Hymn of the Week

There’s something timeless about the great hymns of the Christian faith. Though many were written generations ago, their words continue to speak to the heart, proclaim the truth of Scripture, and lead us into worship. Hymn of the Week is for everyone who believes these beloved hymns should always have a place in modern worship. Each week, we’ll take a moment to revisit one of these enduring songs of faith and celebrate the message, story, and music that have helped generations of believers worship God.

“Jesus Saves” – Fountainview Academy

There are some hymns that quietly invite us to reflect, and there are others that seem to call us to action. “Jesus Saves” is unmistakably the latter. Written in 1882 by Priscilla J. Owens, with music by William J. Kirkpatrick, the hymn has carried its simple but powerful message of salvation for more than 140 years. The opening declaration says everything: “We have heard the joyful sound: Jesus saves!” From there, the hymn becomes a worldwide proclamation, calling us to “spread the tidings all around” and carry the good news “to every land.”

The history of the hymn is especially fitting for its message. Owens wrote the text for a Sunday school setting in Baltimore, and Kirkpatrick provided the memorable tune that has become inseparable from the words. The result was a hymn with an unmistakable sense of movement and enthusiasm. Rather than simply telling us that Jesus saves, every verse seems to urge us to tell somebody else. The imagery moves across oceans, nations, hills and valleys, ultimately reaching the triumphant declaration, “This our song of victory: Jesus saves!”

Once again, this week’s Hymn of the Week comes to us through Fountainview Academy, one of the artists and ministries we have frequently turned to when presenting the great hymns of the Christian faith. There is something particularly special about the way Fountainview brings these songs into the present. Their performances combine young musicians, beautiful voices and stunning outdoor settings, allowing hymns that may have been written generations ago to feel fresh and alive. We have featured Fountainview performances before because they remind us that these aren’t simply old songs preserved in a hymnal—they are songs that still have something important to say. Their performances also give us an opportunity to introduce these timeless songs to listeners who may be encountering them for the first time, helping keep the rich heritage of Christian hymnody alive for another generation.

And “Jesus Saves” may be one of the clearest examples of why we keep coming back to these performances. The hymn’s message is not confined to one generation, one denomination or one period of Christian music. It is the central Gospel declaration that has remained unchanged: Jesus saves. The song begins with a joyful sound, moves outward with a missionary call, speaks into moments of darkness and struggle, and ends in victory. That progression makes this Fountainview performance more than a beautiful rendition of a historic hymn. It becomes a reminder of the reason the song was written in the first place—to proclaim the good news of salvation.

That is also why “Jesus Saves” is such a fitting choice for this week’s Hymn of the Week. We can appreciate the history, the melody and the musicianship, but ultimately the hymn points beyond all of those things. It points us to Jesus Christ and to the message that has been the foundation of Christian worship for generations. As Fountainview Academy gives this beloved hymn a new voice, we are reminded that the joyful sound is still worth spreading: Jesus saves.

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There’s something timeless about the great hymns of the Christian faith. Though many were written generations ago, their words continue to speak to the heart, proclaim the truth of Scripture, and lead us into worship. Hymn of the Week is for everyone who believes these beloved hymns should always have a place in modern worship. Each week, we’ll take a moment to revisit one of these enduring songs of faith and celebrate the message, story, and music that have helped generations of believers worship God.

This week’s Hymn of the Week is “Blessed Assurance,” given a heartfelt contemporary treatment by Third Day that brings the timeless confidence of this beloved hymn into modern worship.

Third Day – “Blessed Assurance”

Few hymns have managed to remain as immediately recognizable across generations as “Blessed Assurance.” Written in 1873, the hymn brought together two remarkable women: blind hymn writer Fanny Crosby, who supplied the words, and composer Phoebe Palmer Knapp, who supplied the music. The story of their collaboration has become part of hymn history. Knapp played a newly composed melody for Crosby and asked what the music seemed to say. Crosby’s response was essentially the opening line of the hymn: “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!” From that musical prompt came one of the most enduring expressions of Christian confidence ever put into song.

