|
William Featherston wrote the words for this hymn when he was sixteen, at the time of his conversion. It is thought that when he wrote this poem, he sent a copy to his aunt, Mrs. E. Featherston Wilson, in Los Angeles. His aunt liked it very much, and encouraged the publishing of it. Somehow, it ended up in an English hymn book called The London Hymn Book as an anonymous hymn in 1864. The Featherstone family still cherishes the original copy of the poem, written in William’s boyish handwriting.
A.J. Gordon took the poem from The London Hymn Book and wanted to add it to the hymnbook he was assembling, but he did not like the tune it had. In a moment of inspiration, he was able to write a new tune to use for it. It was included in Gordon’s hymnal, The Service of Song for Baptist Churches, published in 1876. With this new tune, the hymn has become widespread and is included in most hymn books.
|
Testimony
An actress stopped in to see a sick girl, and hoped her presence would cheer the child. But the girl was a devout Christian, and her words, angelic appearance, and insistence the actress give serious thought to becoming a Christian, could not be ignored. The actress soon became a follower of Christ. She had to tell her father, who was also her manager, that she had to abandon acting, since she could not be an actress and a follower of Christ. Her father was horrified, and explained that her decision would bring the ruin of their whole business. The actress decided to relent and preparations for her next big performance continued. She was the star of a theater production. The evening came and the father was so happy his daughter had not destroyed their income. The time came for the curtain to be raised, and the actress stepped forward amid the applause and music of a huge crowd. But instead of starting with her lines, she instead sang, “My Jesus, I Love Thee” and the whole first verse. Christ had won, and she could not continue in her sinful ways. Her father later did get saved and many others came to salvation through her testimony.
Sources
Logos Hymnal, 1st edition. (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1995).
Kenneth W. Osbeck, 101 More Hymn Stories (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Kregel Publications, 1985), p. 194.
Kenneth W. Osbeck, Amazing Grace: 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Kregel Publications, 1990), p. 56.
Ira D. Sankey, My Life and the Story of the Gospel Hymns and of Sacred Songs and Solos (Philadelphia: The Sunday School Times Company, 1907), pp. 224-225.
