I'll Be a Sunbeam I'll Be a Sunbeam "I'll Be a Sunbeam" (also called "Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam") is a popular children's Christian hymn composed by Nellie Talbot; it is sung to music composed in 1900 by Edwin O. Excell. Due to its age, the hymn has entered the public domain in the United States. Published in Chicago by Excell as hymn number 137 in his "Praises" in 1905, the words and music were anthologized at least three more times in other hymnals before 1923. Virtually nothing is known about lyricist Nellie Talbot; attempts to search census records suggest that she may
The Summons (hymn) bishops in the Church of England. The Summons (hymn) "The Summons", also called "Will You Come and Follow Me", is a Scottish Christian hymn. It was written by John L. Bell in 1987. Bell composed "The Summons" after being accepted into the Iona Community in 1980. It was first included in the Iona Community's "Heaven Shall Not Wait: Songs of Creation, the Incarnation, and the Life of Jesus", published by their Wild Goose Resource Group in 1987. "The Summons" has been published in many hymn books beyond the Iona Community and the United Kingdom, including those by the United Church