Jesus is All the World to Me

Jesus is all the world to me, my life, my joy, my all;
He is my strength from day to day, without Him I would fall.
When I am sad, to Him I go, no other one can cheer me so;
When I am sad, He makes me glad, He’s my friend.

Jesus is all the world to me, my friend in trials sore;
I go to Him for blessings, and He gives them o’er and o’er.
He sends the sunshine and the rain, He sends the harvest’s golden grain;
Sunshine and rain, harvest of grain, He’s my friend.

Jesus is all the world to me, and true to Him I’ll be;
O how could I this friend deny, when He’s so true to me?
Following Him I know I’m right, He watches o’er me day and night;
Following Him by day and night, He’s my friend.

Jesus is all the world to me, I want no better friend;
I trust Him now, I’ll trust him when life’s fleeting days shall end.
Beautiful life with such a friend, beautiful life that has no end;
Eternal life, eternal joy, He’s my friend.

Don’t know exactly why, but I have done several hymns of late on the subject of Jesus being a friend.   “What a friend we have in Jesus” was a recent one that had a tremendous story behind it.  This particular hymn I do remember singing growing up in church, but I may have mis-remembered one of the lines to the song.  In the last verse, I remembered the line as “I want no other friend” not “I want no better friend.”  Don’t know if I just have a poor memory or if the words have been changed over time.  But this did cause me to ask myself – Do I want other friends besides Jesus?  My initial reaction was sure.  I want lots of good friends, and am grateful that I have good friends.  But then I wondered if I, at times, have put my earthly friendships ahead of my relationship with the Lord.  I recognize like the author that there is no better friend than He.  The question for me is “Do I spend the time with Him that I do with other friends?”  That thought was convicting for me.

Couple of phrases in the hymn I wanted to comment on:

• “My friend in trials sore” – I love this “old” phraseology.  Who says “trials sore” anymore?  But there can be times when the difficulties of life can create “soreness” in one’s life.  Maybe it is from stress and the pain that is caused by emotional or relationship issues in our lives.  These trials can manifest themselves in physical pain.  Unfortunately during tough times, earthly friends may abandon you.  Not willing to go through the trial with you because it is too tough.  The author reminds us that Jesus is our friend through good times and bad.  Through triumphs and “trials sore.”

• “Sunshine and rain, Harvest of grain” – Interesting thing about this phrase.  Farmers are very familiar with this concept, but we tend to forget that a harvest requires several things.  A seed.  Some labor to get the seed in the ground.  And sunshine and rain.  If you have no sunshine, the harvest will not come because there is no warmth to start the germination process and no sun to nourish the plant.  If you have no rain, there will be little if no growth.  The Bible says that it rains on the just and the unjust.  Rain is not necessarily a punishment or a bad thing.  From a farmer’s perspective, rain is an essential part of the growing process.  In our Christian walk, we will also experience both sunshine and rain, and the author acknowledges that the Lord sends the sunshine and the rain.  The key is growing closer to God during both of those times.

My middle child Grace has wanted a dog for as long as I can remember.  Anytime we go to visit someone, she will tell you that she can’t wait to see the dogs.  Brittany, Hershey, Priss, Jake, and Rosie are just a few of her favorites.  She watches every dog show that every comes on Animal Planet and has several books about dog breeds.  She is probably one of the few kids I know that when she says that she would take care of a dog, she means it.  She loves animals, especially dogs.  I continue to be a “mean old Dad” and have refused to get her a puppy.  But there is one thing I am confident of.  If I were to get Grace a dog, it would become her best friend.  The phrase “Man’s best friend” however bothers me a little.  What is it about a dog that would cause someone to think of it as a best friend?  Is it the fact that a dog accepts you and loves you no matter what kind of person you might be, or what kind of mood you might be in?  Their tail wags like crazy when you come in the door whether you’ve gotten a promotion at work or lost your job that day.  Maybe it is the fact that they are always near.  If you are home, they are right there with you wanting to spend time with you.  Maybe it is the fact that when you call them, they come.  They are responsive to your needs.  

The author of this hymn repeats at the end of each stanza the phrase “He’s my friend.”  So I have some questions for you.  Do you know that Jesus accepts you and loves you no matter what kind of person you are, or what kind of mood you are in?  Do you know that He is always near wanting to spend time with you?  Do you know that when you call on Him, He will answer your prayer and be responsive to your needs?  I hope you realize that He is the best friend you will ever have.  Don’t take that for granted, but do what best friends do – Spend time together.