****GOD LEADS HIS DEAR CHILDREN ALONG

Haldor Lillenas, the founder of the music-publishing company that bears his name, immigrated to the United States from Scandinavia as a young man.  A kind Christian lady befriended him and taught him the English language.  She also taught him about Jesus and, she introduced him to the world of Christian hymns.  One of her favorites, which she sang often, was GOD LEADS HIS DEAR CHILDREN ALONG. 

 

Years later Haldor began to research the origin of that hymn.  What he found was that there is not much information or any reliable records about the author, George A. Young.  He was a poor preacher who worked hard as a carpenter to provide for his wife and family.

 

After years of sacrifice, George was able to build a small house for his family.  But soon after they occupied it, while he was preaching in another community, some gospel-hating young punks set fire to their home.  It was completely destroyed.

In 1903, George Young published his hymn for which he wrote both the lyrics and the score.

   

And that’s about all we would know if Haldor had not dug a little deeper.  Without the modern convenience of Google Search, he discovered that the writer, George Young, had passed away, but that his widow was living in a nearby town.  So, he found an address and he drove out to meet her. 

When he stopped at a gas station to ask for directions, the attendant said, “Sir, that’s the County Poor House, up the road about three miles.  And mister, when I say poor house, I really mean poor house!”

When he arrived, he found a poor, elderly woman, in simple surroundings. But she was rich in spirit; she radiated with joy, and she spoke of how the Lord had guided her and her husband over many years.

She said, “My husband and I were married while we were very young. God gave us a wonderful life together; he led us from day to day. We had so much of Jesus. But then God took him.”

Then she told him, “I am so thankful that God has led me here!  You know, every month, people come into this place to spend the rest of their days.  Many of them are so sad and in such great need of help and comfort.  And so many of them don’t know my Savior.  I have been able to cheer them and introducing them to the Lord Jesus Christ.  Isn’t it wonderful how God leads His children?”

GOD LEADS HIS DEAR CHILDREN ALONG is presumed to be George Young’s personal testimony of his unwavering faith in God, through times of great trials and difficulties.

****PRECIOUS LORD, TAKE MY HAND

The great American trombonist and bandleader, Tommy Dorsey, has often been credited for writing the classic gospel song, PRECIOUS LORD, TAKE MY HAND.  But that is not true; it was written by a different man with the same name.  The real composer was a jazz pianist, named Thomas Andrew Dorsey.

Dorsey was born in Georgia in 1899. His father was a Baptist preacher, and his mother, a piano teacher.

After a successful, early career as a blues musician, at the age of 29, Dorsey was converted and switched to gospel music, and for more than 40 years, he served as the choir director at Chicago’s Pilgrim Baptist Church.  He was known as the father of black gospel music.

In an account he wrote for Guideposts Magazine, Dorsey said, “I was 32 years old and a fairly new husband.  My wife, Nettie, and I were living in a little apartment in Chicago.  I was scheduled to sing for a revival in St. Louis.  I really didn’t want to go because Nettie was in the ninth month of her pregnancy.  But a lot of people were expecting me so I started the trip.   On the way, I realized that I had forgotten my music case, so I returned home to get it and found Nettie asleep.

“As I stood next to her, I felt a sense of uneasiness about leaving.   Nevertheless, I headed back to the car for the drive to the meetings.

“The next night, after I had finished singing, a messenger boy handed me a telegram with the message, ‘YOUR WIFE JUST DIED.’

“When I returned home I learned that Nettie had given birth to a baby boy.  My emotions swung between grief and joy.  Yet, before the night was over, my son had died as well.

“I fell apart.  I felt that God had done me an injustice.  I didn’t want to serve Him anymore.  I just wanted to go back to the world of jazz that I once knew.”

Some of the thoughts that haunted him were that his reluctance to leave his pregnant wife had been a leading from God, and he wondered if he had been disobedient by ignoring it.

