What a Friend We Have in Jesus
Text by Joseph Scriven (1855). Music by Charles Converse (1868). Public domain in all jurisdictions.
Verse 1
GWhat a friend we have in CJe-sus, Gall our sins and griefs to Dbear
GWhat a priv-i-lege to Ccar-ry Gev-ery-thing to DGod in Gprayer
GOh, what peace we of-ten Cfor-feit, Goh, what need-less pain we Dbear
GAll be-cause we do not Ccar-ry Gev-ery-thing to DGod in Gprayer
Verse 2
GHave we tri-als and temp-Cta-tions? GIs there trou-ble Dan-y-Gwhere?
GWe should nev-er be dis-Ccour-aged, Gtake it to the DLord in Gprayer
GCan we find a friend so Cfaith-ful Gwho will all our Dsor-rows Gshare?
GJe-sus knows our ev-ery Cweak-ness, Gtake it to the DLord in Gprayer
Verse 3
GAre we weak and heav-y-Clad-en, Gcum-bered with a Dload of Gcare?
GPre-cious Sav-ior, still our Cref-uge, Gtake it to the DLord in Gprayer
GDo thy friends de-spise, for-Csake thee? GTake it to the DLord in Gprayer
GIn His arms He'll take and Cshield thee, Gthou wilt find a Dso-lace Gthere
Structure
Playing Tips
🎸 Strum Pattern — Verse
What a Friend We Have in Jesus is unhurried at 76 BPM in 4/4. We use a gentle down-up strum pattern, two strokes per beat with a light touch. The G, C, and D chord shapes throughout are beginner-friendly and sound warm on acoustic guitar. Keep it conversational and unforced.
🔊 Dynamics
This hymn is a quiet invitation to prayer, not a rallying cry. We play it softly from beginning to end. The power is in the text asking whether we carry our burdens to God or try to bear them alone. When the congregation hears "what needless pain we bear," we want the music to let that question land.
🎵 Band Direction
Acoustic guitar and piano are perfect for this hymn. We play it with no drums or very minimal percussion. A cajon with just a brush tap on beats 2 and 4 is as much rhythm as the song needs. The bass can play half notes, root on beat 1 and fifth on beat 3, to give movement without weight.
🎤 Vocal
Key of G is the most common key for this hymn and is comfortable for most voices. The melody is simple and moves in small steps, which makes it easy to follow even for less experienced singers. We encourage the congregation to close their eyes and sing this one as a personal prayer rather than a performance.
→ Transitions
We connect the three verses without a gap. On the last chord of each verse, we hold it for a full bar before starting the next. That moment of stillness between verses is intentional. It gives the congregation space to reflect on the question in each verse before moving to the answer in the next.