“Jesus Keep Me Near the Cross” (ELW 335)
Devotion
Jesus, keep me near the cross,
there's a precious fountain;
free to all, a healing stream
flows from Calv'ry's mountain.
Refrain
In the cross, in the cross
be my glory ever;
till my ransomed soul shall find
rest beyond the river.
Near the cross, a trembling soul,
love and mercy found me;
there the bright and morning star
sheds its beams around me. Refrain
Near the cross! O Lamb of God,
bring its scenes before me;
help me walk from day to day
with its shadow o'er me. Refrain
Near the cross I'll watch and wait,
hoping, trusting ever,
till I reach the golden strand
just beyond the river. Refrain
My friend Larry loved to talk about his great-great aunt Fanny Crosby. He had done research projects on hundreds of the unpublished poems left among her papers. During her life, Fanny wrote more than 8,000 poems, many of which have been set to music and sung among our favorite hymns. She understood something about keeping near the cross and yearning to be in the presence of Jesus. It is said that Fanny—who was blind from early childhood—was asked, "Would you like to regain your sight?" She replied, "Now in my old age, I’ll stay blind so that the first thing I see when I die will be the glory of my savior's face." Her deep faith speaks through this hymn, so that, as the song says, we too may know that "near the cross, love and mercy find me."
Prayer
Precious Lord, keep me near the cross so that I might feel your healing grace. Preserve my ransomed soul with hope and trust until at last I see the glory of your face. Amen.