How Great Thou Art
“How Great Thou Art” was written as a poem in the late 18oo’s. A young Swedish preacher was inspired as he walked home from church one afternoon.
Carl Boberg was struck by how rapidly a thunderous storm appeared. It rained for just a short time, followed by a breathtaking rainbow.
That night he wrote the words. The original sown was called ‘O Store Gud’ which basically translated to ‘O Great God’ in English.
Through the years, the song, which was sung with the melody of a Swedish folk song, was translated into several languages. In the early 20′s, Mr and Mrs. Stuart Hine were English missionaries that moved to Poland. Stuart heard the song and later translated it into English. This is the version we know as ‘How Great Thou Art.’
Today, there are over 1700 recordings of this song! It’s is said to be the #1 favorite hymn in polls conducted in the US and in Britain. I’m certain that Mr. Boberg would be shocked to find that his inspired poem was translated and loved by so many Christians all over the world!
I’m currently filming a couple arrangements of this beautiful hymn.
The Hundredfold Seed – Tomato Example
Jesus loved to give agricultural examples to His disciples and in his stories. One of my favorites is when He contrasted the different types of soil that that hear the message of the kingdom. I enjoy a bit of gardening and it’s fun to see how just adding a bit of water and sunlight to plants causes them to flourish.
There’s nothing like sweet home-grown tomatoes and this year they provided a perfect illustration of those Bible verses.
A few months ago we bought a little tray of 6 baby tomato seedlings. In the video below, you can see for yourself what a difference soil can make. The other difference is that the huge tomato plant was directly in the ground which allowed the roots to go down deep into the soil.
Guitar Walking Basses
Guitar Walking Basses
Using walking basses is a common technique used to write worship songs. You see this in songs like ‘As A Deer’. You can also use this technique to make a song arrangement. I show some examples in our Music Theory Course of how to take a song and make many different arrangements of it. In the video below is a video showing how to find the walking basses in three different keys.
There are examples in the key of ‘C’, ‘D’, and ‘G’. In the key of ‘C’ there are no sharps or flats, so the notes of the descending scale are C, B, A, G, F, E D and the back to C. In the video below you learn that the descending scale often moves to the ‘V’ or ‘V7′ chord between the last two notes, or last two chords.
In the picture you can see one example using the chords ‘C’, ‘C/B’, ‘Am7′, Am7/G’, ‘F’, ‘F/E’, ‘G7′, then ‘C’. The note underneath a slash ‘/’ is always the bass note. In the video the chord should have been called ‘Am7/G’ instead of ‘Am/G’. It’s actually the chord in the picture.
In the key of ‘D’ the bass notes are ‘D’, ‘C#’, ‘B’, ‘A’, ‘G’, ‘F#’, ‘E’, ‘A’ (which is the V), and ‘D’. In the key of ‘G’ the descending bass notes are ‘G’, ‘F#’, ‘E’, ‘D’, ‘C’, ‘B’, ‘A’, ‘D’ (the V), and ‘D’.
Fit in 10 Minutes
I recently heard about this fitness program that takes just 10 minutes a day. Can you really get in good shape with just 10 minutes a day? I don’t know about you, but I sure like the idea of staying in shape without having to spend a lot of time.
In my 20′s I used to run 6 days a week and ran a few marathons. But running long distance takes a lot of time and may not be so good for your body. There has been quite a bit of research showing that interval training can bring results much faster than spending hours on a treadmill. I’d rather spend hours playing worship songs on my guitar, or creating new Christian guitar programs for you!
The website is fit10.com and if you use the discount code ‘blessing‘, you’ll get an additional $10 discount. I’ve been using the DVD and equipment for one week and love that it’s an intense workout… for just 10 minutes without having to drive to a health club! The program is also good for those with back problems because it puts no stress on your back.
Guitar Practicing Tips
Start with Prayer
As a Christian, I have always recommended starting any practice session with prayer. Paul says to do everything to God’s glory. I remember reading Brother Lawrence’s book years ago. He was a monk from the 1600’s who’s letters have become the book ‘Practicing The Presence of God.’ He talked about peeling potatoes to God’s glory.
The first tip in practicing your guitar is to start with a prayer. The Scriptures also say that you have not because you ask not. You can actually make your practice a time of worship. Thank God for His many wonderful attributes and ask Him for help with keeping focused on Him and with learning the guitar.
You can worship with instrumental music, too. I remember hearing Christopher Parkening, a classical guitarist, say that his motivation for playing the guitar had changed from playing to make money to playing for God’s glory, after he became a Christian. Read More…
