Wordwise Hymns

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Words: M. E. Abbey (no data available; see note below)
Music: Charles Davis Tillman (b. Mar. 20, 1861; d. Sept. 2, 1943)

Links:
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Note: There’s some uncertainty about the origin of this song. M. E. Abbey, a Baptist pastor in Georgia at the time, is credited with the words–at least of the refrain. And singing evangelist and music publisher Charles Davis Tillman composed the tune. Whether that is the full story is open to question.

Some suggest that Eliza Roxcy Snow Young (1804-1887), the polygamous wife of Mormon leader Brigham Young, may have supplied some of the text, but I’ve seen no conclusive evidence of that. Charles Tillman set one of Eliza Young’s poems (Truth Reflects Upon Our Senses) to the tune used later for the present hymn. The words by Young are completely different from those of the Railway Song, except that Abbey’s refrain is used in it. That may account for the confusion. Perhaps M. E. Abbey wrote the whole text of the railway song.

Fictional movie character Forrest Gump said it: “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.” It’s an apt description, at least of one aspect of our lives. The way unexpected things can happen to us.

Many others have tried to sum life up: “Life is like a mirror. If you frown at it, it frowns back. If you smile, it returns the greeting.” Or, “Life is like walking through snow. Every step shows.” Or, how about, “Life is like an eraser. It gets smaller and smaller after every mistake.” Then there’s, “Life is like a bar of soap. Once you think you’ve got a hold of it, it slips away.” Or, “Life is like a hot bath. It feels good while you’re in it, but the longer you stay in the more wrinkled you get.”

In the Bible, the emphasis in poetic descriptions of life is often focused on its brevity. Even when an individual lives eighty or ninety years, or perhaps beyond that, what is that span in comparison to eternity? “What is your life? It is even a vapour that appears for a little time and then vanishes away” (Jas. 4:14).

Others speak in a similar vein. Life is like: a flash flood, a short sleep, grass that sprouts and is quickly mowed down (Ps. 90:5-6), and like drifting smoke (Ps. 102:3). Job, in particular, in the midst of what seems almost unparalleled suffering, used a number of graphic metaphors. Life is like: a swift weaver’s shuttle (Job 7:6), a breath (7:7), a cloud that vanishes away (7:9), a speedy runner (9:25), a swift ship, a swooping eagle (9:36), a fading flower, and a passing shadow (14:2).

A more positive analogy is used frequently in both Old Testament and New. The life of the believer is said to be a pilgrimage. Even though it may seem long and painful, it’s brief in terms of eternity. It’s a time-limited journey through this sinful world, where we are aliens pilgrims, traveling on to our true and final home in heaven.

“Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims [aliens and temporary residents], abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles [the unsaved]” (I Pet. 2:11-12; cf. Ps. 39:12; 119:19).

An interesting take on the pilgrimage imagery is found in the gospel song Life’s Railway to Heaven. Published in 1890, it describes the Christian life as a journey on a railroad, a trip that requires courage, and alertness to danger, as we travel toward our destination.

The song has been much recorded, even by secular artists. There’s no rich doctrinal content or deep devotional thought here. But even so, the lyrics are interesting, and no doubt have special meaning for those familiar with railroad jargon.

CH-1) Life is like a mountain railroad,
With an Engineer that’s brave;
We must make the run successful,
From the cradle to the grave;
Watch the curves, the fills, the tunnels;
Never falter, never quail;
Keep your hand upon the throttle,
And your eye upon the rail.

Blessed Saviour, Thou wilt guide us,
Till we reach that blissful shore;
Where the angels wait to join us
In Thy praise forevermore.

CH-2) You will roll up grades of trial;
You will cross the bridge of strife;
See that Christ is your conductor
On this lightning train of life;
Always mindful of obstruction,
Do your duty, never fail;
Keep your hand upon the throttle,
And your eye upon the rail.

Questions:
1) What are some good things and bad things about a train trip that could illustrate life?

2) Is there enough Bible truth in this song that you would use it with a congregation?

Links:
Wordwise Hymns
The Cyber Hymnal
Hymnary.org