Hymns, Come, Let Us Anew, no. 217
1. Come, let us anew our journey pursue,
Roll round with the year,
And never stand still till the Master appear.
His adorable will let us gladly fulfill,
And our talents improve
By the patience of hope and the labor of love,
By the patience of hope and the labor of love.
2. Our life as a dream, our time as a stream
Glide swiftly away,
And the fugitive moment refuses to stay;
For the arrow is flown and the moments are gone.
The millennial year
Presses on to our view, and eternity’s here,
Presses on to our view, and eternity’s here.
3. Oh, that each in the day of His coming may say,
“I have fought my way thru;
I have finished the work thou didst give me to do.”
Oh, that each from his Lord may receive the glad word:
“Well and faithfully done;
Enter into my joy and sit down on my throne;
Enter into my joy and sit down on my throne.”
I love this hymn. I love to hear the Tabernacle Choir sing it - it's truly majestic.
Jacob speaks of the time he spent as the leader of the fledgling group of righteous individuals in the Americas known as Nephites. He speaks of the loneliness that leaders feel, the desire to reach out to all those around him, of the fear and responsibility that comes with leadership, and the love and concern he has for each member of his family. For these folks are literally his family, and his concern for them is that of a parent and brother, uncle and cousin, nephew and friend.
It must make the betrayal of trust from Sherem that much more devastating. But it must also make the subsequent repentant attitude of the people around him that much more sweet.
Jacob, as the brother of Nephi, doesn't get much note in the Book of Mormon. The space on the plates being small, he saved it for important items, knowing that Nephi had written much of what was necessary anyway.
One of the things he does mention is that the Spirit testifies of Christ through the testimony of the scriptures. His faith is confirmed by the visitation of angels, but more importantly by the power of the Holy Ghost. He says, "I have heard and seen; and it also has been made manifest unto me by the power of the Holy Ghost, wherefore, I know..."
This hearkens back to an earlier post about how we know the truth. I want to testify again that I know of these things of myself, for I also have seen and heard, but more importantly, I have felt the power of the Holy Ghost, testifying in my very soul the truthfulness of these things. I cannot deny what I have experienced. It is sacred and personal and fills my soul with light and life and love.
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