HymnPod

Enjoy this piano and flute version.

Piano only version:

http://www.hymnpod.com/2009/01/03/i-am-thine-o-lord/

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This hymn was inspired by a story told by Daniel Whittle from the American Civil War:

Just before [Will­iam Te­cum­seh] Sher­man be­gan his fa­mous march to the sea in 1864, and while his ar­my lay camped in the neigh­bor­hood of Atlanta [Georgia] on the 5th of Oc­to­ber, the ar­my of Hood, in a care­ful­ly pre­pared move­ment, passed the right flank of Sher­man’s ar­my, gained his rear, and com­menced the de­struction of the rail­road lead­ing north, burn­ing block­houses and cap­tur­ing the small gar­ri­sons along the line. Sher­man’s ar­my was put in ra­pid mo­tion pur­su­ing Hood, to save the sup­plies and larg­er posts, the prin­ci­pal one of which was lo­cat­ed at Al­too­na Pass. Gen­er­al Corse, of Il­li­nois, was sta­tioned there with about fif­teen hun­dred men, Col­o­nel Tour­te­lotte be­ing se­cond in com­mand. A mil­lion and a half ra­tions were stored here and it was high­ly im­port­ant that the earth­works com­mand­ing the pass and pro­tect­ing the sup­plies be held. Six thou­sand men un­der com­mand of Gen­e­ral French were de­tailed by Hood to take the po­si­tion. The works were com­plete­ly sur­round­ed and sum­moned to sur­rend­er. Corse re­fused and a sharp fight com­menced. The de­fend­ers were slow­ly driv­en in­to a small fort on the crest of the hill. Ma­ny had fall­en, and the re­sult seemed to ren­der a pro­long­a­tion of the fight hop­eless. At this mo­ment an of­fi­cer caught sight of a white sig­nal flag far away across the val­ley, twen­ty miles dis­tant, up­on the top of Ken­e­saw Mount­ain. The sig­nal was an­swered, and soon the mes­sage was waved across from moun­tain to moun­tain:

“Hold the fort; I am coming. W. T. Sher­man.”

Cheers went up; every man was nerved to a full ap­pre­ci­a­tion of the po­si­tion; and un­der a mur­der­ous fire, which killed or wound­ed more than half the men in the fort-Corse him­self bei­ng shot three times through the head, and Tour­te­lotte tak­ing com­mand, though himself bad­ly wound­ed-they held the fort for three hours un­til the ad­vance guard of Sherman’s ar­my came up. French was obliged to re­treat.

Lyrics and Music: Philip P. Bliss

Ho, my comrades! see the signal
waving in the sky!
Reinforcements now appearing,
victory is nigh.

Refrain:
Hold the fort, for I am coming,
Jesus signals still;
Wave the answer back to Heaven,
By Thy grace we will.

See the mighty host advancing,
Satan leading on;
Mighty ones around us falling,
courage almost gone!

See the glorious banner waving!
Hear the trumpet blow!
In our Leader’s Name we triumph
over ev’ry foe.

Fierce and long the battle rages,
but our help is near;
Onward comes our great Commander,
cheer, my comrades, cheer!

Although Philip Bliss did not consider this to be one of his better hymns, his monument at Rome, Pennsylvania bears this inscription: “P. P. Bliss, author of ‘Hold The Fort'”

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Horatio Palmer was one of New York’s favourite musicians. He was born in 1834 and grew up in a musical family. He was a music professor at Rushford Academy and later served as a choir director for the local Baptist Church.

Palmer’s account of how this hymn was written is as follows: This song was an inspiration. I was at work on the dry subject of ‘Theory,’ when the complete idea flashed upon me, and I laid aside the theoretical work and hurriedly penned both words and music as fast as I could write them. I submitted them to the criticism of a friend afterward, and some changes were made in the third stanza, but the first two are exactly as they came to me – I am reverently thankful it has been a power for good.

Lyrics and Music: Horatio R. Palmer

Yield not to temptation, for yielding is sin;
Each victory will help you some other to win;
Fight manfully onward, dark passions subdue,
Look ever to Jesus, He’ll carry you through.

