Jun P. Espina 2 min read
Updated on February 17th, 2020
I was asked to write lyrics for a song that would be describing the faith of the Christian missionary worker. It was a task that had spurred me in less than an hour. But when I happened to see the piece again, I decided to edit a little the entire work to give emphasis on my primary message on the brave faith of our Christian missionaries assigned to unknown mission fields and territories.
⧏ Brave Faith I Must Have ⧐
I
I‘m singing for the joy of His choosing me here;
Far away from home and friends, but I need not fear.
God used to tell me: “I will never leave you, Child”;
Even far away in the field!
Brave faith I must have, surely trusting on His claims;
I am obeying Christ away from home and friends.
II
Life in Jesus far away is like one with God;
Always holding with my Lord’s hand full of the blood.
Crying daily, praying to Him who died for me;
Seeking His Spirit every day!
In the mission field my strength on His promises;
I am obeying Christ away from home and friends.
III – Refrain:
Brave faith I must have—brave I must be to Jesus;
And braver can we all be if we only trust.
There are no thousand hills of pain in Christ, our Stay;
Seeking His Spirit every day!
Brave faith I must have—brave I must be to Jesus;
In missions or anywhere if only we trust.
IV
I‘m singing even though I am but a stranger;
I will obey Him for He had desired me here.
Brave faith I must have since I will follow my Lord;
My soul rests in His blessed Word!
In the mission field His love to me He confirms;
I am obeying Jesus like the mountain streams.
V
I’m singing even though I am but all alone;
I obeyed Him who desired me away from home.
Brave faith I must have because of love for Jesus;
He answered all of my prayers!
In the mission field His so wondrous love I felt;
I am obeying Jesus since being indwelt.
Repeat III – Refrain
—Jun P. Espina
The Refrain of Brave Faith I Must Have
The “refrain” portion of this poem conveys precisely the life of the Christian worker in the mission field: “Brave faith I must have—brave I must be to Jesus.” I wrote somewhere about the conversion of the Mouk tribe of Papua New Guinea. Brave faith is the only fitting description of what the Christian missionaries did to this people group.
And braver can we all be if we only trust.
There are no thousand hills of pain in Christ, our Stay;
Seeking His Spirit every day!
Brave faith I must have—brave I must be to Jesus;
In missions or anywhere if only we trust.