But God's Word is our comfort; "For I, the Lord your God will hold your right hand, saying to you, 'Fear not, I will help you.'" (Is. 41:13)

It was during a subsequent visit with a Christian friend that he sat down at a piano and found himself at peace while playing an old melody that he remembered from his Sunday School days; “Must Jesus Bear The Cross Alone?”

As he played through that hymn he began to tweak the melody and write some new lyrics.  When he had finished, he gave the song to his friend who introduced it the next Sunday, to the choir at Atlanta's Ebenezer Baptist Church where Martin Luther King Sr. was the Pastor.

Dorsey wrote, "As the Lord gave me these words and melody, He also healed my spirit. I learned that when we are in our deepest grief when we feel farthest from God, this is when He is closest and when we are most open to His restoring power. And so, I go on living for God willingly and joyfully, until that day comes when He will take me and gently lead me home."

These lyrics have offered comfort to many who have suffered significant grief and losses. “Through the storm, through the night, lead me on to the Light; take my hand Precious Lord, lead me home.”

****IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL

Horatio Spafford was a wealthy Chicago lawyer and businessman in the mid-1800s.  He and his wife, Anna, had five children.  In 1871 his youngest became ill and he died.  Shortly after that, the great Chicago fire wiped out his home.  His insurance company wouldn’t cover the loss because it was deemed an “Act of God.”

In 1873 he decided to take his family to help his friend, D. L. Moody with some evangelism services in England.   Just before their departure, a business emergency interrupted his trip so, he sent his wife and four daughters ahead and planned to meet up with them later.

After several days, his wife wired a message; their ship had collided with another and sank.  All four of his daughters had perished in the wreck.   Anna’s message was, “saved alone, what shall I do?”

In just two years, they had lost all five of their children.

Horatio left immediately to be with his grieving wife in England.

On the way, he wrote the lyrics to the hymn, “IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL.”

We usually think of this hymn in the context of comfort for those who are grieving.  In the first stanza, we get a glimpse of Horatio’s faith during a time of unbearable grief; “When sorrows, like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, ‘It is well, it is well with my soul.’”

Well, that is the short story, but beyond the sorrow, this hymn has another dimension; our sin natures.  The prophet, Isaiah, described our human condition like this: “But we are all like an unclean thing” (Isa. 64:6).

By using that phrase, he may have been alluding to the disease of leprosy.

Leprosy is a stinking, reeking mass of rotting, dead flesh.  It’s disgusting; it’s repulsive; it oozes with puss and blood.  Can you imagine someone trying to cover his leprosy with fine white silk garments?  That wouldn’t change the facts.  The diseased flesh would still stink, and the uncleanness would begin to bleed through the fabric until the fine silk becomes as corrupt as the man.

And that’s how God sees men who attempt to clean themselves up and cover the disease of their sin with religious good works.  The prophet continues; “All our righteousnesses (good works) have become as filthy rags” (Isa. 64:6).

Several years ago my pastor preached a series through the Ten Commandments and those sermons exposed our true conditions; we are all sin-stained lawbreakers.  So, every Sunday, I left feeling rotten about my sin.  And if you feel that way, that’s evidence of the convicting work of the Spirit of God in you.

In his third verse, Spafford expressed an attitude of grateful praise.  In his desperate, sinful condition, he found joy in God’s mercy and grace.  “My sin, O the bliss of this glorious thought; My sin, not in part but the whole, Is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more.  Praise the Lord; praise the Lord, O my soul.”

****ABIDE WITH ME

This past week we have seen another tragic mass shooting resulting in 17 deaths at a Florida high school and, again, we are reminded of the grief and utter helplessness that grips us when we suffer the loss of loved ones.

But death is inevitable, and it visits every family.  And, when it does, we all want to support and encourage those who are sorrowing. 

In times of chaos, tragedy, or great loss, our worlds are turned upside down it is comforting to know that Our God never changes; He is always with us. 

