November 29, 2015 (Sunday)
Millions of people around the world will take time today to join with fellow believers in worshiping God. I hope you will be among those, because you will discover that the experience is one more blessing for which you can thank the Lord.
As we come to the beginning of a new week today, we bid a fond farewell to “Thanksgiving Week,” and in our minds we sing the Doxology together as we gather around this blog, continuing to thank God for His blessings. The Doxology was written by Thomas Ken (1637-1711), an Anglican priest. As chaplain of a boy’s school, he wrote a hymn with three verses* to be sung by the boys, a verse for waking up, a verse for going to bed, and a third verse at midnight if the boy could not sleep. The chorus (refrain) of that hymn is the familiar “Doxology,” ** which most of us know by heart.
Praise God from whom all blessings flow
Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise Him above ye heavenly host
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost
LISTEN
*
Mark Oestreicher quotes musician Jeff Johnson who suggests these three verses:
Awake, my soul, and with the sun
thy daily course of duty run.
Cast off dull sloth, and joyful rise
to pay thy morning sacrifice.
All praise to thee, who safe hast kept
and hast refreshed me while I slept!
Grant, Lord, when I from death shall wake,
I may of endless life partake.
All praise to thee, my God, this night
for all the blessings of the light.
Keep me, oh keep me, King of Kings,
beneath Thine own almighty wings.
(Click on the above link for even more verses)
** The word, “doxology” is derived from two Greek words, which together mean, “an expression of praise.” The word is known by us to be the title of a hymn, but in reality the word can be ascribed to any hymn of praise, or, for that matter, in a generic sense, to any expression of praise. [The Greek words are doxa (glory) and logos (a speaking)].