The group sings in a contemporary style, integrating R&B and jazz influences into their devotional songs and has 10 Grammy wins, 10 Dove Awards, one Soul Train Award and two NAACP Image Award nominations. They won Grammy Awards in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1995, 1998, and 2003 and have collaborated with Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston, Don Henley, Ray Charles, Queen Latifah, Joe Sample, Quincy Jones, Marcus Miller and Gordon Goodwin.
In 1980, Claude McKnight formed an a cappella quartet, The Gentlemen's Estate Quartet, at Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama, a Seventh-Day Adventist College, where he was a freshman. He auditioned fellow students for the hobby group. The Gentlemen were rehearsing in a campus bathroom (later said to be in Peterson Hall), getting ready for a performance, when Mark Kibble walked by and heard them singing. He joined the harmonizing, adding a fifth part, and ended up singing with them onstage that very night.[1] Mark later invited Mervyn Warren to join the group. The group performed under the moniker "Alliance".
The group performed in local churches and on campus over the next years, with members changing due to college's inevitable comings and goings. In 1985, the lower half of the group (bass, baritone, and second tenor) left upon graduating. At that time, Alvin Chea, Cedric Dent, and David Thomas joined.
The group was signed to Warner Brothers in 1987, and quickly changed its name to "Take 6" after a name search revealed that "Alliance" was already being used. Their eponymous debut album, released in 1988, won them two Grammy Awards and resulted in top ten appearances on both the Billboard Contemporary Jazz and Contemporary Christian Charts. Take 6's swinging, harmony-rich gospel sound attracted a flurry of attention, and the group went on to record or appear with a number of luminaries, including Quincy Jones, Ella Fitzgerald and Stevie Wonder.
In 1991, after the release of their second album, So Much 2 Say, Mervyn Warren left the group to pursue a career as a producer. Joey Kibble, Mark's younger brother, was invited to round out the vocal lineup. The group added instrumentation to their purely a cappella sound beginning with the record He Is Christmas; Join The Band and Brothers continued their streak of success, and Take 6 amassed a total of seven Grammys and eight Dove awards, as well as topping the Downbeat Magazine's Reader's and Critic's poll for seven years' consecutively.
Take 6's 1998 release, So Cool, brought the group back to its a cappella origins.
In 2006 the group launched Take 6 Records and the 2006 release Feels Good was released on that label.
The group currently lists Nashville, Tennessee as its home.[2] All members grew up Seventh-Day Adventist.[
What A Friend We Have In Jesus
Take 6 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All our sins and grief to bear
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer
Oh, what peace we often forfeit
Oh, what needless pain we bear
All because we do not carry
Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged
Take it to the Lord in prayer
Can we find a friend so faithful
Who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness
Take it to the Lord in prayer
Are we weak and heavy-laden
Cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior still our refuge
Take it to the Lord in prayer
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?
Take it to the Lord in prayer
In His arms He'll take and shield thee
Thou wilt find a solace there
Blessed Savior, Thou hast promised
Thou wilt all our burdens bear
May we ever, Lord, be bringing
All to Thee in earnest prayer
Soon in glory bright, unclouded
There will be no need for prayer
Rapture, praise and endless worship
Will be our sweet portion there
"What A Friend We Have In Jesus" is a classic Christian hymn that explores the profound relationship between Jesus and his followers. The lyrics start by acknowledging Jesus as a friend who bears all our sins and griefs. It is a privilege to bring everything to God in prayer while enjoying the peace that comes the moment we do so. The significance of this privilege is emphasized by pointing out that we often forfeit peace and endure needless pain because we don't carry everything to God in prayer.
The second stanza challenges believers to take all their trials, temptations, and troubles to the Lord in prayer, instead of being discouraged. As believers, we have a faithful friend in Jesus who shares all our sorrows because he knows our every weakness. Whenever we feel weak, burdened, or overwhelmed, Jesus is our precious savior who we can always run to for refuge. Whether our friends despise or forsake us, Jesus stays with us and shields us in his arms.
