ABIDE WITH ME

Part of a monthly series on well-known hymns.

 “Abide with Me”—that’s the spiritual truth Henry Lyte had to learn through the challenges of his early life. He was born in Scotland 1793 to a devout mother and seafaring father, who soon moved the family to Ireland and then abandoned them.  His mother taught him about the Bible and prayer, but died when he was only nine. Left an orphan without any means of support, he was taken in by his school’s superintendent who raised him like another son, making sure he received a college education. In college in Dublin, Lyte was well-liked, well-known as a poet who received many awards, and had a reputation as a hard worker. It’s no surprise that he coined the phrase, “It’s better to wear out than to rust out.”

At 21 he was ordained to the ministry and took a small parish south of Dublin. He found a close friend in another minister who before long became critically ill. As they spent long hours together, they realized that despite being ministers they didn’t have a growing relationship with Christ. Searching the scriptures, they both came to a deeper faith. Out of this experience came his hymn, “Jesus, My Cross I Have Taken.” One source linked the composition of this hymn to the Wesleyan revival in England. Lyte’s wife, who had attended the Methodist church, told him about a devout woman named Mary Bosenquet, who disappointed her wealthy parents when she became a Christian through the meetings of early Methodists.  Her father disowned her, and after that she lived in poverty, enduring threats and harm from those who opposed Wesley and the Methodists. Lyte’s hymn lyrics speak of her earthly losses to the riches of knowing Christ.

Lyte later moved across the sea to England, working hard in ministry to the detriment of his health as he contracted tuberculosis. Hoping the fresh, salty air of the sea would help him, he moved to a church in Brixham, a seaport in southwest England. There he wrote “Praise My Soul the King of Heaven” for his little congregation to sing. (A century and a half later, on what would be the 150^th anniversary of Lyte’s death, the world heard this hymn played as part of the majestic  1947 wedding ceremony of the future Queen Elizabeth 2 to Prince Philip.)

Brixham was also a royal retreat for King William IV, who during his seven-year reign was known as England’s sailor king. He would die without heirs, and his niece, Victoria, became queen for the next 63 years. At his death he also gifted his estate to Pastor Lyte in return for the pastor’s kindnesses. Talk about a fancy parsonage! But Lyte would live there only ten years as his health worsened with TB.

In the summer of 1847 doctors urged him to get away from the damp winters in Brixham and try to reclaim his health in the warmer climates of Southern France or Italy. On September 4, 1847, only 54 years old, he came to his last Sunday in Brixham, so sick that he struggled to enter the pulpit and preach. “I must put everything in order before I leave,” he told his people, “because I have no idea how long I will be away.”

It was in this time frame of leaving for health that he wrote a poem that begins:

Abide with me; fast falls the eventide.

The darkness deepens, Lord, with me abide.

When other helpers fail, and comforts flee,

Help of the helpless, O abide with me.

His text for this poem was the Gospel account of the resurrected Jesus appearing to two disciples on the way to Emmaus. As night came, the two told this man they didn’t recognize, “Abide with us: for it is toward evening and the day is far spent” (Luke 24:29).

He gave a copy of this hymn poem to his adopted daughter, taking along another copy which he revised during his trip. He posted the revision to his wife. Arriving at the French Riviera on his way to Rome, he checked into a hotel in Nice. He never went further on, and several weeks later, he died. At his bedside was another English clergyman who happened to be staying there the same time.  He reported that Lyte’s final words were “Peace! Joy!” Lyte was buried in Nice.

When news came back to Brixham of their pastor’s death, the fishermen of the village asked his son-in-law, also a minister, to hold a memorial service. On that occasion, Lyte’s hymn, “Abide with Me” was first sung.

The hymn was not widely sung until it came to the attention a decade later of William Monk, who edited the Anglican church hymnal. He wrote a new tune for it that he named “Eventide,” inspired by a beautiful sunset while Monk himself was experiencing a deep personal sorrow.

There are many "You Tube" videos featuring this hymn. This one uses footage from the British coastline, where Lyte had spent many years in ministry:
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=abide+with+me+youtube+with+lyrics&docid=608020738813854665&mid=81739B50B13D484BA86C81739B50B13D484BA86C&view=detail&FORM=VIRE

Making 'Psense' of Psalms--Psalm 103: All Praise

Part of a continuing series on selected psalms.
If your prayers became letters to God, would He slit open the envelope and read complaints and demands? Or would His heart be warmed by praise and thanksgiving? Those more prone to the complaints/demands end need the perspective of Psalm 103, which steps away from petitions to simple praise of who God is and all He does. David wrote his share of down-in-the-dumps and corporate praise psalms, but this psalm is positive and personal.  This is no polite “thank you” prayer.  David’s words throb with intensity as he tries to embrace all that is God and all of God’s blessings. The simple word “all” (used eight times in NIV) attempts to convey the concept that God is complete in who He is and what He does.Many outline the psalm this way:
*Personal praise to God (vv. 1-6)
*National praise to God (vv. 6-18)
*Universal praise to God (vv. 19-22)
Because the psalm focuses on praise, I’d suggest another outline off the acrostic PRAISE.

