Something, My God, For Thee!

The words of the hymn, 'Saviour, Thy Dying Love,' were written by Sylvanus D. Phelps in 1862. They made their first appearance in print in 'The Watchman and Reflector,' Volume XLV, No. 11 (Boston, Massachusetts: 1864).

Saviour, Thy dying love Thou gavest me.
Nor should I aught withhold, dear Lord, from Thee.
In love my soul would bow, my heart fulfill its vow,
Some offering bring Thee now, something for Thee.

O’er the blest mercy seat, pleading for me,
My feeble faith looks up, Jesus, to Thee.
Help me the cross to bear, Thy wondrous love declare,
Some song to raise, or prayer, something for Thee.

Give me a faithful heart, likeness to Thee.
That each departing day henceforth may see
Some work of love begun, some deed of kindness done,
Some wanderer sought and won, something for Thee.

All that I am and have, Thy gifts so free,
In joy, in grief, through life, O Lord, for Thee!
And when Thy face I see, my ransomed soul shall be
Through all eternity, something for Thee.

Originally, the first line of this hymn was, “Something, My God, For Thee.”

Phelps evidently later rewrote this line to fit with a tune that was composed for his hymn – ‘Something for Jesus,’ written by Robert Lowry.

On Phelps’ 70th birthday, Lowry wrote him:

“It is worth living 70 years even if nothing comes of it but one such hymn as:

Saviour! Thy dying love
Thou gavest me;
Nor should I aught withhold,
Dear Lord, from Thee.

Happy is the man who can produce one song which the world will keep on singing after the author shall have passed away. May the tuneful harp preserve its strings for many a long year yet, and the last note reach us only when it is time for the singer to take his place in the heavenly choir.”

Now is the time when we can make our mark on this world for God. Are we ready to 'Do Something for Jesus'?