The hymn was published remarkably quickly. In fact, “Blessed Assurance” appeared in three different publications during 1873, including John R. Sweney’s Gems of Praise No. 1, Guide to Holiness, and Bible School Songs. Its popularity accelerated in the following years, particularly through the gospel-song collections associated with evangelist Ira D. Sankey and the Moody-Sankey revival movement. By the late nineteenth century, it had crossed denominational boundaries and was becoming a standard part of Christian congregational singing.

And “standard” is hardly an exaggeration. Hymnary’s current database lists 1,290 hymnal appearances for the hymn. That number represents indexed hymnal instances rather than every edition, printing, translation, or church songbook in which the hymn has ever appeared, so the true historical footprint is considerably broader. It has appeared in Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Disciples of Christ, African American, and other denominational hymnals, as well as general-purpose collections. It has also continued to appear in modern hymnals, including The United Methodist Hymnal, The Celebration Hymnal, The New Century Hymnal, and many others.

Part of the hymn’s enduring appeal is the way Crosby turns Christian assurance into a personal testimony. The first stanza celebrates salvation; the second moves into communion, joy, and the anticipation of heaven; and the third expresses a life of peaceful submission, watching and waiting for what lies ahead. Then comes the refrain: “This is my story, this is my song.” The hymn isn’t simply telling us what Christians believe—it invites the singer to claim that faith personally. That testimonial quality is one reason “Blessed Assurance” has worked so naturally in both traditional hymn singing and contemporary worship.

That brings us to Third Day and their live performance from Atlanta. Recorded in 2006 and released on Chronology, Volume Two: 2001–2006 in 2007, the performance takes this familiar hymn and places it firmly inside the musical vocabulary of a contemporary Christian rock band. The recording is just over four minutes long, and Third Day retains the familiar words and melody while surrounding them with a much more modern acoustic-rock treatment.

What is especially interesting about Third Day’s arrangement is the way it changes our perception of the meter. Phoebe Knapp’s original tune is written in triple meter, giving the hymn its characteristic gentle, lilting motion. Third Day doesn’t simply discard that underlying structure; instead, the band reshapes the rhythmic feel through its guitar-driven accompaniment, accents, phrasing, and performance energy. Some transcriptions of the live arrangement continue to identify it as 3/4, which suggests that what we hear as a more straightforward 4/4 rock feel is better understood as an arrangement and groove change rather than a literal rewriting of the meter.

And that’s an important distinction because it demonstrates exactly why an old hymn can still work so well in modern worship. Third Day didn’t need to rewrite Crosby’s words or replace Knapp’s melody to make “Blessed Assurance” sound contemporary. They changed the musical environment around it. The result is still unmistakably the hymn people have sung for more than 150 years, but it sounds like something a modern worship band could actually play on a concert stage—or in a church today.

There is also something fitting about Third Day being the group to give this particular hymn that treatment. The band has always occupied a space where rock music, contemporary Christian music, and traditional Christian themes could meet. Their Atlanta performance lets listeners who grew up singing “Blessed Assurance” hear it with fresh ears, while someone encountering the hymn for the first time can hear it without necessarily associating it with an old-fashioned hymnbook.

More than 150 years after Crosby heard Knapp’s melody and immediately heard the words “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine,” the song is still doing exactly what a great hymn should do: giving believers words to express what they believe, while leaving enough musical room for every generation to make the song its own. Third Day’s performance is a wonderful example of that continuing life—a 19th-century hymn that hasn’t merely survived modern worship, but has found a new musical voice within it.

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“How Great Thou Art” – Carrie Underwood

Every Sunday here at FishWorship, we take a moment to revisit one of the great hymns of our faith through our Hymn of the Week series. These are songs that have carried words of worship, comfort, and hope through generations, and yet somehow continue to sound just as powerful today. This week, we’re featuring a breathtaking performance of one of the most beloved hymns of all time: “How Great Thou Art” by Carrie Underwood. It’s a beautiful reminder that some songs never really grow old—they simply find new voices to help us hear them again.