Refrain:
Ask the Savior to help you,
Comfort, strengthen and keep you;
He is willing to aid you,
He will carry you through.

Shun evil companions, bad language disdain,
God’s Name hold in reverence, nor take it in vain;
Be thoughtful and earnest, kindhearted and true,
Look ever to Jesus, He’ll carry you through.

To him that o’ercometh, God giveth a crown;
Through faith we shall conquer, though often cast down;
He Who is our Savior our strength will renew;
Look ever to Jesus, He’ll carry you through.

This hymn encourages us to say no to sinful things. Another lesser known hymn written by Palmer on the same subject is entitled “Have Courage to Say No”.

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Helen Lemmel was born in England in 1863. She was the daughter of a Wesleyan minister who immigrated to America. At age 55, Helen heard a statement that deeply impressed her: “So then, turn your eyes upon Him, look full into His face and you will find that the things of earth will acquire a strange new dimness.”

The chorus came to Helen with not one conscious moment of putting word to word to make rhyme, or note to note to make melody.

Lyrics and Music: Helen H. Lemmel

O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There’s a light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free!

Refrain:
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.

Through death into life everlasting
He passed, and we follow Him there;
Over us sin no more hath dominion-
For more than conquerors we are!

His Word shall not fail you-He promised;
Believe Him, and all will be well:
Then go to a world that is dying,
His perfect salvation to tell!

Helen wrote nearly 500 hymns during her lifetime and died in Seattle in 1961.

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Lydia and her sister came to Christ with the help of Baptist missionary Eben Tucker. Following their conversion, the Baxter girls helped found the lo­cal Baptist church. After Lydia married, she moved to New York City. She was an invalid most of her adult life, but that didn’t stop her active mind from studying the Bible and writing. In 1855, she published Gems by the Way side, a book of devotional poems. In addition, she of ten hosted meetings of religious leaders at her home.

Lyrics: Lydia Baxter
Music: William H. Doane

Take the Name of Jesus with you,
Child of sorrow and of woe,
It will joy and comfort give you;
Take it then, where’er you go.

Refrain:
Precious Name, O how sweet!
Hope of earth and joy of Heav’n.
Precious Name, O how sweet!
Hope of earth and joy of Heav’n.

Take the Name of Jesus ever,
As a shield from every snare;
If temptations round you gather,
Breathe that holy Name in prayer.

O the precious Name of Jesus!
How it thrills our souls with joy,
When His loving arms receive us,
And His songs our tongues employ!

At the Name of Jesus bowing,
Falling prostrate at His feet,
King of kings in Heav’n we’ll crown Him,
When our journey is complete.

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John Stockton was converted at a Methodist camp meeting in Paulsboro, New Jersey. Stockton was ordained in 1832 and served in the New Jersey Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church.

The following is an account of this hymn by Ira Sankey: While on the way to England with Mr. Moody in 1873, one day in mid-ocean, as I was looking over a list of hymns in my scrap-book, I noticed one commencing, “Come every soul by sin oppressed”…Believing that these words had been so often sung that they were hackneyed, I decided to change them and tell how to come to Jesus by substituting the words, “Only trust him.” In this form it was first published in “Sacred Songs and Solos” in London. While holding meetings in Her Majesty’s Theater in Pall Mall, London, and singing this hymn, I thought I would change the chorus again, and asked the people to sing “I will trust Him”…Then as we sang I decided to change it once more, and asked them to sing “I do trust him.” God blessed this rendering of the hymn to eight persons pre­sent, who testified afterward that by the change they were led to accept salvation.

Lyrics and Music: John H. Stockton

Come, every soul by sin oppressed;
There’s mercy with the Lord,
And He will surely give you rest
By trusting in His Word.

Refrain:
Only trust Him, only trust Him,
Only trust Him now;
He will save you, He will save you,
He will save you now.

For Jesus shed His precious blood
Rich blessings to bestow;
Plunge now into the crimson flood
That washes white as snow.

Yes, Jesus is the truth, the way,
That leads you into rest;
Believe in Him without delay
And you are fully blessed.

