In the Garden

Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou?
~  John 20:15


Among the most precious experiences for any believer is peaceful communion with our Savior. Through the Word and prayer we can walk and talk with Him in those quiet moments at the beginning or end of the day, or even with the noise and tumult of the workaday world swirling about us. For many such communion is most sublime when one is surrounded by the glories of God's creation, as in a beautiful garden.

C. Austin Miles

Such a moment is poignantly captured in the beloved hymn In the Garden. The text and music were composed and first published in 1912 by American pharmacist-turned-Christian music publisher C. Austin Miles (1868-1946). While the hymn presents a vision of perfect peace and contentment, it was inspired by the heart-rending experience of Mary Magdalene, related in John 19:41-42 and 20:11-18 when, while searching with broken heart for His body, she encounters Jesus at the garden sepulcher on the morning of His resurrection. Moreover, according to Miles' great-granddaughter, the song "was written on a cold, dreary day in a cold, dreary and leaky basement in New Jersey that didn't even have a window in it let alone a view of a garden."  Miles himself gave this account:

One day in March, 1912, I was seated in the dark room, where I kept my photographic equipment and organ. I drew my Bible toward me; it opened at my favorite chapter, John 20-whether by chance or inspiration let each reader decide. That meeting of Jesus and Mary had lost none of its power to charm.

As I read it that day, I seemed to be part of the scene. I became a silent witness to that dramatic moment in Mary's life, when she knelt before her Lord, and cried, "Rabboni!"

My hands were resting on the Bible while I stared at the light blue wall. As the light faded, I seemed to be standing at the entrance of a garden, looking down a gently winding path, shaded by olive branches. A woman in white, with head bowed, hand clasping her throat, as if to choke back her sobs, walked slowly into the shadows. It was Mary. As she came to the tomb, upon which she place her hand, she bent over to look in, and hurried away.

John, in flowing robe, appeared, looking at the tomb; then came Peter, who entered the tomb, followed slowly by John.

As they departed, Mary reappeared; leaning her head upon her arm at the tomb, she wept. Turning herself, she saw Jesus standing, so did I. I knew it was He. She knelt before Him, with arms outstretched and looking into His face cried "Rabboni!"

I awakened in full light, gripping the Bible, with muscles tense and nerves vibrating. Under the inspiration of this vision I wrote as quickly as the words could be formed the poem exactly as it has since appeared. That same evening I wrote the music. (as related in 25 Most Treasured Gospel Hymn Stories, by Kenneth W. Osbeck)

Here are the words to this simple and most comforting hymn:

I come to the garden alone
While the dew is still on the roses
And the voice I hear falling on my ear
The Son of God discloses.

Refrain:

And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other has ever known.

He speaks, and the sound of His voice,
Is so sweet the birds hush their singing,
And the melody that He gave to me
Within my heart is ringing.

Refrain

I’d stay in the garden with Him
Though the night around me be falling,
But He bids me go; through the voice of woe
His voice to me is calling.

Refrain

Being from outside the Protestant music tradition, my first encounter with In the Garden came when I saw the Academy Award-winning movie Places in the Heart in 1984. In my last post, I featured the hymn Blessed Assurance, which opened that same remarkable movie. In its final scene, the congregation of a small country church in mid-1930s Texas is taking communion as the minister reads 1 Corinthians 13, and the choir strikes up In the Garden behind him. Communion is gently passed from person to person, and the viewer suddenly realizes that some of these people are living and some are dead; some were hurt or mistreated in the film's story, and others passing them communion were the ones who did the hurting or mistreating--including the last pair, the late husband of Sally Fields' character and the young black boy who had shot him in a drunken stupor and was lynched for it--and who seems to whisper "Peace of God” to him as he takes communion from the older man. It is one of the most moving scenes I've ever seen in any film, and maybe the best for conveying the power of forgiveness, as well as the truth of eternal life. Here is that scene:



In the Garden lends itself to moving solo performance as a "gospel song," as well. One of the best I've seen is by country music legend Loretta Lynn:



Yet another touching rendition is by the golden-voiced Jim Reeves, graced (appropriately enough) with lovely garden scenes:



Other fine performances available on video include those by Ella Fitzgerald, Mahalia Jackson, Alan Jackson, and Elvis Presley.

When confounded by the problems and stresses of everyday life, it's a priceless comfort to know that we can walk and talk with our Savior any time, In the Garden or anywhere else!

