Abide With Me

A friend of ours at the Meaford Long Term Care Centre died on December 28th, 2013. She was 105 years old.

We got to know her through our involvement at the MLTCC over the years. She was an amazing woman with an unbelievable memory. I knew her best from the Bible discussions that I lead there twice a month and from personal visits. At the hymn sing that my wife leads twice a month, Edna always asked for the hymn Abide With Me as one of the hymns to be sung.

This hymn, according to the information I have, is based on the story of the two men on the way home to Emmaus, talking about the fact that Jesus had been crucified and buried. And while they were talking, Jesus joined them and explained the Scriptures to them.

Luke 24:28-31 – Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther. But they constrained Him, saying, "Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent." And he went in to stay with them. Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight. (NKJV)

Over the years, Edna told me a lot about her life. She was born in England on June 21, 1908. Her father was killed during the First World War. Her first child died in his crib, and in 1929, she and her husband came to Canada. But during the Great Depression, they were unable to get work, but they managed to get back to England, where they stayed until after the Second World War. They then returned to Canada. Her only daughter died of cancer while only in her forties, and her husband died in 1986. When she started to lose her sight, she was unable to care for herself any more, and she spent the last years of her life at the MLTCC.

At the Bible discussions, she always contributed some very astute statements. She knew her Bible, and she had such a practical outlook on her faith, which had sustained her during the difficult times of her life. Actually, I learned more from her than she did from me! I always end my Bible discussions by reading or reciting a hymn which suits the passage we looked at, and almost always, she would recite the hymn with me, word for word — unbelievable! We very often talked after the Bible discussions, and she told me so many things: the hardships they had endured, the joy of the birth of her children, and the death of two of them. She told me that she got such comfort from the knowledge that Christ was with her each step of her at-times-difficult life, and that she always prayed that He would abide with her always, during the good as well as the bad times. The third verse of this well-known hymn expresses her attitude so well:

I need Thy presence every passing hour;
What but Thy grace can foil the tempter's power?
Who like Thyself my guide and stay can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, O abide with me.
       – Henry Francis Lyte (1793-1847)

The knowledge that God will never leave us or forsake us is vital to carrying us through the hardships of life.

Prayer: Our Father in heaven, we thank You for being with us through all the difficult times in our lives, as well as through the good ones. We thank You for people who make us aware that You are with us and that You will abide with us always. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.