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Hymn Notes 🎶

September 24, 2026

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,

Today I am sharing a bit of advice from St. Benedict along with the hymn, "My God, My Father, Make Me Strong." TLH 424

1. My God, my Father, make me strong, When tasks of life seem hard and long,
To greet them with this triumph song: Thy will be done.

2. Draw from my timid eyes the veil To show where earthly forces fail,
Thy power and love must still prevail - Thy will be done.

3. With confident and humble mind Freedom in service I would find,
Praying through every toil assigned: Thy will be done.

4. Things deemed impossible I dare, Thine is the call and Thine the care;
Thy wisdom shall the way prepare - Thy will be done.

5. All power is here and round me now; Faithful I stand in rule and vow,
While 'tis not I, but ever Thou: Thy will be done.

6. Heaven's music chimes the glad days in; Hope soars beyond death, pain, and sin;
Faith shouts in triumph, Love must win - Thy will be done!

God's peace,
Trudy J. Schmalz
Director of Music

A WRITING FOR SEPTEMBER 23RD

Benedict of Nursia’s advice about singing.

We believe that God is present everywhere and that the eyes of the Lord behold the good and the bad in every place (cf. Prov. 15:3). Let us firmly believe this, especially when we take part in [the Divine Service]. Let us, therefore, always be mindful of what the prophet says, “Serve the Lord with fear” (Ps. 2:11). And again, “Sing wisely” (Ps. 46:8). And, “I will sing praise to You in the sight of the angels” (Ps. 137:1). Therefore, let us consider how it benefits us to behave in the sight of God and His angels, and let us then stand to sing, that our minds may be in harmony with our voices.

Benedict’s advice about prayer.

If we do not dare to approach men who are in power except with humility and reverence when we wish to ask a favor, how much must we make requests of the Lord God of all things with all humility and purity of devotion? And let us be assured that it is not in many words, but it is by hearts [declared] pure and with repentant tears, that we are heard. For this reason prayer ought to be short and pure, unless, perhaps, it is lengthened by the inspiration of divine grace. When we pray together [in the Divine Service], however, let the prayer always be short.

- Benedict of Nursia, Holy Rule of St. Benedict XIX-XX

Portrait of Saint Benedict in Benedetto Portinari Triptych by Hans Memling (1487)

Hymn Notes 🎶

September 17, 2026

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,

We remember Cyprian of Carthage on September 16 with the hymn, "Awake, Thou Spirit, Who Didst Fire." TLH 494

"This cento is from Carl H. v. Bogatzky's famous missionary hymn of fourteen stanzas, published in 1750 in his Die Ubung der Gottseligkeit in allerley Geistlichen Liedern, Halle. It was entitled 'For faithful laborers in the Harvest of the Lord, for the blessed spread of the Word to all the world.' The cento is formed of Stanzas 1,3, 5, and 7 of the original. The translation is a slightly altered form of Catherine Winkworth's Lyra Germanica, first series, 1855. In Stanza 4, lines 5 and 6, bogatzky's words, in translation, are:
Wake Israel from his sleep, O Lord, And spread the conquest of Thy Word!" The Handbook to the Lutheran Hymnal

1. Awake, Thou Spirit, who didst fire The watchmen of the Church's youth,
Who faced the Foe's envenomed ire, Who witnessed day and night Thy truth,
Whose voices loud are ringing still And bringing hosts to know Thy will.

2. Lord, let our earnest prayer be heard, The prayer Thy Son hath bid us pray;
For, lo, Thy children's hearts are stirred In every land in this our day
To cry with fervent soul to Thee, Oh, help us, Lord! So let it be!

3. Oh, haste to help ere we are lost! Send preachers forth, in spirit strong,
Armed with Thy Word, a dauntless host, Bold to attack the rule of wrong;
Let them the earth for Thee reclaim, Thy heritage, to know Thy name.

4. And let Thy Word have speedy course, Through every land be glorified,
Till all the heathen know its force And fill Thy churches far and wide.
Oh, spread the conquest of Thy Word And let Thy kingdom come, dear Lord!

