"Father, I stretch my hands to Thee,
No other help I know;
If Thou withdraw Thyself from me,
Ah! whither shall I go?"

Above is the first verse from Charles Wesley’s hymn, “Father, I Stretch My Hands to Thee.”  Charles and his brother John were the leaders and founders of the early Methodist church movement.  While John went “on the road” preaching, Charles used his musical gifts to write hymns. Dear old Charles was just a little busy, writing more than 6000 hymns over his lifetime, most notably after his conversion experience in England in 1738. 

I must admit that I do love a good old Charles Wesley hymn, as they seem to float around in my brain for a few days after I sing them. 

But singing a hymn is one thing. Blogging about one is quite another.  So what, you might ask, prompted this post?

A celebration of dependence 

In checking our internal JOY International blog calendar, I saw that the theme for this month is “Celebrating DEpendence”. That clever little phrase immediately brought another hymn to mind: “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms.”

Published in 1887, the melody was written by Anthony J. Showalter and the lyrics were by Showalter and Elisha Hoffman (another prolific hymn writer). Showalter, a teacher, was writing letters of consolation to two former pupils whose wives had died. Showalter was inspired by the phrase in Deuteronomy 33:27, which states, "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms". 

While doing the research for this post, I found many versions on YouTube, one of which was recorded by the Yale Gospel Choir. Check out this energetic version below. I guarantee the hymn will be bouncing around in your brain for days.  

Theology set to music

It seems there is more than enough bad news go around lately, don’t you agree?  If you are like me, health and personal crises – ours or those of friends and family – seem to fill up our prayer lists.

As I grapple with my fears and worries, these old hymns, along with their theology and melodies, come flooding back to bring me comfort and wisdom.  They remind me I need to depend on God for his strength, wisdom and goodness, not my own.  

When we lean on the arms of Jesus and ask him to carry us through, we receive peace of mind.  We are not alone in our walk.  What a JOY divine!

What hymns or songs come to mind when you are troubled? Let me know in the comments.