Take Time to Be Holy -- William Dunn Longstaff

Had 60-year old Englishman William Dunn Longstaff just realized what purity before God meant in 1882? Surely he’d been around long enough to know what it took to “Take Time to Be Holy” in everyday life, but there must have been something in particular that prompted him to put pen to paper after three score years. It may have been someone else’s words spoken in New Brighton (see this coastal town on Britain’s west coast, along the Irish Sea, in the picture-painting that preceded Longstaff’s prose by some 40 years) that captured his attention, spurring his poetry. What does a wealthy, business-minded man think it takes to stand before the Great Judge? From William’s perspective, perhaps he was just vocalizing what he thought was already at work in his life in the presence of the one who’d been blessing him for so long.  

William Longstaff’s active life in a church and in his community in Sunderland, England had long been in progress by the time he composed his thoughts on holy living in the late 19^th Century. Longstaff was a prosperous businessman, son of a ship owner, and philanthropic member of his congregation of believers. His financially blessed life allowed him to routinely contribute to Christian work, including when Ira Sankey and Dwight Moody visited the British Isles on a campaign in the decade before he crafted “Take Time…”. Perhaps it was one of these or another sermon on holiness (1 Peter 1:16) he heard in New Brighton that spurred Longstaff’s creativity. He reportedly also may have been inspired through hearing the words of a missionary to China. His verses may be likened to someone making a diary entry, a reflective assessment of an individual striving to improve his servant nature. How’s that happen, Longstaff must have pondered, to which his four verses respond in a common thread throughout: be in His presence. Perhaps William had arrived at a point that he thought his devotion, though already significant, could go deeper. His spirit was already genuinely engaged, including through his role as the treasurer of his congregation, so what else did he need to do? Remember to pray, study, and fellowship with other believers (v.1). Then, be with Him some more, to mimic Him (v.2), and be directed by Him (v.3). If, despite his walk, William had at times felt the stress of his world, he found His serenity (v.4) in this renewed effort at holy living. ‘I’ll just let Him rub off on me’ might be the best way to encapsulate what Longstaff was saying.

William Longstaff doesn’t sound like what we might imagine as the wealthy businessman today. Some people plateau if they’ve been hitting on all cylinders the way Longstaff might have appeared to others. Instead, he aimed to go deeper by looking higher. No need to stop doing the good things he was doing, but rather to build on them, and see what more God could do if he strove to draw still closer. Perhaps this businessman reasoned that God was waiting to see if he was willing to refine his serve, to make a further investment. Are you approaching 60, like William, and wonder if there’s more space God has set aside for you? Is there a message there for 2016 dwellers?        

The following website has all four verses for the song, and a brief account of the song’s story: http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/t/a/k/taketime.htm

See more information on the song discussed above in The Complete Book of Hymns – Inspiring Stories About 600 Hymns and Praise Songs by William J. Petersen and Ardythe Petersen, Tyndale House Publishers, 2006; Amazing Grace: 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions by Kenneth W. Osbeck, Kregel Publications, 1990; and Then Sings My Soul – 150 of the World’s Greatest Hymn Stories, Robert J. Morgan, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2003.