God's peace,
Trudy J. Schmalz
Director of Music

+ Cyprian of Carthage, Pastor and Martyr +

16 September

Cyprian (ca. AD 200–258), was acclaimed bishop of the north African city of Carthage around AD 248. During the persecution of the roman Emperor Decius, Cyprian fled Carthage but returned two years later. He was then forced to deal with the problem of Christians who had lapsed from their faith under persecution and now wanted to return to the Church. It was decided that these lapsed Christians could be restored but that their restoration could take place only after a period of penance that demonstrated their faithfulness. During the persecution under Emperor Valerian, Cyprian at first went into hiding but later gave himself up to the authorities. He was beheaded for the faith in Carthage in the year 258. - Treasury of Daily Prayer

Hymn Notes 🎶

September 10, 2026

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,

As we celebrate a wedding in our sanctuary this weekend, I have chosen the hymn, "O Happy Home Where Thou art Loved Most Dearly." TLH 626

"Karl Johann Philipp Spitta (1801-1859), was the greatest German hymn-writer of the 19th century. He was born August 1, 1801 in Hanover of parents in humble life, his father being a bookkeeper and a teacher of French. The Spitta family was a Huguenot family that fled during the Roman Catholic persecutions in France. They changed their name from 'de l'Hopital' to the German equivalent Spital or Spittell, which was later modified into Spitta. His father died when Karl was but four. The mother was a Christian Jewess, and to her fostering care Karl wrote the finest hymn ever written on the Christian home, 'O happy home where Thou art loved most dearly.' Spitta started to write verse when he was eight. Because of his frail health, Karl's younger brother was sent to school to study for the ministry instead of Karl. His father having died, his mother apprenticed him to a watchmaker. He did not like watchmaking; yet he was faithful and efficient in his work. At this time he began the study of languages. The younger brother died by drowning in 1818, and so Karl was sent to school when he inadvertently made his true desire known to a close friend. He completed his studies at the University of Gottingen, where the professors were rationalistic, in 1824, then tutored in a private family for four years at Lune, near Luneburg, till he was ordained to the Lutheran ministry, as assistant pastor of Sudwalde, Hanover. Two years later Spitta received the appointment of chaplain to the prisoners and garrison of Hameln, Hanover, and would have succeeded as permanent chaplain there, had not the military authorities, alarmed by reports which described him as a Pietist and a mystic, refused to sanction the arrangement. On October 4, 1837, Spitta married Joanna Mary Magdalene Hotzen and in the same year took charge of the Lutheran Church of Wechold, near Hoya, Hanover, where he labored happily and successfully for ten years. Spitta's home was one of peace and song. There were seven children. One son, Friedrich Spitta, born January 10, 1852, became a theologian and was appointed professor of New Testament Exegesis and Practical Theology at the University of Strassburg and is known through his works on liturgics. Another son, Johann August Philipp, was the author of the great biography of J. S. Bach. In 1847 Spitta received the appointment of Ecclesiastical Superintendent of Wittingen and in 1853 that of chief pastor of Pein. Spitta had just been preferred to the Church at Burgdorf when he was stricken with a gastric fever followed by cramp of the heart. He died at the age of 58, September 28, 1859. At the university Spitta also became fast friends with Heinrich Heine. That friendship came to an abrupt end, however, when Heine visited Spitta at Lune and openly ridiculed holy things in front of Spitta's pupils. Spitta himself passed through a deep spiritual experience during which he composed some of his finest hymns. In 1826 Spitta wrote to a friend, 'In the manner in which I formerly sang, I sing no more. To the Lord I dedicate my life, my love, and likewise my song. He gave to me song and melody. I give it back to Him.' Spitta's hymns aroused unparalleled enthusiasm. His Psalter und Harfe appeared in a second and larger edition after its first in 1833. By 1889 no less than 55 editions had been published. Another collection of hymns, which was first published in 1843, passed through 42 editions by 1887. A translation of Spitta's hymns into English verse was published by Richard Massie in 1859, entitled Lyra Domestica." The Handbook to the Lutheran Hymnal

1. O happy home where Thou art loved most dearly, Thou faithful Friend and Savior full of grace,
And where among the guests there never cometh One who can hold such high and honored place!
O happy home where all, in heart united, In holy faith and blessed hope are one,
Whom bitter death a little while divideth, Yet cannot end the union here begun!

