We Bow Down -- Twila Paris

Twila Paris was a 26-year old star, with a number one hit, her very first one. So one could imagine that she might have felt she’d arrived at the top. Others might have understood, since she had already written dozens of songs and produced four albums, if she had acted a little cocky. Her life was set, and all she needed was to keep moving upward, composing more memorable, inspiring songs. But, that wasn’t what she must have been thinking when she composed “We Bow Down” at the same time in 1984. What’s the foundation for a successful worship tune? Twila is as much an expert as you might find, since she’s been at this task as an adult for over 30 years professionally.

Twila’s understanding of good music development by 1984 had been inside her probably for many years, even from her childhood before she reached double-digits in years. By the age of 7 she was known as ‘Little Twila Paris’ on her first album, a collection of hymns she’d grown used to singing with her family during evangelism campaigns. No doubt about it, Paris received her musical genes from parents Oren and Rachel and the Arkansas roots that nourished and shaped her. Success and recognition at so young an age could have been a burden to others, yet in Twila’s case it must have given her the recipe for healthy development. “We Bow Down” embodies an attitude of prostration to the God she calls Lord and King in the song’s two verses. Little people, even one at 26-years old, can say powerful things, she realized. This was also an idea that was the theme of the album on which “We Bow Down” appears -- The Warrior Is a Child. Jesus had learned to humble himself, Twila must have realized, and became everyone’s Savior as a result. We don’t know what minute-to-minute circumstances evolved to guide Twila’s hands to write “We Bow Down”, but her words tell us of a life that was tilted toward Him personally. She begins each verse with a personal declaration of her devotion to Him, and then does what must have come naturally since her childhood. She invites everyone around her to join in the ‘we’ that say they bow to Him. Let’s all be His children together.

Twila’s in her mid-50s by now (in 2015), and still composing songs, although she’s taken more time out for her family. She and husband Jack are raising kids, teaching them what it means to bow and sacrifice, and to whom. It’s a posture from which Paris has probably never left, really. She probably still sings those songs from her ‘Little Twila’ days, and the one she wrote as a 26-year old too, as reminders of the way she relates to her Father God. It’s a way of staying grounded, letting Him be in control. Try bowing a bit each day, and see if a childlike posture doesn’t make your life go better.

Check out the following links to read about the composer:

http://twilaparis.com/bio.php

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twila_Paris

Oh How I Love Jesus -- Frederick Whitfield

What attributes do you associate with a person’s name, perhaps even God? Was that the question that someone had asked Frederick Whitfield during the mid-1800s that made him compose a nine-verse answer, his personal explanation in “Oh How I Love Jesus”? It might be a tough assignment, since none of us have ever seen Him in the flesh. But Whitfield must have seen enough of the Divine influence, even at a fairly young age, to make His impression indelible. How many verses one could write about our God might be a function of the number of people I see Him contact, if I’m trying to be true to His influence for each of us. Whitfield, because of his profession later on, might have had what could be called a front-row seat to God’s interaction with us…how many verses might he have composed after he was ordained, versus what he generated before he took on God professionally?  

Frederick Whitfield was a member of the British clergy by the time he was 30, which might be thought of as a postscript to this song he created in the mid-1850s. He wrote “Oh How I Love Jesus” as a 26-year old in 1855 prior to receiving his degree at a Dublin, Ireland college and proceeding into ministry in 1859. In fact, several of the handful of hymn texts he wrote were precursors to his formal work in the Anglican Church, indicating Whitfield’s was a heart bent toward God probably in his upbringing, a zeal that he wanted to take to another level beyond the words he composed as a young man. He must have experienced much by his mid-20s that drew him toward the God he extolled in “Oh How…”. God’s son reminded him of many things, a list he must have developed as a result of personal or observed experiences. Nine verses were his choice, to specify that the Holy Son was like music to him, that he was endeared to Him because of His sacrifice, care, guidance, and empathy (verses 1-5).  Whitfield leaned on Him for strength (v.6), and ultimately to overcome his own life’s challenges and gain immortality (vv. 8-9). Only twice, including initially in verse 7, does he actually verbalize the name that conjures up so much mental imagery. (The hymn’s chorus words with the name ‘Jesus’ are from a common folk melody, derived from an anonymous source, from approximately the same period.) Perhaps that is a good way to demonstrate the power of something like a special name – use it sparingly, but detail its effects on the human spirit. Perhaps Whitfield’s intention was to spark the worshipper’s curiosity. ‘What name does all of these things?’, one might ask.

Indeed, we’re all part of the same race, but each with unique parts and histories, so what name could manage all of the human species? It’s a fair question. Even the most powerful world leaders have never conquered every corner of the globe. And, the ones who have come closest (not really very close, though) have not been benevolent, inspiring worship that endures. ‘Dictator’ comes to mind as we consider their records. How about considering the One whose record is still being written? Maybe Frederick Whitfield’s example in song is God’s message, too. He doesn’t have to force me to say His name very often. His work in my life speaks His name. Is His name speaking in your life today?         

