Dear Church Family,
As I write this I am watching the live-stream of the funeral of Sandy Curnow – a retired member of our presbytery. There have been words of praise for the faithful pastor who held without reservation to the truth of the Bible. His booming voice and jovial character have been noted. Yet most of all Sandy wanted to be known as one who lived to the glory of God and in total dependence on Him. Words from a favorite hymn appeared to the worship order:
When I am far from friends and home, Upon the land, or sea,
My Savior’s near, whate’er may come, I know He cares for me.
Refrain:
He watches o’er me day and night, He makes my many burdens light,
I know my Savior cares for me. Whene’er I call, He hears my cry,
And wholly on Him I rely - I know my Savior cares for me!
Upon the cross, in wondrous love, He died, from sin to free,
And now prepares my home above, I know He cares for me.
The darkest clouds may o’er me roll, Undaunted I shall be;
My faithful friend will keep my soul, I know He cares for me.
I’ll sing His praise with heart and voice, Now, and eternally;
And in His strength and love rejoice, I know He cares for me
I had not heard of this hymn “I Know My Savior Cares” before this service. The richness of the words provides comfort to God’s people. I planned to just give you one stanza and the refrain, but the power of the lyrics demanded that I share all of them. With the help of Bing (instead of Google) I discovered the hymn writer, Katharyn (sic) Bacon, composed well over 100 hymns – not one of which appear in any hymnal published after 1960. The lyrics of hymns by this lady, who was “born and lived in the hills of Tennessee” according to a bio, reflect an intimacy with God “Under His Wings I Hide” and would “Serve the Lord with a Happy Heart.” With good reason Sandy chose this hymn to be in the worship bulletin.
Sandy not only picked the hymns for his funeral, he also chose what his pastor preached. Mike Thompson proclaimed from Luke 18 the story of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. One man thought his own good acts made him righteous, while the other knew he was a sinner and begged God for mercy. Sandy knew he needed that mercy as his only comfort in life and in death.
It was good to go to the house of mourning for this funeral. May we praise our Lord who cares for us!
Living by grace to His glory,
Pastor Gillikin