Good Words for Today: November 21

Since this is Thanksgiving week, let’s do a hymn story fitting for the season. Today’s song was written by Johnson Oatman Jr. and first published in 1897 in Songs for Young People. During his lifetime, Oatman wrote over 5000 songs, for which he was paid, on average, $1 per song. Most of his work is long forgotten, but “Count Your Blessings” endures because it is a song that everyone can understand. The great evangelist Gypsy Smith explained its popularity this way:

“In South London the men sing it, the boys whistle it, and the women rock their babies to sleep on this hymn.”

One writer said, “Like a beam of light, it has brightened up the dark places of the earth.” Some songs are so deep that it’s hard to grasp the message. Not so with “Count Your Blessings.” If you need a little pick-me-up for your soul on this Monday, check out these lyrics: When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed, when you are discouraged, thinking all is lost, count your many blessings name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord hath done. Refrain: Count your blessings, name them one by one; Count your blessings, see what God hath done! Count your blessings, name them one by one; Count your many blessings, see what God hath done! Are you ever burdened with a load of care? Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear? Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly, And you will be singing as the days go by. When you look at others with their lands and gold, think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold; count your many blessings money cannot buy your reward in heaven nor your home on high. So amid the conflict, whether great or small, do not be discouraged. God is over all; count your many blessings angels will attend, help and comfort give you to your journey’s end. You can find many fine arrangements of “Count Your Blessings” on YouTube, but my favorite is this arrangement by the Salvation Army Songsters. It’s upbeat, uptempo, uplifting, and I love that little ragtime interlude between verses.

November 21, 2016