How Great Thou Art

I just got a new CD called "Passion: Hymns Ancient & Modern" by the Passion Worship Band.  One of the songs on the CD is "How Great Thou Art". The original music was a Swedish Folk Melody, O Store Gud, which was arranged by Stuart K. Hine in 1953.  In the insert, they have this story:

"In 1886, Swedish pastor, Carl Boberg, then 26, composed the nine original stanzas [of 'How Great Thou Art'] as a poem, O Store Gud, or 'O Mighty God.'

"In time, the poem was translated into German and Russian and was notice by a British missionary who was serving in Ukraine.  That missionary, Reverend Stuart K. Hine, was visiting a home in the Carpathian Mountains near the Polish border when he found a Christian by the name of Dimitri and his wife.  Almost by chance, a Bible had fallen into their hands, but no one in the village, save Dimitri's wife, had learned to read, and she only with the greatest effort.  As she slowly spelled out the wonderful words of John 3:16 to the wondering villagers, tears began to flow, and one by one they dropped to their knees, crying aloud to God.  Twelve of these villagers had been truly converted, and it was these believing disciples that Mr. Hine met when he called at the cottage n the mountains that day.  He arrived just in time to hear than crying out in amazement again at the revelation of God's love at Calvary.

"Under the inspiration of the blessed scene, he wrote, 'And when I think that God, His Son not sparing, sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in; that on the Cross my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died to take away my sin... then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee, how great Thou art!  How great Thou art!'

"Later, Hine expanded and translated three stanzas from Russian into English and added a fourth."

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Just think... One Bible was placed in the hands of the only person who could read in the village...  Many heard that they could have Salvation...  Twelve believed...  This inspired Reverend Stuart K. Hine to translate three of the original stanzas into English and write the stanza, "And when I think that God, His Son not sparing..."  Now this hymn, originally a poem written in 1886, is probably one of the most popular hymns of all time.

Wow!  What a series of amazing events!  God can do amazing things!

Click on the web address to hear the song: http://listen.grooveshark.com/#/s/How+Great+Thou+Art/2IeHY7