Edith Margaret Clarkson (1915–2008) was a Canadian schoolteacher, always known as Margaret, whose first published hymn was written in 1946, and most of whose texts were collected in A Singing Heart. A Presbyterian by upbringing and conviction, she treasured the catechisms and confessions of that tradition. Like the apostle who believed in One ‘who works all things according to the counsel of his will’ (Eph 1:11), Margaret never let her trust in that sovereign God become an excuse for fatalism, laziness or apathy. Margaret never wrote lightly of the ‘powers of death and darkness’, even ‘the Lord of pain’, suffering her own plagues of continual arthritis and migraine since childhood. These severely limited her mobility in later years.She did not find singleness easy, and devoted one of her many books to the subject. She valued the opportunity, not always available in Canada, of meeting fellow hymnwriters and comparing their joys and frustrations with her own. She longed to share with others her passion for global mission, often expressed in song¹.

O Father, you are sovereign
in all the worlds you made;
your mighty Word was spoken
and light of life obeyed.
Your voice commands the seasons
and bounds the ocean’s shore,
sets stars within their courses
and stills the tempest’s roar.

O Father, you are sovereign
in all affairs of man;
no powers of death or darkness
can thwart your perfect plan.
All chance and change transcending,
supreme in time and space,
you hold your trusting children
secure in your embrace.

O Father, you are sovereign,
the Lord of human pain,
transmuting early sorrows
to gold of heav’nly gain.
All evil over ruling, as
none but Conq’ror could,
your love pursues its purpose-
our souls’ eternal good.

O Father, you are sovereign,
We see you dimly now,
but soon before you triumph
earth’s every knee shall bow.
With this glad hope before us
our faith springs up a-new:
our sovereign Lord and Saviour,
we trust and worship you.

¹hymnsocietygbi.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/0713-O-father-you-are-sovereign-Idle.pdf

Stuart Townend has been writing since he was 22 and includes much beloved songs such as “Christ Alone”, “The Power of the Cross” and “Speak O Lord”. Writing this hymn, he says “The danger now is that we are so focused on the experience our worship can become self-seeking and self-serving. When all of our songs are about how we feel and what we need, we’re missing the point. There is a wonderful, omnipotent God who deserves our highest praise, and how we feel about it is in many ways irrelevant! I want to encourage the expression of joy, passion, and adoration, but I want those things to be the by-product of focusing on God – I don’t want them to become the subject matter. I’m trying to write songs that refer to us as little as possible, and to Him as much as possible!¹“

How deep the Father’s love for us,
How vast beyond all measure,
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure.
How great the pain of searing loss –
The Father turns His face away,
As wounds which mar the Chosen One
Bring many sons to glory.

Behold the man upon a cross,
My sin upon His shoulders;
Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice
Call out among the scoffers.
It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished;
His dying breath has brought me life –
I know that it is finished.

I will not boast in anything,
No gifts, no power, no wisdom;
But I will boast in Jesus Christ,
His death and resurrection.
Why should I gain from His reward?
I cannot give an answer;
But this I know with all my heart –
His wounds have paid my ransom.

¹https://www.stuarttownend.co.uk/song/how-deep-the-fathers-love-for-us/

The words of this hymn were written by F. H. Rowley and the music by Peter B. Bilhorn in 1886. Writing of the hymn, Rowley notes “I was minister of the First Baptist Church of North Adams, Massachusetts. The church and community were experiencing a period of unusual interest in religious matters, and I was assisted by a remarkable young singer by the name of Peter Bilhorn. One night after the close of the service he said, ‘Why don’t you write a hymn for me to set to music?’ During the night these verses came to me. The original poem began, ‘Can’t you sing the wondrous story?’ but when the song was first published by Sankey in 1887 the phrase was changed to “I will sing …”¹. Below are two versions I hope you’ll enjoy.

I will sing the wondrous story
of the Christ who died for me;
how he left his home in glory
for the cross of Calvary:

Refrain
Yes, I’ll sing the wondrous story
of the Christ who died for me,
sing it with his saints in glory,
gathered by the crystal sea.

I was lost, but Jesus found me,
found the sheep that went astray,
threw his loving arms around me,
back into the narrow way.

