Sweet Sweet Spirit Sda Hymnal
Evangeline Mellon
The Smithsonian Institute called this song by Doris Akers a "national treasure." Akers, born into an African-American family in Brookfield, Missouri in 1923, was one of 10 children. She started writing songs at age 10 and has written more than 300. During her lifetime she was a recording artist, a music arranger and a director. Her songs are found in many songbooks and hymnals and have been sung by millions of people in the world. She founded and directed the Skypilot Choir in Los Angeles.
One Sunday morning, in 1962, she said to her choir, "You are not ready to go in." She didn't believe they had prayed enough! They were accustomed to spending time with her in prayer before going into the church service. She had once said, "I feel that prayer is more important than great voices." They had already prayed, but this particular morning she asked them to pray again, and they did so with renewed fervor.
As they continued to pray, Doris began to wonder how she could stop this wonderful prayer meeting. She even sent word to the pastor about what was happening. Finally, she was compelled to say to the choir, "We have to go. I hate to leave this room, and I know you hate to leave, but you know we do have to go to the service. But there is such a sweet, sweet spirit in this place."
During the interview, she told me, "We songwriters always have our ears open to the possibilities of a song. The song started 'singing' to me. I wanted to write it down, but couldn't. I thought the song would be gone after the service. Following the dismissal of the service I went home. The next morning, to my surprise, I heard the song again, so I went to the piano and began to write, 'There's a sweet, sweet spirit in this place.'"
In her song, she recognized the "spirit" in the room as the "spirit of the Lord." She could see in the "sweet expressions" of the choir members that they also recognized the "presence of the Lord." In the chorus of the song she calls us back to the New Testament where the Spirit of God descended like a dove, lighting upon Jesus at his baptism (Matthew 3:16). She referred to him as "sweet Heavenly Dove," asking him to "stay right here with us, filling us with your love."
Doris Akers was also a co-writer, having joined her close friend Mahalia Jackson in one songwriting venture. In her lifetime, she received many awards, not the least of which was the honor bestowed upon her by the Smithsonian Institute.
December 6 last year at 6:45 in the morning, I was sitting in my chair in our living room. It was still dark outside, and my one reading light was on beside the chair. My iPad was open to my daily Bible reading portion. I had just spent my 36 minutes on the treadmill in the attic, showered, made myself a cup of hot tea, and settled in to enjoy a time of fellowship with the Lord Jesus over his word.
I remember pausing before I begin to read and thinking: I love this quietness. I love this room with its carpet and furniture and fireplace. I love this chair the way it supports me. I love the lighting in this one small spot on this dark, cold morning. I love the feeling in my muscles and the warmth of this orange wool sweater. And I love the sweetness of this tea, and that I have no pain anywhere in my body.
And then my mind shifted. I had been reading a book called Avenue of Spies by Alex Kershaw about the French resistance in Nazi-occupied Paris during World War II. I had read how the Gestapo would arrest anyone suspected of disloyalty to the Nazi regime, and to make more room in the prison, they might simply shoot fifty suspected collaborators. And I read about the tortures as they tried to break the secret circles of espionage against Nazi occupation.
Corrie ten Boom, who died in 1983, was a Dutch Christian who helped Jewish people escape Nazi Germany during the war, and who was herself imprisoned at the age of 52. She had the same question as a girl whether she would be able to suffer without betraying her Lord Jesus. She told her father, and the story goes like this:
From new birth at a point in time, to new creation in eternity future, we owe everything good that comes into our lives to the wise planning of God the Father, the merciful purchase of God the Son, and the transforming power of God the Spirit.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. (Colossians 3:16)
This is your Father! This is his greatest gift: himself and his Son through the Spirit. He has yet more of himself to give to those who meditate, believe, obey, and desire. Ask him. And keep on asking until he comes or calls.
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