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Song: High and Lifted Up

John 12:23-33
"And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me."

From the age of twelve Dianne Wilkinson has had an unbelievable rise in influence in the world of Southern Gospel Music. That genre of music has held her rapt attention since those early years. Through her life span as a wife, a church pianist, a faithful church member, Sunday school teacher, songwriter, and a businesswoman, she has been a dedicated, loyal servant of Christ.

Dianne was born in Blytheville, Arkansas, in 1944, and while she was still a young child her mother, Blanche, and her Aunt Mavis introduced her to the world of Southern Gospel Music. They often would take her to the Ellis Auditorium in nearby Memphis, Tennessee, to hear such famed groups of that era as the Blackwood Brothers, the Statesmen, the Speer Family, and the LeFevres, just to name a few.

When Dianne was eight years of age her grandmother strongly suggested that she start taking piano lessons. She did so, and progressed so rapidly that she was soon playing the piano for church services. At age twelve she began singing with her mother and her aunt in a trio they called The Ross Sisters. She also was the pianist for the group. They sang in numerous churches in and around their home town, and on a number of radio programs.

Wilkinson has a great love for her Southern heritage, her Southern Gospel Music, and her Southern Baptist church. For a number of years she has been the pianist at Springhill Baptist Church in Dyersburg, Tennessee, where her brother, James Branscum is the Pastor. She also teaches the Open Door Sunday School Class. The church members certainly know of her fame as a songwriter, but they love her mostly for her faithful service to her church family. She told me, “I have always had a music ministry in my church, and that is my calling.”

As a young woman in her early twenties the Lord led her into serious study of the Word of God. With her Bible, commentaries and other study materials, she equipped herself as a teacher and a songwriter. This has resulted in the writing of songs that were true to the Word of God, and quality teaching for the Open Door Class.

In the following twenty years Dianne wrote close to 300 songs. Some of them have become standards -- songs such as We Shall See Jesus, which became the signature song of Glenn Payne of The Cathedrals fame, and Boundless Love, seemingly a favorite of all who hear it. Sixteen of her songs were recorded by The Cathedrals alone. Thousands of others have put her songs on their albums, tapes and CDs. Dianne said, “When you are writing for the Cathedrals and you love quartet music like I do, so much of it comes out straight ahead, quartet to the bone. And that is really what I’m doing these days. Traditional quartets are more popular than ever, and they’re always looking for new songs that sound old.”

One day Dianne heard a sermon about the brazen serpent being lifted up by Moses in the wilderness and how that all who looked on it were healed of the fiery serpent bites. The preacher also reminded his hearers of the passage in John, chapter three, where God said, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:”

Following is how Dianne finished her story:

“I began to think about the cross, and how Christ was lifted up, giving his life for each of us that we might be saved. I also began to think of how He would be lifted up a second time, not on a cross, but in all of His glory. As I began to write I wanted to contrast the two, and so I began to paint word pictures. After I developed the two scenes in my mind it didn’t take long to put it on paper.

“I showed the song to Roger Bennett, the pianist for The Cathedrals, and he graciously informed me that it still needed some work. Roger felt that the melody that I had written for the chorus would be difficult to harmonize. I was hesitant at first because of usually didn’t rewrite after I had finished a song. But, I prayed about it and thought, ‘Lord, maybe we do need to put a tweak here and there.’ I only slightly changed the first line or two of the chorus.

“The Cathedrals made the decision to record it. In fact, they chose my song, High and Lifted Up, as the title song for their project. Lari Goss, who had done all of the orchestration and produced the complete work, was present in the studio during the recording. It was a class act from beginning to end. They also included another of my songs on the project, Jesus Has Risen. The following year it received the Singing News Fan Award as “song of the year.”

Dianne Wilkinson has often been told by her friends that High and Lifted Up is her best song. In it she takes the biblical message concerning Christ’s death and makes it live again in the hearts of believers, while giving a message of salvation to the lost as she tells of “reconciling God and man forever.” Then, in the chorus, with her majestic melody and lyric she lets us see Christ “high and lifted up in all His glory.”

This song has crossed over from the Southern Gospel genre of music to many of the more traditional church music programs, especially with the masterful choral arrangement by Tom Fettke. What a thrill to hear a large church choir and orchestra as they become totally engrossed in the power of this great musical offering.

Dianne continues to write songs and minister in her church. She also writes a column for U.S. Gospel News, a Southern Gospel music magazine, and has spoken in seminars for songwriters, encouraging them and passing on some of her experiences as a composer.
Reflection:

God has commanded us in Colossians 3:16, to teach and admonish one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, and at the same time to sing with grace in our hearts to the Lord. High and Lifted Up certainly helps us to do just that.

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