This is a popular hymn which can be sung in the Chinese language also.

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This hymn first appeared in 1880 in a book entitled “Sparkling Gems Nos. 1 and 2 Combined”, published by Thompson & Co. The famous evangelist D. L. Moody used this invitational hymn extensively.

When Dwight Lyman Moody, lay on his death bed in his Northfield, Massachu­setts  home, Will Thompson made a special visit to inquire as to his condition. The attending physician refused to admit him to the sick room, and Moody heard them talking just out side the bed room door. Recognizing Thomp­son’s voice, he called for him to come to his bed side. Taking the Ohio poet-composer by the hand, the dying evangelist said, “Will, I would rather have written “Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling” than anything I have been able to do in my whole life.”

Lyrics and Music: Will L. Thompson

Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling,
Calling for you and for me;
See, on the portals He’s waiting and watching,
Watching for you and for me.

Refrain:
Come home, come home,
You who are weary, come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
Calling, O sinner, come home!

Why should we tarry when Jesus is pleading,
Pleading for you and for me?
Why should we linger and heed not His mercies,
Mercies for you and for me?

Time is now fleeting, the moments are passing,
Passing from you and from me;
Shadows are gathering, deathbeds are coming,
Coming for you and for me.

O for the wonderful love He has promised,
Promised for you and for me!
Though we have sinned, He has mercy and pardon,
Pardon for you and for me.

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Will Thompson was talented in music. He studied music in Boston and Germany. He tried to sell his music to major publishers but was turned down so he established his own music publishing company – “Will L. Thompson & Co.”

Later he devoted himself exclusively to Christian music and wrote “Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling” and “There’s A Great Day Coming” and this lovely hymn as well. Will was also a philathropist and heavily supported the local YMCA and Emmanuel Presbyterian Church. He also donated acreage for a park that bears his name to this day, stipulating that no alcoholic beverages be allowed in the park and no sports permitted there on Sundays.

Lyrics and Music: Will L. Thompson

Jesus is all the world to me, my life, my joy, my all;
He is my strength from day to day, without Him I would fall.
When I am sad, to Him I go, no other one can cheer me so;
When I am sad, He makes me glad, He’s my Friend.

Jesus is all the world to me, my Friend in trials sore;
I go to Him for blessings, and He gives them over and o’er.
He sends the sunshine and the rain, He sends the harvest’s golden grain;
Sunshine and rain, harvest of grain, He’s my Friend.

Jesus is all the world to me, and true to Him I’ll be;
O how could I this Friend deny, when He’s so true to me?
Following Him I know I’m right, He watches o’er me day and night;
Following Him by day and night, He’s my Friend.

Jesus is all the world to me, I want no better Friend;
I trust Him now, I’ll trust Him when life’s fleeting days shall end.
Beautiful life with such a Friend, beautiful life that has no end;
Eternal life, eternal joy, He’s my Friend.

What an inspiring hymn and hymn writer!

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Here’s a piano and flute version of this hymn which can be sung along with as well.

1 Jn 5:4 says “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.”

Piano only version:

http://www.hymnpod.com/2009/05/16/faith-is-the-victory/

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After graduation from school, Eliza began teaching. However, her career was cut short by a serious spinal problem. She partially recovered, but was an invalid most of her life. She then turned to hymn writing, which ran in the family—her cousin was hymnist Edgar Stites.

Lyrics: Eliza E. Hewitt
Music: John R. Sweney

More about Jesus would I know,
More of His grace to others show;
More of His saving fullness see,
More of His love Who died for me.

Refrain:
More, more about Jesus,
More, more about Jesus;
More of His saving fullness see,
More of His love Who died for me.

More about Jesus let me learn,
More of His holy will discern;
Spirit of God, my teacher be,
Showing the things of Christ to me.

More about Jesus; in His Word,
Holding communion with my Lord;
Hearing His voice in every line,
Making each faithful saying mine.

More about Jesus; on His throne,
Riches in glory all His own;
More of His kingdom’s sure increase;
More of His coming, Prince of Peace.

Let us learn more about our Lord Jesus each day.

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