The following website has all nine original verses for the song: http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/o/h/i/ohiljesu.htm

See more information on the song discussed above in The Complete Book of Hymns – Inspiring Stories About 600 Hymns and Praise Songs by William J. Petersen and Ardythe Petersen, Tyndale House Publishers, 2006; and also, see Amazing Grace: 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions by Kenneth W. Osbeck, Kregel Publications, 1990.

See brief biography of composer here: http://www.hymntime.com/tch/bio/w/h/i/whitfield_f.htm

http://www.stempublishing.com/hymns/biographies/whitfield.html

http://www.hymnary.org/person/Whitfield_F

A Beautiful Life – William Matthew Golden

His words read like a pledge, such as one might make to a parole board in a penitentiary. William Matthew Golden certainly had an opinion in 1918 about what he thought “A Beautiful Life” might resemble, and perhaps that was because his life had not really gone the way he thought it should for someone whose aim was to enter into God’s presence. If a 40-something was in trouble, maybe in a prison and perhaps engaged in hard labor (as in this 1911 picture, in Mississippi’s state pen), yet thought about how to turn around his circumstances, what would he say? More importantly, what would he do to make good on his oath? Are you and I, more or less, in the same boat with William Golden?

In 1918, William Golden may have been a 42-year old state penitentiary inmate, whose circumstances might have compelled him to see that he needed to make some changes.  He reportedly wrote most of the 22 songs credited to him while in prison. He composed at least one song--“Will My Mother Know Me There?”-- in 1906, “To Canaan’s Land in 1914, and “A Beautiful Life” in 1918, but at what point his eight-year prison life began and ended is not clear. Also, did he initiate his songwriting habit while in prison, or before then? Since he was born and died in Mississippi, we can speculate that it was perhaps the state prison in Parchman (northwestern Mississippi), known as Parchman Farm in the Mississippi River Delta region, where Golden was incarcerated and made a vow about his future. It’s said that Golden (whose last name was originally Golding) served eight years for his prison term, so his crime may have been one of the comparatively lesser offenses, although there is no information on what he did to earn his sentence.  Could his songwriting have earned him good behavior points with the prison authorities? Was he the product of a chaplain at Parchman who helped him seek out reform, or was he self-taught? One also wonders if Golden’s new life manifested itself while he was still behind bars. If it did, he went about helping others who were sick, poor, or needy; practiced purity; and spoke kind words to others – all sentiments that he reasoned in his five verses were expressions of “A Beautiful Life”. Golden even added his own name to the first verse’s first line, perhaps as a means to remind himself that the words and proposed actions were an intimate promise.  

What exactly motivated William Golden’s songwriting ventures is unclear, but the Divine presence can use any situation to carry out His purposes. Was it the death of Golden’s one offspring in childhood that moved him initially to song composition, or a prison term, or some other events that are not known? Is Providence proscribed by any of these, or do they in fact hasten His influence? Whatever caused Golden’s descent into prison, that didn’t stop God from working in him, an insight that must have dawned upon this composer and moved him to generate most of his life’s musical output in that setting. Perhaps all of us should think of ourselves in a prison…    

See brief biographic information on composer here: http://www.hymnary.org/person/Golden_WM

http://www.hymntime.com/tch/bio/g/o/l/golden_wm.htm

All five verses of the song here: http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/b/e/a/beautlif.htm

Another source of composer’s brief biography: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=40666876

Information on Mississippi state penitentiary: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mississippi_State_Penitentiary

Sweeter than All -- Johnson Oatman, Jr.

What is the tastiest, sweetest confection to your palate? A scientist might say such a compound would have to possess the chemical known as Lugduname (which a Chemistry textbook might depict this way). If someone said Jesus --to accurately define just how special and far above other faint copies of Him we could examine—was like Lugdumane, just how much more potent would He be? Science says the chemical shown schematically here is between 220,000 and 300,000 times as sweet as regular sugar. In fact, this chemical is so strong, it hasn’t been approved for use in our food. It must be that its dosage is hard to balance or restrict so that it doesn’t harm the human body. Did Johnson Oatman feel that way about Jesus when he said He was “Sweeter than All” in 1900? What would make this 44-year old man say that?

