My Life Flows On in Endless Song, ELW 763 (refrain)
Devotion
1My life flows on in endless song;
above earth's lamentation,
I catch the sweet, though far-off hymn
that hails a new creation.
Refrain
No storm can shake my inmost calm
while to that Rock I'm clinging.
Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth,
how can I keep from singing?
2Through all the tumult and the strife,
I hear that music ringing.
It finds an echo in my soul.
How can I keep from singing? Refrain
3What though my joys and comforts die?
The Lord my Savior liveth.
What though the darkness gather round?
Songs in the night he giveth. Refrain
4The peace of Christ makes fresh my heart,
a fountain ever springing!
All things are mine since I am his!
How can I keep from singing? Refrain
The gospel song we read today was written by Baptist minister Robert Lowry (1826–1899), a prolific musician and much-lauded preacher. It is often referred to by the last line of the refrain, "How can I keep from singing?" The unsung answer to this question is obvious: We cannot! Irrepressible joy is ours—no matter what storms we endure.
Appropriately, the song's spirited tune—its sweeping melody and insistent rhythms—invites us to attend to our literal singing. But the text carries us beyond ourselves to the heart of the gospel—Christ is our rock, the Lord of heaven and earth.
With this blessed assurance, we strive to serve all creation as instruments of God's peace—to love God with our whole heart, soul, and mind, and our neighbor as ourselves. We receive and share the peace of Christ through the power of the Spirit. How can we keep from singing?
Prayer
O Lord Jesus, make us instruments of your peace, granting that we may strive to love in your name. Amen.