The Story Behind How Can I Keep From Singing
According to Hymnary.org, "Robert Lowry was born in Philadelphia, March 12, 1826. His fondness for music was exhibited in his earliest years. As a child, he amused himself with the various musical instruments that came into his hands. At the age of seventeen, he joined the First Baptist Church of Philadelphia and soon became an active worker in the Sunday school as a teacher and chorister.
At the age of twenty-two, he gave himself to the work of the ministry and entered upon a course of study at the University of Lewisburg, Pa. At the age of twenty-eight, he was graduated with the highest honors of his class. In the same year of his graduation, he entered the work of the ministry. While pastor at Lewisburg, he was also a professor of belles lettres in the University and received the honorary degree of D. D. in 1875.
The Doctor frequently said that he regarded "Weeping Will Not Save Me" as the best and most evangelistic hymn he ever wrote. The following are some of his most popular and sweetest gospel melodies: "Shall We Gather at the River?" "One More Day's Work for Jesus," "I Need Thee Every Hour," "The Mistakes of My Life," "How Can I Keep from Singing?," "All the Way My Saviour Leads Me," "We're Marching to Zion," etc. "Shall We Gather at the River?" is perhaps the most widely popular of all his songs."
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