Christian Reflection and Prayer

Scripture:

But happy are those who have the God
of Israel as their helper, whose hope is
in the Lord their God.
Psalm 146:5 NLT

I'll praise my Maker while I've breath;
And when my voice is lost in death.
Praise shall employ my nobler pow'rs;
My days of praise shall ne'er be past,
While life, and thought, and being last,
Or immortality endures.

Happy the man whose hopes rely
On Israel's God! He made the sky,
And earth, and sea, with all their train;
His truth for ever stands secure;
He saves the oppressed, He feeds the poor,
And none shall find His promise vain.
I'll Praise My Maker While I've Breath
(v1,2), ISAAC WATTS (1674-1748)

In Westminster Abbey stands a
statue of Isaac Watts with a pen
in his hand. Not far from Watts,
John Wesley is also honored.
This hymn has connections to
both men.

As John Wesley lay dying, he
surprised his friends gathered
around his bedside by singing
in a clear voice this hymn of
Isaac Watts: "I'll praise my Maker
while I've breath, and when my
voice is lost in death, praise shall
employ my nobler powers."

The next day he tried to sing the
hymn again, but he could not. Two
or three times he began, but could
only say the words "I'll praise."
That was all he could get out of
his mouth. Then, with those words
on his lips, he was ushered into glory.

adapted from The One Year® Book
of Hymns by Mark Norton and Robert
Brown, Tyndale House Publishers (1995),
entry for February 27