Scatter Sunshine - Hymns # 230

January 4th, 2018

1. In a world where sorrow ever will be known,

where are found the needy and the sad and lone,

how much joy and comfort you can all bestow,

if you scatter sunshine ev'rywhere you go.

French:

Sur ce pauvre monde tu vois chaque jour

La douleur profonde, le mal tour à tour.

Combien de tristesses tu peux soulager,

Si ton coeur, sans cesse, est doux et léger.

We can't deny this truth, we all know it, we see each right in front of us each day: in our world, people are sad, lonely, suffering. But it is amazing that WE have the power to comfort those pains, to bring joy to the sad, if our heart is light, in peace, constantly, and if we scatter joy with other anywhere we go.

2- Slightest actions often meet the sorest needs,

for the world wants daily little kindly deeds.

Oh, what care and sorrow you may help remove,

with your songs and courage, sympathy and love.

We must not understimate our small deeds, those little things we are able to do to show kindness and love, those small sincere actions we can do to comfort others, those little "oh, it was nothings" to light a burden. We have inside us the power to comfort, calm, help, give joy, respond to others needs. Our courage, our songs, our sympathy, our love, all this can help others in need to see the hand of God in their lives. And WE can do that!

3- When the days are gloomy, sing some happy song;

meet the world's repining with a courage strong.

Go with faith undaunted thru the ills of life;

Scatter smiles and sunshine o'er its toil and strife.

French

Dans les heures sombres chantez de tout coeur

pour chasser les ombres et sortir vainqueurs.

Traversez l'épreuve en gardant la foi. 

Une force neuve vous habitera.

Spanish

En los días tristes canta con amor;

We ourselves also experience days of pain, sadness, darkness. How can we fight those day and impede them to take away our joy?

SINGING A HAPPY SONG, with all our heart, our love. Music has such a great impact in our humor. Not only music with good rythm, which unfortunately might have some words describing feelings of frustration, anger, vengeance, but uplifting music, inspired music, music that let us feel love and joy, that helps us to get some courage.

And courage is another way. We must not give up our courage, we must keep going forward.
Para nosotros mismos, habrán días de dolor, de tristeza, de oscuridad. ¿Comó vencerlos y no dejar que afecten nuestro gozo?

And of course, also with FAITH. If we go forward with faith during our trials, not doubting, we can find a new strength within us, we can feel a touch of joy and power in us that we can then share with others, scattering sunshine.

Scatter sunshine all along your way.

Cheer and bless and brighten eve're passing day.

French:

Répands le soleil tout au long de ta route

illumine chaque jour d'un rayon divin, d'un rayon d'amour.

Spanish:

Siembra gozo siempre al andar 

paz y gran consuelo da a todo ser.

At every moment on our path of life, we must scatter sunshine, even during challenges. We can cheer up others, bless them, light their day with a divine gleam, a gleam of love, of that love divine, if we scatter sunshine, joy. Isn't it an grandiose blessings to have that ability within us, to help others feel the love of God? As we do this, we can bring peace and great comfort to many souls, including ours, because we can feel the peace that the Prince of Peace brings to our lives.


Scriptures
Psalm 100:2
Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.

James 1:27
Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

To purely live our religion and be clean unto God, we must live with joy and scatter joy. This can help us be unspotted from the world. We must have a happy desire to serve him, always with joy and gladness, singing his redeeming love, because we know that when we serve other, we are only in His service.

The author
Lanta Wilson Smith was born July 19, 1856 at Castine, Maine, and died October 19, 1939 at Taunton, Massachussets. She was the daughter of a Methodist minister, William J. Wilson, and his wife Sedelia Follet. Her father belonged to the Maine, and later the East Maine Conferences from 1846 until 1866, when he with his family traveled in a covered wagon to the west, where he served as minister in Nebraska and Dakota. Later he returned to New England and founded out his sixty-four years in the ministry at an appointment in Hingham, Massachusetts. From her early childhood Lanta sang and played the organ in church and Sunday school wherever her father was located. When seventeen she atended Bucksport Seminary, Maine, where she received some instruction in music, and where she began to write stories for the church papers. When David C. Cook introduced music and hymns into his publications, Lanta began to write hymns, some of which were used by him. She received assistance from such prominent composers as T. Martin Towne and E. O. Excell. "Scatter Sunshine" was perhaps her most popular hymn. It was set to music by Mr. Excell and became such a favorite that he wrote her, "My, my, how I wish you would write another hymn like that. It has proved such a success that I believe I will send you a draft for another equally as good." Mrs. T. M. Towne attended the Christian Endeavor Convention in Washington in 1896, and after her return she wrote Mrs. Smith: It's wonderful how the great chorus sang your hymn "Scatter sunshine". A missionary in Japan asked, "May I not have, in your handwriting and over your signature, your beautiful hymn "Scatter Sunshine"? The possession and care of such a kindly souvenir of yourself will often cause me to remember you with gratitude and bring to kindly remembrance the brightness your message has brought to many a life." This request was complied with. The hymn has been adopted as the official hymn of the National Sunshine Society. Shrotly after the convention just referred to Mr. Towne sent her a subject - heaven - and insisted that the last line of the chorus should be "Is Jesus high over them all? She writes, - "To build up a verse to match a last line beginning with "Is" was something new, and he wanted it in a hurry." When he wrote back he said " Hurrah, I knew you could do it." Asa Hull was another voluminous composer for whom she wrote hymns.


By the way, I liked this video of that hymn... ;)

Update: More facts about this hymn here.