Kevin Hartnett Poetry

Alphabetical Index

A Homeschooler's Happy Reflection
A Wedding Prayer
And in That Darkened Fluid Red
And Love Ever Echoes 
And Then...
And Yet Till Now Is Not Enough
Are You Looking for the Savior?
Beauty Reaches Through the Eye
Behold the Fleeting Meteor
Blackened, Lifeless, Cold, and Grim
Boundless Living God Eternal
Can It Be?
Christ Is Born in Bethlehem!
Come Now, Look to Me
Dazzling Phosphor in the Night
Do You Know the Order of the Planets?
Eartbound Eyes Can E'er But See
Even So, Come Quickly
For Even Jesus Wept
For I Believe the Gospel
God Knows What You'll See!
Hallowed Be Thy Name!
Harbor of My Heart's Desire
He Is Jesus
He Who Places Faith in Jesus
He Came for Us
Here Within Your Purposes
Honored Be Thy Wondrous Word
How Awesome Is That Day to Me
If Ever a Complaint
If He Had Faltered Even Once
Impossibly Gigantic
Jesus Christ, Our Great Redeemer
Jesus Is Emmanuel
Lesser Sphere of Darkest Space
Look, Mary, Look
Mercy Triumphs Over Judgment!
Minister of Mystery
My Soul Must Seek to Carry On
Naked and Alone, Hung the Son of God
O Higher Let My Praises Reach!
O Holy Night (New Verses 2 and 3)
O the Riches in the Gospel!
One Look at Him
One World Is Immaterial
Praise Him in the Arts for the Sciences
Prince of Peace, Thou Glorious Rider
Sovereign King and Caring Lord
So I Will Praise Him in the Night
Sow Then the Precious Seeds of Hope
Ten Thousand Time a Thousand Still
The Incarnation
The Lesser Light Which Rules the Night
The Stars I See Are Yesteryear's
The Tadpole Swims Within His Hands
There, into Peace
This Picture His
Though Men Refine Electric Lights
'Tis There Beyond the Reach of Earth
You Go Before Us
We Esteemed Him Not
What Am I Doing in the Kingdom?
What Matter Is So Strange as This?
What Name Has He for Me?
What Now Do You See?
What, Oh Man, Now Do You Know?
Where Beauty Gleams with Grace
Worship God 2006 Conference                        

How Awesome Is That Day to Me

How awesome is that day to me- 

O day of hallowed history! 

Set time in God’s determined plan 

To sacrifice the Son of Man. 

What famous work that day was done  

By Jesus Christ, His Perfect Son! 

The Second Adam, sent to save, 

Humbly obeying to the grave! 

 

How savage is that day to me- 

O day of pure brutality! 

When Christ, the Son of God Most High, 

Was fiercely whipped and hung to die. 

And O the horror of my sin, 

Seen there in His appalling skin! 

For God struck down- as meant for me- 

The sinless One, at Calvary. 

 

How precious is that day to me-

O day of purchased liberty!

In Him, a freeman now I live;

My sins, through death, did God forgive.

No wrath at length looms o’er my head,

But lovingkindness there instead. 

His righteousness, my guilt replaced, 

And Love, this ransomed soul embraced!

 

O awesome, savage, precious day- 

‘Tis God the Savior on display! 

What peerless, holy, gracious Mind 

Would fashion such a Grand Design?

 

 

-- K. Hartnett, September 2001

 

The idea for this poem came to me during a devotional time over lunch.  I remember thinking that I hadn't written anything for a while and desired to write something hymn-like.  This was the result - a poem that 'came' very quickly - in just a few days.  I initially thought it should have additional stanzas, but left it at three so that it was short enough to be read in a worship service and not get boring.  I think it actually could be set to music, but perhaps with a different, less contemplative chorus.