2. O happy home where two, in heart united, In holy faith, are clinging unto Thee;
Where both, to Thee a joyful service bringing, Hear and obey Thy voice most willingly;
Where both to Thee in truth forever cleaving In joy, in grief, make Thee their only Stay
And fondly hope in Thee to be believing Both in the good and in the evil day.

3. O happy home whose little ones are given Early to Thee in humble faith and prayer,
To Thee, their Friend, who from the heights of heaven Guides them and guards with more than mother's care!
O happy home where each one serves Thee, lowly, Whatever his appointed work may be,
Till every common task seems great and holy When it is done, O Lord, as unto Thee!

4. O happy home where Thou art not forgotten When joy is overflowing, full, and free!
O happy home where every wounded spirit Is brought, O great Physician, unto Thee,
Until at last, when earthly toil is ended, All meet Thee in the blessed home above,
From whence Thou camest, where Thou hast ascended, Thine everlasting home of peace and love!

God's peace,
Trudy J. Schmalz
Director of Music

Hymn Notes 🎶

September 3, 3026

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,

Today we remember Gregory the Great, Pastor, with the hymn, "Send Thou, O Lord, to Every Place." TLH 506

"This hymn by Mary C. Gates, written in 1888, was introduced at a convention of the Christian Endeavor Society in 1890 and thereafter published in Sursum Corda (1898). Its inclusion in the Evangelical Lutheran Hymn-book (1912), the first official English hymnal of the Synod, and in The Lutheran Hymnal (1941), and its resultant popularity, prompted its inclusion in Lutheran Worship (1982)." Lutheran Worship Hymnal Companion

1. Send Thou, O Lord, to every place Swift messengers before Thy face,
The heralds of Thy wondrous grace, Where Thou Thyself wilt come.

2. Send men whose eyes have seen the King, Men in whose ears His sweet words ring;
Send such Thy lost ones home to bring; Send them where Thou wilt come, -

3. To bring good news to souls in sin, The bruised and broken hearts to win;
In every place to bring them in Where Thou Thyself wilt come.

4. Thou who hast died, Thy victory claim; Assert, O Christ, Thy glory's name
And far to lands of pagan shame Send men where Thou wilt come.

5. Gird each one with the Spirit's Sword, The sword of Thine own deathless Word,
And make them conquerors, conquering Lord, Where Thou Thyself wilt come.

6. Raise up, O Lord the Holy Ghost, From this broad land a mighty host;
Their war-cry, "We will seek the lost Where Thou, O Christ, wilt come!"

God's peace,
Trudy J. Schmalz
Director of Music

+ Gregory the Great, Pastor +

3 September

One of the great leaders in Europe at the close of the sixth century, Gregory served in both the secular and sacred arenas of his era. As mayor of Rome, he restored economic vitality to his native city, which had been weakened by enemy invasions, pillage, and plague. After he sold his extensive properties and donated the proceeds to help the poor, he entered into full-time service in the Church. On September 3, 590 A.D., Gregory was elected to lead the church in Rome. As Bishop of Rome he oversaw changes and growth in the areas of church music and liturgical development, missionary outreach to northern Europe, and the establishment of a church-year calendar still used by many churches in the western World today. His book on pastoral care became a standard until the 20th centu
ry. - Treasury of Daily Prayer

Saint Gregory the Great by José de Ribera (1614)

Hymn Notes 🎶

August 27, 2026

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,

We remember Monica, Mother of Augustine, on August 27, with the hymn, "Now Let Us Come Before Him." TLH 122

"This is one of the few 'we' hymns of Paul Gerhardt (in contrast to his more personal 'I' hymns) that first appeared in the so-called Runge Gesangbuch (Berlin, 1653) produced for the Reformed churches in Berlin under the music editorship of Johann Cruger. Originally in 15 stanzas, it is the thirty Years' War (1618-48) with its suffering and woe (more noticeable in the stanzas here omitted) that looms as the backdrop for this fine hymn. Recognizing its appropriateness for other than times of war, it soon began to be sung in worship on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day." Lutheran Worship Hymnal Companion

1. Now let us come before Him, With song and prayer adore Him,
Who to our life hath given All needed strength from heaven.