There are hymns that we sing because we know them, and then there are hymns that seem to make us stop and remember exactly why we sing. “How Great Thou Art” is certainly one of the latter. Originally written as a Swedish poem by Carl Boberg in 1885, the hymn eventually found its way into English through missionary Stuart K. Hine and became one of the most beloved expressions of awe and worship in Christian music. Its simple progression—from looking at the majesty of creation to contemplating Christ’s sacrifice and ultimately anticipating His return—gives the song a remarkable ability to feel both deeply personal and wonderfully enormous at the same time. Generations of Christians have sung it in churches, crusades, concerts, and around living-room pianos, and somehow those words still have the power to make a familiar song feel new.

Few artists have put their own unmistakable stamp on the hymn quite like Carrie Underwood. Faith has been a visible part of Carrie’s public life throughout her career, from the breakthrough of “Jesus Take the Wheel” to the many occasions on which she has spoken openly about the importance of her Christian faith. Rather than treating gospel music as something separate from her identity as an artist, Carrie has repeatedly described the hymns she grew up singing as foundational to who she is. When she created My Savior, that connection was at the heart of the project. Released in March 2021, the album brought together 13 traditional gospel hymns—including “How Great Thou Art,” “Amazing Grace,” “Because He Lives,” “The Old Rugged Cross,” and “Victory in Jesus”—in arrangements that blended country, folk, bluegrass, and gospel. Carrie co-produced and arranged the project with Grammy-winning producer David Garcia, assembling an extraordinary collection of Nashville musicians to help bring those songs to life.

And this was no ordinary studio project. The musicians involved read like a who’s-who of Nashville session talent: Southern gospel and harmonica legend Buddy Greene, ten-time CMA Musician of the Year Mac McAnally, gospel piano virtuoso Gordon Mote, guitarist Derek Wells, guitarist Tom Bukovac, drummer Fred Eltringham, acoustic guitarist and mandolin player Bryan Sutton, keyboardist Charlie Judge, bassist Jimmie Lee Sloas, and several other elite Nashville players contributed to the album. The result is an instrumental foundation that never tries to overpower the hymns. Instead, the arrangements give Carrie room to sing—and when that voice arrives, there is absolutely no mistaking who is in control of the room.

The performance we’re featuring this week came together in an especially memorable way. My Savior: Live From the Ryman was filmed at Nashville’s legendary Ryman Auditorium, appropriately known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” and was presented as a virtual Easter concert on April 4, 2021. With live audiences largely absent because of the pandemic, Carrie brought the music to people around the world from one of Nashville’s most historic stages. The event included appearances by CeCe Winans on “Great Is Thy Faithfulness,” Bear Rinehart of NEEDTOBREATHE on “Nothing But the Blood of Jesus,” as well as Buddy Greene and Mac McAnally. Donations connected with the livestream raised more than $112,000 for Save the Children.

Then comes “How Great Thou Art.” There is something almost perfectly appropriate about Carrie standing in the Ryman and singing a hymn this old, in a building with so much musical history behind it. She doesn’t need a complicated production to make the moment work. The arrangement gradually builds, Carrie starts with restraint, and then that enormous voice opens up on the chorus. By the time she reaches the climactic passages, the song has moved far beyond being a showcase for vocal ability. It sounds like worship. And that distinction matters, because the greatest versions of “How Great Thou Art” aren’t merely impressive—they make you want to stop listening to the singer and start thinking about the One they’re singing about.

Of course, whenever someone delivers a truly great version of “How Great Thou Art,” there is one name that inevitably comes up: Elvis Presley. Elvis’s 1967 recording became one of the definitive versions of the hymn, and his performance earned him a Grammy for Best Sacred Performance. That is an incredibly high bar. But here at FishWorship, we’re willing to say something a little more personal: we think Carrie Underwood’s Ryman performance not only rivals Elvis’s legendary rendition—it surpasses it. Elvis brought tremendous power, emotion, and reverence to the hymn, but Carrie brings something uniquely her own: the voice of a modern country superstar, the musical instincts of a Nashville artist, and the unmistakable sincerity of someone singing a song that has been part of her faith since childhood. Whether someone agrees with our comparison is another matter, but after hearing Carrie reach that final chorus, we completely understand why this performance has become one of our favorite versions of “How Great Thou Art.”

