In March 2016, I wrote a blog titled "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" ~ The Story. But the story behind why I wrote it goes back to when I was a new Christian believer in the early 1990s. I have long loved Gospel music and saw the Gospel songs, Spirituals, and Hymns disappearing from our church worship services. They were being replaced by Christian contemporary songs and choruses.
I felt a need for worship music with deeper meaning and my feelings were shared by a Christian brother, Gary Whitlatch, who was a talented singer/musician.
Let me digress just a wee bit. In my early childhood, my grandparents had a farm just outside Tuscumbia, Alabama. I loved being at their farm; I loved the adventures I had on that farm with my cousin, Buddy, and my brother, Bob - riding grandpa's palomino mare, Maudine, and his team of mules as we ventured along the country road to Dean's Market at the nearby junction of Old US Highway 43 and Mountain View Lane, or to Hester's Market a bit further north on Highway 43.
But, the fondest memory which has stayed in my heart was the times I accompanied my grandparents to their little Baptist church sitting back in the woods, a tent church with sawdust on the ground - and the worship music they sang - hymns such as "Amazing Grace" - "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" - "Leaning On The Everlasting Arms" - "Have Thine Own Way, Lord" - etc. Those songs bring the sweet memory of my grandfather sitting by his kerosene lamp, reading his Bible.
When I was in Elementary School, we had a marvelous music teacher, Mrs. Alexander, who taught us to sing hymns such as "Fairest Lord Jesus" - "Onward Christian Soldiers" - and many other beautiful songs of our Christian faith and many patriotic songs. I wasn't really a Christian believer then, but the seeds were planted.
When I did become a Christian believer in 1987, I noticed a growing trend. The churches were moving away from singing hymns and traditional Christian music - and moving toward singing simple choruses and contemporary Christian music, spurred on, to a large degree, by Calvary Chapel and the developing Maranatha! Music movement which wanted to bring the "milk" of God's Word to a young, drug-ladened hippie population of the 1960s who were not ready for the "meat" of His Word.
Don't misunderstand, I like many of the contemporary Christian songs. But, just as I would not want to subsist on a diet of nothing but cake at every meal - I do not like having only the contemporary Christian songs all the time. In my early Christian walk, most of the churches offered a mix of the contemporary songs along with hymns. But, gradually, that began to change as hymns were being excluded more and more.
In the early 1990s the beautiful hymn "It Is Well With My Soul" experienced a revival in churches. This happened when Focus On The Family and other ministries began to feature a short presentation on the radio which basically told this story behind the hymn "It Is Well With My Soul."
When people began to hear and understand the story behind that hymn - it began to be sung more often in church worship services. That gave me the idea to try to do the same with another hymn which I have always loved, "Precious Lord, Take My Hand."
In the mid-1990s, Dory and I got together with our Christian Friend, Gary Whitlatch, who is a gifted musician, and put together the presentation below of the Spiritual "Precious Lord, Take My Hand."
It was our way of helping believers understand why this song was written, hopefully to encourage them to look at it, not as a dusty old hymn - but as a living testimony of how God works in the lives of those who love Him and know that they need Him.
I wrote the script and, with Gary on guitar and acting as co-narrator, I read the part of Thomas Dorsey and Dory led us in singing. We performed this short presentation at several of our local churches and Bible studies.
Thomas Dorsey wrote this song of prayer and faith shortly after losing his wife and baby when both died in childbirth. Through the pain of his double loss and his love for God, this song "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" was born:
PRECIOUS LORD, TAKE MY HAND
BILL: The apostle Paul, in Colossians, instructs us, "Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, sing with thankfulness in your hearts to God."
Again in Ephesians Paul urges us, ". . . but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;"
GARY: What did Paul mean in Ephesians and Colossians when he gave those instruction to the first century Christians, that they should sing, "psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs"? The psalms refer to the rich heritage of Jewish music of that time found in the book of Psalms and other Old Testament Scripture, directing man's worship to the greatness and majesty of God the Father.
His reference to hymns was an encouragement for those early believers to also sing musical expressions concerning New Testament truths and doctrines which reflect the person and redemptive work of Jesus Christ.
