Musical Notes

Hello OCBC family!

Next week is a special holiday, Thanksgiving Day.  This is the time of the year that we can stop for one moment and give thanks to God for all His blessings.  I love this time because hymnology is very rich about this theme. There are several hymns and songs that encourage us to give thanks.  My favorite one, among many, is the Doxology.  This is the prayer that we sing every night in our home before bed.

The author of this short but deep hymn was Thomas Ken.  Ken was born in 1637, but became an orphan when he was very young and his sister raised him.  When he was an adult, Ken held various church and academic positions.  It was during this time that he wrote three hymns for morning and evening devotions.  Each hymn ended with the lyrics of the hymn that we know now as the “Doxology.”

The melody that we use for the Doxology is called “The Old Hundredth” because this melody was popular to use to sing a paraphrase of the 100th Psalm.

During this time of thanksgiving, remember to “Praise God from whom all blessings flow.”

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.

In His service,

​Israel

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