What a Wonderful World was written by Bob Thiele and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louie Armstrong and released as a single in 1967. Armstrong’s recording was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.
These lyrics do n0t mention God as the Creator of this ‘wonderful world,’ but I am thinking about God when I hear this old favorite. Therefore, What a Wonderful World becomes like a hymn of praise for me.
What a Wonderful World
I see trees of green, red roses too
I see them bloom, for me and you
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world
I see skies of blue, and clouds of white
The bright blessed day, dark sacred night
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world
The colors of the rainbow, so pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces, of people going by
I see friends shaking hands, sayin’, “How do you do?”
They’re really sayin’, “I love you”
I hear babies cryin’, I watch them grow
They’ll learn much more, than I’ll ever know
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world
Yes, I think to myself
What a wonderful world
Oh yeah
Go to this link to see an old video of Louie Armstrong singing this song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2VCwBzGdPM
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Genesis 1:1… 31a — In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth… God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.
Psalm 19:1 — The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Psalm 139:14 — I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
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Prayer for the morning of the 21st day from A Diary of Private Prayer, John Baillie, 1949
(Read this prayer slowly and more than once, meditating on each phrase. It is filled with both gratitude for this world and anticipation for the world to come.)
O Thou Creator of all things that are, I lift up my heart in gratitude to Thee for this day’s happiness:
For the mere joy of living:
For all the sights and sounds around me:
For the sweet peace of the country and the pleasant bustle of the town:
For all things bright and beautiful:
For friendship and good company:
For work to perform and the skill and strength to perform it:
For a time to play when the day’s work was done, and
For health and a glad heart to enjoy it.
Yet let me never think, O eternal Father, that I am here to stay.
Let me still remember that I am a stranger and pilgrim on the earth.
For here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come.
Preserve me by Thy grace, good Lord, from so losing myself in the joys of earth that I may have no longing left for the purer joys of heaven.
Let not the happiness of this day become a snare to my too worldly heart.
And if, instead of happiness, I have today suffered any disappointment or defeat, if there has been any sorrow where I had hoped for joy, or sickness where I had looked for health, give me grace to accept it from Thy hand as a loving reminder that this is not my home.
I thank Thee, O Lord, that Thou hast so set eternity within my heart that no earthly thing can ever satisfy me wholly. I thank Thee that every present joy is so mixed with sadness and unrest as to lead my mind upwards to the contemplation of a more perfect blessedness. And above all I thank Thee for the sure hope and promise of an endless life which Thou hast given me in the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.