So I Send You
Before we get to the hymn lyrics this week, I felt it important to explain the context of the song, and the story behind it first. I think the background is important in truly understanding the truth and the powerful words found in this song. This hymn is often used in sending out missionaries, but I believe it applies to each one of us.
“So send I you” was written by Margaret Clarkson based upon the Scripture found in John 20:21. Jesus is speaking when He said “As the Father has sent me, so send I you.” Ms. Clarkson wrote the hymn while serving as a teacher in Northern Ontario, Canada. She was a 23 year old young lady living in a gold mining town. She was far away from family and from other Christian believers. She was lonely, and while reading this passage in John during her personal devotion one night, she was inspired to write these honest and challenging lyrics spoken from Christ’s point of view. Let me forewarn you. These words are not necessarily easy to read. They will not give you a warm fuzzy feeling today. But I do think they provide an accurate portrayal of the places Christ may send us as we seek to follow His direction and will for our lives.
So send I you to labor unrewarded,
To serve unpaid, unloved, unsought, unknown,
To bear rebuke, to suffer scorn and scoffing-
So send I you to toil for Me alone.
So send I you to bind the bruised and broken,
O’er wand’ring souls to work, to weep, to wake,
To bear the burdens of a world aweary-
So send I you to suffer for My sake.
So send I you to loneliness and longing,
With heart a hung’ring for the loved and known,
Forsaking home and kindred, friend and dear one-
So send I you to know My love alone.
So send I you to leave your life’s ambition,
To die to dear desire, self-will resign,
To labor long, and love where men revile you-
So send I you to lose your life in Mine.
So send I you to hearts made hard by hatred,
To eyes made blind because they will not see,
To spend, tho’ it be blood, to spend and spare not-
So send I you to taste of Calvary.
There are five things that the author indicates we may be sent to do in our Christian walk, as Christ was sent to do while on this earth. These aren’t tasks we necessarily long for, but I do believe Scripture supports these admonitions and confirms that we may experience these kinds of places:
- “To toil” – Paul wrote in 2 Cor 11:27 “I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.” If the Apostle Paul had to toil, to labor, to experience hunger and thirst, we may be sent to experience the same kind of things.
- “To suffer” – Paul wrote in Philippians 1:29 “For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him…” Paul is telling us that believing and suffering go hand in hand in this Christian life.
- “To know” – Paul wrote in Philippians 3:10 “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,” Paul doesn’t just say he wanted to know Christ’s power, but he also said he wanted to share in his sufferings.
- “To lose” – Jesus said in Matthew 16:25 “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.” The key words in this passage are “for me.” To lose our life for Him, is where we ultimately find life.
- “To taste of Calvary” – Jesus said in Matthew 16:24 “Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” This passage doesn’t say “taste Calvary” but I think this is exactly what Jesus was talking about. We may not be able to fully “digest” what Jesus suffered on the Cross, but we can take up our own cross and follow Him, and by doing that we will “taste” of what He went through for us.
Back in the 1960’s, Elvis had a hit entitled “Return to sender.” It was a song about a young lady returning a love letter to the sender – address unknown. This practice is still common today with the post office. If your letter is sent with a bad address, it will be sent back marked – “Return to Sender.”
I wonder if sometimes we feel like that “undelivered” letter. Maybe we feel like we are wandering in our journey without a clear destination. Maybe we feel like we are languishing in our ministry, and don’t know where we are headed. We may not see fruit in our ministry, and we are wondering if we are at the place where God wants us to be. I get the feeling that the author of this hymn probably felt like that too, and this hymn could probably be the testimony of many missionaries around the world today.
If you find yourself in that position today, can I offer you some advice today? Can I encourage you to “Return to Sender?” Return to the Lord who has called you and leads you. Seek His face. The Bible reminds us that if we seek Him, we will find Him. And in finding Him, we will also find purpose and satisfaction in our daily labor for Him. Can I also encourage you to send a note of thanks and blessing to a missionary? Many missionaries are laboring “unrewarded, unloved, unsought, and unknown.” Your word of encouragement today may be just the kind of mail they need delivered to their doorstep.