The he heart of this hymn is a prayer that we might be more like Jesus in our lives now, in order to fulfill the expectation expressed in 1 John 3:2: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” The key as to how this can be accomplished is found in the request of the fourth stanza, based on Jesus’ prayer in John 17:21: “That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.”

No information is available about A. D. Ellington, who wrote the stanzas. Harold Miller added the refrain in 1931 when he wrote the original music, printed in the Junior Song Book (later renamed Missionary Volunteer Songs), 1931. At the heading it was dedicated “to my friend, LeRoy E. Froom” (see SDAH 690). The latter served for many years in the Ministerial Department of the General Conference. Miller’s music was a solo for low voice, with a rather sophisticated piano accompaniment that was difficult to play at sight because of many ledger lines below the staff. Wayne Hooper (1920-2017) has made this simple arrangement in four-part harmony, which preserves all the harmonic progressions of the original.

Harold Amadeus Miller was born in 1891 at Tonawanda, New York. During his early childhood his parents were Seventh-day Adventists, but due to many activities occurring on Friday evenings in which their two older sons were involved, they gradually drifted away from the church. Miller’s father was a musician and piano teacher; he instructed Harold, who early showed a marked interest in and a talent for music. In fact, during his father’s absence for study in Vienna, Austria, 16-year-old Harold taught his father’s senior piano pupils.

The family moved to Syracuse, New York, to reestablish connections with the Seventh-day Adventist Church; there the Miller boys became acquainted with students from the South Lancaster Academy, Massachusetts (now Atlantic Union College). Here Harold Miller read of Mozart’s dislike for his middle name, Gottlieb, and of his decision to change it to Amadeus, which is the Latin form of the original German, meaning “God-loved.” Harold’s middle name was Gottlieb also (it came from an uncle), and he disliked it, too. He decided to follow Mozart’s lead and henceforth became H. A., instead of H. G., Miller. He was baptized at the academy and joined the church at Syracuse.

Miller was invited to become head of the music department at Mount Vernon Academy, Ohio, where he remained from 1916 to 1929. Then he served as music teacher, choir leader, and music director, at Washington Missionary College, Maryland (now Columbia Union College); Southern Junior College, Tennessee (now Southern College); Union College, Nebraska; and Pacific Union College, California. His years of service at these SDA educational institutions totalled 37. His tunes, dedicated to teachers, students, and friends who were interested in his compositions, were written solely as a contribution to the work and progress of the church he loved and served.

Of his more than 200 published hymns and songs, there were 10 in the 1941 Church Hymnal. But because a survey of pastors revealed that they were being used very little, all were deleted by the committee working on SDAH. The committee did decide to use this beautiful song by Professor Miller.

📖 Reference: Companion to the Seventh-day Adventist Hymnal by Wayne Hooper and Edward E. White. Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1988.