Singing the Story

At the close of a worship service recently we sang my mother's favorite hymn: I Love to Tell the Story.

The memorable words were written by an English woman, Kate Hankey, who also wrote Tell Me the Old, Old Story. (Both of the songs have similar phrases. Most hymnals don't include both songs).

Kate Hankey died in 1911, at age 78, when my mother was 2 years old. We don't know much about Kate. She accepted Christ at a young age. She taught Bible classes to the women factory workers in London for many years.

During an extended time of illness, when she could no longer teach, she wrote these two hymns. Later in life she began a ministry in the prisons in London.

My mother's favorite verse is (funny, I just wrote "is", and she died in 2000, so I guess I should say "was," but, on the other hand, I guess maybe it still is her favorite) the third verse: I love to tell the story, for those who know it best seem hungering and thirsting to hear it, like the rest. And when in scenes of glory, I sing the new, new song, 'twill be the old, old story that I have loved so long.

I woke up to that song this morning, and those particular words. My background "group" was the trilling songs of birds. Then the song inside me went to: Morning has broken like the first morning, blackbird (cardinals, mockingbirds, chick-a-dees, even some owls) is singing like the first bird. Praise for the singing! Praise for the morning! Praise for them springing fresh from the Word!

God's Word speaks often about "new songs."

In Psalm 33 we are told to Sing joyfully to the LORD you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise Him...Sing to Him a new song; play skillfully and shout for joy!"

Psalm 40 tells us where we get our song and what it is about: I waited patiently for the LORD, He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.

Psalms 96 and 98 tell us who is to sing and why: Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth, Sing to the LORD, praise His name; proclaim His salvation day by day.
(Psalm 96:1)

Sing to the LORD a new song, for He has done marvelous things (Psalm 98:1).

And I love the personal touch in Psalm 144:9: I will sing a new song to you, O God; on the ten-stringed lyre I will make music to you.

Job talks about the the sons of God singing. I guess they are singing a creation song. In Psalms the "new songs" are praise and worship and thanksgiving. In Revelation the "new song" is a song of redemption.

What about our new song that we sing to the LORD?

Maybe it refers to our daily walk with Christ. Every praise we give Him will come from a new, fresh experience of His grace. Each and every praise song should flow spontaneously from a brand-new awareness of what He has done, and is doing, and will do, for us. Like repeating the gospel to ourselves all day, every day.

Proclaim His salvation day by day. Psalm 96:1-2


...His compassions never fail, they are new every morning.(Lamentations 3:23)

 And so our songs of praise should be new every morning.


Today is the first day of the rest of my life.

I noticed that Kate Hankey's Tell Me the Old, Old Story is most often the one left out of hymnals.

Here are the words:

Tell me the old, old story of unseen things above,
Of Jesus and His glory, of Jesus and His love.
Tell me the story simply, as to a little child,
For I am weak and weary and helpless and defiled.

Tell me the story slowly, that I may take it in,
That wonderful redemption, God's remedy for sin.
Tell me the story often, for I forget so soon.
The early dew of morning has passed away at noon.



And we can't forget Fannie Crosby: I sing, for I cannot be silent, His love is the theme of my song!



Praise God for music--music of the spheres, music in our souls, and music in nature! Praise God for mornings! Praise God for instruments! Praise God for voices! Praise God for ears! Praise God for the capacity to remember great music and re-play it in our minds! Praise God for Bach and Handel! Praise God for great singers! Praise God for giving us that melody in our hearts that Jesus whispers sweet and low!

Praise God for that great choir we will be part of someday! Praise God for giving us so many reasons to sing!