How Great Is Our God Chris Tomlin, Jesse Reeves and Ed Cash, 2004

Chris Tomlin wrote the chorus of How Great Is Our God while he lived in Austin, Texas. He told Songfacts he was on the sofa in his small apartment, reading Psalm 104, and its opening verses about God's majesty and splendor led to the chorus. He did not expect it to become a song for the whole church.

Tomlin thought the song was finished without a bridge. The producer Ed Cash, whom he had only recently met, said it was not finished and sang a bridge idea on guitar. Tomlin said that letting someone else in makes a song better. Jesse Reeves shares the writing credit with the two men.

The song came out on Tomlin's album Arriving in 2004. Wikipedia lists a 2006 single release, so release dates differ by source. Songfacts and Wikipedia agree that it won Song of the Year and Worship Song of the Year at the 2006 Dove Awards. It became the title track of a live album recorded at the 2005 Passion Conference. At Passion 2012 Tomlin performed a World Edition with verses sung in several languages. Wikipedia reports it was the fifth most used worship song on CCLI's top 25 list in November 2014, and that it has been certified double platinum in the United States. Churches often sing it alongside the hymn How Great Thou Art.