Christian Church >> Child Dedication
SDAH 379
We give this child to You,
Our precious gift of love.
Help us to lead each step aright
With guidance from above.
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For Worship Leaders
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Hymn Spotlight: We Give This Child to You
Written for a baby dedication service when suitable hymns were scarce, this touching piece reflects the sincere prayer of parents and the church as they commit a child to God’s care. The tune EVANS was specially composed by Adventist musician Irving Steinel for the 1941 Church Hymnal, and named after W.A. Spicer’s longtime colleague and leader, William A. Evans. Tender and heartfelt, the hymn expresses the sacred trust of parenting and the desire to raise children in the Lord.
📖 Reference: Feel free to share but please cite hymnsforworship.org when reproducing.
Introductions for Sabbath School Song Service (based on specific lesson quarterlies):
The author writes: “One Sabbath, Armen Johnson [a Seventh-day Adventist pastor and singer in the Southern California Conference] asked my husband, Albert, to sing a duet with him for a baby dedication service, but they had trouble finding something suitable. This was my and was licensed to preach in 1882; in 1886 he was ordained to the ministry. Five years later he was appointed president of the Michigan Conference and continued in administrative work until he retirement. He was manager of the Review and Herald Publishing Association from 1901 to 1904. At one time (1903-1909) he was treasurer of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. He was president of the former Asiatic Division, 1909-1913; of the North American Division, 1913-1918; and of the Far Eastern Division, 1919-1930. From 1931 to 1941 Evans was head of the Ministerial Association. Simultaneous to that position, he was a General Conference vice president from 1913 to 1936, and a field secretary from 1936 to 1941, when he retired. He was chairman of the committee appointed to prepare Church Hymnal, which was published in 1941, and wrote four books. He died at Takoma Park, Washington, D.C., on November 24, 1945.
The tune, written especially for the words for Church Hymnal, 1941, and named EVANS after the author, was composed in 1939 by Irving Arthur Steinel (1884-1945), who was also a Seventh-day Adventist. He was a church organist and taught many years in California, after serving six years as a missionary teacher in the Philippines. He was the organist for the first Voice of Prophecy King’s Heralds Quartet, and composed many songs and anthems, mostly at night while sitting up in bed.
📖 Reference: Companion to the Seventh-day Adventist Hymnal by Wayne Hooper and Edward E. White. Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1988.
Text
1
We give this child to You,
Our precious gift of love.
Help us to lead each step aright
With guidance from above.
2
O bless each child of Yours,
And grant when they are grown,
They will have learned to love Your way,
And choose it for their own.
3
We give ourselves to You,
And may Your Spirit fill
Our hearts and home, that all we do
Be subject to Your will.
Hymn Info
Biblical Reference
(a) 1 Sam 1:28
Author
Mrs. Carol Mayes (1924-)
Year Published
1984
Copyright
Words copyright 1985 by Carol Mayes; Music copyright 1984 by Wayne Hooper
Hymn Tune
CASCADEL
Metrical Number
C.M.
Composer
Wayne Hooper (1920-2007)
Year Composed
1984
