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| Delacroix - "Christ on the Sea of Galilee" |
Hymn: “Jesus Calls Us O’er the Tumult” – Cecil Frances
Alexander (1818-1895)
Typical Tune: GALILEE
Alexander was an Irish hymn writer. Her other long-standing hymns are “All Things Bright and Beautiful” and
“There Is a Green Hill Far Away,” This one is about the call of Christ coming
to us above the struggles and conflicts which might easily drown out his sweet voice saying “Christian, follow me,”
and “Christian, love me more.”
The
hymn-line I have chosen from many possibilities in this text is part of
the final stanza as she pleads with Christ in his great mercy to
be sure that we hear his call – that we might open our hearts to obey
him,
serve him, and love him more than we love anything or anyone else.
What strikes me is that her prayer – and ours as we sing it –
is that we might hand over our hearts into the realm of full obedience to all
his callings… those mentioned in the earlier stanzas and those yet to come in
our pilgrimage of faith.
Thank you, long-gone Irish poet. May your words move us to
hear fully, obey willingly, serve extensively, and love extravagantly.
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