P—Provision for life (vv. 1-3). David realizes that without God, he is nothing. “All my inmost being,” he says, “forget not all his benefits.”  God forgives “all my sins.” The forgiveness of sins, which enables us to have a relationship with a holy God, is the greatest benefit.  The second part of verse 3, “he heals all my diseases,” has led some systems of theology to stress “healing in the atonement,” which presumes that salvation goes hand-in-hand with healing of physical affliction. But believers do get sick, and many other passages teach that God may have purposes in a person’s illness. Paul desperately sought healing, but the Lord told him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). It is true that all healing comes from God, whether through medical intervention, the power of the body to heal itself, or a miracle.

It’s also worth mentioning that sins like anxiety, sexual misconduct and an unforgiving spirit can bring on illness. David experienced that when his effort to hide his sexual sin with Bathsheba left him a physical wreck. In Psalm 32, he spoke of his bones wasting away, day-long groaning, a sense of heaviness, and sapped strength. I read recently of a woman who had numerous problems that baffled doctors.  Finally, a pastor confronted her about bitterness toward a family member. As soon as she broke down and confessed it, and started the steps toward reconciliation, her symptoms began to fade.

R—Renewing presence (vv. 4-5). Redeemed from the pit of hell (v. 4), we are “crowned” with God’s love and compassion. “Crown” comes from a word meaning “encircled,” like a monarch’s crown. It helps picture how God encircles us with good things of which we are unworthy, except for His amazing love. He is aware of our desires, and He knows the world’s definition of “satisfied” won’t fill us apart from Himself. The next verse, “so that my youth is renewed like the eagle’s,” has given rise to some strange tales about the molting habits of eagles. It’s best read as a reminder that, like the mighty eagle, with God we can be lifted to higher, better things.

A—Almighty plan (vv. 6-9). History turns on God reaching down in power and mercy to emancipate the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt. David referred to that almighty plan in these verses, referring to how “The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed” (v. 7). When David described God as “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love” (v. 8), he was quoting from the account of God revealing His essence to Moses (Exodus 34:5-7). Remembering this key historical event emphasized God’s patience even among stubborn and grumbling people.

I—Immeasurable mercy (vv. 10-12). This section of the psalm is full of superlatives. There aren’t words big enough to describe how God’s mercy covers our sins and iniquities (Hebrew: “twistedness”). Instead, “For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.” The distance to Heaven, wherever it is, is unknown, and the universe defies numbers. In David’s time, people thought the world was flat, yet still couldn’t comprehend the extent of “east” or “west.” We know now that the world is round, and east and west never meet in its circumference. I will never forget the difficult night a phone call summoned me to the apartment of a young woman who had attended a Bible study at our home. She was dating a young man who “played church” but lived immorally. Once she had yielded to his sexual pressures, he dropped her. She felt God would never forgive her. As she sobbed in my arms, that verse came to mind as I tried to explain God’s expansive (and expensive) love for her.

S—Sympathetic care (vv. 13-18).  As that young woman moved away to a fresh start in life, including marriage to a Christian young man who honored her, I thought of the subsequent verses: “As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him.” This section of Psalm 103 reminds us that life is fragile (we’re essentially “dust”) and fleeting (like wilting flowers). But even in life’s brevity, God cares for us: “From everlasting to everlasting, the LORD’s love is with those who fear him.” Verse 18 explains “fear” as “those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.”

E—Eternal dominion (vv. 19-22). The psalm that began with David’s personal praise ends with him calling on heavenly beings to praise God, who reigns over all. As in the beginning, the word “all” is again prominent. His kingdom rules over all. David calls on angels, mighty ones who do His bidding and obey God’s Word, all the heavenly hosts, servants who do his will, and all God’s works, everywhere (all places) in His dominion. The cadence intensifies until David has exhausted his undersatnding of heavenly beings. Finally, he returns to himself: “Praise the LORD, O my soul.” He is so in awe of God, so grateful for God’s mercy, that he can’t do anything but praise.

When our faith gets comfortable with “church ways” and worship routines, we need to be pulled back to the truths of Psalm 103. He is the mighty God, yet merciful. He is beyond our understanding, yet intimately acquainted with us, worthy of all our praise. Henry Lyte’s 1834 hymn, based on Psalm 103, still rings true:

Praise my soul, the king of heaven,
To His feet your tribute bring;
Ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven,
Who, like me, His praise should sing.
Alleluia! Alleluia! Praise the everlasting King

Next: Psalm 104