Gospel Boat
(Pearl Nye)
The Lord Jesus Christ am the pilot on board,
An' He knows the river quite well;
There never was a snag or a sand bar there,
Of which the blessed Lord could not tell,
While He am at the wheel you can always safely feel,
There won't be any trouble for to pay,
Get your baggage on the deck an' don't forget to get your check,
For you can' t steal aboard an' hide away.
The gangplank am down, so why you run aroun'?
To get on board there am no other way.
The purser you mus' pass an' the ticket you mus' has,
For there am no stowaways, here all mus' pay!
Your ticket entitles you to everything on board,
For all am up-to-date, so spick an' span.
For the whistle an' the gong, yes, soon will toot, so come along,
Go with us to the blessed Promise' Lan'!
On board all am bright, an' we runs day an' night,
We sing, laugh, feast, a splendid time!
For we tell the ole story while on the way to glory,
An' with our Pilot evermore shine.
There am room on the boat for whosoever will,
Jus' call, she stops, will gladly take you in.
You leave all the world behin' an' the new life here you fin',
The Pilot, He makes all complete in Him!
Yes, there am flow'rs of grace on every side,
Yes, their fragrance fill the air,
While all the time it makes a heaven to go to heaven in,
For the trip, it am so pleasant, rich an' rare!
She rides through every storm, all on board the rules conform,
Which makes us safe an' happy all the day.
Cone jus' now no longer wait, all am vain if you are late,
There am no reason why you should delay.
There ain' no second class aboard this boat,
An' there's riches on the other shore,
We's invited by the king to share His bliss an' everything,
In the Golden City dwell or evermore.
There with loved ones, friends an' all who went through to the end
We'll join them in the great redemption song
Yes, we'll live there all the while beneath His tender, lovin' smile
My spirit whispers oft, "It won't be long."
Note: According to Nye, verses 1 and 2 are "from thr negroes"; Nye
wrote the other three.
RG
Thanks to Mudcat for the Digital Tradition!