I Need Thee

1) I need Thee ev'ry hour,
Most gracious Lord;
No tender voice like Thine
Can peace afford.

Chorus: I need Thee, O I need Thee;
Ev'ry hour I need Thee!
O bless me now, my Savior,
I come to Thee.

2) I need Thee ev'ry hour,
Stay Thou nearby;
Temptations lose their pow'r
When Thou are nigh.

Chorus.

3)I need Thee ev'ry hour,
In joy or pain;
Come quickly, and abide,
Or life is vain.

Chorus.

4) I need Thee ev'ry hour,
Teach me Thy will,
And they rich promises 
In me fulfill

This hymn was written by a 37 year old homemaker.  Annie Hawks (1834-1918) was going about her day when, "I was filled with a sense of my Master that ... these words, 'I need Thee every hour,' were flashed into my mind."  She wrote out this poem and gave the lyrics to her pastor, who wrote the music and the chorus.  Apparently, she just wrote this next to an open window, enjoying a summer's day.  Thus, she was probably a bit surprise when D.L. Moody started to use it in his meetings.  And that's how the popularity of this hymn came about.

I would argue that Christian growth stems from the Spirit convincing us how much we are in need of a Redeemer. Somehow, Mrs. Hawks realized she need Jesus while doing chores.  That's the thing, it is easy to know our need of Jesus when the chips are down, when the consequences of our sin are staring us in our faces.  Sometimes, we need to hit rock bottom for the realization to occur.  The truth of the matter is we are in constant need of a Savior. We need Him on a summer day sweeping the house as much as we need Him during the winter searching for warmth.

For some reason, I'm reminded of Nehemiah when he asks the king if he can go to Judah to rebuild Jerusalem.  The king asks him to make a request, and Nehemiah prays (Neh. 2:4). This prayer is not something elaborate. He doesn't have the chance to kneel down and work his way through adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication.  He's put on the spot and prays. Nehemiah, who is an excellent Biblical model of leadership, knows his need for God. There is not an hour in which we don't need Jesus, and, thankfully, there is not an hour in which we can escape Him.