Happy New Year!
Today marks the 250th anniversary of the first performance of “Amazing Grace,” written by
pastor John Newton to accompany his sermon. It was originally written as poetry. The familiar
melody was added in 1835, though the words were sung to various traditional tunes before that.
At the time, Newton was parish priest of the Anglican church in Olney, Buckinghamshire,
England. (If you want to smile a little more today or know someone from Liberal, Kansas, click
here.)
For certain, these verses work as spoken poetry, but you won’t be able to get the tune out of your head. I can’t think of many better ways to start a new year.
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.
’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
The Lord has promised good to me,
His Word my hope secures;
He will my Shield and Portion be,
As long as life endures.
Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.
The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who called me here below,
Will be forever mine.
When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we’d first begun.
Thank you for your beautiful song this morning, Amazing Grace, to start the day and New Year.
Psalm 96: 1-2; “O sing unto the Lord a new song: sing unto the Lord, all the earth. Sing unto the Lord, bless his name; show forth his salvation from day to day.”
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Happy Sunday and New Year to you all.
Thank you for sharing!
I was the teen/college-age girl at the piano in our church for several years. After singing the “ten thousand years” verse, the song leader or pastor might break into this lively chorus:
And when the battle’s over,
We shall wear a crown,
Yes, we shall wear a crown,
Oh, we shall wear a crown.
And when the battles over,
We shall wear a crown,
In the New Jerusalem.
Wear a crown, wear a crown,
Wear a bright and shining crown.
And when the battle’s over,
We shall wear a crown,
In the New Jerusalem.
I did not know the 5th verse!
Happy New Year! Looking forward to praising God, trusting God, and getting to know God better.
Perfect way to kickoff the new year, Dan. Thanks for sharing!
Such a favorite! We sing it to a bunch of different tunes at the camp where I work and each one is special for its own reasons. Even the Gilligan’s Island tune!