2. The stream of years is flowing, And we are onward going,
From old to new surviving And by His mercy thriving.

3. In woe we often languish And pass through times of anguish,
Of wars and trepidation Alarming every nation.

4. As mothers watch are keeping O'er children who are sleeping,
Their fear and grief assuaging When angry storms are raging.

5. So God His own is shielding And help to them is yielding.
When need and woe distress them, His loving arms caress them.

6. O Thou who dost not slumber, Remove what would encumber
Our work, which prospers never Unless Thou bless it ever.

7. O God of Mercy, hear us; Our Father, be Thou near us;
Mid crosses and in sadness Be Thou our Fount of gladness.

8. To all who bow before Thee And for Thy grace implore Thee,
Oh, grant Thy benediction And patience in affliction.

9. Be Thou a Helper speedy To all the poor and needy,
To all forlorn a Father; Thy erring children gather.

10. Be with the sick and ailing Their Comforter unfailing;
Dispelling grief and sadness, Oh, give them joy and gladness!

11. Above all else, Lord, send us Thy Spirit to attend us,
Within our hearts abiding, To heaven our footsteps guiding.

12. All this Thy hand bestoweth, Thou Life, whence our life floweth.
To all Thy name confessing Grant, Lord, Thy New Year's blessing.

God's peace,
Trudy J. Schmalz
Director of Music

+ Monica, Mother of Augustine +

27 August

A native of North Africa, Monica (A.D. 333–387) was the devoted mother of Saint Augustine. Throughout her life she sought the spiritual welfare of her children, especially that of her brilliant son, Augustine. Widowed at a young age, she devoted herself to her family, praying many years for Augustine's conversion. When Augustine left North Africa to go to Italy, she followed him to Rome and then to Milan. There she had the joy of witnessing her son's conversion to the Christian faith. Weakened by her travels, Monica died at Ostia, Italy on the journey she had hoped would take her back to her native Africa. On some church year calendars, Monica is remembered on May 4. - Treasury of Daily Prayer

Monica of Hippo - Gozzoli

Hymn Notes 🎶

August 20, 2026

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,

Today we remember Samuel with the hymn, "Shepherd of Tender Youth." TLH 628

"Titus Flavius Clemens, now known as Clement of Alexandria (ca. 150-ca. 215), appended this hymn and one other poem to the third book of his great treatise Paedagogus ('The Instructor'). Possibly written while he was headmaster of the catechetical school in Alexandria, the treatise itself focuses on several aspects of Christian living. The one most pertinent to this hymn appears in the first book, where Clement discusses the relationship between the instructor - the Word of God, meaning Christ - and His young students, all Christians.

The English text by Henry M. Dexter (1821-90) is more of a paraphrase than a translation. A more literal translation reads:
Bridle of untamed colts, Wing of unwandering birds, sure Helm of babes, Shepherd of royal lambs, assemble Thy simple children to praise holily, to hymn guilelessly with innocent mouths, Christ the guide of children. O King of saints, all-subduing Word of the most high Father, Ruler of wisdom, Support of sorrows, that rejoicest in the ages, Jesus, Saviour of the human race, Shepherd, Husbandman, Helm, Bridle, Heavenly Wing of the all-holy flock, Fisher of men who are saved, catching the chaste fishes with sweet life from the hateful wave of a sea of vices, - Guide [us], Shepherd of rational sheep; guide unharmed children, O holy King, O footsteps of Christ, O heavenly way, perennial Word, immeasurable Age, Eternal Light, Fount of mercy, performer of virtue; noble [is the] life of those who hymn God, O Christ Jesus, heavenly milk of the sweet breast of the graces of the Bride, pressed out of Thy wisdom. Babes nourished with tender mouths, filled with the dewy spirit of the spiritual breast, let us sing together simple praises, true hymns to Christ [our] King, sacred rewards for the teaching of life; let us sing in simplicity the powerful Child. O choir of peace, the Christ-begotten, O chaste people, let us sing together the God of peace.

