Featured Hymn: "Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us" by Dorothy Thrupp

Bulletin Blurb:

Many versifications of Psalm 23 act as hymns of assurance and confessions of trust. We know the text well – “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” This text, attributed to Dorothy Thrupp, differs from those texts. Rather than an assertion of our faith, it is a prayer that stems from our faith. It goes, if you will, a step further than the psalm’s declaration. We know that God is our Shepherd. We know why we trust. And because we have that trust, we ask that God be faithful. We acknowledge our dependency and our emptiness, and ask that God would provide. We ask not in doubt, but in faith. Every verse of this hymn contains a promise we have from God, and a prayer we make because of that promise. This is how we are called to live our lives as followers of Christ – in prayer, because of faith. Thrupp’s text is a beautiful example of how we might live out that calling.

Worship Notes:

Text: There is some contention as to who wrote this hymn text. Some attribute it to Henry F. Lyte, and others to Dorothy A. Thrupp. Most people lean towards Thrupp, since it appeared in a hymnal she edited, and since she often published hymns anonymously. According to hymnologist Albert Bailey, the text is “largely on the child’s level,” the only theological suggestion found in this hymn being, “Thou has bought us.” The rest, he argues, is a poetic rendering of ideas found in Ps. 23 (The Gospel in Hymns, 184). And he is entirely correct. This hymn was originally written for children, so it makes sense that it’s on a “child’s level.” While he might criticize the lack of theological insight, the way Thrupp took a familiar image like the Shepherd in Psalm 23 and spun it to provide us with words of prayer is brilliant.

Tune: William Bradbury wrote his self-named tune, BRADBURY, expressly for this text, and it is still the most common tune we sing with Thrupp’s text today. It might not be one of the most inspiring tunes ever written, but it is sung with much gusto and love by congregations. Other tune options include RHUDDLAN or PICARDY. Leigh Nash, best known as the lead singer of Sixpence None the Richer, has a recording of the hymn on her album Hymns & Sacred Songs with a fabulous modern folk tune that would be very easily adaptable for congregational singing.

When/Why/How: This hymn could be sung during any point in the liturgical year, but would be especially fitting in a service themed on trust in God. Examples could be a New Year’s Day service or a baptism service. It would be powerful after the prayer of confession and assurance of pardon, after a reading of Psalm 23, or as a hymn of response after a sermon about trust or Psalm 23. Suggested Music:

• Hopson, Hal H. Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us - Unison Voices, Piano, Flute or C Instrument
• Anderson, Christine, and Anna Page. Like A Shepherd - Handbells and Piano
• Hascall, Nancy. Savior, Shepherd, Jesus - Handbell medley of "Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us, and "My Jesus, I Love Thee"
• Hallelujah, What a Savior!, Vol. 2 (Extraordinary Settings of Hymns, Spirituals, and Chants Jazz arrangements for Piano