I Am Thine, O Lord

Text by: Fanny Crosby 1875

Tune: I Am Thine by: William H Doane 1875

https://youtu.be/m9Eq1rY_Wuo

1 I am Thine, O Lord, I have heard Thy voice,

And it told Thy love to me;

But I long to rise in the arms of faith

And be closer drawn to Thee.

Refrain

Draw me nearer, nearer blessèd Lord,

To the cross where Thou hast died.

Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer blessèd Lord,

To Thy precious, bleeding side.

2 Consecrate me now to Thy service, Lord,

By the power of grace divine;

Let my soul look up with a steadfast hope,

And my will be lost in Thine.

Refrain

3 O the pure delight of a single hour

That before Thy throne I spend,

When I kneel in prayer, and with Thee, my God

I commune as friend with friend!

Refrain

4 There are depths of love that I cannot know

Till I cross the narrow sea;

There are heights of joy that I may not reach

Till I rest in peace with Thee.

Refrain

Crosby wrote this hymn in collaboration with William Doane with whom she frequently worked with. William Reynolds, a Baptist hymnologist shares this story of the writing of this hymn:

“One evening she and Doane talked at length about the nearness of God in their lives. When Fanny went to her room, her mind and heart were flooded with ideas from their conversation. Before she went to sleep, the lines of “I am Thine, O Lord” were in her mind… The next morning she recited the words to Doane, who wrote down the stanzas and composed the tune.”

Crosby seems to draw her inspiration from these passages:

Hebrews 10:22

Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

Hebrews 10:19

 Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus,

And

James 4:8

Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

As is so typical of Crosby’s texts, she writes in the first person, making this a very personal statement of faith. This is reflective of the Revivalist tradition for which she had such a large part in suppling its hymnody. Some traditions lean heavily upon a corporate participation in salvation but hers strongly reflected the personal aspect of her relationship with her savior and her emotional response to that relationship. In many ways this also reflects the strong sense of individualism which makes up a large portion of the identity of Americans. (This last point is my own thought, and I would love to have input, refutation, push back, or any other perspective, especially from non-Americans and non-Evangelicals. I believe we cannot understand our own culture and milieu without first understanding other cultures. Only when we can see ourselves through other’s eye can we have true understanding of ourselves. So please let me have it if you think I am wrong!)