‘distant star’ (v.4) occupied Alton’s thoughts and musical expression in 1971. Whether one traveled in the mind to these faraway lights or came back down to earth, Alton knew he could rely on Him to be the following: ‘righteousness’ (v.1), powerful (vv.2-3), and indeed ‘great’ beyond our ability to express it to Him adequately (v.4).
If we say that He is living, as Alton believed because of all that he could see, perhaps that is the best way to honor and live for Him. That means He is watching and seeing how you and I react to this pivotal piece of information about Him. Am I stuck in the day’s all-too-human events, which so often are most definitely not ‘on earth as in heaven’, as the God-Son once taught believers to pray to a living God? Or, are those just rote words? Others will say that they cannot see Him, so why pray to a God you cannot see? Indeed, He has been for most of human history hidden, physically. That was true at one time, until He came to show Himself. Does He need to show up again for you to conclude that He lives? What do you make of all that Alton has already seen?
Read about the author-composer here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alton_Hardy_Howard and also here: https://christianchronicle.org/songbook-publisher-entrepreneur-howard-dies-at-age-81/?A=SearchResult&SearchID=2809510&ObjectID=4369268&ObjectType=35
See here for information on the first image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Creation-Luther-Bible-1534.jpg ….This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or fewer. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1931. …found inside this document -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genesis_creation_narrative
See here for information on the second image: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hubble_ultra_deep_field.jpg ….This file is in the public domain because it was created by NASA and ESA. NASA Hubble material (and ESA Hubble material prior to 2009) is copyright-free and may be freely used as in the public domain without fee, on the condition that only NASA, STScI, and/or ESA is credited as the source of the material. This license does not apply if ESA material created after 2008 or source material from other organizations is in use….found inside this document -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creator_deity
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