Dexter's translation was published in several newspapers before it appeared in Hymns for the Church of Christ (Boston, 1853). The first Lutheran hymnal to include it was the Pennsylvania Ministerium's Hymns for the Use of the Evangelical Lutheran Church (Philadelphia, 1865). Since then, nearly every Lutheran hymnal containing this hymn has used Dexter's translation, although ELH (1996) used a translation by F. Bland Tucker (1895-1984)." LSB Companion to the Hymns

1. Shepherd of tender youth, Guiding in love and truth Through devious ways;
Christ, our triumphant King, We come Thy name to sing And here our children bring To join Thy praise.

2. Thou art our holy Lord, O all-subduing Word, Healer of strife.
Thou didst Thyself abase That from sin's deep disgrace Thou mightest save our race And give us life.

3. Thou art the great High Priest; Thou hast prepared the feast Of holy love;
And in our mortal pain None calls on Thee in vain; Help Thou dost not disdain, Help from above.

4. Ever be Thou our Guide, Our Shepherd and our Pride, Our Staff and Song;
Jesus, Thou Christ of God, By Thine enduring Word Lead us where Thou hast trod, Make our faith strong.

5. So now, and till we die, Sound we Thy praises high And joyful sing;
Infants and the glad throng Who to Thy Church belong, Unite to swell the song To Christ, our King.

God's peace,
Trudy J. Schmalz
Director of Music

+ Samuel +

20 August

Samuel, last of the Old Testament judges and first of the prophets (after Moses), lived during the 11th century B.C. The child of Elkanah, an Ephraimite, and his wife Hannah, Samuel was from early on consecrated by his parents for sacred service and trained in the house of the Lord at Shiloh by Eli the priest. Samuel's authority as a prophet was established by God (1 Sam. 3:20). He anointed Saul to be Israel's first king (10:1). Later, as a result of Saul's disobedience to God, Samuel repudiated Saul's leadership and then anointed David to be king in place of Saul (16:13). Samuel's loyalty to God, his spiritual insight, and his ability to inspire others made him one of Israel's great leaders. - Treasury of Daily Prayer

Eli and Samuel by John Singleton Copley (1780)

Hymn Notes 🎶

August 13, 2026

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,

The hymn I have chosen is the table prayer, "Feed Thy Children, God Most Holy." TLH 659

"The text of this little table prayer was written by Johann Heermann (1585-1647), a German Lutheran pastor and a prolific author of hymns. It was first published in 1656, nearly a decade after his death, under the title 'Tisch-Gebetlein' ('little table prayer') in a book of his poetry and prayers, Geistlicher Poetischer Erquickstunden, Fernere Fortsetzung. It consisted of six lines. An unknown hand added lines 7 and 8 in a 1712 hymnal from Halberstadt.

Beloved as a beautiful grace and blessing before meals by those who pray it at church, parochial school, and home, the hymn is typical of Heermann's work. It exhibits tenderness and humility together with faith and trust in the Lord. These qualities are consistent with the commonly held opinion that Heermann marks the transition from the objective hymns of the Reformation to the more subjective viewpoint of hymn writers during the later seventeenth century.

The translation by Alfred Brauer (1866-1949) in the Australian Lutheran Hymn Book (1922) was altered in TLH to create the version used in LSB. An earlier English translation of the entire hymn appeared in Young Lutherans' Magazine in 1903.