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
~ Psalm 23:1-3

Blessed Assurance

These are trying times in which to live. We naturally want to ground our lives on things that are certain, reliable, and true, yet modern culture insists that everything we would put our faith in--especially anything pertaining to religion and morality--is doubtful, untrustworthy, and relative. It's hard not to feel lost in all the confusion--unless you have a strong faith in the Rock of our salvation, Jesus Christ!  With all the "change and decay" around us, He is the One "who changeth not" (see the timeless old hymn Abide With Me).  Ever sure are the hope and the promise He brings the believer--of comfort and guidance in time of trouble, of peace and joy, and of eternal salvation with Him. It is the "hope within us" (1 Peter 3:15) that gives the believer the strength and confidence to overcome even the greatest challenges in life, praising God all the while.

Scripture often sums up these truths in the term "assurance." Modern dictionaries define it both as the act of assuring--that is, a declaration or other act tending to inspire full confidence--and the state of being assured: firm persuasion; full confidence or trust; freedom from doubt; certainty.  God provides assurance of many things, in different ways. For example, the prophet Isaiah states that "the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever." (Isaiah 32:17)  In the Book of Acts we are told that God "hath given assurance unto all men" that the Lord will come again to judge the world in righteousness. (Acts 17:31)  The faithful believer is given "the full assurance of understanding" (Colossians 2:2) and of the power of the Holy Spirit. (1 Thessalonians 1:5)  Diligence in following Christ brings "the full assurance of hope unto the end" (Hebrews 6:11), and a pure, true heart a "full assurance of faith." (Hebrews 10:22)

Fanny Crosby

These truths are celebrated in one of the most beloved of Christian hymns, Blessed Assurance. The text was written in 1873 by America's most prolific and inspiring hymnist, Frances Jane "Fanny" Crosby (1820 - 1915). Her very life was a testament to the "blessed assurance" that a follower of Christ enjoys, as she wrote more than 8000 sacred songs and hymns over a life of almost 95 years, all while completely blind due to a doctor's mistake in treating a cold when she was six weeks old. However, Fanny never felt resentment against the doctor and at an early age resolved to not to be defeated by her handicap, believing that it had been permitted by the Lord in order to fulfill His plan for her life. She is reported to have said, "if I had a choice, I would still choose to remain blind . . . for when I die, the first face I will ever see will be the face of my blessed Savior." She eventually became a household name, a friend of Presidents, and the "mother of modern congregational singing in America."

Phoebe Knapp

The story behind the composition of Blessed Assurance is both simple and intriguing. Fanny (her married name was van Alstyne) was visiting her friend Phoebe Palmer Knapp while a large pipe organ was being installed in the Knapp home (Mrs. Knapp lived in a luxurious mansion, while Fanny lived in the Manhattan slums and worked in rescue missions). Since the organ was incomplete, Mrs. Knapp played on the piano a new melody she had composed and asked her friend, "What do you think the tune says?"  "Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!", answered Fanny almost instantly. Fanny soon provided the rest of the text, and the hymn was published in the July 1873 issue of Palmer's Guide to Holiness and Revival Miscellany, a magazine printed by Mrs. Knapp's evangelist parents. This printing, though perhaps not the first, helped to popularize what eventually became one of the most beloved hymns of all time. Because of its close association with Crosby's lyrics, the tune is now called "Assurance."

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

Refrain:
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.

Perfect submission, perfect delight,
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
Angels, descending, bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Perfect submission, all is at rest,
I in my Savior am happy and blest,
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

Some have noted the many references to sight in this hymn ("visions," "sight", "watching"), even though Fanny had never been able to see--proof that there is no blindness in a soul so well-attuned to our Lord.  No other hymn or song I know of so perfectly captures the thankfulness, confidence, and joyful anticipation that comes from the "perfect submission" of faith!

Those raised in church-going Protestant families have probably been familiar with Blessed Assurance since childhood. My upbringing was in a different tradition, so my first exposure to this hymn was in what became one of my favorite movies, the beautiful and moving Places in the Heart (1984), about a young widow's struggle to survive as a cotton farmer in 1930s Waxahachie, Texas.The film opens with a small church congregation singing the hymn behind scenes of everyday life there, and gives the viewer a remarkably true feeling for a place, a people, and a time perhaps closer to God.  Here is a clip of that portion of the movie:



Blessed Assurance has also proven very adaptable to more contemporary arrangements (though I love the traditional best). Here is one, with moving images and lyrics, by the Christian artist Jadon Lavik:



Here is another good contemporary rendition from Spring Harvest, with a short introduction and postscript providing more details about Fanny Crosby and the writing of this beautiful hymn:

May you, too come to know the blessed assurance that faith in our Savior brings!