Have thine own way, Lord

with ADELAIDE 

I. Origins

The story of this hymn begins with its text, which is by Sarah “Adelaide” Addison Pollard (1862–1934). She was born in Bloomfield, Iowa. She attended the Boston School of Oratory and subsequently studied at the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. She was a teacher at the Missionary Training School of the Christian Missionary Alliance in New York. However, Pollard’s passion for evangelism and her ambition to travel were pointing her toward being a missionary in Africa.

The explanation of the genesis of the text has circulated in many sources, but its origins are difficult to verify. The hymn was not counted in Alice M. Richardson’s Index to Stories of Hymns (1929), which included nine books published after the hymn’s publication in 1907. It was not mentioned in George C. Stebbins’ Reminiscences and Gospel Hymn Stories (1924). Mennonite hymn scholar Lester Hostetler, writing in 1949, only offered the basics of Pollard’s adult career:

While a teacher of elocution and expression, she became interested in deeper spiritual things through the ministry of R.A. Torrey and James M. Gray, and enrolled for further Bible training at the Moody Bible Institute, Chicago. She became a teacher in the Missionary Alliance Bible School at Nyack, N.Y., and also did missionary work in South Africa. Miss Pollard wrote numerous hymns and devotional poems. Her two best-known hymns are “Have thine own way, Lord” and “Shepherd of Israel.”[1]

Baptist scholar William J. Reynolds, writing in 1964, offered some basic conjecture as to the song’s origins:

Adelaide A. Pollard wrote the hymn after she had returned home from a prayer meeting service. The experience of the prayer meeting had brought about in her own heart a reconciliation to God’s will at a time of great distress of soul. In all probability this occurred during the time Miss Pollard was associated with a group headed by an evangelist named Sandford, which made an unsuccessful effort in the late 1890s to secure funds to finance a missionary trip to Africa.[2]

The evangelist mentioned here is probably the eccentric religious leader Frank Sandford (1862–1948), who was based in Maine; how Pollard would have been connected to his movement is unclear. The fundraising effort could have been advertised in his monthly newsletter, Tongues of Fire. Nevertheless, this possible connection to Sandford has not been repeated in other sources. The editors of the Methodist Companion (1970) offered even less information:

Not much is known about the origin of this hymn. It seems to have issued out of a time of despair when “wounded and weary,” the author sought refreshment in complete abandonment of self and submission to God’s will. The year of its composition is unknown.[3]

The popular version of this song’s conception seems to have been first propagated by Salvation Army writer Gordon Avery in 1961:

During a particularly trying period, Miss Pollard attended a prayer meeting where she heard an elderly woman pray, “But it’s all right, Lord; it doesn’t matter what you bring into our lives; just have your own way with us!” The sentence spoke to Miss Pollard’s heart as a message from the Lord. That night she wrote “Have thine own way, Lord,” which George Stebbins later set to music.[4]

A much longer—and arguably dramatized—version of Avery’s story was prepared by Billy Graham’s music director, Cliff Barrows, in 1967, to which he added, “After returning home that evening, Miss Pollard meditated on the story of the potter, found in Jeremiah 18:3,4.”[5]

By 1978, a date had emerged for this story, as reported by musician-editor Donald Hustad, apparently quoting Reynolds (1964):

Adelaide Pollard wrote this hymn in 1902 during a time when she was suffering “great distress of the soul.” Shortly before, she had tried unsuccessfully to raise funds for a missionary trip to Africa. A prayer meeting had brought peace to her heart and complete abandonment of self in submission to God’s will.[6]

The authenticity of any of these details should be considered questionable until further research can uncover better sources, ideally from Pollard’s lifetime, or Stebbins’ (more on Stebbins below). One thing is certain: the song first appeared in the Northfield Hymnal with Alexander’s Supplement in 1907 in four stanzas.

II. Text: Analysis

The text of “Have thine own way, Lord” is laid out in four-line stanzas with a pure rhyming scheme of AABB and a 9.9.9.9 dactylic meter.

By some accounts, Pollard’s hymn is a meditation on the story of the potter in Jeremiah 18:1–6.

The word, which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, “Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words.” Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter?” saith the Lord. “Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.” (KJV)

Pollard’s adaptation of these Bible verses has created a hymn that calls Christians to place their faith completely in God, trusting His divine plan set in place for each person. It is a hymn of faith and obedience. Other topics associated with the text include prayer, intercession, devotion, and submission. The text makes frequent use of exclamation (ecphonesis), which adds a sense of urgency. Pollard also frequently employs alliteration, as in “mould me and make me,” “while I am waiting,” “whiter . . . wash,” “wounded and weary,” and “power all power.”

Stanza one opens with the declamatory statement “Have Thine own way, Lord!” which is repeated in every stanza, emphasizing the need for the listener to submit in totality to the will of God. This verse points not only to Jeremiah 18, but also to Romans 9:21 (“Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?”) and Isaiah 64:8 (“But now, O Lord, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand”). The lyrics convey a sense of stillness, portraying a readiness by the writer to submit to the Lord.

Stanza two displays a change in thought, with the writer searching for God’s response. Courage under trial is evoked by an allusion to Psalm 139:23–24 (“Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting”) along with Psalm 51:7 (“Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow”).

