The missing hymns

For years, the Lewis family attended a church near our old home. We loved the pastor, the congregants, the music, the worship. The church later had something of a shakeup after the pastor retired, and we found a new church in which to worship.

For years after leaving that church, two hymns stayed with me, but – frustratingly – I could not remember what they were called or even much of the tunes. They teased the edge of my mind and wouldn’t leave me alone. I haven’t heard them played or sung in any of the churches we’ve attended since.

This weekend I got serious about tracking down these missing hymns. “The first one had a boat,” I said to Don. “I remember it was in 6/8 time. It was originally written in Spanish and we sang a translation.” Beyond that, I couldn’t remember anything else.

So, feeling I had nothing to lose, I typed “hymn 6/8 time boat” into a search engine and started scanning the results. After five minutes…”Got it!”

The song (in English) is titled “Lord, You Have Come to the Seashore.” I sampled two dozen YouTube versions and found the one I liked best, sung by two talented young women with a simple accompaniment. This is a hymn, I feel, not as suited for mighty choirs or professional vocalists. Instead, it’s a humble hymn for humble worship.

Here are the lyrics:

Lord, you have come to the seashore,
neither searching for the rich nor the wise,
desiring only that I should follow.

O, Lord, with your eyes set upon me,
gently smiling, you have spoken my name;
all I longed for I have found by the water,
at your side, I will seek other shores.

After some searching, I found the other hymn I liked. This one is called “I Was There to Hear your Borning Cry” and it covers life stages.

Here are the lyrics:

I was there to hear your borning cry,
I’ll be there when you are old.
I rejoiced the day you were baptized,
to see your life unfold.

I was there to hear your borning cry,
I’ll be there when you are old.
I rejoiced the day you were baptized,
to see your life unfold.

Now the missing hymns are missing no longer.