IT IS JESUS I NEED

Heather Allington

Heather writes for Sunday Song Book on behalf of the The Salvation Army Oshawa. As a lifelong member of the Army, she has loved these familiar - and some less familiar - songs for many years, and enjoys researching and writing about their origins. She is a wife, mother, grandmother and retired elementary school teacher who likes trying her hand at watercolour painting and poetry writing.

It is Jesus I need, it is Jesus indeed
Who can make it all possible in me;
Without Jesus I find I am so often blind
To the truth He is wanting me to see.

O Jesus, Jesus,
You are the One who can make my life complete.
O Jesus, my peace restore.
It’s Jesus I need, Jesus indeed,
Jesus in me, more and more.

It is Jesus I need, it is Jesus indeed
Who will make my faith beautiful and bold;
And with Jesus in me I need no longer be
So afraid of what future days may hold.

Jesus – the One who can make a difference in each of our lives and in the world – if we truly commit ourselves to Him and His teachings! Major Joy Webb, a retired Salvation Army officer, certainly did much to “make a difference” in the world. Her songs and the singing of them by the group she founded, “The Joystrings”, reached and blessed numerous people in many places. In England in the 1960’s, many of the songs reached the secular pop charts.

In England in the 1960's, many of the songs reached the secular pop charts. Share on X

In 2004, Joy Webb was admitted to the Order of the Founder – the Salvation Army’s highest honour. The following is a quote from the citation read by then Commissioner Shaw Clifton in the Royal Albert Hall, London:

“Throughout her officership, Major Joy Webb has demonstrated outstanding commitment to the creative and innovative use of music, poetry and drama in evangelism and worship, achieving unparalleled success in expressing the Gospel in the popular idioms of the day while constantly reflecting the standards of the Gospel in her personal life.”