BILL: But to give a proper balance to their worship, Paul wisely suggested the use of spiritual or experiential songs, those more spontaneous expressions that flow from one's innermost being, out of a very personal love relationship with the Lord, prompted by the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
Isn't that what our praise songs are today? The spirituals of the early church generations eventually become part of today's hymnals, and as such, now get classified as "old music!" Perhaps we should take another look. We just might find that those hymns contain a lot of spiritual "meat."
GARY: Isn't Paul really saying, "When you sing and make melody with your heart to the Lord, make it a mix of the old, the Psalms - the new, their hymns, songs about what was happening in their daily lives - and the spiritual songs, songs of deep emotion and praise for the Lord."
BILL: The song we are featuring today is one of those very intimate spiritual expressions, "Precious Lord, Take My Hand.”
GARY: "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" was written in 1932 by Thomas Dorsey, a black Gospel musician. In Thomas Dorsey's own words:
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): "I was born in the year 1899. I grew up in a Christian home in Georgia. My father was an itinerant preacher and my mother played the pump organ in the church. By the time I was ten or twelve, I had learned to play that organ too. As a preacher's kid, I was exposed to quite a bit of religious activity, and maybe that got into me some way, but I didn't follow it."
GARY: Dorsey became interested in jazz music and during the first World War he began composing songs for blues singers, achieving considerable fame and financial success. He put a band together and traveled a lot while writing over 150 blues songs.
But Thomas Dorsey could never forget the influence of his early Christian training, nor the memory of his Godly parents. Even when busy playing in bars and night clubs around the country, he still thought a great deal about his early life. Then as a young man in his twenties, Dorsey began to reflect seriously about himself; how God had preserved him on so many occasions, and that he was now foolishly wasting his time and his talents.
As Dorsey said,
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): "It was in 1924 that I started to come back to God. I knew that I was ruining my life. That year I wrote 'If I Don't Get There,' a Gospel song that is still in the books today. Today I can say that all that I am, and all that I ever will be, all that I have, all that I will ever possess, I owe to God. He brought me out of my sin."
GARY: For the next few years, Thomas Dorsey was actively involved in singing for church services and writing Gospel songs. One day while ministering in a revival meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, he received a telegram that his wife Nettie had just died delivering their first child. Arriving home in South Chicago, he was met with further bad news, his infant son had also died. Both were buried in the same casket. The sorrow was more than Dorsey could bear.
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): "That was double trouble, and I couldn't take it. I said, 'God, You aren't worth a dime to me right now.' I felt as if He had treated me wrong. A few weeks later I was sitting with a friend, Theodore Frye, the Gospel singer, trying to get over my grief. As I fingered the keyboard of a piano, I picked up a tune, which wasn't so original, but the words were. I called it 'Blessed Lord.' After I had gone over it and over it, I said, 'Come here, Frye. How do you like this song?'"
GARY: Theodore Frye responded, "Well, the words are good, but the 'Blessed Lord' won't work. Why not call Him 'Precious Lord?"
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): The next Sunday Frye's choir sang it at the Ebenezer Baptist Church with Dorsey accompanying on the piano and in Dorsey's words, "It tore up the church!"
GARY: Until his death in 1965 Thomas Dorsey wrote approximately 250 Gospel songs, including the popular spiritual, "Peace In The Valley." All of his songs were written with much conviction as shown in his own words:
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): "My business is to try to bring people to Christ instead of leaving them where they are. I write all my songs with a message; If there is no message, there is no need for having a song. I don't write for races, I don't write for colors, I write for all of God's people. I want them all to use it. I want the blessings to go to everybody. All people are my people. What I share with people is love, that is, the power of love. I try to lift their spirits and let them know that God still loves them. I want them to understand that God is still in business. He's still saving, and He can still give that power."
GARY: Thomas Dorsey left these instructions for enjoying Gospel music:
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): "To listen to a Gospel song properly, you've got to be in the mood. You have to give God your whole intelligence, your whole heart, your whole feeling. You have to be able to bring yourself inside the realm of this expression that is being handed out, so it will reach you."
