Videos & Stories Behind Hymns

It is almost impossible to believe that "I Sing the Mighty Power of God" was originally written for children. But that is exactly what this hymn was intended for. 
It was first published in 1715 in a hymnal called "Divine and Moral Songs for Children".
It was the goal of the author, Isaac Watts to write songs to the level of a child's understanding. However, this song is now more associated with adults than with children.
Its simple message continues to bless millions of Christians worldwide.
To appreciate this hymn more one has to be reminded of the state of Christian music during that period. Most of the songs then were songs directly from the book of psalms. It was more of chanting the scriptures than actual singing.
Church music had become dull that a 19 year old Isaac Watts complained to his father about this. It was his father who challenged him to write something better.
From that moment on Isaac Watts began writing hymns. He was so prolific that by the…

God Leads Us Along Hymn History
This song is a reminder that God's providence is still with us even in our difficult moments. There are moments when we feel like God has abandoned us we still need to know that God is still with us as we go through these difficult times.
The author of this song, George A Young was a rural preacher and carpenter who humbly served the Lord on a meager salary. However, instead of complaining about his situation George Young and his family served the Lord as a loyal servant.
This preacher through their meager salary and resources eventually managed to construct a house on their own. They were happy to have their own house just like all of us would.
Unfortunately while Young was away holding meetings in another area some bad people decided to make life difficult for this humble servant of God. They burnt the house down to ashes.
Instead of complaining and blaming God for not preventing this misfortune, George Young never lost his faith in the Lord. It …

The Old Rugged Cross Hymn History
The Old Rugged Cross is one of the most popular Christian hymns in the English world. It is a hymn that leads us to focus on what Christ did on the cross and make his sacrifice our own. 
Being a Christian is not easy but we all need to cling to that old cross and bear the shame and ridicule we might face.
This hymn composed in 1912 by evangelist and song leader George Bennard. He was born in Youngstown, Ohio, in 1873. 
He was converted at the age of 24 after attending a Salvation Army meeting. He later left the salvation and joined the Methodist church in 1910. 
After joining the Methodist church he became an itinerant preacher for the Methodist church. He held revival meetings in the Midwest of the United States.
It was during one of these revival meetings that he came up with this hymn. This was his response to the heckling and ridicule he received from several youths at a revival meeting in Michigan. 
Bernard was troubled by their disregard of the…

Sabine Baring-Gould and Arthur Sullivan composed this hymn. The words were written by Sabine Baring-Gould in 1865 while the music to the song was added in 1871 by Arthur Sullivan. 
Arthur Sullivan added the tune of the song at his friend Ernest Clay Ker Seymer’s house. This later made him name his tune “St. Gertrude” after his friend’s wife.
This hymn is one of the commonly known gospel hymns, derived from the New Testament, where Christians are sometimes referred to as soldiers of Jesus Christ. This can be seen in verses such as II Timothy 2:3 (KJV): "Thou, therefore, endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ."
The hymn was originally meant for the procession with the cross by children who walked from Horbury Bridge to Horbury St Peter's Church near Wakefield, Yorkshire, at Whitsuntide in 1865. 
This hymn was originally titled, "Hymn for Procession with Cross and Banners" and Baring-Gould composed it in five minutes. He was later reported to have sai…