Hold Thou My Hand

At my great-grandmother's funeral this week, my sister sang one of Ahda's old favorite hymns. It was one I wasn't familiar with, but I found the words to it and thought I'd post them here.

Hold Thou my hand; so weak I am, and helpless,
I dare not take one step wtihout Thy aid;
Hold Thou my hand; for then, O loving Savior,
No dread of ill shall make my soul afraid.

Hold Thou my hand, and closer, closer draw me
To Thy deal self - my hope, my joy, my all;
Hold Thou my hand, lest haply I should wander,
And, missing Thee, my trembling feet should fall.

Hold Thou my hand; the way is dark before me
Without the sunlight of Thy face divine;
But when by faith I catch its radiant glory,
What heights of joy, what rapturous songs are mine!

Hold Thou my hand, that when I reach the margin
Of that lone river Thou didst cross for me,
A heavenly light may flash along its waters,
And every wave like crystal bright shall be.

The hymn was written by Fanny Crosby. Blind from 6 weeks old, Fanny wrote over 8,000 hymns in her lifetime, including many familiar ones, but her personal favorite was "Blessed Assurance." It is interesting to go back and read this hymn she wrote (Hold Thou my Hand) realizing that she was blind.

I think that the version of this song that Gini sang was a bit different, because I remember some words from the one Gini sang that I didn't find in this hymn text, but I'm pretty sure they are related works. If not, oh well, it's a beautiful old hymn anyway.

For my part, I am only hoping that I do not have to attend any more funerals for a good while. Although it was not hard to see Ahda leave this world at 103, I am rather content to have the rest of my family remain here on earth for a good while longer.