And perhaps that’s the greatest compliment we can give it. More than a century after Boberg first wrote the words, more than half a century after Elvis put his unforgettable stamp on them, Carrie Underwood walked onto the stage of the Ryman Auditorium and sang them again. The hymn didn’t need to be reinvented. It simply needed to be sung—and Carrie sang it with the kind of voice that reminds us why “How Great Thou Art” has endured for generations.

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“Because He Lives”

Caleb & Kelsey

Each week, FishWorship highlights a beloved hymn that continues to inspire and encourage believers today.

This week’s Hymn of the Week is the beloved Christian classic “Because He Lives,” performed by Caleb & Kelsey. Caleb Grimm is perhaps best known as a member of the contemporary Christian vocal group Anthem Lights, but he and his wife, Kelsey, have also become well known as Caleb & Kelsey for their arrangements of hymns, worship songs, and other Christian favorites. Their 2019 recording of “Because He Lives” gives this familiar hymn a fresh, intimate treatment, with the couple singing together from a church pew. The official video was released by Anthem Lights on April 18, 2019.

The performance is particularly fitting because Caleb & Kelsey have made a specialty of bringing older Christian songs to a new generation through their own arrangements. Rather than treating “Because He Lives” simply as a traditional congregational hymn, they approach it as a husband-and-wife duet, allowing their two voices to complement one another while keeping the central message of the hymn intact. Their version was also released as an official Caleb & Kelsey arrangement, with the recording listed as a 2019 arrangement of the song originally composed by William J. Gaither and Gloria Gaither.

“Because He Lives” itself dates back to 1971, when Bill and Gloria Gaither wrote the song during a particularly uncertain period in their lives. They were preparing for the birth of their son Benjamin while facing the troubling social climate of the early 1970s. The song grew out of their realization that, despite everything happening around them, their faith in the risen Christ gave them confidence to face the future. The song was released by the Bill Gaither Trio in October 1971 and quickly became one of the Gaithers’ best-known compositions.

The song soon moved beyond the Gaithers’ recordings and into congregational worship. Its first appearance as a congregational hymn was in the 1975 edition of the Baptist Hymnal, where it was hymn #448, under the title “Because He Lives” and with the tune identified as RESURRECTION, composed by Bill Gaither. And its reach has gone far beyond that first hymnal appearance: Hymnary.org currently lists “Because He Lives” in 82 hymnals. That is quite a remarkable journey for a song that was written only in 1971.

More than five decades after it was written, “Because He Lives” continues to express one of the most fundamental assurances of the Christian faith: because Jesus Christ conquered death, Christians can face the future without fear. That enduring message is what makes this hymn such a natural choice for FishWorship—and Caleb & Kelsey’s heartfelt rendition gives us another opportunity to hear a familiar hymn with fresh ears.

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“Great Is Thy Faithfulness”
Carrie Underwood & CeCe Winans

There is something especially moving about hearing Carrie Underwood and CeCe Winans sing “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” together—and even more so when you understand the setting in which they performed it. In the spring of 2021, Carrie brought her gospel album My Savior to the Ryman Auditorium for My Savior: Live From the Ryman, a special Easter concert filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Ryman’s pews were empty, with no live audience present because of pandemic restrictions. Yet Carrie set out to make the evening feel anything but small. She wanted to take the hymns she had grown up singing and give them the kind of musical treatment they deserved, while bringing the hope and encouragement of those songs directly into people’s homes around the world.

The result was far more than a stripped-down pandemic-era livestream. Carrie and producer David Garcia assembled an extraordinary collection of Nashville musicians to bring My Savior to life, drawing from the city’s remarkable community of elite session players—the musicians who can move effortlessly between country, gospel, bluegrass, pop and virtually anything else a Nashville recording requires. Among them were guitarist Mac McAnally, who has been named CMA Musician of the Year an astonishing ten times, and Buddy Greene, the legendary Southern gospel musician and harmonica virtuoso whose work has included countless gospel recordings and performances with Bill Gaither and the Gaither Vocal Band. Gordon Mote, Brett James and other Nashville heavyweights were also part of the musical world surrounding the project.

