June 27, 2024 - Good Morning! It's Thursday, June 27.
Do you know the name Giovanni Bernadone? He is one of the most famous Christian figures in history. Perhaps you know him better by his other name - St. Francis of Assisi.
St. Francis was born into a wealthy Italian merchant family in 1182. He spent his youth in pursuit of pleasure, in and out of trouble, in and out of jail. Then, at the age of 23, after a serious illness, he took a new look at his life and found God. Giovanni renounced his wealth, began living a simple life, and took the name Francis.
In 1209 he created a group for like-minded believers, a group that has come to be called "The Franciscan Order". And he created, it is said, the first "creche", an outdoor nativity scene, the ancestor and inspiration for the scenes that we place in our homes at Christmas. St. Francis loved God's creation, loved God's creatures, and in 1225, a year before he died at the age of 42, he wrote a hymn expressing this love. It was one of the first poems written in the modern Italian language. It is one of the oldest songs in our hymnbook. He called it "Canticle to the Sun". We call it "All Creatures of Our God and King". Here's a couple of verses. Let them stir your heart to praise God this morning for His beautiful world.
All creatures of our God and King, lift up your voice and with us sing
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thou burning sun with golden beam, Thou silver moon with softer gleam
O praise Him! O praise Him! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
Let all things their Creator bless, and worship Him in humbleness
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son, and praise the Spirit, Three in One
O praise Him! O praise Him! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
Meet you back here tomorrow,
Bro. David
dmathis@fbccenter.org
