October 7, 2005
Have
faith in God –
Thankful for sisters and for brothers;
Have faith in God –
Fathers, aunts, uncles, and all others;
Have faith in God –
Especially for loving mothers.
Have faith, dear friend, in God.
Stand Up and Bless the Lord
James Montgomery, 1771-1854
And the Levites—Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah and Pethahiah—said: "Stand up and praise the Lord your God, who is from everlasting to everlasting. Nehemiah 9:5.
Many excellent opportunities to witness for the Lord are lost each day simply because of our timidity. Or perhaps we are with a group of colleagues when the Lord's name is blasphemed, the gospel derided, the church's hypocrites ridiculed, and we remain silent. How tragic that our noble words of praise in church often leave us during the week when they are needed most.
Ye call me Master, and obey not, Ye call Me Light and see Me not, Ye call Me Way and walk not, Ye call Me Life and desire Me not, Ye call Me Wise and follow Me not, Ye call Me Fair and love Me not, Ye call Me rich and ask Me not, Ye call Me Eternal and see Me not, Ye call Me Noble and serve Me not, Ye call Me Mighty and honor Me not, Ye call Me just and fear Me not.
~ Found on an old slab in the Cathedral of Lubeck, Germany
The hymn was written for the anniversary celebration of the Red Hill Wesleyan Sunday School in Sheffield, England; the original second line was “Ye children of His choice.” The song was based on Nehemiah 9:5. Montgomery was the editor of a newspaper in Sheffield and was known as an outspoken advocate for many humanitarian causes, especially abolition of slavery. His ideas for social reform were considered so radical that he was imprisoned two times. Other causes he championed included hymn singing in the Anglican church services, foreign missions, and the British Bible Society. James Montgomery wrote more than 400 hymns, earning him a lasting place as one of England's finest hymn writers.
Stand up and bless the Lord
Ye people of His choice;
Stand up and bless the Lord your God
With heart and soul and voice.Though high above all praise,
Above all blessing high,
Who would not fear His holy Name,
And laud and magnify?O for the living flame
From His own altar brought,
To touch our lips, our minds inspire,
And wing to heaven our thought!There, with benign regard,
Our hymns He deigns to hear;
Though unrevealed to mortal sense,
Our spirits feel Him near.God is our Strength and Song,
And His salvation ours;
Then be His love in Christ proclaimed
With all our ransomed powers.Stand up and bless the Lord;
The Lord your God adore;
Stand up and bless His glorious Name;
Henceforth forevermore.
Have Faith in God by H.M.S.
Richards, Used by Permission