Take My Hand and Lead Me & Take My Hand, Precious Lord

Introduction Two songs expressing trust and dependency on God With all the cares, troubles, and fears of the world around us –It is comforting to know there is someone on whom we can absolutely depend Someone who is always right Someone who is always loving Someone who always knows what to do Someone who never changes Someone with absolute power And that Someone is God

“Take My Hand and Lead Me” The songwriter was James Washington Gaines –Born in Texas in 1880 Worked with trios and quartets –Moved to Tennessee and opened a business Died a few years later at the age of 57 –His other hymns include” “In That Home of the Soul” (#200) “When Jesus Comes” (#653) Music - “You Never Mentioned Him To Me” (#598) –A friend of composer Franklin Eiland, who wrote the music for “Hold To God’s Unchanging Hand” (#463) while visiting Gaines’ home in Tx

“Take My Hand and Lead Me” Stanza 1 – Asking God to keep us –But what is meant by “keep” (the word has more than 50 definitions) –Possibilities: “To retain in one’s possession” “To cause to continue on a given course” “To maintain in a usable condition” “To prevent from departure” “To maintain control over” “To guard, protect” –All are good possibilities, let’s look at how “keep” is used in the song

“Take My Hand and Lead Me” “I want to live, dear Lord, for Thee; Oh! keep me every day. A faithful servant let me be Along life's rugged way.” All Christians desire to live for God –Rom 14:8 – we live to the Lord –Phil 1:21 – to live is Christ –Gal 2:20 – Christ lives in me

“Take My Hand and Lead Me” But we need God’s help –1 Pet 1:3-5 – kept by the power of God –Jude – keep from stumbling –So “keep” can mean To retain in God’s possession and control To help us continue on God’s course To help us be usable by Him and for Him To help us not to depart To guard and protect us from danger In order to receive that help, we must seek to be good and faithful servants (Mt 25:21) –No matter how difficult the road may be

“Take My Hand and Lead Me” Stanza 2 – Asking for God’s protection –“When Satan would my hopes alarm, Oh! shelter Thou my soul. Protect me with Thy mighty arm; Thy strength will keep me whole.” Satan is the enemy (1 Pet 5:8) –“alarm” – “to make fearful” –Satan wants to make us afraid that we won’t get what we hope for –God provides us a way of escape (1 Cor 10:13) –We need to turn to God for help (Jas 4:7-8) He has the strength (Eph 6:10-11) He has the ability (Eph 3:20-21)

“Take My Hand and Lead Me” Stanza 3 – Asking for God’s guidance –“Let me each day Thy Spirit feel; Increase my courage, Lord, To walk by faith, endowed with zeal, Directed by Thy word.” Some object to “Thy Spirit feel” for fear it sounds like Pentecostalism –But the song is not suggesting we “feel” the Spirit as some kind of external controlling presence

“Take My Hand and Lead Me” We “feel” the Spirit by –Being filled with the Spirit (Eph 5:15-21) By understanding the will of God By teaching and singing By praying By submitting to one another –Using the sword of the Spirit (Eph 6:17-18) “Directed by Thy word” –Walking by faith with confidence (2 Cor 5:5-8) And unafraid to ask help (Mark 9:24; Lk 17:5)

“Take My Hand and Lead Me” Chorus - –“Take my hand and lead me, Anywhere you need me; With Thy Spirit feed me, Till I'm safe at home.” Confident in God, feeding on His word –We should be able to go anywhere to spread His word –Until finally we are taken home to heaven But what happens to our confidence, when Satan shakes us and tries to destroy it –Let’s look at that confidence in the life of another songwriter and the words of his song

“Take My Hand, Precious Lord” Songwriter: Thomas Andrew Dorsey –Not Tommy Dorsey – the white jazz player who became a big band leader behind Frank Sinatra –Thomas Dorsey was a black jazz player (hence the confusion) born in 1899 in rural Georgia –Became a professional jazz pianist at age 12 –Moved to Chicago at 20, played under the name ‘Georgia Tom” playing in Capone’s speakeasies –At 26 he married Nettie Harper –At 27 he had a nervous breakdown and was unable to work for 2 years His wife supported them by working in a laundry

“Take My Hand, Precious Lord” His sister-in-law encouraged him to go to church –Decided to then leave jazz music with its pressure and the influences around it –Decided to write gospel music His first song was "If You See My Savior, Tell Him That You Saw Me." –I was standing by the bedside of a neighbor Who was bound to cross Jordan's swelling tide And I asked him if he would do me a favor And kindly take this message to the other side If you see my Savior tell Him that you saw me Ah, and when you saw me I was on my way When you reach that golden city think about me And don't forget to tell the Savior what I said Though you have to make this journey on without me Oh, that's a debt that sooner or later must be paid Well, you may see some old friends who may ask about me Oh, tell them I am coming home someday

“Take My Hand, Precious Lord” In 1932, he was asked to perform in St Louis –He had to leave his pregnant wife behind in Chicago –At the end of the performance, as the crowd cheered wildly, he was handed a telegram “Your wife is dead” is all it said –He rushed home and found that his wife died giving birth to their son Dorsey later recalled how his emotions swung between joy and despair Later that night his son died, and it became all despair

“Take My Hand, Precious Lord” Nettie and their son were buried together in a single casket For many days, Thomas refused to see anyone –He was angry with himself for going to St Louis –He was angry with God for taking his wife and son –He considered quitting the church and going back to jazz When he allowed himself to face people again, he was nearly overwhelmed and his depression deepened

“Take My Hand, Precious Lord” Then a friend took him away from his apartment and all the people who wanted to express sympathy –He was taken to a music school and left in a room with a piano –Thomas sat for hours doing nothing but thinking –Then as the setting sun shone through the window, he sat down at the piano and started playing to express his feelings As he played, he thought of words to go with the music –“Take My Hand, Precious Lord” (#104)

Conclusion No matter our problems, however great or insurmountable they seem God is still with His children and waiting to take our hand if we will take His and follow April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr asked that “Take My Hand, Precious Lord” be sung at that evening’s rally (it was his favorite song) –Moments later, he was assassinated –The song was sung at his funeral –President Lyndon Baines Johnson then asked that it be sung at his funeral, which was done 5 years later