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It is very easy to take the many blessings we have from God for granted. Sometimes we think we are entitled to what we have and we forget that absolutely everything we have comes from God.
Folliot Pierpoint lived in Bath, England where he taught at Somersetshire College. In the spring of 1864, Pierpoint took a walk around the countryside and was so inspired by the beauty of God’s creation, he wrote a poem which became the hymn “For the Beauty of the Earth.” The text of this hymn is one of thankfulness from the first verse to the last. Consider all that you have to be thankful for as you read the text.
For the beauty of the earth, for the glory of the skies,
For the love which from our birth over and around us lies.
For the beauty of each hour, of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and tree and flower, sun and moon, and stars of light.
For the joy of ear and eye, for the heart and mind’s delight,
For the mystic harmony linking sense to sound and sight.
For the joy of human love, brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth and friends above, for all gentle thoughts and mild.
For Thy Church, that evermore lifteth holy hands above,
Offering up on every shore Her pure sacrifice of love.
For each perfect gift of Thine, to our race so freely given,
Graces human and divine, flowers of earth and buds of Heaven.
Refrain: Lord of all, to Thee we raise, this our hymn of grateful praise.
Special thanks to the Youth Handbells and Youth Choir for leading us in worship through music on Youth Sunday. They rang and sang very well and I appreciate these young people sharing their gift of music with their church family. Please take the time to extend your thanks to them as well.
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