Scripture References:
ref. = Ps. 5:8, Luke 1:79
st. 2 = Ps. 23:3
Doris M. Akers (b. Brookfield, MO, 1922) wrote both text and tune of this African American gospel hymn in 1953 in Oakland, California. The text is an earnest plea for an intimate walk with God, who is asked to lead, guide, and protect the believer. The deeply personal stanzas emphasize that divine guidance is essential because of our lack of strength, our blindness, and Satan's temptations. Only God can lead us on the narrow path and through all the complexities and challenges of earthly life. Like many of the psalms, this text pours out in prayer the yearning of the individual Christian, a prayer that reminds us of these words of the psalmist:
Lead me, Lord, lead me in thy righteousness;
make thy way plain before my face.
For it is thou, Lord, thou, Lord only
that makest me dwell in safety.
-Psalm 4:8; 5:8 (KJV) as set to music by Samuel S. Wesley (PHH 206)
Akers had an active career as singer, choir director, and songwriter. She wrote her first song at age ten and since that time has composed more than three hundred gospel songs and hymns, most of which we republished by Manna Music (including 'There's a Sweet, Sweet Spirit in this Place"). She resides in Columbus, Ohio.
Liturgical Use:
Many occasions of worship, especially those in which personal testimony and prayer for divine guidance are appropriate.
--Psalter Hymnal Handbook
My Starred Hymns
My FlexScores
My Hymnals
My Purchased Files
