More love to Thee!
Hear Thou the prayer I make
On bended knee;
This is my earnest plea:
More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee!
2. Once earthly joy I craved,
Sought peace and rest;
Now Thee alone I seek,
Give what is best;
This all my prayer shall be:
More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee!
3. Then shall my latest breath
Whisper Thy praise;
This be the parting cry
My heart shall raise;
This still its prayer shall be:
More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee!
Scripture; Deuteronomy 6:5-7; Psalm 31:23; Matthew 22:37;
John 15:8-9
The hymn "More Love to Thee, O Christ" was written by Elizabeth Prentiss during a deeply sorrowful period in her life. In the 1850s, she and her husband, Rev. George Prentiss, endured the loss of two of their young children. Grieving and physically exhausted, Elizabeth turned to her faith for solace. In her diary, she poured out her heart, longing for a deeper closeness to Christ amid her suffering. One evening, moved by a spiritual longing for greater devotion, she wrote the hymn as a personal prayer, inspired in part by the hymn "Nearer, My God, to Thee" and the biblical story of Jacob’s encounter with God in Genesis 28. Although she originally kept the poem to herself, believing it was too simple, she shared it with her husband more than a decade later. Encouraged by him, the hymn was published in 1869 and later set to music by composer William H. Doane. Its heartfelt expression of love for Christ, even in times of pain, has resonated with generations of believers. The hymn remains a powerful testimony to the sustaining grace of God and the desire to draw closer to Him through all of life’s trials.
No comments:
Post a Comment