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     1. O How I Love Jesus, medley   (2:25)
     2. Loving Jesus   (17:46)
     3. We Worship and Adore Thee   (2:10)

Song of Solomon 5:9.  What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?

I Corinthians 6:17.  But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.

In my shop, I was a young fellow, an apprentice, and I was surrounded by young fellows, and they were all in love, and so they kept singing their love songs.  A fellow sitting alongside of me would sing, “I care not for the stars that shine; I dare not hope to e’re be thine; I only know I love you.  Love me, and the world is mine.” 

So after a while, he invited me to his wedding.  I came to his wedding; it was in an old Apostolic church, and he stood there, and she stood there for about a half an hour; I felt sorry for both of them.  And I worked with him for many years, and just last year, he asked me to come and see him.  He was an old man now.  His wife has died quite a while ago, and he missed her so much.  And he didn’t have any love song to sing anymore.  It was all gone—something like Byron says: “My life is in the yellow leaf; the joys and mirth of youth are gone; the worm, the canker, and the grief are mine alone!” 

I felt sorry for him.  And he said, “Well, if I die, I hope it’ll happen quickly.”  And it happened so quickly it shocked me.  He’s dead now.

But while they sang their love songs, I sang mine.  They didn’t like it at that time; they said, “Every time we meet you, you’re singing.” 

I would sing, “I have a Friend so precious, so very dear to me.  He loves me with such tender love; He loves me faithfully.”

…

I said, “Live or die, if I had a thousand hearts to give, Lord, they should all be Thine.”  How did it come about?  Why, by getting acquainted with Jesus.  You won’t really love Him until you know Him, but, oh, how you love Him when you know Him!  “And this is life eternal…” is to know Him, because to know Jesus is different from knowing a human being.  You know your Life.  And as you get to know Him, you find out that He is really your “All and in all.”  He is God’s righteousness, and holiness, and redemption.  He is all you need, thank God!  He gives you “beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for the spirit of heaviness.”  He gives you Himself for your self.

…

What are you looking for?  Jesus Christ is looking for hearts; He’s looking for bodies whom He can fill with the power of His resurrection, whom He can get ready for that wonderful rapture.  Oh, what teachings there are in the world today about the coming of the Lord!  And what we really need is to know that the only preparation is Jesus—is “knowing Him and power of His resurrection.”

…

They say, “What is your Beloved more than another beloved?  Don’t we have our sweethearts too?  And you make such a fuss over your Sweetheart.  What is He more?” 

“Never mind.  You don’t know Him.  You don’t know Him.  He stands at the door and knocks, and ‘If any man hear My voice and open the door, I will come in.’”  Oh, when you heart longs for Him!  The Bible says, “He comes to those who look out for Him.”

…

Beloved, we don’t discern the body of Christ, else we would be united to the Head, and united to one another, and we would bless one another, and the glory of God would flow from us into others.  And that’s Pentecost: it’s Christ manifested in His Church, in His own.  And the Holy Spirit has come to this world not to make men big but to make Jesus big—to make Him dear, to make Him sweet, to make you get a taste of this lovership that is the only lovership worth having, the only real intimacy with the Son of God.

…

Healing meetings with gimmicks.  “Unless Jesus Christ is the joy of your heart, is your only interest, your only joy—Jesus!—you’re almost bound to get into fanaticism today.”    (from 7:15)

Preaching unity on a convention platform full of divided ministers.  “I heard them grunting behind me.  The word of God just doesn’t fit into these places; it just doesn’t fit.”    (from 12:24)

From Geistliches Blumengärtlein inniger Seelen by Gerhard Tersteegen:

Love Me, and the World is Mine — David Reed, Jr.

I wander on as in a dream,
My goal a paradise must be,
For there an angel waits ’twould seem,
Yet lo, dear heart, ’tis only thee.

Suns may shine to light my way dear,
Wealth be mine for ever dear,
Queens may pledge their riches too;
Yet the world would still be lonely,
With such virtues only.
Life to me dear, means just you.

I care not for the stars that shine,
I dare not hope to e’er be thine,
I only know I love you.
Love me, and the world is mine.

On This Day I Complete My Thirty-Sixth Year — Lord Byron (Jan 22, 1824):

’Tis time this heart should be unmoved,
   Since others hath it ceased to move:
Yet, though I cannot be beloved,
   Still let me love!

My days are in the yellow leaf;
   The flowers and fruits of love are gone;
The worm, the canker, and the grief
   Are mine alone!

My Lord and I, a hymn by Mary A. Lancaster, a.k.a. Mrs. L. Shorey:

I have a Friend so precious,
So very dear to me,
He loves me with a tender love,
He loves me faithfully;
I could not live apart from Him,
I love to feel Him nigh;
And so we dwell together,
My Lord and I.

…

I tell Him all my sorrows,
I tell Him all my joys,
I tell Him all that pleases me,
I tell Him what annoys;
He tells me what I ought to do,
Hs tells me what to try;
And so we dwell together,
My Lord and I.

…

Sweeter as the Years Go By, a hymn by Leila N. Morris, 1912:

Sweeter as the years go by, sweeter as the years go by,
Richer, fuller, deeper, Jesus’ love is sweeter,
Sweeter as the years go by.

Majestic Sweetness Sits Enthroned, a hymn by Samuel Stennett:

Since from His bounty I receive
Such proofs of love divine,
Had I a thousand hearts to give,
Lord, they should all be Thine.

“Seven Years of Heaven on Earth.” — a tract by Alice R. Flower.  Elsewhere, HRW refers to this tract as “Seven Years of Fellowship.”

Hold the Fort, a hymn by Philip P. Bliss, 1870:

“Hold the fort, for I am coming,”
Jesus signals still;
Wave the answer back to Heaven,
“By Thy grace we will.”

Date: “I’ve been in these organizations all my life, now 75 years.”  That would place this recording around 1968.

Audio Quality: Good

We ran light hiss reduction, sped the recording to 99.25% of its original duration, applied the DeHummer, 4 filter, -30dB at 58.80Hz, and compression.  The start sample in the original file for these operations was 61600000.  A long pause was shortened.  On reviewing the edited recording, it seems as if the original speed change was misguided.  We slowed the edited recording to 101.0% of its duration.  The proper speed remains uncertain.

The original media and project files are available upon request.