This hymn was suggested by a subscriber of the blog and was written in 1865 by Swedish hymn writer Carolina “Lina” Sandell Berg several years after she had witnessed the tragic drowning death of her father. Having been through that experience, she still could write about God, “He whose heart is kind beyond all measure gives unto each day what he deems best.” In the second stanza, she refers to Deuteronomy 33:25b: “as your days, so shall your strength be” (ESV)¹. It is a hymn of assurance used in American congregational singing and started appearing in American hymnals in the latter half of the 1920s, and its popularity has increased since then. The hymn’s Swedish name is “Blott en dag,” its first three words in Swedish. The words mean “just one day” or “just another day.” In Sweden and Finland, it is popular at funerals. As this hymn is sung, remember that, though no human can accurately foretell the future, God knows what will happen and is also in complete control of all coming events.

Day by day and with each passing moment,
Strength I find to meet my trials here;
Trusting in my Father’s wise bestowment,
I’ve no cause for worry or for fear.
He whose heart is kind beyond all measure
Gives unto each day what he deems best–
Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure,
Mingling toil with peace and rest.

Ev’ry day the Lord himself is near me,
With a special mercy for each hour;
All my cares he gladly bears and cheers me,
He whose name is Counselor and Pow’r.
The protection of his child and treasure
Is a charge that on himself he laid:
“As your days, your strength shall be in measure”–
This the pledge to me he made.

Help me then in ev’ry tribulation
So to trust your promises, O Lord,
That I lose not faith’s sweet consolation
Offered me within your holy Word.
Help me, Lord, when, toil and trouble meeting,
E’er to take, as from a father’s hand,
One by one, the days, the moments fleeting,
Till I reach the promised land.

_¹https://hymnary.org/text/day_by_day_and_with_each_passing_moment
²https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Day_by_Day_(hymn)