Johnson Oatman must have had plenty of ongoing and previous real-life experiences as the 19^th rolled into the 20^th Century to compare to the person of his faith. He’d been part of his father’s family commercial business as a young man, and later after his father’s death he sold insurance to make a living. These were following his initial inclination as a 19-year old to pursue formal ministry, although his ordination did not lead to larger roles in church work, but only in small local congregations in New Jersey, his lifetime home. So, by the time middle-age had come upon Oatman, he’d been pointed at various times in three different professional directions. His life’s avocation, songwriting, had also taken hold, a grip that would continue in a very firm—some might say consuming—way for the rest of his life. He would complete between three and five thousand lyrical compositions before his life concluded in 1922, a stunning amount, especially since it appears he did not begin this “hobby” until in his 30s. His father’s influence, as a notable singer and man of faith, no doubt also made its impact on the junior Oatman, distilling in him the fusion of music and faith. Most likely it was his family, and most prominently his father, who inclined his heart to believe the Christian faith could overcome any life-challenge. He may have been writing songs for about a decade, or at least for several years, when he expressed his ‘Sweeter…’ sentiments. Had the insurance business or other ventures around his New Jersey home brought into sharper relief how much he valued God? As an ordained minister, maybe he was also trying to encourage other believers in one of the local churches where he ministered part-time. Even sporadic preachers probably hear lots of the miseries of churchgoers than they know how to cure. Oatman’s musical remedy was no mystery. Taste Him. Let Him surmount your life’s ills.

Maybe it occurred to Oatman as he read David’s words about tasting (Psalm 34:8), or another ancient songwriter’s thoughts (Psalm 119:103) on the same sensation, that God is good, a sweetness that spurs my craving Him. Like the sweetest part of my meal – dessert, the concluding course--Oatman’s fourth verse of “Sweeter…” is about what he expected to taste as he entered life’s final phase.  This sweetness has such staying power, that it will endure even as I encounter death and approach Eternity’s territory. Johnson could imagine that scene, convinced as he was of God’s potency. Can you?  

Information on the song’s composer was obtained from the books  Amazing Grace – 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions, by Kenneth W. Osbeck, 1990, Kregel Publications; The Complete Book of Hymns – Inspiring Stories About 600 Hymns and Praise Songs, by William J. and Ardythe Petersen, 2006, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.; and 101 More Hymn Stories by Kenneth W. Osbeck, Kregel Publications, 1985. 

See also here for four verses and refrain of hymn: http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/s/w/e/sweetrta.htm

See also here for brief biography of the composer: http://www.hymntime.com/tch/bio/o/a/t/oatman_j.htm

http://www.hymnary.org/person/Oatman_Johnson

Here’s some background on the chemical Lugduname:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lugduname

Jesus, Rose of Sharon -- Ida A. Guirey

She must have been looking at a very specific portion of Biblical text as she mulled over how to call out to

God’s son. “Jesus, Rose of Sharon” sprang from the consciousness of Ida A. Guirey in the early 1920s, but what compelled its emergence? Was it something unique to herself that she wanted to say, matching the select nature of the text at which she peered? Was she seeking or in a special marital relationship that drew her to the text she read? How old was she? Did she appreciate nature, including beautiful and fragrant flowers, like roses (or tulips, like these that could be the ‘rose’ on Israel’s Plain of Sharon)? The answers to a host of questions like these and maybe others could tell us important details about her, but since “Rose of Sharon” is still here, it provides us some insights of her that we can reflect back upon ourselves.

The few details we know of the otherwise anonymous Ida A. Guirey tell us she wrote song poetry in the early 20^th Century, including ‘…Rose of Sharon’ that she must have composed as she looked at one of the more obscure books of the bible. She composed only a handful of song poems, including one (in 1909?) during the first decade of the 20^th Century, so by 1921-22, when ‘…Rose’ is attributed to Guirey, her age probably was that of at least a young woman, if not older. Only Song of Solomon (aka Song of Songs; chapter 2, verse 1) uses the phrase Guirey borrows for her song’s title and oft-repeated phrase. Love is on the mind of most of us when we open the pages of this bible book…was it also Ida’s state of mind? We know not if she had an intimate bond with someone on earth as she read Solomon’s words, but certainly she loved Jesus, and sought His embrace and impact. We could also surmise that perhaps she appreciated nature’s beauty, and the facet of Jesus’ nature that a Sharon rose calls to mind. Flowers might seem fragile to some minds (like mine), but Ida’s thoughts tell us she believed His strengths lay in that imagery. Perhaps she had a green thumb (!), along with a deep desire to see His way more deeply affect her life and those around her.  Roses need good soil and other nourishment –sunshine, water—that really only He can give. Ida Guirey may have concluded that our Creator is the unique source of growth and beauty, to make herself and others flourish and be who He created His offspring to be.  

What Ida prayed to receive is common to all of us, if we want His best. She apparently had deduced that God’s creative power and beauty could flow through herself and be a magnet for those nearby (v.1), if only she would allow those things to increase personally (v.2). To heal others’ spiritual ills and infuse them with a submissive desire to honor Him (vv. 3-4) was the model Christian community—even a worldwide one—that Ida envisioned. Ask yourself, ‘am I there today’? ‘Impossible’, you say? Ida must have thought otherwise, or judged the connection with Him was worth the effort. She might have thought there was an extraterrestrial place where the ideal could culminate, too. Know where to go to find that?  

The following links are the sources for songs by the composer, the only scant information on the composer: http://hymntime.com/tch/bio/g/u/i/guirey_ia.htm

http://www.hymnary.org/person/Guirey_Ida