Come Thou Fount

This hymn has an interesting story behind it.  It was written by a man called Robert Robinson in 1758.  He was a methodist minister and apparently used these words to close a sermon.  In his later life Robert fell away from God – or at least did not have the relationship he once had.

One day he met a lady who was reading through a hymn book.  She started to hum a hymn and asked him if he liked it.  He reportedly replied “Madam, I am the poor unhappy man who wrote that hymn many years ago, and I would give a thousand worlds, if I had them, to enjoy the feelings I had then.“

The hymn was put to music in 1813 by John Wyeth.  I’m not sure we are using the same tune now that John composed as he was American and this version (by David Crowder Band) has a distinct Irish feel to it.  I’m singing it tomorrow at church.

Come Thou fount of every blessing
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace
Streams of mercy never ceasing
Calls for songs of loudest praise
Teach me some melodious sonnet
Sung by flaming tongues above
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it
Mount of God’s redeeming love

Here I raise my Ebenezer
Hither by Thy help I come
And I hope by Thy good pleasure
Safely to arrive at home
Jesus sought me when a stranger
Wandering from the fold of God
He to rescue me from danger
Interposed His precious blood 

Oh, to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be
Let Thy goodness like a fetter
Bind my wandering heart to Thee
Prone to wonder, Lord I feel it
Prone to leave the God I love
Here’s my heart Lord, take and seal it
Seal it for Thy courts above