Charles Wesley (1707-1788; see Biographies) underwent a great spiritual change on May 21, 1738; he dated his real conversion from this experience. On the first anniversary of his conversion, and inspired by his Moravian friend Peter Bohler’s remark, “Had I a thousand tongues, I would praise Jesus Christ with them all,” Wesley burst forth in this rapturous poem of 18 stanzas. His title was “For the Anniversary Day of One’s Conversion.” The first six stanzas, now omitted, show the very personal nature of Wesley’s experience. Then followed the six stanzas SDAH uses, and five others addressed respectively to nations, harlots, thieves, and murderers, concluding with:      

                                  18. With me, your chief, you then shall know,

                                              Shall feel your sins forgiven; 

                                        Anticipate your heaven below, 

                                               And own that love in heaven.

             For his 1780 Collection of Hymns for the Use of the People Called Methodist, John Wesley began the hymn with SDAH’s stanza 1 and established the practice, observed in all Methodist hymnals except the one published in 1935, of making this No. 1 hymn. So we can safely call it the foremost hymn of Methodism.

             The tune AZMON, an old Testament name meaning “bonelike” and having no particular significance, was picked up by Lowell Mason (1792- 1872; see Biographies) on one of his trips to Europe, and first printed in his Modern Psalmist, 1839. It was originally in 4/4 time but has also been used in 6/8,3/4, and 3/2, as SDAH has it. Carl Gotthilf Glaser was born May 4, 1784, in Wessenfels, Germany, 20 miles east of Leipzig. In that city he became a chorister at St. Thomas’ Church, where J.S Bach (see Biographies) had earlier served as master musician. At first Glaser studied law at the University of Leipzig, but he then turned to music, becoming a teacher of violin, piano, and voice. He also was a choir director and operated a music shop. Besides being a music publisher, he composed motets, instrumental music, and school songs. He died at Barmen, Germany, April16, 1829.