And then there was the Ryman itself. Known as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” the historic auditorium provided a remarkable backdrop: an empty sanctuary, a world-class band, strings, a gospel choir, and one of the greatest voices in contemporary country music performing the hymns of her childhood. Carrie wasn’t simply trying to recreate the My Savior album onstage. She was creating something that would feel worthy of the Ryman—and worthy of the songs themselves. The concert streamed globally on Easter Sunday, April 4, 2021, as a free event, with donations benefiting Save the Children. Nearly 2.5 million people ultimately watched the full concert during its initial 48-hour availability, raising more than $112,000 for the organization.

“Great Is Thy Faithfulness” may be the perfect centerpiece for that vision. Carrie invited gospel icon CeCe Winans to join her for the hymn, creating a meeting of two very different musical worlds that nevertheless feels completely natural. Winans brings the depth and authority of gospel music, while Underwood brings the power and clarity that have made her one of country music’s biggest stars. With that remarkable Nashville ensemble behind them, the performance becomes something much bigger than a duet. It feels like a celebration of the hymn itself—and of the faithfulness it proclaims. The performance would later receive an even greater distinction, winning the 2021 GMA Dove Award for Inspirational Recorded Song of the Year.

For a concert born in a season when churches were empty, audiences were absent, and so much of the world felt uncertain, that message carried particular weight. Carrie Underwood had the opportunity to fill the Ryman with some of the finest musicians Nashville had to offer, invite one of gospel music’s greatest voices to stand beside her, and send these timeless hymns into millions of homes on Easter morning. That is what makes this performance of “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” such a fitting choice for our Hymn of the Week.

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Praise Him! Praise Him!
Tommy Walker Ministries

Each week on FishWorship, our Hymn of the Week takes a closer look at a beloved hymn of the Christian faith—where it came from, what it means, and why these songs continue to speak to us generations after they were written. This week, we’re taking a fresh look at “Praise Him! Praise Him!”, presented in a live performance by Tommy Walker as part of his Generation Hymns project.

“Praise Him! Praise Him!” is exactly the kind of hymn that makes me appreciate how far Christian music has come. For those of us who grew up in more conservative Christian churches and schools, there was often an unwritten—and sometimes very clearly written—rule that traditional hymns were supposed to sound a certain way. The words could be centuries old, but the musical presentation was not something you casually changed. Reimagining a traditional hymn with a contemporary worship sound could be viewed with considerable suspicion, and artists who dared to do it have certainly faced criticism over the years. As the founder of FishWorship, I find performances like Tommy Walker’s particularly meaningful because they demonstrate just how thoroughly contemporary interpretations of these ancient musical masterpieces have entered the mainstream of Christian worship. What once might have been considered a questionable departure from tradition can now be heard in a live worship setting as a natural and joyful continuation of that tradition.

And perhaps that’s the beautiful irony: the hymn itself hasn’t changed. “Praise Him! Praise Him!” still calls us to do exactly what its title says—to praise Jesus with everything we have. What has changed is the musical language we use to express that praise. Tommy Walker’s Generation Hymns performance shows that an old hymn doesn’t have to remain frozen in the musical world in which it was written to remain faithful to its message. Sometimes giving an ancient song a new musical voice allows another generation to hear its message with fresh ears—and perhaps even discover that the hymn they’ve known all their lives still has something wonderfully new to say.

For someone who grew up being told, in effect, “We don’t change the hymns,” there’s something wonderfully satisfying about watching a new generation of worship leaders take these treasured songs, breathe new musical life into them, and discover that the congregation is still singing along. Tradition survived. The hymn survived. And somehow, the music got a whole lot more fun.

You’ve come a long way, baby!

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Onward Christian Soldiers
Fountainview Academy

“Onward, Christian Soldiers” is one of the great hymns of Christian commitment, unity, and spiritual courage. Written by Sabine Baring-Gould in 1865 and set to Arthur Sullivan’s famous tune St. Gertrude in 1871, the hymn uses the imagery of a marching army to describe the Church moving forward together under the leadership of Jesus Christ. More than a century and a half later, its central message remains remarkably relevant: the Christian life is not meant to be lived in isolation, and the Church is called to move forward together in faith.

