Author and speaker John Piper has written two new verses to the hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” The song was performed by Austin Stone Worship at this year’s Gospel Coalition’s Women Conference. The hymn was played directly after Piper’s message on Deuteronomy 29-30.
“I heard [TGC] intended to close with that hymn,” Piper said. “That’s a great hymn. I love it. But it did not hit the nail of my message on the head. And one of my poetic bents is to like coherence between message and music.”
He tried to think of another song to suggest, but “the extent of my music awareness is not large,” he said. “I couldn’t think of one.”
“Friday afternoon in my hotel room, the day before I was to speak, I wrote a couple verses to serve as a fitting conclusion to the message,” Piper said.
He emailed them to Aaron Ivey, whose team, Austin Stone Worship, was leading music at the conference.
“I fully recognize YOU make this call, not me, as to what we close with,” Piper told him. “And last-minute creations are risky. So I will not be wounded if you think we should stay with the program.”
“Happy to make these changes,” Ivey told him, and that was an understatement. “One of my highest values as a worship leader is to marry songs and sermons together.”
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