To commemorate the 75th anniversary of the hymn “How Great Thou Art,” a group of prominent Christian artists including Chris Tomlin, Hillary Scott, Kari Jobe, and others collaborated on a new recording. The hymn originated in 1885 in Sweden, inspired by Carl Boberg’s experience of a thunderstorm and a subsequent moment of tranquility and awe. Initially a poem set to a Swedish folk tune, it was translated into German and Russian before Stuart K. Hine, an English missionary, wrote the English lyrics and arranged the melody in 1949. Proceeds from the new version will support the Stuart Hine Trust in providing humanitarian aid to Eastern Europe. For the anniversary, Matt Redman and Mitch Wong added a new verse to reflect on the current state of the world, emphasizing hope and the power of worship to engage with worldly challenges while affirming God’s sovereignty.
Roys Report:
For the 75th anniversary of the song, the Trust commissioned Matt Redman and Mitch Wong to write a new verse for the iconic hymn.
“In the lyrics, we wanted to acknowledge the ‘broken, warring world’ we live in, but also to sing with hope and faith over that,” Matt Redman explains. “Worship isn’t meant to have an escapist mentality, where we ignore what’s going on around us in this fragile, fallen world. Instead, we can engage with these things, pray for, and acknowledge God’s ultimate kingdom rule and reign in the midst of them.”
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Image credit: Photo by Wes Hicks on Unsplash
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