I Love You Lord (And I Lift My Voice)

I love You, Lord,
And I lift my voice.
To worship You,
Oh my soul rejoice.
Take joy my King,
In what You hear.
Let it be a sweet, sweet sound,
In Your ear (Oh).

I love You, Lord (I love You, Lord)
And I lift my voice (And I lift my voice)
To worship You (To worship You)
Oh my soul rejoice (Oh my soul)
Take joy my King (Take joy my King)
In what You hear (In what You hear)
Let it be a sweet, sweet sound (Let it be a sweet sound)
In Your ear (Oh).

I love You, Lord,
And I lift my voice (And I lift my voice).
To worship You,
Oh my soul rejoice.
Take joy my King (Take joy my King),
In what You hear (In what You hear).
Let it be a sweet, sweet sound,
In Your ear.
— Laurie Klein (1976)

By the age of 24, Laurie had married Bill Klein, and the couple welcomed their first child, a little girl. Bill was studying forest technology at Central Oregon Community College, a demanding course of study that kept him occupied much of the time.

Living in a mobile home along a highway in rural Oregon, a young Laurie Klein felt isolated. She had a toddler, no car or driver’s license, no extra money for long-distance calls, and no local church home.

Waking up early one morning before her child woke, she sat with her Bible and guitar, feeling completely empty and unable to muster up anything to offer God.

So she prayed.

“Lord,” she said, “if You want to hear me sing, would You give me something that You would like to hear?” Then she began to strum the guitar, the words and melody flowed out effortlessly. The first two lines came instantly, followed just as easily by the final two lines

Simple as it was, it became a turning point. In the middle of a dark and lonely season, God had given Laurie a song of light. That gift did not merely fill a moment of silence; it changed the direction of her life. It reminded her that when the Lord brings light into a dark valley, everything can begin to change.

Years later, in the fall of 2000, Laurie and Bill were attending a Discipleship Training School. Late one night in the dormitory, Laurie heard a baby crying somewhere down the hall. Quietly, she slipped from her room and stood outside the door, intending only to pray that the child would settle and sleep.

Inside, the mother tried singing to soothe the baby, but the crying continued. Then she began to sing a familiar worship song: “I love You, Lord…”

As the mother sang, the baby gradually grew quiet and fell asleep.

The mother never knew that the woman who had written the song was standing just outside the door, praying in the hallway.