Nearer to Thee

Few hymns move my heart like "Nearer My God to Thee." I was about 18 the first time I heard it, and I was mesmerized by the beautiful melody and the sincere words. It seemed to express the prayer of my heart.

E'en though it be a cross that raiseth me

Still all my song shall be nearer my God to thee.

At that time, I was learning to play simplified songs on piano, plunking out tunes with my right hand and playing chords with my left. So I quickly learned how to play "Nearer My God to Thee," which quickly became one of my favorite songs to play on piano. (It's now one of my favorite hymns to play on guitar, too.) I have played it many times as my heart plead with Heavenly Father to help me feel nearer to him.

The hymn means more to me when considering the back story behind it. It is based on the experience of Jacob, later named Israel, who was traveling through the desert.

"And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep."

Though like the wonderer, the sun gone down,

darkness be over me, my rest a stone.

Yet in my dreams I'd be nearer my God to thee

"And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it."

There let the way appear, steps unto heav'n

All that thou sendest me in mercy giv'n

Angels to beckon me nearer my God to thee

"And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.

"And he called the name of that place Beth-el."

Then with my waking thought, bright with thy praise

out of my stony griefs, Beth-el I'll raise

So by my woes to be nearer my God to thee

The last verse of the song does not actually reference any part of Jacob's story, but it adds a beautiful, solemn thought of praise:

Or if on joyful wing, cleaving the sky,

sun, moon, and stars forgot, upward I fly

Still all my song shall be nearer my God to thee

Traveling through the desert with no shelter is (and was) a dangerous thing. In such a situation, it is a possibility that rather than wake to praise God, a person could find himself flying toward heaven, the victim of bandits, scorpions, or any number of dangers in the desert. But this drives home the point that the speaker of this song will long to be and seek to be nearer to God no matter what the situation—whether he is sleeping with stones for his pillows, whether he is seeing God and angels in a dream, or whether he dies.

Today I played this hymn on piano to accompany Tom Lloyd, a friend of mine who is leaving to serve a two-year mission for our church. In all, the rendition went really well. My choppy hands made a few mistakes on piano, and Tom choked up with emotion, but he belted the words powerfully and beautifully. Then, he spoke about the hymn and how it symbolizes a man going through trials.

"Every trial we go through brings us closer to the Lord," Tom said.

And I agree.

Still all my song shall be

Nearer my God to thee

Nearer my God to thee, Nearer to thee.