Daily Devotion: Rescue The Perishing

Bible Reading:  Colossians 1:16-29

Key Verse: Verse 23 – “ If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;”

Key Words: was preached to every creature

For years on a pew in the old Bowery Mission in New York City (now torn down) was a brass plaque which read “Fanny Crosby occupied this seat on her many visits to this mission for over a period of 50 years.  It was while sitting here that she received the inspiration for the great Gospel song ‘Rescue the Perishing.’”  This is how Fanny told the story of its writing.

“It was written in the year 1869, when I was forty-nine years old.  Many of my hymns were written after experiences in New York mission work.  This one was thus written.  I was addressing a large company of working men one hot summer evening, when the thought kept forcing itself on my mind that some mother’s boy must be rescued that night or not at all.  So I made the pressing plea that if there was a boy present who had wandered from his mother’s home and teaching, would he come to me at the close of the service.  A young man of eighteen came forward and said, ‘Did you mean me?  I promised my mother to meet her in Heaven, but as I am now living that is impossible.’  We prayed for him and finally he arose with a new light in his eyes and exclaimed in triumph, ‘Now I can meet my mother in Heaven, for I have found God.’

“A few days before, Mr. Doane had sent me the subject, Rescue the Perishing, Care for the Dying.  I could think of nothing else that night.  When I arrived home I went to work on the hymn at once and before I retired it was ready for the melody.  The next day my song was written out and forwarded to Mr. Doane who wrote the beautiful and touching music as it now stands to my hymn.

“This blessed song so wonderfully shows how God blends experience and even suggestions from others and in His timing makes ‘all things work together for good!’”

 

Rescue the perishing, Care for the dying,
Snatch them in pity from sin and the grave;
Weep o’er the erring one, Lift up the fallen,
Tell them of Jesus the mighty to save.

Chorus:
Rescue the perishing, Care for the dying;
Jesus is merciful, Jesus will save.

What to do:

✞ Rescue the perishing.

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