Variations

Charles Wesley wrote a hymn. Well, actually he wrote a hymn approximately every three days. But I have a particular hymn in mind, and that is "Jesus, Lover of My Soul."

Jesus, lover of my soul, let me to Thy bosom fly,
While the nearer waters roll, while the tempest still is high.
Hide me, O my Savior, hide, till the storm of life is past;
Safe into the haven guide; O receive my soul at last.

Other refuge have I none, hangs my helpless soul on Thee;
Leave, ah! leave me not alone, still support and comfort me.
All my trust on Thee is stayed, all my help from Thee I bring;
Cover my defenseless head with the shadow of Thy wing.

Thou, O Christ, art all I want, more than all in Thee I find;
Raise the fallen, cheer the faint, heal the sick, and lead the blind.
Just and holy is Thy Name, I am all unrighteousness;
False and full of sin I am; Thou art full of truth and grace.

Plenteous grace with Thee is found, grace to cover all my sin;
Let the healing streams abound; make and keep me pure within.
Thou of life the fountain art, freely let me take of Thee;
Spring Thou up within my heart; rise to all eternity.

There are several tunes you can sing it to, and the tune called "Martyn" (composer Simon B. Marsh) is the tune I learned to play for this hymn, the first time I ever learned to play a hymn. My mom recommended it to me as a good one to start with because three of the four lines of music are identical.

Here it is with the tune I learned:



It's pretty like that, but when I was older I learned a different tune that has more appeal for me. The tune is called "Aberystwyth" (composer Joseph Parry). From the spelling of the title and the name of the composer, I'm guessing the tune is Welsh. It seems like Gaelic or Celtic tunes always have a poignant quality.

So here it is with the Welsh tune:



Take your pick.