Refrain

Faint was I, and fears possessed me,
bruised was I from many a fall;
hope was gone, and shame distressed me,
but his love has pardoned all:

Refrain

Days of darkness still come o’er me,
sorrow’s path I often tread,
but his presence still is with me;
by his guiding hand I’m led.

Refrain

He will keep me till the river
rolls its waters at my feet;
then He’ll bear me safely over,
where the loved ones I shall meet.

Refrain

¹plymouthbrethren.org/article/10322

Throughout her life, E. Margaret Clarkson was plagued by pain; initially from migraines, accompanied by convulsive vomiting, and then arthritis—two ailments that accompanied her continually. This pain would be accompanied by other forms of suffering throughout her lifetime, especially severe feelings of loneliness and isolation. At the same time, Clarkson’s life was also marked by a love for hymns. She found comfort and strength in hymns, both in their contents and in the community of saints that wrote these hymns. As Clarkson later explained, through hymns she began to see the church “as one continuous, living stream of the grace of God” in which she had a place. “O Father, You are Sovereign,” was published late in Clarkson’s life in 1982, in the midst of a burst of writing after her early retirement from teaching. Severe spinal problems compelled her to retire in 1973, at the age of 58, and though plagued by pain, she wrote most of her books in the decade that followed.

O Father, you are sovereign
in all the worlds you made;
your mighty word was spoken,
and light and life obeyed.
Your voice commands the seasons
and bounds the ocean’s shore,
sets stars within their courses
and stills the tempest’s roar.

O Father, you are sovereign
in all affairs of man;
no pow’rs of death or darkness
can thwart your perfect plan.
All chance and change transcending,
supreme in time and space,
you hold your trusting children
secure in your embrace.

OFather, you are sovereign,
the Lord of human pain,
transmuting earthly sorrows
to gold of heav’nly gain.
All evil overruling,
as none but Conqu’ror could,
your love pursues its purpose–
our souls’ eternal good.

O Father, you are sovereign!
We see you dimly now,
but soon before your triumph
earth’s ev’ry knee shall bow.
With this glad hope before us,
our faith springs up anew:
our sovereign Lord and Saviour,
we trust and worship you!

^{1covenantrussellville.com/articles/o-father-you-are-sovereign-trinity-hymnal-75}

This hymn for liturgical saints days was written by William Walsham How (1823–1897) and first published in Hymn for Saints’ Days, and Other Hymns (London: Bell & Daldy, 1864 | Fig. 1), compiled by Horatio Nelson (1823–1913, 3rd Earl Nelson of Trafalgar House, Wiltshire). At the time, William How was rector of Whittington, Shropshire. The original text contained eleven stanzas of three lines, beginning “For all Thy saints,” with an Alleluia refrain. It was headed by Hebrews 12:1, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us” (ESV)¹.

For all the saints
who from their labours rest,
Who thee by faith
before the world confessed,
Thy name, O Jesus,
Be forever blest.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

Thou wast their rock,
Their fortress, and their might;
Thou, Lord, their captain
In the well-fought fight;
Thou, in the darkness
Drear their one true light.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

Oh, may thy soldiers,
Faithful, true, and bold
Fight as the saints
Who nobly fought of old
And win with them
The victor’s crown of gold.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

Oh, blest communion,
Fellowship divine!
We feebly struggle,
They in glory shine;
yet all are one in thee,
for all are thine.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

And when the fight is fierce,
The warfare long,
Steals on the ear
The distant triumph song,
And hearts are brave again
And arms are strong.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

The golden evening
Brightens in the west;
Soon, soon to faithful
Warriors cometh rest;
Sweet is the calm,
Of paradise, the blest.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

But, lo! there breaks
A yet more glorious day;
The saints triumphant
Rise in bright array;
The King of glory
Passes on his way.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

From earth’s wide bounds,
from ocean’s farthest coast,
Through gates of pearl
Streams in the countless host,
Singing to Father,
Son, and Holy Ghost,
Alleluia! Alleluia!

