All to Jesus I Surrender - The Story Behind the Song

 

If you grew up in a traditional church, you undoubtedly sung many of the verses of the hymn, "I Surrender All." It was/is a staple of the invitation portion of church and revival services. Songs of personal commitment to Christ often stem from a particular experience in the life of the author. This is a good example.

The author of the hymn, Judson Van de Venter (1855-1939) was raised on a farm near Dundee, Michigan. After graduating from Hillsdale College, he taught art in public schools in Sharon, Pennsylvania. Van Deventer was active in his Methodist Episcopal Church, including participation in revivals held at the church. He had a heart for God and a passion to share the Good News with others. Based on his fervent faith and service to the church, friends encouraged him to leave his field of teaching and become an evangelist, but it took him five years to finally "surrender all" and go into full-time ministry. He writes of the experience: 

The song was written while I was conducting a meeting at East Palestine, Ohio, and in the home of George Sebring. For some time, I had struggled between developing my talents in the field of art and going into full-time evangelistic work. At last the pivotal hour of my life came, and I surrendered all. A new day was ushered into my life. I became and evangelist and discovered down deep in my soul a talent hitherto unknown to me. God had hidden a song in my heart, and touching a tender chord, he caused me to sing. (Quoted by Kenneth Osbeck, 101 More Hymn Stories.)

After surrendering his all to the Lord, he joined the ministry of evangelist J. Wilbur Chapman. His ministry took him to various places in the United States, England, and Scotland. In his life he wrote around 75 hymns, but his most famous is also his most personal. Judson Van de Venter surrendered his all to the Lord, and the Lord is still using this man's works to impact the world for the kingdom of God. 

You never know what God will do through one moment of surrender!

Seven Things for Magna View

Seven things I want our church to know this week:

1. So thankful for the Spirit's powerful presence yesterday! Each week it seems like God "ramps-up" our passion a little bit more.
2. Loving God with all of our heart, soul, and strength is a life-long journey. I feel like in some ways I'm just getting started, but it gets better and better each day. Making the effort to "keep your spiritual fervor" is worth it!
3. God is at work all over the place - it was amazing to see again how God is at work in an orphanage in Honduras last Sunday night! God is using His people to give hope and life to over 400 kids who would be living and dying on the streets of Honduras without Orphanage Emmanuel.
4. Next Sunday is so important in our review of our Mission Statement. LOVING OTHERS is the natural outflow of loving God.
5. Small Groups has changed my life. I'm so encouraged every time we do our Family2Family Small Groups. I get to know my family of faith so much better and I see God literally building His church using small groups. Next Sunday night is going to be a blast!
6. I think Magna View is the most "ministry-minded" church I've ever been a part of. Each week I hear about how ministry is taking place within the Body as members minister to one another. Nobody is drawing attention to themselves, but a lot of ministry is taking place each week and it is bringing glory to the Father.
7. God loves His church (you) so much and He has blessings for you if you'll put yourself in a place where you can receive them.

"Delight yourself also in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

I’ve been studying 1 Timothy as I am teaching from it on Wednesday nights. I’m blown away by the passion of the Apostle Paul. He wrote this letter later in life, after he had served the Lord for many years and had given his all for the cause of Christ. Yet he is as “fired-up” about the work of the ministry as he ever was. How was he able to maintain his passion and his fire when some of his fellow workers had given up or fallen away? One simple answer – Paul never forgot what Christ did in his life. His salvation experience was fresh on his heart in the latter years of his life as if it had just happened.

In 1 Timothy 1:15, Paul writes, “This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.” Notice he says “I AM chief.” Paul was still a work in progress; he never saw himself as being better than a sinner. He knew the Gospel still applied to his life. He was passionate about serving Christ, because Christ was at work in Him!

Many of us today have lost our fire for serving the Lord because we’ve forgotten what the Lord has done for us. We’ve forgotten what it means to be saved. We’ve considered the task at hand greater than the God who saved us.

As we approach the Memorial Day holiday, and as we remember those who paid the ultimate price or our freedoms as Americans, I want to challenge you to also remember the One who gave His life that you would not only go to heaven when you die, but that you would have the power and the passion to serve Him till you die.

I look forward to seeing you soon.