The final stanza reminds us that Jesus has promised to carry all our burdens, and as believers, we should always be bringing all to him in earnest prayer. Finally, we are assured that in the coming glorious future, we will no longer need to pray because rapture, praise, and endless worship will be our sweet portion there.
Line by Line Meaning
What a friend we have in Jesus
Jesus is our friend and we are blessed to have Him in our lives.
All our sins and grief to bear
He takes on all the guilt of our sins and helps to alleviate our sorrow by sharing it with us.
What a privilege to carry
We have the privilege to take everything we have to God in prayer.
Everything to God in prayer
We can take anything we have to God through prayer.
Oh, what peace we often forfeit
We often lose our peace by not taking things to God in prayer.
Oh, what needless pain we bear
We bear a lot of pain needlessly because we don't ask for help from God.
All because we do not carry
If we only carried everything to God in prayer, we could avoid a lot of pain.
Everything to God in prayer
Again, we can take anything we have to God through prayer.
Have we trials and temptations?
When we are faced with difficulties and temptation,
Is there trouble anywhere?
In times of trouble,
We should never be discouraged
We should always have hope and faith in God.
Take it to the Lord in prayer
And take everything to Him in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful
Is there anyone else who is as faithful as Jesus as a friend?
Who will all our sorrows share?
No one else can share our sorrows like Jesus can.
Jesus knows our every weakness
Because He knows everything about us, He understands our weaknesses.
Take it to the Lord in prayer
So, take everything to the Lord in prayer.
Are we weak and heavy-laden
If we are weak and burdened with cares,
Cumbered with a load of care?
If we are weighed down with worry and anxiety,
Precious Savior still our refuge
We can take refuge in Jesus, who is precious to us.
Take it to the Lord in prayer
And, again, take everything to the Lord in prayer.
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?
If we are abandoned or disrespected by our friends,
Take it to the Lord in prayer
We should take it to the Lord in prayer.
In His arms He'll take and shield thee
Jesus will take us in His arms and protect us.
Thou wilt find a solace there
We will find comfort and peace there.
Blessed Savior, Thou hast promised
Jesus, our blessed Savior, has made a promise.
Thou wilt all our burdens bear
He will bear all of our burdens for us.
May we ever, Lord, be bringing
We should always bring everything to the Lord,
All to Thee in earnest prayer
Through earnest prayer and devotion.
Soon in glory bright, unclouded
One day, we will be in heaven, where it will be bright and clear.
There will be no need for prayer
In heaven, there will be no need for prayer because all will be perfect and complete.
Rapture, praise and endless worship
There will be joy, adoration, and unending praise.
Will be our sweet portion there
All of these things will be ours to enjoy there.
Writer(s): Scriven Converse, Maxwell
Contributed by Alex V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Mike Watkins
Take 6 songs make you just want to cry... I'm 16 years old and never cry for anything but these songs are so beautiful they make you want to cry and get all emotional and I love what they say, and the vocals.
Arthur Jankins
They sounds so amazing here! I just love this song:)
Alex
I absolutely LOVE this arrangement and this song in general. Simply put Take 6 & Stevie Wonder are LIFE!
Veni Vidi Amavi
Love this, wish more music was like this nowadays, so harmonious!!
Melinda Lee
Such a blessing to listen to this beautiful melody of Jesus before bedtime...Praise God.
GTKind
My favorite hymn of all time taken from the church to the lounge! Me love!
Marjean Gomes
Wonderful! A tribute and reminder that Jesus is our best friend. Peace and harmony coming thru the sounds of Take 6. May God continue to bless and anoint you. Romans 8:28 and Romans 12:1-2.
Wayne Hammond
It is indeed a blessing to hear, feel and know the love of God expressed with the sound of human voice! Music is a spiritual language which is innately understood by all of God's creation. Even the rocks( inanimate but, existing at the word of God) will cry out to praise him"! Blessed be the name of "The Lord". Thank you brothers for sharing The Word of God through your harmonious expressions of praise. I know that the rocks and all of nature rejoice because of you!
kendy williams
It's a blessing....continue to produce wonderful music guys. I've been a fan a very long time and you guys keep getting better and better
Lisa Dukes
Since 1990 i ve loved this group!