GARY: Yes, spiritual songs like "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" are born in the heart of one believer, often out of much adversity, and then they minister to the heartfelt needs of countless others who may be sharing a similar experience. That is why the apostle Paul instructed us to sing spiritual songs to one another as an important source of learning and encouragement.
BILL: You'll find a copy of "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" in your bulletin. Please stand and join us in singing this beautiful spiritual song.
When I was a young boy in Alabama, before Elvis, before rock & roll, before I was a Christian believer - I was often drawn to stand outside a black church near my home just to hear their beautiful Gospel singing. And, the Gospel music which you find in those videos takes me back home - to that time in my life when God was calling me, but I did not yet know it.
I pray this gives you a better understanding of how and why we need to be eating a balanced diet of all spiritual music - not just subsisting on a limited diet of contemporary Christian music only. God has given us a full platter. Why eat just the dessert?
God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,
Bill
I felt a need for worship music with deeper meaning and my feelings were shared by a Christian brother, Gary Whitlatch, who was a talented singer/musician.
Let me digress just a wee bit. In my early childhood, my grandparents had a farm just outside Tuscumbia, Alabama. I loved being at their farm; I loved the adventures I had on that farm with my cousin, Buddy, and my brother, Bob - riding grandpa's palomino mare, Maudine, and his team of mules as we ventured along the country road to Dean's Market at the nearby junction of Old US Highway 43 and Mountain View Lane, or to Hester's Market a bit further north on Highway 43.
But, the fondest memory which has stayed in my heart was the times I accompanied my grandparents to their little Baptist church sitting back in the woods, a tent church with sawdust on the ground - and the worship music they sang - hymns such as "Amazing Grace" - "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" - "Leaning On The Everlasting Arms" - "Have Thine Own Way, Lord" - etc. Those songs bring the sweet memory of my grandfather sitting by his kerosene lamp, reading his Bible.
When I was in Elementary School, we had a marvelous music teacher, Mrs. Alexander, who taught us to sing hymns such as "Fairest Lord Jesus" - "Onward Christian Soldiers" - and many other beautiful songs of our Christian faith and many patriotic songs. I wasn't really a Christian believer then, but the seeds were planted.
When I did become a Christian believer in 1987, I noticed a growing trend. The churches were moving away from singing hymns and traditional Christian music - and moving toward singing simple choruses and contemporary Christian music, spurred on, to a large degree, by Calvary Chapel and the developing Maranatha! Music movement which wanted to bring the "milk" of God's Word to a young, drug-ladened hippie population of the 1960s who were not ready for the "meat" of His Word.
Don't misunderstand, I like many of the contemporary Christian songs. But, just as I would not want to subsist on a diet of nothing but cake at every meal - I do not like having only the contemporary Christian songs all the time. In my early Christian walk, most of the churches offered a mix of the contemporary songs along with hymns. But, gradually, that began to change as hymns were being excluded more and more.
In the early 1990s the beautiful hymn "It Is Well With My Soul" experienced a revival in churches. This happened when Focus On The Family and other ministries began to feature a short presentation on the radio which basically told this story behind the hymn "It Is Well With My Soul."
Horatio Spafford (1828-1888), a wealthy Chicago lawyer and business man who was also a devout Christian and faithful student of the Scriptures, planned a trip to Europe as a family vacation to help his family recover from the recent loss of their son, and to assist evangelists Dwight L. Moody and Ira Sankey in an evangelistic campaign in England.
Because of a last minute business problem, Spafford sent his wife and four daughters, ages 11, 9, 7, and 2, ahead on an earlier ship and planned to follow on a later ship. The ship his family was on sank at sea and his four daughters were lost. On November 22, their ship, the S.S. Ville Du Havre, struck another ship and sank within twelve minutes.
On board a ship to join his grieving wife, Anna, in England - Spafford wrote the words to "It Is Well With My Soul" which included the words "When sorrow like sea billows roll; it is well, it is well with my soul. . ." By the time he returned from Europe, a friend, Philip Bliss, had set his words to music and the hymn we all love was born.
