Friday, November 17, 2023

With The Voice Of Thanksgiving: God Of Our Fathers Who Didst Guide

 


"Those who pay regard to false, useless, and worthless idols
forsake their own Source of mercy and loving-kindness.
But as for me, I will sacrifice to You with the voice of
thanksgiving; I will pay that which I have vowed.
Salvation and deliverance belong to the Lord!"
(Jonah 2:8-9)


Mayflower Landing
(2020)
Mark Frederickson
American artist
Image courtesy/Fine Art America


God of our fathers, Who didst guide

O'er pathless seas and oceans wide,

To these fair shores, thy servants' way,

To Thee our debts of praise we pay.

In the perils of land and sea,

Our fathers were upheld by Thee;

And every passing year has brought

Its tokens of Thy loving thought.

Thou knowest how with faithful sublime,

They fought for freedom in their time;

Their courage fed by heavenly flame,

Their talisman Thy holy name.

Great God, our fathers' God, defend

Our land from all her foes, and send

On us, Thy servants, streams of grace,

And guide our feet in paths of peace.



"God Of Our Fathers Who Didst Guide"
(1904)
George Augustus Warburton
(1859-1929)
American hymn writer

The Story Behind The Painting

Artist Mark Frederickson aptly captures the humble expression
of solemn praise and thanksgiving on the face of  young
William Bradford as he takes his first steps on dry land
again after weeks of enduring storm-tossed seas on
 board the Mayflower.  Bradford is accompanied by an
 equally grateful young woman named Mary Chilton,
who is said to be the first European female to step
ashore at Plymouth, Massachusetts.

  William Bradford would one day be elected 
Governor of Massachusetts Colony.

Mark Frederickson's wife is a direct descendant of Mary Chilton,
who was 13 years old when she arrived in the New World.




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