Musical Notes

Hello OCBC family,
 “Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings.” (Psalm 17:8) This is a very sweet and powerful verse, showing us that God is always taking care of His children. And this was one of the verses that Charles Wesley used to penned one of his famous hymns, “Jesus, Lover of My Soul.”  

Charles Wesley was converted in 1738 and wrote this hymn shortly thereafter. Some people said that while he was riding his horse, going to a different town to share the Good News, he wrote this lovely hymn. This activity was not new for Charles Wesley; in fact, he wrote many of his hymn while he was traveling to preach the gospel somewhere else. It was published under a title, “ In Temptation” in 1740.

“Jesus, lover of my soul,
Let me to Thy bosom fly,
While the nearer waters roll,
While the tempest still is high:
Hide me, O my Savior, hide,
Till the storm of life is past;
Safe into the haven guide;
O receive my soul at last.”

You can see how deep the language of the hymn is, that even Charles’ own brother, John, did not want to publish it, because he thought that this poem was not good for a public worship service, especially for the use of the word Lover; this is just a speculation.

“Thou, O Christ, art all I want;
More than all in Thee I find:
Raise the fallen, cheer the faint,
Heal the sick and lead the blind:
Just and holy is Thy name,
I am all unrighteousness;
False and full of sin I am,
Thou art full of truth and grace.”

This hymn has been popular for many people and groups, especially for sailors, because of the picture of the storm and tempest on the sea. Use this hymn as your personal prayer, call the Lord as your Savior, and he will be with you during trials and troubles. He is faithful.

“Plenteous grace with Thee is found,
Grace to cover all my sin;
Let the healing streams abound;
Make and keep me pure within:
Thou of life the fountain art,
Freely let me take of Thee;
Spring Thou up within my heart,
Rise to all eternity.”
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In His service,
Israel