For Christians, there are a few good hymns of comfort and consolation. ABIDE WITH ME is one that has become known as a funeral hymn.  There is no doubt that the author had his own inevitable death in mind when he wrote it.  But the hymn also assures us of God’s constant abiding presence in our everyday lives.

Henry Lyte was a pastor in England for 24 years.   He was forced into retirement because of his failing lungs.  His doctors told him that the tuberculosis was terminal and that he should prepare to die. 

On Sept. 4, 1847, at the age of 54 years, he preached his last sermon from the text in Luke 24.  Two disciples, on the road to Emmaus met but didn’t recognize the risen Christ.   When they reached their home, they invited Him to, “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.”

Henry addressed his congregation with these words, “I stand among you today as alive from the dead, that I may hope to impress upon you to prepare for that solemn hour which must come to us all.” 

Then he preached the gospel and pleaded with them to trust in the Savior.  At the end of the sermon, he served a farewell communion feast, and, in his closing prayer, he committed his grieving congregation to the Lord’s care.  That was the last time they saw him. 

After church, he went home to rest awhile, and then took a walk on the beach.  When he returned, with his sermon still on his mind, he wrote a prayer asking for God’s presence and help.  By late evening, he had crafted that prayer into an eight-stanza poem -- ABIDE WITH ME.

The next day he boarded a ship to France. Henry’s doctor had suggested that he should leave the damp climate of the English seaside and move to a drier climate in Italy.    But he never reached Italy.  On the way, his condition worsened, and, with his last weak breath, he whispered the words, “Peace, Joy,” and he passed into the arms of his Savior. 

****NO ONE EVER CARED FOR ME LIKE JESUS

(1 Peter 5:6)  “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time:  Casting all your care upon Him; for He cares for you.”

There isn’t much background information available about this song but, almost every resource relates this same sad and disturbing story. 

 

Charles Frederick Weigle, a friend of Billy Sunday’s, was a poor itinerant evangelist.  He was often on the road preaching wherever he had an opportunity but his wife was not a willing accomplice.  She did not share his enthusiasm for the ministry.

 

During one of his preaching missions, his wife left him.  She took their young daughter and moved to a distant city where she thought she might find a more glamorous and exciting life.  When he returned home, he found this heartbreaking note:

“Charlie, I’ve been a fool. I’ve done without a lot of things long enough. From here on out, I’m getting all I can of what the world owes me. I know you’ll continue to be a fool for Jesus, but for me it’s goodbye!”

It was the worst time of his life; he was alone and suicidal.  He thought his work was finished and no one would care whether he was dead or alive.

In his desperation, his thoughts turned to God and he began to pray.  He begged God to forgive him and to assure him of his faith.  Then, after a long retreat, he returned to the work of the ministry.  About his heartbreaking experience he said, “A mantel of grief covered me, but God’s grace sustained me.”

About five years later, his wife was dying.  She said to someone who was at her bedside, “I wish I had my life to live over.”   She asked her daughter to look for her father and ask him to pray for her.  But it was too late.  She died before Charles could be found.

Once again, Charles sought the comfort of the Lord.  And that’s when he wrote NO ONE EVER CARED FOR ME LIKE JESUS.

The hymn is not especially deep or scholarly.  It is just the personal testimony of a man who seemed to have lost everything and had no other place to turn except to his Lord. 

****NEAR TO THE HEART OF GOD

Park University in Parkview, Missouri, was originally founded as Park College, a Presbyterian school in the late nineteenth century.  Its founder and first President was John Armstrong McAfee. He had five sons and a daughter who were eventually all involved in the work of the college.

When John died in 1890, his son Lowell served as president for 23 years. 

During that time, one of Lowell’s brothers, Dr. Cleland Boyd McAfee, served as the college chaplain and music director.  He often preached and directed the choir in the school’s weekly church services.

It was his custom to write an original hymn based on the theme of his message for every Communion Sunday.  That was an ambitious undertaking that must have produced many songs but MacAfee is known for only one published hymn.

