Will Lamartine Thompson - Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling Lyrics
Lyrics
Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling, Calling for you and for me; See, on the portals He’s waiting and watching, Watching for you and for me. Refrain: Come home, come home, You who are weary, come home; Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling, Calling, O sinner, come home! Why should we tarry when Jesus is pleading, Pleading for you and for me? Why should we linger and heed not His mercies, Mercies for you and for me? Time is now fleeting, the moments are passing, Passing from you and from me; Shadows are gathering, deathbeds are coming, Coming for you and for me. Oh, for the wonderful love He has promised, Promised for you and for me! Though we have sinned, He has mercy and pardon, Pardon for you and for me.
Video
Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling
Meaning & Inspiration
I was sitting here listening to this, and it hits differently when you actually pay attention to the words. It feels like such a gentle invitation, almost like the father in the story of the prodigal son who just stands at the gate. That part about Him waiting and watching for us, it pulls right from how Luke 15 describes the father seeing his son while he was still a long way off. It makes me stop and think, is He really just standing there waiting? I guess I get stuck on the idea of God’s sovereignty—that He’s the one who does the drawing—but then these lyrics make it feel like the ball is entirely in my court. It feels heavy, that part about the shadows gathering and deathbeds coming. It’s a bit frantic, honestly. I wonder if focusing on the ticking clock like that is supposed to scare us into responding or if it’s just trying to be real about how short life is. James 4 says life is just a mist, so the song is right about that, but the tone feels a bit more like a plea from a desperate friend than a cold theological statement. The thing about having sinned but still being offered pardon—that’s the core of it, right? It’s Isaiah 1:18, that though our sins are like scarlet, they can be white as snow. It’s simple, maybe even too simple, but it’s the only thing that keeps me from feeling completely lost when the days get dark. Still, I find myself questioning if He’s really pleading with us, or if there’s something deeper happening that we don’t quite grasp. It’s hard to reconcile a God who is so patient and tender with the reality that some people just keep walking away. Maybe the tension is the point. I don't know.