This is my Father's world,
And to my listening ears
All nature sings, and round me rings
The music of the spheres.
This is my Father's world:
I rest me in the thought
Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas--
His hand the wonders wrought.
2 This is my Father's world:
The birds their carols raise,
The morning light, the lily white,
Declare their Maker's praise.
This is my Father's world:
He shines in all that's fair;
In the rustling grass I hear Him pass,
He speaks to me everywhere.
3 This is my Father's world: O let me ne'er forget That though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the Ruler yet. This is my Father's world: Why should my heart be sad? The Lord is King: let the heavens ring! God reigns; let earth be glad!
Since my kids were little, we've sung hymns together. I have some memorized, so it's easy to do while driving to keep everyone occupied, and it's a good way to help them learn truth even when they can't yet read. But I often find myself learning more from it than I expected. I change out our go-tos by season. So around Christmas we learn Christmas songs, and for spring I chose This is my Father's world - it seems like a spring song, right? With the line about the birds, and the lilies? But honestly, I thought the words seemed a little trite. Not deep enough. The last verse I felt was good, so why not learn it? But as we've been singing it every day those very words I felt didn't carry enough meaning have been striking me more and more. I rest me in the thought Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas-- His hand the wonders wrought.
There are so many more levels to this than simply singing about the rocks and trees because God made them. We are resting ourselves in the thought, taking comfort in the fact that God made them. That is speaking to his power. But also there is a solidity in nature around us that reflects the solidity of God. And in context the entire song is speaking to this. When everything around us in life seems unstable, the seasons continue to change, the trees continue to grow. Flowers bloom. Rocks are still hard and unmoving. The sun still rises and sets, the tides still come in. Birds still sing. There's something comforting about that. And yet it points us to the One who made the seasons, the trees, flowers, rocks, sun, sea, and birds. It reminds us that just as nature continues on it's course, so God is still the ruler. God still is powerful. And no matter how bad things may seem in our little worlds in our heads, we can take hope in that outside ourselves, everything is under control. And now I'll be revisiting some other songs I thought didn't have "deep enough" lyrics.
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