When people began to hear and understand the story behind that hymn - it began to be sung more often in church worship services. That gave me the idea to try to do the same with another hymn which I have always loved, "Precious Lord, Take My Hand."
In the mid-1990s, Dory and I got together with our Christian Friend, Gary Whitlatch, who is a gifted musician, and put together the presentation below of the Spiritual "Precious Lord, Take My Hand."
It was our way of helping believers understand why this song was written, hopefully to encourage them to look at it, not as a dusty old hymn - but as a living testimony of how God works in the lives of those who love Him and know that they need Him.
I wrote the script and, with Gary on guitar and acting as co-narrator, I read the part of Thomas Dorsey and Dory led us in singing. We performed this short presentation at several of our local churches and Bible studies.
Thomas Dorsey wrote this song of prayer and faith shortly after losing his wife and baby when both died in childbirth. Through the pain of his double loss and his love for God, this song "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" was born:
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
PRECIOUS LORD, TAKE MY HAND
BILL: The apostle Paul, in Colossians, instructs us, "Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, sing with thankfulness in your hearts to God."
Again in Ephesians Paul urges us, ". . . but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;"
GARY: What did Paul mean in Ephesians and Colossians when he gave those instruction to the first century Christians, that they should sing, "psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs"? The psalms refer to the rich heritage of Jewish music of that time found in the book of Psalms and other Old Testament Scripture, directing man's worship to the greatness and majesty of God the Father.
His reference to hymns was an encouragement for those early believers to also sing musical expressions concerning New Testament truths and doctrines which reflect the person and redemptive work of Jesus Christ.
BILL: But to give a proper balance to their worship, Paul wisely suggested the use of spiritual or experiential songs, those more spontaneous expressions that flow from one's innermost being, out of a very personal love relationship with the Lord, prompted by the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
Isn't that what our praise songs are today? The spirituals of the early church generations eventually become part of today's hymnals, and as such, now get classified as "old music!" Perhaps we should take another look. We just might find that those hymns contain a lot of spiritual "meat."
GARY: Isn't Paul really saying, "When you sing and make melody with your heart to the Lord, make it a mix of the old, the Psalms - the new, their hymns, songs about what was happening in their daily lives - and the spiritual songs, songs of deep emotion and praise for the Lord."
BILL: The song we are featuring today is one of those very intimate spiritual expressions, "Precious Lord, Take My Hand.”
GARY, ON GUITAR, PLAYS FIRST VERSE OF "PRECIOUS LORD, TAKE MY HAND."
GARY: "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" was written in 1932 by Thomas Dorsey, a black Gospel musician. In Thomas Dorsey's own words:
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): "I was born in the year 1899. I grew up in a Christian home in Georgia. My father was an itinerant preacher and my mother played the pump organ in the church. By the time I was ten or twelve, I had learned to play that organ too. As a preacher's kid, I was exposed to quite a bit of religious activity, and maybe that got into me some way, but I didn't follow it."
GARY: Dorsey became interested in jazz music and during the first World War he began composing songs for blues singers, achieving considerable fame and financial success. He put a band together and traveled a lot while writing over 150 blues songs.
But Thomas Dorsey could never forget the influence of his early Christian training, nor the memory of his Godly parents. Even when busy playing in bars and night clubs around the country, he still thought a great deal about his early life. Then as a young man in his twenties, Dorsey began to reflect seriously about himself; how God had preserved him on so many occasions, and that he was now foolishly wasting his time and his talents.
As Dorsey said,
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): "It was in 1924 that I started to come back to God. I knew that I was ruining my life. That year I wrote 'If I Don't Get There,' a Gospel song that is still in the books today. Today I can say that all that I am, and all that I ever will be, all that I have, all that I will ever possess, I owe to God. He brought me out of my sin."
GARY: For the next few years, Thomas Dorsey was actively involved in singing for church services and writing Gospel songs. One day while ministering in a revival meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, he received a telegram that his wife Nettie had just died delivering their first child. Arriving home in South Chicago, he was met with further bad news, his infant son had also died. Both were buried in the same casket. The sorrow was more than Dorsey could bear.
