Tell Me the Story of Jesus

SONG WRITER: Fanny Crosby           

MUSIC WRITER: John R. Sweney                             

WHEN WRITTEN: 1880

HYMN HISTORY: The story of Fanny Crosby is one of sorrow, yet of the deepest love. At the age of six weeks old, Fanny developed an eye infection. The family physician was unavailable so another physician was called. He applied hot mustard poultices to the baby's eyes. This caused severe burns to Fanny's eyes and she was permanently blind from then on.

Fanny never felt bitter but instead grew into a young woman who "saw" God in everything around her and in every circumstance that life handed to her. Although she was physically blind, Fanny had the keenest of spiritual sight...which is reflected in her 9,000 plus hymns. Her love for God and her eagerness to share with others what Christ had done for them brought countless numbers to Christ.

God gifted Fanny with the ability to put into words what her heart contained. She gave full credit to God for what she was able to accomplish in His name. Today, so many of our favorite and famous hymns are from this small, humble blind woman who opened her heart to see what those with physical sight often could not.

Fanny married and had one child, who died shortly after birth. Her insight on a mother's love is reflected in an incredibly beautiful poem: The Child and the Angel.

Everything that touched Fanny in this life found a way into her poems and hymns. When we read Fanny's poetry or sing her hymns we are confronted with a blinding truth. Fanny KNEW her Savior as a real and living person. He was with her moment by moment each and every day. He was as real to her as the "physical" people in her life. It is because she knew Him as a living breathing person that her hymns reflect that truth and are so loved by Christians everywhere.

Fanny was the "salt of the earth" to so many who knew her personally, and her legacy lives on through the wealth of hymns she has left behind. A heart-felt legacy for the future generations of Christians to come...

BIBLE VERSE:  Acts 5:42 - "And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus."

HYMN LYRICS:

Tell me the story of Jesus,
Write on my heart every word.
Tell me the story most precious,
Sweetest that ever was heard.
Tell how the angels in chorus,
Sang as they welcomed His birth.
“Glory to God in the highest!
Peace and good tidings to earth.”

Refrain

Tell me the story of Jesus,
Write on my heart every word.
Tell me the story most precious,
Sweetest that ever was heard.

Fasting alone in the desert,
Tell of the days that are past.
How for our sins He was tempted,
Yet was triumphant at last.
Tell of the years of His labor,
Tell of the sorrow He bore.
He was despised and afflicted,
Homeless, rejected and poor.

Refrain

Tell of the cross where they nailed Him,
Writhing in anguish and pain.
Tell of the grave where they laid Him,
Tell how He liveth again.
Love in that story so tender,
Clearer than ever I see.
Stay, let me weep while you whisper,
Love paid the ransom for me.

Refrain

God Be With You

SONG WRITER: Jeremiah Rankin                    

MUSIC WRITER: William Tomer                     

WHEN WRITTEN: 1880

HYMN HISTORY: In 1880, Dr. Jeremiah Rankin, Pastor of First Congregational Church in Washington, D.C., was looking for a farewell hymn to close the worship service.  "Blest Be the Tie That Binds" was a possibility, but he wanted something less formal –– more engaging.

Not finding the hymn he was looking for, he set out to write it.  He took a dictionary from his bookshelf, and began looking at words such as "farewell" and "goodbye" to see if they would spark his imagination.  The definition that he found for "goodbye" included the words "God be with you" –– and so a hymn was born.

Dr. Rankin wrote a verse and chorus for his new hymn, and sent them to two people asking for a tune.  He chose the tune written by William Tomer, a part-time church musician, and was so enthusiastic that he sat down and wrote seven more verses.

BIBLE VERSE:  1 Thessalonians 5:28 – “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.”

HYMN LYRICS:

God be with you till we meet again;
By His counsels guide, uphold you,
With His sheep securely fold you;
God be with you till we meet again.

Refrain

Till we meet, till we meet,
Till we meet at Jesus’ feet;
Till we meet, till we meet,
God be with you till we meet again.

