Hymn of the Week: June 7, 2021

Hymn of the Week: 
Safe in the Arms of Jesus

Fanny Crosby, Text
William Howard Doane, Music

Safe in the Arms of Jesus

Safe in the arms of Jesus,
Safe on His gentle breast,
There by His love o’ershaded,
Sweetly my soul doth rest.
Hark! ’tis a song of heaven
Borne in the sweetest voice,
Echoed by saints in spirit,
Making my heart rejoice.

Safe in the arms of Jesus,
Safe on His gentle breast,
Thereby His love o’ershaded,
Sweetly my soul doth rest.

Safe in the arms of Jesus,
Safe from corroding care,
Safe from the world’s temptations,
Sin cannot harm me there.
Free from the blight of sorrow,
Free from my doubts and fears;
Only a few more trials,
Only a few more tears.

Jesus, my heart’s dear Refuge,
Jesus has died for me;
Firm on the Rock of Ages
Ever my trust shall be.
Here let me wait with patience,
Wait till the night is o’er,
Wait till I see the morning
Break on the golden shore.

Safe In The Arms of Jesus is a hymn that took the author Fanny Crosby, only a few minutes to compose. It was a collaboration between William Howard Doane. (yes, the Doane of Denison University) and Fanny Crosby.

It is said that Doane, a friend of Fanny Crosby, had only 40 minutes before the train that was to take him to Cincinnati was to leave but he wanted a hymn. He wanted to use this hymn the following month at a statewide Sunday School convention in Cincinnati.

Doane started playing the piano and Fanny Crosby felt the proper words for that music would be "Safe in the Arms of Jesus. She thought that would be the appropriate hymn for boys and girls at the convention. Then Fanny Crosby sat down and wrote the lyrics while Doane played through the tune as she continued to write. She says she was so caught up in the writing that nothing around her mattered.

In the end, she folded the piece of paper bearing the song and gave it to Mr. Doane. He did not read the words until he boarded the train. This hymn was wildly popular throughout the United States and was sung at President Ulysses S. Grant’s internment.

Enjoy hearing this blast from the past. Members of the Chancel Choir singing outside Middleton on October 14, 2020, during the pandemic. You should see and hear, Cindy McElroy. Karen Bovenizer, Nancy Wille, Marcy Loats, Tom Martin, and Jesse Boring. Don’t let the passing concrete truck deter you from a wonderfully sung hymn!

Enjoy!