One of my all-time favorite spirituals contains the simple lyrics,
“In the morning, when I rise, in the morning when I rise,
in the morning when I rise, give me Jesus.
Oh, when I come to die, oh, when I come to die,
oh, when I come to die, give me Jesus.
Give me Jesus, give me Jesus.
You may have all this world, give me Jesus.”
Hymnologists claim that the lyrics to this great spiritual are based on the words found in I John 2:15: “Do not love the world or the things of the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”
When Jesus walked the dusty roads of Galilee, He issued a very simple invitation to His would-be disciples: “Come and follow me.” In light of this, a famous theologian has reminded us that all who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ need to memorize one hymn and one prayer. The hymn is “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to Him belong; they are weak, but He is strong. Jesus loves me, He who died heaven’s gate to open wide. He will wash away my sin, let his little child come in. Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves me! The Bible tells me so.”
The prayer is, “Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.” In a world of confusion, our mission as a seminary scholarship foundation is rather simple. Our goal is to raise up such effective young men and women to share the gospel from our pulpits that those who hear them might respond, “Give me Jesus!”
- Karl K. Stegall