Doctrine & Covenants 25:12

"For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads." (Doctrine and Covenants 25:12)

Monday, July 25, 2011

Come Ye Children Of The Lord

"When I was a young man in my twentieth year, I wrote a poem to which I paid but little attention. Some one saw it and set it to music. It appeared a simple thing at the time… but somehow there was that something in it that struck a popular chord in the hearts of the people and it will live on after I have passed away…it was such a small effort. There must have been some particular appeal or inspirational setting in it, or it would not have been so universally loved."


~James H. Wallis, 1881  (http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/c/y/c/cycolord.htm)


1.  Come ye children of the Lord,
Let us sing with one accord.
Let us raise a joyful strain
To the Lord who soon will reign
On this earth when it shall be
Cleansed from all iniquity

When all men from sin will cease,
And will live in love and peace.

2. Oh, how joyful it will be
When our Savior we shall see!
When in splendor he’ll descend,
Then all wickedness will end.
Oh, what songs we then will sing
To our Savior, Lord, and King!
Oh, what love will then bear sway
When our fears shall flee away!

3. All arrayed in spotless white,
We will dwell ’mid truth and light.
We will sing the songs of praise;
We will shout in joyous lays.
Earth shall then be cleansed from sin.
Ev’ry living thing therein
Shall in love and beauty dwell;
Then with joy each heart will swell.

I love this hymn because it is so full of hope in the anticipation of the second coming of Christ.  As I read this past week about the tragic youth camp shootings in Norway 

I felt sick when I thought of that gunman going on for 30 minutes killing everyone in sight.  

It brought to my mind this scripture, "And because iniquity shall abound the love of many shall wax cold" (Matthew 24:12).   


I sincerely mourn with all the families who are grieving their lost loved ones right now.  



When I think about the senseless violence that occurs daily all over the world, I become very disheartened.  So I love this hymn because of the hope it promises;  that when Christ comes again, the world will be cleansed from iniquity,  the earth, cleansed from sin.  Christ will bring with him an end to all iniquity and men will dwell in love and peace one with another.  We will all rejoice with each other singing songs of praise and shouting for joy at the coming our Lord and Savior, even Jesus Christ.



"Oh how joyful it will be when our Savior we shall see!"

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