"Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved." -Psalm 55: 22
M any New Testament promises have corresponding verses in the Old Testament that reinforce their power. When Peter, for example, said, "Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you." (1 Peter5: 6-7), he was but restating David's words in Psalm 55: 22; "Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved."
Elisha A. Hoffman loved those verses. He was born May 7, 1839, in Orwigsburg, Pennsylvania. His father was a minister, and Elisha followed Christ at a young age. He attended Philadelphia public schools, studied science, then pursued the classics at Union Seminary of the Evangelical Association. He worked for eleven years with the association's publishing house in Cleveland, Ohio. Then, following the death of his young wife, he returned to Pennsylvania and devoted 33 years to pastoring Benton Harbor Presbyterian Church.
Hoffman's pastime was writing hymns, many of which were inspired by pastoral incidents. One Day, for example, while calling on the destitute of Lebanon, Pennsylvania, he met a women whose depression seemed beyond cure. She opened her heart and poured on him her pent-up sorrows. Wringing her hands, she cried, "What shall I do? Oh, what shall I do?" Hoffman knew what she should do, for he had himself learned the deeper lessons of God's comfort. He said to the woman, "You cannot do better than to take all your sorrows to Jesus. You must tell Jesus."
Suddenly the lady's face lighted up. "Yes! she cried, "That it! I must tell Jesus." Her words echoed in Hoffman's ears, and he mulled them over as he returned home. He drew out his pen and started writing.
I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus!
I cannot bear my burdens alone;
I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus!
Jesus can help me, Jesus alone.
Hoffman lived to be 90, telling Jesus his burdens and giving the church such hymns as "What A Wonderful Savior," "Down At The Cross," "Are You Washed In The Blood?," "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms," and a thousand more.*
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* Taken from the author's book, On This Day (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1997), installment for May 7th.
From the book: "Then Sings My Soul"
150 of the World's Greatest Hymns Stories
by Robert J. Morgan [ISBN: 0785249397]
_______________________________________
"I Must Tell Jesus"
1894
Words and Music: Elisha A. Hoffman
- If you wish to stop the music while you are reading,
click on the square stop button -
1) I must tell Jesus all of my trials;
I cannot bear these burdens alone;
In my distress He kindly will help me;
He ever loves and cares for His own.
Refrain:
I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus!
I cannot bear my burdens alone;
I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus!
Jesus can help me, Jesus alone.
2) I must tell Jesus all of my troubles;
He is a kind, compassionate friend;
If I but ask Him, He will deliver,
Make of my troubles quickly an end.
3) Tempted and tried, I need a great Savior;
One Who can help my burdens to bear;
I must tell Jesus, I must tell Jesus;
He all my cares and sorrows will share.
4) O how the world to evil allures me!
O how my heart is tempted to sin!
I must tell Jesus, and He will help me
Over the world the victory to win.