The words of the hymn are to be understood in light of the scriptural truth concerning humanity's dependence upon the Lord and His goodness for everything. All that sustains human life is entirely His gift, which He graciously gives to everyone, 'even to all evil people.' Christians ask for these blessings to cultivate this recognition so that they might receive God's mercies with due and proper thanksgiving.

From this perspective, the opening petition of the hymn asks 'God most holy' to feed His children. This request for food includes a confession that only believers in Christ are able to make. God is indeed the Creator of those who have faith in Jesus, but He is also our Father, since by HIs grace through faith in His only-begotten Son we receive His forgiveness and are adopted into His family as His dear sons and daughters. As the objects of His unconditional love and parental care, we are blessed with the certainty that He will not fail to answer our prayers. The daily food He grants along with everything we need to support this body and life are part of the divine comfort that He bestows upon us 'sinners, poor and lowly' in this fallen world.

The third and fourth phrases of the hymn artfully address further the troubled sinners' need for comfort and sustenance. By calling upon Him who is the 'Bread of Life from heaven' to bless the food He has given, we are reminded that Christ Jesus is the giver of spiritual, eternal life, not only of physical life. He in His person as the Word Incarnate is the living bread that gives life to the world. The bread He gives is His flesh (John 6:51), the flesh of the crucified God, whose blood was shed as the appointed sacrifice of atonement. Anyone who comes to Jesus will never go hungry, and those who believe in Him will never be thirsty, as He has promised in John 6:54: 'Whoever feeds on My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.'

This reliant trust in the Lord's pledge to feed His people physically and spiritually is reiterated as the hymn continues. The acknowledgment of God's promise to nourish and sustain the body by means of the food He provides is stated along with the expressed desire that the soul would likewise flourish and abound in God's undeserved kindnesses.

Then, with the eschatological horizon in view, the prayer concludes by declaring the sure hope of every Christian. At the last, we shall come with all of God's holy people sanctified in Christ to His heavenly feast to celebrate the marriage supper of the Lamb and to offer Him our thanks and praise throughout eternity. The use in the hymn's final couplet of the biblical image of a jubilant meal to express the intimate relationship between Christ and His people is appropriate and provocative. After all our earthly meals at which Christ has blessed our food and graced us with His presence, we shall finally banquet with our Lord face-to-face and feast on Him in the full splendor and eternal glory of heaven." LSB Companion to the Hymns

Feed Thy children, God most holy, Comfort sinners poor and lowly;
O Thou Bread of Life from heaven, Bless the food Thou here hast given!
As these gifts the body nourish, May our souls in graces flourish
Till with saints in heavenly splendor At Thy feast due thanks we render.

God's peace,
Trudy J. Schmalz
Director of Music

Praying Hands by Albrecht Durer
Albrecht Dürer

Hymn Notes 🎶

August 6, 2026

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,

I have chosen an evening hymn called, " The Sun's Last Beam of Light is Gone." TLH 563

"Nikolaus Herman, c. 1500-1561, German Lutheran cantor and teacher, first published this hymn in his Sontags Evangelia vber das gantze Jar, Wittenberg, 1560, entitled, 'Der abend segen, In tono eodem.' The foregoing hymn in the collection is his morning hymn (See Hymn No. 547). It is likely that some of the lines were suggested by the hymn 'Christe, qui lux es et dies.' (See Hymn No. 559). The composite translation is based on that of Catherine Winkworth, Lyra Germanica, first series, 1855." The Handbook to the Lutheran Hymnal

1. The sun's last beam of light is gone, The shades of night come swiftly on;
O Christ, our LIght, upon us shine Lest we to sin's dark ways incline.

2. We thank Thee that throughout the day Thine angels kept all harm away.
Thy grace from care and vexing fear Hath led us on in safety here.

3. Lord, if we angered Thee today, Remember not our sins, we pray,
But let Thy mercy o'er them sweep, And give us calm and restful sleep.

4. Let angels guard our sleeping hours And drive away all evil powers;
Our soul and body, while we sleep, In safety, gracious Father, keep.

God's peace,
Trudy J. Schmalz
Director of Music

Die Sonntagsevangelia, title page of his 1560 publication