I love the old hymns of the church. They hold memories that are special. Is it the tune or the words that I remember so fondly? And my answer to myself is: probably the tune that I can hum without effort. Try it right now. Hum the sound of Rock of Ages. Don’t try to dredge up every word correctly. It’s the tune that we carry in our hearts.
One of my ongoing writing projects, started about five years ago, is to honor the old, traditional hymn tunes with new lyrics, words that might be a little more contemporary in meaning and reference. I choose only hymns that are in the Public Domain, not ones under Copyright, and I do not publish them for public use. The re-written lyrics are only for us as expressions of praise and gratitude to God. So, having said that, I invite you to begin this day with a song of praise. Use the tune of Rock of Ages, but change the words to these:
Sing a song of grateful joy
for this tiny infant boy
born of Mary long ago,
born to magnify and show
God’s incarnate presence here
overcoming hate and fear.
Loving Spirit, smile divine,
move among us as a sign
that your kingdom shall prevail,
that your Word will never fail
that our hope, best placed in You,
justifies and makes things new.
Christ of God, Eternal Son,
guide me til the conflict’s done
when all evil and disgrace
changed by your redeeming grace
shall be justice known by all.
Send me, Lord. I hear your call.
Sing to this new day with humility and gratitude. And remember that you are blessed for a reason, and that is to be a blessing to someone else.
Shining Spirit 
Beautiful new lyrics. I shut the door to my office and sang them and sang them ‘so low’ Dee could not hear me.
I was able to hum Rock of Ages as you said; but didn’t remember many of the words. Thanks for sharing your words to this song.
Barb