God be with you till we meet again;
Neath His wings protecting hide you;
Daily manna still provide you;
God be with you till we meet again.

Refrain

God be with you till we meet again;
With the oil of joy anoint you;
Sacred ministries appoint you;
God be with you till we meet again.

Refrain

God be with you till we meet again;
When life’s perils thick confound you;
Put His arms unfailing round you;
God be with you till we meet again.

Refrain

God be with you till we meet again;
Of His promises remind you;
For life’s upper garner bind you;
God be with you till we meet again.

Refrain

God be with you till we meet again;
Sicknesses and sorrows taking,
Never leaving or forsaking;
God be with you till we meet again.

Refrain

God be with you till we meet again;
Keep love’s banner floating o’er you,
Strike death’s threatening wave before you;
God be with you till we meet again.

Refrain

God be with you till we meet again;
Ended when for you earth’s story,
Israel’s chariot sweep to glory;
God be with you till we meet again.

Refrain

The Solid Rock

SONG WRITER: Edward Mote                    

MUSIC WRITER: William Bradbury                     

WHEN WRITTEN: 1863

HYMN HISTORY: Sometimes the grace of God penetrates into unlikely places.  Edward Mote's parents were hostile to religion, but while still a boy Edward became a Christian through the influence of a cabinetmaker to whom he was apprenticed.  As a man, he became a skilled cabinetmaker with a successful business of his own.

Regardless of the claims of his business on his time, Mote always found time to worship God.  He was especially interested in Christian music, and one day felt inspired on the way to work to write down a verse that came to his mind.  Before the day was finished, he had completed four verses.  His new hymn began with the words, "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness."

Not long thereafter, Mote visited a friend whose wife was ill.  It was a Sunday, and the friend mentioned that he and his wife liked to observe Sunday by singing a hymn, reading a scripture, and having prayer together.  Mote had a copy of his hymn in his pocket, so they sang it.  The friend's wife was so taken with the hymn that she requested a copy for herself.  Encouraged by her interest, Mote had copies printed –– and soon found himself the author of a beloved hymn.

  
BIBLE VERSE:  Matthew 7:24 - “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”

HYMN LYRICS:

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

Refrain:
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand.

When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.

Refrain

His oath, His covenant, His blood
Support me in the whelming flood;
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my hope and stay.

Refrain

When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh, may I then in Him be found;
Dressed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.

Refrain

Nearer my God to Thee

SONG WRITER: Sarah Adams                    

MUSIC WRITER: Lowell Mason                     

WHEN WRITTEN: 1841

HYMN HISTORY: This hymn was written by two sisters.  Sarah Flower Adams wrote the words and her sister, Eliza Flower, wrote the music.  Together they wrote a number of hymns, but this is the only one still in common use today.

Sarah (the author of the words) enjoyed a successful career on the stage playing Lady MacBeth in Shakespearean drama, but retired from the stage due to health problems.  Not long thereafter, her sister, Eliza, came down with tuberculosis.  Sarah, determined to nurse her, came down with the disease as well, and both died at a relatively young age.

However, this hymn acknowledges the possibility of suffering but refuses to allow it to have the last word.  It says:

      "E'en though it be a cross
      that raiseth me;
      Still all my song shall be,
      nearer my God to Thee."

BIBLE VERSE:  Psalm 119:151 – “But you are near, O Lord, and all your commandments are true.”

HYMN LYRICS:

Nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!

E'en though it be a cross that raiseth me,

still all my song shall be,

nearer, my God, to thee;

nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!

Though like the wanderer, the sun gone down,

darkness be over me, my rest a stone;

yet in my dreams I'd be

nearer, my God, to thee;

nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!

There let the way appear, steps unto heaven;

all that thou sendest me, in mercy given;

angels to beckon me

nearer, my God, to thee;

nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!

Then, with my waking thoughts bright with thy praise,

out of my stony griefs Bethel I'll raise;

so by my woes to be

nearer, my God, to thee;

nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!