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): "That was double trouble, and I couldn't take it. I said, 'God, You aren't worth a dime to me right now.' I felt as if He had treated me wrong. A few weeks later I was sitting with a friend, Theodore Frye, the Gospel singer, trying to get over my grief. As I fingered the keyboard of a piano, I picked up a tune, which wasn't so original, but the words were. I called it 'Blessed Lord.' After I had gone over it and over it, I said, 'Come here, Frye. How do you like this song?'"
GARY: Theodore Frye responded, "Well, the words are good, but the 'Blessed Lord' won't work. Why not call Him 'Precious Lord?"
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): The next Sunday Frye's choir sang it at the Ebenezer Baptist Church with Dorsey accompanying on the piano and in Dorsey's words, "It tore up the church!"
DORY SINGS FIRST VERSE OF "PRECIOUS LORD, TAKE MY HAND"
GARY: Until his death in 1965 Thomas Dorsey wrote approximately 250 Gospel songs, including the popular spiritual, "Peace In The Valley." All of his songs were written with much conviction as shown in his own words:
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): "My business is to try to bring people to Christ instead of leaving them where they are. I write all my songs with a message; If there is no message, there is no need for having a song. I don't write for races, I don't write for colors, I write for all of God's people. I want them all to use it. I want the blessings to go to everybody. All people are my people. What I share with people is love, that is, the power of love. I try to lift their spirits and let them know that God still loves them. I want them to understand that God is still in business. He's still saving, and He can still give that power."
GARY: Thomas Dorsey left these instructions for enjoying Gospel music:
BILL (as Thomas Dorsey): "To listen to a Gospel song properly, you've got to be in the mood. You have to give God your whole intelligence, your whole heart, your whole feeling. You have to be able to bring yourself inside the realm of this expression that is being handed out, so it will reach you."
GARY: Yes, spiritual songs like "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" are born in the heart of one believer, often out of much adversity, and then they minister to the heartfelt needs of countless others who may be sharing a similar experience. That is why the apostle Paul instructed us to sing spiritual songs to one another as an important source of learning and encouragement.
BILL: You'll find a copy of "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" in your bulletin. Please stand and join us in singing this beautiful spiritual song.
PRECIOUS LORD, TAKE MY HAND
Written by THOMAS A. DORSEY
Precious Lord, take my hand,
Lead me on, help me stand;
I am tired, I am weak, I am worn;
Thru the storm, thru the night,
Lead me on to the light,
Take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home.
When my way grows drear,
Precious Lord, linger near;
When my life is almost gone,
Hear my cry, hear my call,
Hold my hand lest I fall;
Take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home.
© 1938 Hill and Range Songs, Inc. License
Now, I invite you to watch these videos and hear from Thomas Dorsey himself about the Gospel music he lived and wrote - and, from him, the story of "Precious Lord, Take My Hand."Written by THOMAS A. DORSEY
Precious Lord, take my hand,
Lead me on, help me stand;
I am tired, I am weak, I am worn;
Thru the storm, thru the night,
Lead me on to the light,
Take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home.
When my way grows drear,
Precious Lord, linger near;
When my life is almost gone,
Hear my cry, hear my call,
Hold my hand lest I fall;
Take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home.
© 1938 Hill and Range Songs, Inc. License
Thomas A. Dorsey Discusses His Gospel Song "Precious Lord" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiehRFbpwlk
Thomas Dorsey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEosw5GUCzQ&index=1&list=RDnEosw5GUCzQ
When I was a young boy in Alabama, before Elvis, before rock & roll, before I was a Christian believer - I was often drawn to stand outside a black church near my home just to hear their beautiful Gospel singing. And, the Gospel music which you find in those videos takes me back home - to that time in my life when God was calling me, but I did not yet know it.
I pray this gives you a better understanding of how and why we need to be eating a balanced diet of all spiritual music - not just subsisting on a limited diet of contemporary Christian music only. God has given us a full platter. Why eat just the dessert?
God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,
Bill
No comments:
Post a Comment