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I wrote the music to this hymn on Sunday, the 27th of January, as per the request of my dad. He had revised a poem by my brother Scott with the hope of making it into a hymn. Little did I know that Scott's original poem had already been put to music by Daniel Kerr, a very gifted organist and composer. If I hadn't already finished most of it, I would have stopped composing upon finding this out. Anyway, it turns out that my dad's version was different enough that Scott thought his name should be put as the author. My dad disagreed, arguing that without Scott's original there would be no hymn at all. Since neither of them wanted credit for the text, I went ahead and rewrote the second verse which had been problematic to fit into the music from the beginning. Needless to say, no one wants to claim the text and so there is a freebie for someone if they want to claim they wrote a hymn. I feel that although the text came about in an unorthodox way, it has a very powerful message that captures the thoughts and feelings of someone who is truly seeking to be changed by the power of Christ's atoning sacrifice. I had never written music to a hymn before, but I gave it a good honest effort. The tune doesn't pack the same punch as most other well known hymns, but I tried to make it and the harmonies reflect the feeling of sincere effort and honest desire despite the short comings of the natural man. Overall, the experience of writing this music was positive, and although I doubt it will change the world, I feel that it could be used to edify and uplift.
Thank you, Dad, for this opportunity, and maybe now you'll quit hounding me to pursue the art of composition. Just kidding.
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