Or if, on joyful wing cleaving the sky,

sun, moon, and stars forgot, upward I fly,

still all my song shall be,

nearer, my God, to thee;

nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!

Take My Life and Let It Be

SONG WRITER: Frances Havergal                    

MUSIC WRITER: Henry Cesar Malan                  

WHEN WRITTEN: 1874

HYMN HISTORY: Frances Havergal (1836-1879) was an unusual woman.  The daughter of a minister, she mastered Greek and Hebrew to read the scriptures in their original languages.  Having grown up in England, she traveled in Europe and enjoyed skiing in the Swiss Alps –– an unusual recreation in the nineteenth century.  She was also an accomplished singer who sometimes sang with the Philharmonic.

Havergal was a Christian all her life, but at age 36 experienced what we might describe as a conversion experience.  A little book entitled All for Jesus made her aware of the incompleteness of her own devotion, and she rededicated her life to Christ.

Soon thereafter, she spent five days with a small group of people, some of whom were not Christians, and others of whom were lukewarm.  She spent those five days witnessing to them and praying for them, and was delighted to see her prayers answered.  By the end of that week, all ten people had devoted themselves to Christ.  That night, too excited to sleep, Havergal sat up writing this hymn, "Take My Life and Let It Be." 

BIBLE VERSE:   Leviticus 11:44 – “For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. You shall not defile yourselves with any swarming thing that crawls on the ground.”

HYMN LYRICS:

Take my life, and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee;
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.


Take my hands, and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love;
Take my feet, and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee.
Swift and beautiful for Thee.


Take my voice, and let me sing
Always, only, for my King;
Take my lips, and let them be
Filled with messages from Thee.
Filled with messages from Thee.


Take my silver and my gold:
Not a mite would I withhold;
Take my intellect, and use
Ev'ry pow'r as Thou shalt choose.
Ev'ry pow'r as Thou shalt choose.


Take my will, and make it Thine,
It shall be no longer mine;
Take my heart, it is Thine own,
It shall be Thy royal throne.
It shall be Thy royal throne.


Take my love, my Lord, I pour
At Thy feet its treasure store;
Take myself, and I will be,
Ever, only, all for Thee.
Ever, only, all for Thee.

O Love That Will Not Let Me Go

SONG WRITER: George Matheson                    

MUSIC WRITER: Albert Peace                    

WHEN WRITTEN: June 6, 1882

HYMN HISTORY: George Matheson suffered poor eyesight from birth, and at age 15 learned that he was going blind.  Not one to be easily discouraged, he enrolled in the University of Glasgow and graduated at age 19.  He then began theological studies, and it was while pursuing those that he began totally blind.

Matheson's three sisters rose to the occasion and tutored him through his studies –– even going so far as to learn Hebrew, Greek, and Latin to be able to help their brother.  With their help he was able to complete his studies.  After graduation, he answered a call to serve as pastor of a church in Innellan, Argylshire, Scotland.  He had a successful ministry there, and was later called to serve as pastor of the much larger (2000 member) St. Bernard's Church in Edinburgh.  On the day that one of his sisters was married, Matheson wrote this hymn.  He recorded this account of that experience in his journal:

"My hymn was composed in the manse of Inellan on the evening of June 6, 1882.  I was at that time alone.  It was the day of my sister's marriage, and the rest of my family were staying overnight in Glasgow.  Something had happened to me which was known only to myself, and which caused me the most severe mental suffering.  The hymn was the fruit of that suffering.  It was the quickest bit of work I ever did in my life.  I had the impression of having it dictated to me by some inward voice than of working it out myself.  I am quite sure that the whole work was completed in five minutes, and equally sure that it never received at my hands any retouching or correction.  I have no natural gift of rhythm.  All the other verses I have written are manufactured articles; this came like a dayspring from on high.  I have never been able to gain once more the same fervor in verse."