In 1903, just one week before a Communion service, tragedy struck his family.  Two of his infant nieces succumbed to diphtheria. They died within 24 hours of each other.

Their home was quarantined to prevent the spread of the terrifying disease.   Relatives and friends from the school and church were unable to go inside to express their condolences, and the family was not permitted to leave the house to attend the funeral services.

Cleland MacAfee’s daughter recorded, “My father often told us how he sat long and late, (that week) thinking of what could be said in word and song on the coming Sunday.... So, he wrote (this) little song. The choir learned it at their regular Saturday night rehearsal, and afterward, they went to Howard McAfee’s home and sang it as they stood under the sky outside the darkened, quarantined house.  (NEAR TO THE HEART OF GOD) was sung again on Sunday morning at the communion service.”   

*ROCK OF AGES (2)

“The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.”  Psalm 18:2

It was a terrible and unusual lightning storm followed by deafening thunder and merciless, torrential rain.  Augustus Toplady had been traveling on foot, where steep, high cliffs rose up along the roadside.  When the storm came, rushing streams of mud and rainwater were pouring down the craggy slopes and rolling across the road.  He was fortunate enough to find protection in a small cave in the rocks where he waited out the storm.  That’s where he began to muse over the concept of the “rock of faith” as a shelter from the “storms of life.”

That’s the popular legend about the inspiration for the hymn, ROCK OF AGES.  And the legend may have some elements of truth.  But beyond just the first lines, there is a backstory that, I think, is far more important and revealing about the great faith of a man who was humbled by God’s grace and mercy.

Toplady’s father died when he was very young and he was raised by an indulgent and permissive mother who pretty much spoiled him.   But by God’s grace, he had a good but strict, uncle who guided and disciplined him. 

He was exceptionally intelligent; some would call him precocious.  He was saved at a very young age and began to strive for a deeper relationship with God.  By the age of 12, he was preaching sermons, and at age 14 he began writing hymns.  He was ordained to the ministry in 1762 at the age of 22.   He died at the age of 38.

He wasn't well liked while he was alive and there are plenty of critics even today.  He was a very outspoken opponent of questionable and errant doctrines.   In fact, he once published an article to rebut some statements made by John Wesley.  That article concluded with the words of his original poem, ROCK OF AGES. 

One critic has described that hymn as "strange, unlike any other, and one that is certainly a muddle of images and excessively egocentric in its self-flagellation and abnegation – perhaps because it was the product of a slightly deranged mind.”

But, even though some people thought him to be arrogant and unlikeable, excerpts from his writings, including his personal journal, reveal that he was deeply devoted to His Savior.

In this hymn, he wrote some of the greatest declarations about the doctrine of salvation and our helpless condition that have ever been set to music.

In verse two, he could not be more clear; salvation is not achieved by our works, our goodness, our zeal, our remorse or our tears.  We can bring nothing to God that will ever merit His grace.  We can only come to Him empty-handed, naked, helpless, and dirty. 

And then verse three affirms our ONLY hope; that salvation is by God’s grace alone through faith alone in the finished work of Jesus Christ alone and it is all for HIS glory alone.  If God doesn’t save us, we can’t be saved.

Rock of Ages cleft for me,

Let me hide myself in Thee;

Let the water and the blood,

From Thy wounded side which flowed,

Be of sin the double cure,

Save from wrath and make me pure.

Not the labor of my hands

Can fulfill Thy law’s demands;

Could my zeal no respite know,

Could my tears forever flow,

All for sin could not atone;

Thou must save, and Thou alone.

Nothing in my hand I bring,

Simply to Thy cross I cling;

Naked, come to Thee for dress;

Helpless, look to Thee for grace;

Foul, I to the fountain fly;

Wash me, Savior, or I die.

While I draw this fleeting breath,

When my eyes shall close in death,

When I rise to worlds unknown,

And behold Thee on Thy throne,

Rock of Ages cleft for me,

Let me hide myself in Thee.