Monday, March 03, 2014

Monday morsel: "I was found of Thee"

On Saturday we learned the sad and shocking news that a man from our former church, John Bylsma, had died, three days after a cancer operation that initially appeared to have gone well.

His obituary stated that his favourite hymn was "I Sought the Lord, and Afterward I Knew."* I'm sharing the words here today because they provide such a comforting message of God's amazing, initiating love.  "We love because He first loved us." - I John 4:19 


I Sought the Lord, and Afterward I Knew

I sought the Lord, and afterward I knew
He moved my soul to seek Him, seeking me.
It was not I that found, O Saviour true:
no, I was found, was found of Thee.

Thou didst reach forth Thy hand and mine enfold;
I walked and sank not on the storm-vexed sea.
'Twas not so much that I on Thee took hold
as Thou, dear Lord, took hold on me.

I find, I walk, I love -- but oh, the whole
of love is but my answer, Lord, to Thee;
for Thou wert long beforehand with my soul --
always, always Thou lovedst me. 

Jesus walks on water, by Ivan Aivazovsky (1888)

* The words were written in 1878 by an anonymous hymn-writer.  It is sung to the tune of Sibelius' Finlandia.  I couldn't find a good recording of the hymn itself, but this video plays Sibelius' entire 9-minute composition, and the hymn's melody can be heard starting at about the 6-minute mark.

2 comments:

  1. Beautiful words, Jeannie, reminding us that the only reason we are with him is because he chose to be with us.

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    Replies
    1. So glad He sought us, Tim. Thanks for commenting today.

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