One of the most powerful verses is also one that speaks directly to the challenges facing the Church today: “We are not divided, all one body we, one in hope and doctrine, one in charity.” The hymn reminds us that our strength does not come from our individual preferences, personalities, or differences, but from the fact that we belong to one Body and follow one Lord.

That message of unity is at the heart of FishWorship’s Call to Action as well. We may not agree on everything, but we can agree on the most important thing of all: Jesus Christ.

For this week’s Hymn of the Week, we’re featuring a stirring performance by Fountainview Academy, whose orchestra and singers bring new energy to this timeless hymn. Their performance reminds us that the words of an old hymn can still sound remarkably fresh when they are sung with conviction—and that the call to follow Christ, stand together, and move forward in faith is never outdated.

So as you listen, don’t hear “Onward, Christian Soldiers” simply as a hymn from another era. Hear it as an invitation to the Church today: set aside the things that divide us, remember the One who unites us, and move forward together for Jesus Christ.

Join us each week as we revisit the timeless hymns that have encouraged generations of believers and continue to proclaim the hope, grace, and love of Jesus Christ today.

“At Calvary” – The Collingsworth Family

Throughout the history of the Christian faith, hymns have served as powerful expressions of worship, teaching, encouragement, and hope. For generations, these timeless songs have carried biblical truths from one believer to another, reminding us of God’s faithfulness, Christ’s sacrifice, the hope of salvation, and the promise of eternity.

Hymn of the Week is for everyone who believes that traditional hymns should always have a place in Christian worship. While Christian music continues to grow and take on new forms, the messages found in these classic songs remain as meaningful today as when they were first written. The melodies may be familiar, but the truths they proclaim never grow old.

A great hymn is more than a song from the past—it is a testimony of faith that continues to speak to new generations. Whether sung in a traditional church setting, performed with a modern arrangement, or rediscovered through a new artist’s interpretation, these hymns continue to point hearts toward Jesus Christ.

At FishWorship, we celebrate Christian music from every generation. Through Hymn of the Week, we honor the songs that have stood the test of time and continue to remind believers of the eternal truths that unite us all.

The very first selection for Hymn of the Week is the beloved hymn “At Calvary,” a song that celebrates one of the greatest truths of the Christian faith: the transforming power of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice. Written by William R. Newell with music by Daniel B. Towner, this hymn has encouraged generations of believers by proclaiming the joy, forgiveness, and freedom found through the cross of Christ.

The message of “At Calvary” is simple yet profound. Before encountering Christ, we carry the weight of sin and separation from God, but at the cross we find grace, mercy, and a new beginning. The hymn reminds us that salvation is not something we earn through our own efforts, but a gift made possible through the love Jesus demonstrated at Calvary. The words continue to resonate because the need for redemption, hope, and forgiveness is just as real today as it was when this hymn was written.

For our FishWorship founder, “At Calvary” has also carried a deeply personal reminder of the impact Christian music can have. As a young teenager, he was playing this hymn on one of the organs in the Piano and Organ department at Rich’s department store when a young woman approached and handed him a note. She shared that the song was exactly what she needed to hear at that moment. That simple encounter left a lasting impression and became a reminder that God can use a hymn, a melody, or a moment of worship to reach someone’s heart exactly when they need it most.

That story reflects the enduring power of hymns. They are not merely songs from the past; they are living expressions of faith that continue to comfort, encourage, and point people toward Jesus Christ. Whether heard in a church sanctuary, played on an instrument, or discovered through a new arrangement, “At Calvary” remains a timeless declaration of the hope found at the cross.

The featured performance of “At Calvary” for this week’s Hymn of the Week comes from The Collingsworth Family. Known for their rich family harmonies, exceptional musicianship, and heartfelt Gospel performances, The Collingsworth Family brings a warmth and sincerity to this beloved hymn that allows its message to shine in a fresh way. Their arrangement honors the traditional spirit of the song while reminding a new generation of listeners why these hymns continue to have such a meaningful place in Christian worship.

Join us each week as we revisit the timeless hymns that have encouraged generations of believers and continue to proclaim the hope, grace, and love of Jesus Christ today.