I Love to Tell the Story (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 661)
1 I love to tell the story
of unseen things above,
of Jesus and his glory,
of Jesus and his love.
I love to tell the story,
because I know it’s true;
it satisfies my longings
as nothing else would do.
Refrain:
I love to tell the story;
’twill be my theme in glory
to tell the old, old story
of Jesus and his love.
2 I love to tell the story:
how pleasant to repeat
what seems, each time I tell it,
more wonderfully sweet!
I love to tell the story,
for some have never heard
the message of salvation
from God’s own holy word. [Refrain]
3 I love to tell the story,
for those who know it best
seem hungering and thirsting
to hear it like the rest.
And when, in scenes of glory,
I sing the new, new song,
I’ll sing the old, old story
that I have loved so long. [Refrain]
Text: Katherine Hankey; Music: William E. Fischer; Public Domain
Devotion
One of my favorite parts of family get-togethers is hearing the stories I’ve heard over and over again. I seem to learn a new nugget every time. There’s a new humorous moment or a new connection in the present as the aunts and uncles revisit a memory.
This hymn reminds us of our need to hear and rehear, to tell and retell the story. It’s the story of acceptance and welcome when we feel our most unlovable. It’s the story of being named and claimed by God’s irrevocable mercy. It reminds us of who and whose we are. The story reveals a new nugget every time. It helps us create new connections with those who haven’t heard the story. It links us to those who have journeyed in life with the full mercy and grace and love of God in ways we haven’t.
It’s a new song and an old story, full of Jesus’ glory, mercy, and love, for you, me, and the whole world.
Prayer
Dear Jesus, let the song in my heart tell the story of your glory and love. Give me the boldness and the tenderness to share it with mercy through the power of your Holy Spirit. Amen.