Days of darkness still come o’er me,
Sorrow’s paths I often tread,
But the Savior still is with me;
By His hand I’m safely led.
Lord Jesus, we need You as our Savior to rescue us from all darkness and sorrow. Transform all our nature that in glory we may meet. We want to meet you face to face.
YESHUA thank you for salvation. You are the perfect sacrifice that takes away the sins of the world.
That evening before the Passover, the children of Israel applied the blood of the sacrificed lamb to the lintel and door post of their houses to be protected from the angel of death. Likewise, we have to stay under the cover of YESHUA to be save from the evil one.
Thank You Father for sending the perfect sacrifice- Your SON.
My father, 96 years old, coming out from under anesthesia from a procedure that ultimately diagnosed terminal cancer, sang every verse of this sacred hymn from memory. If ever one questions the presence of Jesus in the midst of the valley of death, I have witnessed His loving grace for His own! Jesus spoke to us as we listened and told us I am here, and I love you for eternity. Welcome home Daddy! ❤️
Francis H. Rowley was born in Hilton, New York, on July 25, 1854. Later he became a Baptist minister and served churches in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Illinois. He has given the following account for the writing of this hymn:
I was a minister of the Baptist Church in North Adams, Massachusetts in 1886. The church and community were experiencing a period of unusual interest in religious matters, and I was assisted by a remarkable young Swiss musician by the name of Peter Bilhorn. One Sunday following the evening service he said, “Why don’t you write a hymn for me to set to music? ” During the night these verses came to me. The original poem began “Can’t You Sing the Wondrous Story? ” However, when the song was first published by Ira Sankey in 1887, the phrase was changed to “I Will Sing... ”
Peter P. Bilhorn was born in Mendota, Illinois, in 1865. With the death of his father, Peter was forced to quit school at the age of eight to help support his family. At the age of fifteen his family moved to Chicago. His voice became famous in concert halls and among his worldly friends. When he was twenty he came to know Christ as his Savior at a meeting given by Dr. Pentecost and musician George Stebbins. After his conversion, he was greatly used of the Lord in the way of Christian service.
The organ he used for playing during services was a small folding one with his name on it. He engineered it because of the need to play while traveling around. He had designed it to weigh 16 pounds and to fold easily . Later he began to manufacture it in 1887. The venture proved to be very successful and the organs were widely used all over the world.
Bilhorn wrote around 2, 000 gospel songs. This hymn is one of his finest compositions. He is also the author and composer of “Sweet Peace, The Gift of God’s Love. ” His evangelistic ministry carried him into all of the United States, Great Britain, and to other countries around the world.
Bilhorn was not only a skillful songwriter and leader but also an earnest soul-winner. One night, while conducting revival meetings in Reedsburg, Wisconsin, he retired to his room but later felt strangely compelled to dress, take his folding organ, and start walking down the street, even though the weather was bitterly cold. Seeing a gleam of light from a basement window, he knocked and was allowed to come in. He found a group of men gambling. Bilhorn began to sing to the men. “Where is My Wandering Boy Tonight? ” Six of them made their peace with God that night.
“I Will Sing the Wondrous Story” was presented by Rowley and Bilhorn to Ira D. Sankey as a gift. Sankey was so impressed with the value and usefulness of this hymn that he published it in the 1887 edition of “Gospel Hymns and Sacred Songs and Solos. ” It became one of the most popular songs of his collection.