¹https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qVjLq8s9OY

The hymn writer, Walter Smith, was born at Aberdeen Dec. 5, 1824, and educated at the Grammar School and University of that City. He pursued his Theological studies at Edinburgh, and was ordained Pastor of the Scottish Church in Chadwell Street, Islington, London, Dec. 25, 1850. He based this text on 1 Timothy 1: 17: “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honour and glory for ever and ever.” This hymn is a strong text of praise to God, who created and sustains the lives of all his creatures. The text focuses on the Creator of the universe, the invisible God whose visible works in nature testify to his glory and majesty. “Light” is the prevailing image in stanzas 1, 2, and 4 (see also Ps. 104:2); our inability to see God is not because of insufficient light but because the “splendour of light hides [God] from view.”¹

Immortal, invisible, God only wise
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes
Most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days
Almighty, victorious, thy great name we praise

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light
Nor wanting, nor wasting, thou rulest in might
Thy justice like mountains high soaring above
Thy clouds which are fountains of goodness and love

To all life thou givest, to both great and small
Creator, sustainer, the true life of all
We blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree
And wither and perish; but naught changeth thee

Great father of glory, pure father of light
Thine angels adore thee, all veiling their sight
And so in thy mercy, Almighty, impart
Through Christ our redeemer, thy grace to our hearts

¹hymnary.org/text/immortal_invisible_god_only_wise

The author of the hymn is often listed as Lidie H. Edmunds, the pen name for Eliza Edmunds Hewitt. Hewitt was born on June 28, 1851 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Upon graduation she became a teacher, but shortly thereafter suffered a serious spinal problem when a student struck her with a heavy slate. She was an invalid for the remainder of her life, even though she was able to partially recover. She continued to live in Philadelphia and turned to hymn writing. She was a regular contributor to various Sunday School publications. She also served as Sunday School superintendent for a church and home for orphaned children. One can only imagine how her own experiences inspired the faith and lyrics for this song.¹

My faith has found a resting place,
from guilt my soul is freed;
I trust the ever-living One,
his wounds for me shall plead.

Refrain:
I need no other argument,
I need no other plea,
it is enough that Jesus died,
and that he died for me.

Enough for me that Jesus saves,
this ends my fear and doubt;
a sinful soul, I come to him,
he’ll never cast me out.

Refrain

My heart is leaning on the Word,
the written Word of God,
salvation by my Saviour’s name,
salvation thro’ his blood.

Refrain

My great Physician heals the sick,
the lost he came to save;
for me his precious blood he shed,
for me his life he gave.

Refrain

¹http://dianaleaghmatthews.com/my-faith-found-resting-place/#.Y3Kw6OzP3u5

This hymn is part of a collection of songs called “Rise and Worship: New Reformation Hymns” – songs for congregational singing written by Greg Wilbur and Douglas Bond. With corporate worship in mind, these hymns are intended to be sung congregationally. Greg’s desire was to compose accessible and well-crafted tunes that reflect the theological content of lyrics and that lead God’s people in worship. “We need poets!” declared Luther 500 years ago, poets to give the Church theologically and aesthetically appropriate lyrics with which to rise & worship King Jesus. In that spirit they offer New Reformation Hymns for the people of God to sing the high praises of God, soli Deo gloria¹.

Lord Jesus, you’re more excellent
Than Moses’ ancient covenant:
Its Law you perfectly obeyed
And on the cross its curse you paid.

My Royal Priest is excellent
Above the dying priests who went
In yearly terror through the veil—
But once for all Christ did prevail.

Lord Jesus, you’re more excellent
Than all the guardian angels sent
To guide our steps both day and night,
Since Jesus guards with sovereign might.

Great Saviour, you’re more excellent
Than all the Devil’s arrows spent
In furious rage against the ones
For whom Christ died to make his sons.

Kind Jesus, you’re more excellent
Than doubts and troubles I invent;
Your life laid down, my victory won—
My Advocate, God’s holy Son.

O Christ, you are most excellent,
By th’new and better covenant:
Redeeming Love who took my part,
Inscribed your Law upon my heart.

O Righteous One, most excellent,
Your cross fulfilled the covenant;
O Worthy One, who took my place,
I long to worship face to face.

¹nathanclarkgeorge.com/rise-and-worship