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Maybe you have heard of Brother Lawrence, the author of the book “The Practice of the Presence of God”, in which he asserts that he feels as close to God when working in the kitchen as when praying in the chapel. The Lord is always near at hand (Matthew 28:20) which means that wherever we are is holy ground. Therefore, we can turn to the Lord anywhere, any time.

This thought led a 37-year-old mother, Annie Sherwood Hawks, to pause in her many household chores on a June morning in 1872 to put pen to paper and write the Hymn, “I Need Thee Every Hour”. It was put to music by the minister of the church she attended and where she taught songs to the children of the Sunday School. Of all the over 400 hymns Annie composed during her 83 years this one is still sung. The third verse captures thoughts which many of us have encountered during this pandemic time and goes like this: “I need Thee every hour In joy or pain; Come quickly and abide Or life is vain. I need Thee, O I need Thee; Every hour I need Thee; O bless me now, my Saviour, I come to Thee!”

This hymn was included in our old blue Book of Common Praise (1938), number 792.

Bible Reading: 2 Corinthians 3:5