A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief

Hello! “A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief” is one of the suggested songs to go along with the Come Follow Me  Book of Mormon lesson this week. This arrangement is a vocal solo of verses 1, 5, 6 and 7. I didn’t want the song to be too long, so I tried to include the final verses that are essential for the storyline, but are often not sung in Church because of how long the song is. This hymn has beautiful descriptive language that draws you in. A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief was a favorite hymn of the Prophet Joseph Smith. The apostle John Taylor first learned the hymn while on his mission to England. You can learn more about the background of the hymn here and here. The musical version we sing today is not the same melody and harmony as the one sung during early church days, but the message is the same! On the afternoon that Joseph and Hyrum were killed by a mob in prison in Carthage, the Smiths requested Taylor sing this hymn twice. How touching and special this hymn is.

The sheet music for this arrangement can be found here: http://marileekaymusic.com/sheet-music/

This lesson studies Mosiah chapters 1-3. In chapter 2, King Benjamin addresses all of the people in a great gathering. He recounts his reign as a reign of service and equality, him doing his part just as much as anyone else in the Kingdom. He teaches his people to serve others as he has served them.

• Mosiah 2:17 And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God. 18 Behold, ye have called me your king; and if I, whom ye call your king, do labor to serve you, then ought not ye to labor to serve one another?

The Come Follow Me lesson opens with this eloquent description:

• When you hear the word king, you might think of crowns, servants, and thrones. In Mosiah 1–3, you will read about a different kind of king. Rather than living off the labors of his people, King Benjamin “labored with [his] own hands” (Mosiah 2:14). Instead of having others serve him, he served his people “with all the might, mind and strength which the Lord [had] granted unto [him]” (Mosiah 2:11). This king did not want his people to worship him; rather, he taught them to worship their Heavenly King, Jesus Christ. King Benjamin understood that it is “the Lord Omnipotent who reigneth” (Mosiah 3:5), who came “down from heaven” and went “forth amongst men, … that salvation might come unto the children of men even through faith on his name” (Mosiah 3:5, 9).

Media sources: churchofjesuschrist.org (“The Old Shoemaker”, “Parable of the Good Samaritan”, “Joseph Smith the Prophet of the Restoration”, “Christ Appears on the Road to Emmaus”, “He is Risen” and “Ye Have Done it Unto Me”) and Steve Pierce (nature images & videography). Thank you!

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*Please let me know if you would like the sheet music done for any of the arrangements I don’t have sheet music for yet and I am happy to do them! You can find the songs I already have sheet music for here: http://marileekaymusic.com/sheet-music/

Composers: Text: James Montgomery, 1771–1854 Music: George Coles, 1792–1858, alt.

This video is published on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MarileeKayMusic/ and short reels of the video are posted throughout the week on Instagram @MarileeKayMusic & Facebook