On September 29th, our opening hymn will be I Will Call upon the Lord – Glory to God hymnal #621
Adapted from Glory to God, A Companion:
This praise song, written and composed by Michael O’Shields, uses the King James Version of Psalms 18:3 and 46 for its text. (3 I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. 46 The Lord liveth; and blessed be my rock; and let the God of my salvation be exalted.) It apparently dates from 1981, though the circumstances of its creation are not known.
Much of the song’s popularity has been the result of its presence on the 1989 album by the Christian rock band Petra on their best-selling album Petra: The Rock Cries Out. The band was doubtless attracted to this piece because of the reference to “the Rock” in the second verse.
This tune is a study in doing things twice. First, the initial motif is sung twice. Then, following a two-measure bridge, the second motif is sung twice with a slight variation at the end of the repeat. This can have a call-and-response or an echo effect.