Day Twenty Five - Thank you for every new good morning

I seem to have a memory bank full of children’s hymns! However, as my personal experience shows that people get their theology as much from hymns as they do from Bible study or listening to sermons, perhaps the hymns people remember from their childhoods need to be examined!

One of my favourite ‘thank you’ songs is from a bright yellow book called Sing to God, first published by Scripture Union in 1971. The words and music were written by M G Schneider, although the wonderful musical challenge of a semi-tone rise after each verse is the work of D G Wilson. I am really pleased that I chose to look at this hymn as I have discovered that M G is actually Martin Gotthard Schneider, a German theologian, who wrote the hymn Danke in 1961 as a competition entry. The song won first prize and got into the German pop charts where it stayed for six weeks. It has since been translated into twenty-five languages.

Some people criticise intercessory prayers which cover every topic in the world; these people may not like Thank you…whose only specific is “comfort in Your Word”. Indeed, Its all-encompassing nature may be why this is classed as a children’s hymn. The lyrics really do cover a lot of ground: leisure, employment, every shade and sorrow, every heartfelt joy, God’s guidance.

There are some challenges for Christians of any age: “thank you when I can feel forgiveness to my greatest foe” and “thank you for everyone I know”. Some of the concepts are good, although expressed weirdly: “thank you that I may cast my burdens wholly onto you” and “thank you for free and full salvation, thank you for grace to hold it fast”. Some of the suggestions for thanksgiving are perhaps unnecessary: “every friend I have”, “for all that makes me happy” and “every fresh new day”. One is rather curious: “for melody”! Perhaps this made more sense in the original German.

My main problem with this hymn is that the concepts just rattle off the tongue to keep up with the “pop” tune. How can we do justice to thanking for “your unfailing love”, “grace to know your gospel” and “all your Spirit’s power” when the whole song takes just two minutes?

Unfortunately, the Scripture Union version of the song is not available on YouTube, which offers instead Petula Clark singing very different lyrics (which don’t mention God at all), an Australian version with quite different lyrics or versions in the original German! These latter at least clear up a few things: “for melody” is actually “for music” and the difficult phrase “grace to know your gospel” is the much simpler “thank you that I can understand Your Word”. It is worth watching a German version simply for the illustrations – feeling forgiveness for an enemy is depicted by a mouse and a cat!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBwwj-TW-Q8 Petula Clark

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yiu-1YX1WvE Glen Chamberlain, Australian

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMCeBIDHHhU Danke with the cartoon cat and mouse

Thank you for every new good morning

Thank you for every fresh new day

Thank you that I may cast my burdens

Wholly onto You.

Thank you for every friend I have Lord

Thank you for every one I know

Thank you when I can feel forgiveness

To my greatest foe.

Thank you for leisure and employment

Thank you for every heartfelt joy

Thank you for all that makes me happy

And for melody.

Thank you for every shade and sorrow

Thank you for comfort in Your Word

Thank you that I am guided by You

Everywhere I go

Thank you for grace to know your gospel

Thank you for all Your Spirit’s power

Thank you for Your unfailing love

Which reaches far and near.

Thank you for free and full salvation

Thank you for grace to hold it fast

Thank you, O Lord I want to thank you

That I’m free to thank!

Elaine Kinchin