I want that adorning divine

Miss Charlotte Elliot was born March 18, 1789, at Westfield Lodge, Brighton, England. The preacher Henry Venn was her maternal grandfather. His daughter Eling married Charles Elliot of Chapman and Brighton. Charlotte was the third daughter of six children. Two of her brothers became clergymen like their uncle Dr. John Venn.

As a child she was surrounded with culture and piety but was in a state of chronic illness. In 1821 she became and remained an invalid.

One day In 1882 her family was visited by Dr. Caesar Malan , a man of God from Geneva. Charlotte had not yet realized the full salvation of Jesus Christ. Seeing that she was held back from the Savior by her own self efforts, he said, “Dear Charlotte cut the cable, it will take too long to unloose it. ” She greatly resented his efforts to bring her to Christ perhaps because of the irritability caused by her poor health and at one point she was very abrupt with him for which she later apologized. She later told him she was miserable— “I want to come to Jesus but I don’t know how” Dr Malan answered, “Why don’t you come as you are? She soon found her resting place on the value of the blood of Christ.

Her father died in 1833 and from this time she was able to get much consolation from writing poems and prose. After the death of her mother and two sisters in 1845 she and her surviving sisters went to live in Torquay in Devonshire, England. A doctor under whose care she was, gave her a leaflet which had been printed by a Christian woman with her hymn “Just as I am. ” She was so surprised and happy when she recognized that it was her own hymn and he discovered she was the author!

On September 22, 1871, the Lord took her graciously to Himself to enjoy more fully what she had expressed in another of her hymns:

“Let me be with Thee where Thou art,
My Saviour, my eternal rest;
Then only will this longing heart
Be fully and forever blest. ”

I like this hymn! "I want, I want!"

I'm sure the Lord is happy when we come to Him and tell Him what we want.

" I want, Lord, every moment to feel Your Spirit indwelling my heart,

Your power ever present to cleanse and to heal, and newness of life to impart!"

Wow! how the Holy Spirit works in our hearts to create such prayers that we knew not were put to music.