Matheson obviously didn't intend to tell us what caused his "most severe mental suffering," but people who know his background strongly suspect that it had to do with a heartbreaking experience several years earlier.  His fiancee had broken her engagement to him, telling him that she couldn't see herself going through life married to a blind man.  Matheson never married, and it seems likely that his sister's wedding brought to memory the woman that he had loved and the wedding that he had never enjoyed.

At any rate, Matheson's "severe mental suffering" inspired him to write this hymn, "O Love that Wilt Not Let Me Go."  The hymn celebrates the constancy of God's love –– "love that wilt not let me go" –– "light that follow'st all my way" –– "joy that seekest me through pain."  It concludes by celebrating "Life that shall endless be."

Matheson suffered two severe blows that could have stopped him –– the loss of his eyesight and the loss of his beloved.  In both cases, he made the best of a bad situation –– and we are all the richer for it.  As this hymn reveals, it was his faith in God that kept him going through the adversities that he suffered.  He believed that God's love would not let him go –– and that God's light would follow him all his way –– and that God's joy would seek him through his pain –– and that faith made all the difference.

BIBLE VERSE:  Romans 8:38-39 – “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

HYMN LYRICS:

O Love that wilt not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in thee;
I give thee back the life I owe,
That in thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.

O light that followest all my way,
I yield my flickering torch to thee;
My heart restores its borrowed ray,
That in thy sunshine’s blaze its day
May brighter, fairer be.

O Joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to thee;
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
And feel the promise is not vain,
That morn shall tearless be.

O Cross that liftest up my head,
I dare not ask to fly from thee;
I lay in dust life’s glory dead,
And from the ground there blossoms red
Life that shall endless be.

More Love to Thee

SONG WRITER: Elizabeth Prentiss                    

MUSIC WRITER: William Doane                    

WHEN WRITTEN: 1870

HYMN HISTORY: This hymn was written by Elizabeth Payson Prentiss.  Elizabeth suffered from poor health most of her life, but showed promise as a writer even as a young girl.  She began submitting prose and verse at age 16 to a popular national magazine for young people, and the magazine published several of her submissions.  During her lifetime, she wrote five books, one of which became a best-seller.  Elizabeth was the daughter of a clergyman, and she married a Presbyterian clergyman, Dr. George L. Prentiss, pastor of the Mercer Street Presbyterian Church in New York City –– and later homiletics professor at Union Theological Seminary.

In 1856, tragedy struck –– two of the Prentiss children died of illness.  Elizabeth was devastated as she tried to come to grips with her loss –– and also her sense of the unfairness that God would allow her children to die.  She and her husband talked about it at length, and his encouragement gave her some help –– but her grief was profound.  Then one day she felt inspired to write some verse inspired by something that her husband had said in a sermon:  "Love can keep the soul from going blind."  She thought that if love could do that, she needed more love.  And so she began to write.

She quickly dashed off three verses and part of a fourth verse, and then she stopped.  She didn't do anything with her poem at that time, perhaps feeling that the solace that she received from writing it was enough. But thirteen years later, she showed her poem to her husband, and he encouraged her to have it printed in leaflet form, which she did –– after completing the fourth verse.  Even then she distributed the leaflets only to a few of their friends.

BIBLE VERSE:  Philippians 1:9 – “And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more.”

HYMN LYRICS:

More love to Thee, O Christ, more love to Thee!
Hear Thou the prayer I make on bended knee.
This is my earnest plea: More love, O Christ, to Thee;
More love to Thee, more love to Thee!

Once earthly joy I craved, sought peace and rest;
Now Thee alone I seek, give what is best.
This all my prayer shall be: More love, O Christ to Thee;
More love to Thee, more love to Thee!

Let sorrow do its work, come grief or pain;
Sweet are Thy messengers, sweet their refrain,
When they can sing with me: More love, O Christ, to Thee;
More love to Thee, more love to Thee!

Then shall my latest breath whisper Thy praise;
This be the parting cry my heart shall raise;
This still its prayer shall be: More love, O Christ to Thee;
More love to Thee, more love to Thee!