In stanza three, Pollard then makes her petition to God from a more personal and painful standpoint. She beseeches God to heal her, echoing Jeremiah 17:14 (“Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise”). She then glorifies God for His divine power, resting in the knowledge that He is the only solution to her prayers. 

Pollard’s final stanza is one of complete submission to God and His will. The writers behind Billy Graham’s Crusade Hymn Stories (1967) felt this verse pointed directly to Galatians, stating, “the life of selflessness which God desires is expressed in Paul’s words, ‘I have been crucified with Christ: and I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me’ (Gal. 2:20). These words are the basis of the hymn’s final stanza.”[7]

In modern hymnals, the line “Whiter than snow, Lord, wash me just now” has been a point of contention. In the United Methodist Hymnal (1989), this was changed to say “Wash me just now, Lord, wash me just now.” An explanation was given in that hymnal’s companion:

Those proposing the change stated that one does not have to be white, a North European, or Anglo Caucasian to be perceived as spiritually pure and socially acceptable. An African American member said, “You can wash me as much as you wish, but after you’ve finished, I'll be just as black, which is beautiful.” Those who wished to retain the original argue that the reference to washing was not about the pigmentation of human skin, but to the soul as in Psalm 51:7, “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.”[8]

In many hymnals published by GIA, this line is altered to say “Brighter than snow,” keeping the idea of Psalm 51:7, but avoiding the racial implications. In Lift Up Your Hearts (2013), a very different solution is offered: “Open mine eyes, my sin show me now.”

III. Tune: Background & Analysis

The tune for “Have thine own way, Lord!” is called ADELAIDE and was written by George C. Stebbins (1846–1945). Pollard’s connection to Stebbins is unclear. Stebbins was a composer, songbook compiler, and song leader who was considered an important Baptist contributor to the gospel song genre. He was one of the song leaders for the Moody and Sankey revivals in the United States and abroad (1876–1899) and eventually succeeded Ira D. Sankey as music director of Moody’s summer Bible conferences in Northfield, Massachusetts. Stebbins is known for hymns such as “Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling,” “Out of my bondage” (“Jesus, I Come”), and “Take time to be holy.” He also wrote under the pseudonym “George Coles” and was involved in the compilation of volumes three through six of the Gospel Hymns series (1878–1891). He edited a number of the Northfield hymnals, which were associated with the Northfield Schools. Moody had established Northfield Seminary for young ladies in 1879, followed by Northfield Mount Hermon School for boys, as noted by scholar Katherine Askins:

The Northfield Schools, arguably Moody’s least acknowledged accomplishment, provided (and continue to provide) young women and men with the opportunity to learn the skills necessary to succeed in a changing world. Although D.L. Moody is remembered as one of the most important evangelists of the nineteenth century, it is also the Northfield Mount Hermon School that is a significant part of his legacy.[9]

All received funds from the Northfield hymnals went to support the continuation of the Northfields Schools.[10]

Although the main tune name associated with this hymn is ADELAIDE, in some instances it has been called HOLY DESIRE.

Stebbins’ tune is melodically simple, with primarily conjunct motion, and it is best sung at a tempo that provides space for reflection. There are no large intervallic leaps, and the melody encompasses less than an octave in range. Stebbins’ dotted half notes under the words “way” and “Lord” allow for a spacious legato feel throughout the phrases.

This hymn has been translated into numerous languages, including Chinese, French, Spanish (see “Haz lo que quieras de mi, Señor” by Ernesto Barocio), and Swahili.

by ELIZABETH NOLAN
for HYMNOLOGY ARCHIVE
19 August 2024

Footnotes:

1. Lester Hostetler, “Have thine own way, Lord,” Handbook to the Mennonite Hymnary (Newton, KS: General Conference, 1949), p. 135.

2. William J. Reynolds, “Have thine own way, Lord,” Hymns of Our Faith (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1964), p. 62.

3. Fred D. Gealy et al., eds., Companion to the Hymnal (Nashville: Abingdon, 1970), p. 211

4. Gordon Avery, “Have thine own way, Lord,” Companion to the Song Book of the Salvation Army (London: Salvationist Publishing, 1961), pp. 143–144.

5. Cliff Barrows, ed., “Have thine own way, Lord,” Crusade Hymn Stories (Chicago: Hope Publishing, 1967), p. 91.

6. Donald Hustad, “Have thine own way, Lord,” Dictionary-Handbook to Hymns for the Living Church (Carol Stream, IL: Hope, 1978), p. 128.

7. Cliff Barrows, ed., “Have thine own way, Lord,” Crusade Hymn Stories (Chicago: Hope Publishing, 1967), p. 92.

8. Carlton R. Young, ed., Companion to the United Methodist Hymnal (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1993), p. 389.

9. Kathryn A. Askins, “Bridging cultures: American Indian Students at the Northfield Mount Hermon School,” dissertation (University of New Hampshire, Durham, 2009), p. 67.

10. See especially the preface to Northfield Hymnal No. 3 (1918).

Related Resources:

“Have thine own way, Lord,” Hymnary.org: https://hymnary.org/text/have_thine_own_way_lord

C. Michael Hawn, “Have thine own way, Lord,” History of Hymns, United Methodist Discipleship Ministries: https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-have-thine-own-way-lord

J.R. Watson and Carlton R. Young, “Have Thine own way, Lord,” The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology (Canterbury Press): http://www.hymnology.co.uk/h/have-thine-own-way,-lord.