Thanksgiving Prayer Service Held

Beneath a starry night as the winds drifted the tidbits of a light sprinkle of white wonderland, wonderful as the glister of crystalized moisture swept beneath ones feet, a small crowd gathered together in the Malta High School auditorium. The event was the annual thanksgiving prayer service hosted by the Ministerial Association on Sunday, November 24.

With the American flag setting the tone of peace and gratefulness, poising so proudly behind the podium, Pr. Orvin Solberg, of the Elim Lutheran Church, welcomed the guests. He shared the story behind "It Is Well With My Soul," and the great "Chicago Fire."

He shared that the "Windy City" was a ball of flame, in October of 1871. A man, Horatio Spafford, was a prosperous lawyer and real estate investor. He was a devout Presbyterian church elder. He and his wife, Anna, had lost their four-year-old son to scarlet fever. They were living comfortable with their four daughters there when the fire broke out. In the great fire he lost everything in his life.

Two years later he decided to take his family on a vacation in Europe. They returned home and later decided to move to Europe; he sent his wife and four daughters on a ship. The ship sank, and the four daughters were all killed. His wife managed to hang on to a piece of the wood from the ship, and was rescued by a man in a small boat. Upon arriving in Europe she sent a message to her husband, "Saved alone. What shall I do?"

He immediately set sail for England and at a point in the voyage, the captain of the ship, who was aware of the tragedy that had struck the family, summoned Horatio to tell him that they were then passing over the spot where the shipwreck had occurred.

This was the inspiration that came to him in his moment of quiet, with the thoughts and memories that flooded his world, and with his daughters in mind he wrote down the words that became the famous song. Despite the tragedies the man had withstood over the last couple years, he was able to write the words of hope and comfort so others might see the same in times when they need the same.

The audience joined in singing of the hymn. Leading the music were Dave Hines with Jim Fauth accompanying him on the piano, adding an alluring blend of harmony.

Pr. Joe Haney, of the Grace Fellowship Church, read Psalm 95: 1-7.

Haney was followed by Pr. Virgil Reed of the Little White Church, who based his address on the song "El Shaddai" and few in the audience could say that they could understand Hebrew, though the song was very popular. Songwriter-artist Amy Grant had made the song quite well-known in the last couple years. This song, too, was in the program for the evening and sung.

Pr. Haney shared words, and was joined in the song "Good, Good Father." Haney shared, "Chris Tomlin and his band made the song popular, he knew one day the song would have power behind it because the words are deep and rich." Pat Barrett was the man who wrote the song, following the birth of his new daughter and wanted to communicate the love he had for her and the love the Father had for her, as well. The language was meant to communicate God's love to children and come to know Him through the song. The song was to share the love between God the Father and God the Son and the people.

Malta High School music teacher, Janell McKenney, played a song, "Thank You" with the introduction that "the song is a reminder that one never knows who you are going to touch, just doing the one little thing that God asks you to do and who it affects. I am so grateful for all the people who influenced my life and I wouldn't be here without them. Especially my great-grandmother, she lived to be 101 and was a real blessing because my dad lost his own parents when he was young and we could always call on her. She was a real prayer warrior."

Pr. Tonya Blessing, pastor at the Assembly of God Church, gave a message on praise and giving thanks. Fanny Crosby, the author of the song, "To God Be the Glory"; her mother had died shortly after her birth. The widowed father was raising her and she went blind at the age of six weeks. Soon after that her father died. She was then raised by her maternal grandmother and grew up happy and curious. Fanny attended a school for the blind and at the age of 24 published her first volume of verse, "The Blind Girl and Other Poems." Blessing said, "She began writing hymns and wrote between 5,000 and 9,000 hymns to the Glory of God. No one can figure out how she wrote because she wrote so many under various names.

Her eye infection was treatable and curable, but because of the ignorance and arrogance of the physician who treated her...she went blind. She said later in life she harbored no trace of resentment toward the doctor."

She then read a quote from Fanny, "Blindness cannot keep the sunlight of hope from the trustable soul. One of the easiest resolves that I formed in my young joyous heart was to leave all care to yesterday and to believe that the morning would bring its own peculiar joy."

Pr. Bob Nagy closed the program with words of thanksgiving and led the flock in singing "Joy to the World." He spoke on a boy who was small, and couldn't keep up with other kids; as a young man who was frail and had became a minister but was unable to serve his growing congregation. Not dwelling on his troubles, instead his spirit soared and his only complaint was the poor quality of hymns, so people told him to write better ones. So he did. He wrote over 600 hymns, and when his health collapsed, he left the most remarkable collection of hymns that the world has ever known.

The author was Isaac Watts, a gifted man, who people offered to put through college, he refused. He went to London.

It was written of him that his health failing and unsightly appearance took its toll on his personal life, he was five foot tall, skinny and his body was topped by a disproportionate over-size head. An autobiographer said of his rejected marriage proposal, "...though she loved the jewel she could not admire the case that contained it."

He wrote and composed and left a remarkable legacy.

A free-will offering container was available to help fund the ministerial association acts of kindness to others. There were members of all the local churches in attendance that evening, which was enjoyed by all.