Lelia N. Morris Explained

Lelia N. Morris
Birth Name:	Lelia Naylor
Birth Date:	April 15, 1862
Birth Place:	Pennsville, Ohio
Death Place:	Auburn, NY
Nationality:	American
Other Names:	Mrs. Charles H. Morris, (Mrs.) C. H. Morris, (Mrs.) C. H. M.
Occupation:	Hymnwriter
Years Active:	1890s1910s or later

Lelia Naylor Morris (April 15, 1862July 23, 1929) was an American Methodist hymnwriter. Some sources give her first name as Leila, but her obituary, grave marker, and other sources give her name as Lelia.^[1] She is sometimes known as Mrs. Charles H. Morris, as (Mrs.) C. H. Morris, or as (Mrs.) C. H. M., having adopted her husband's forenames upon marriage after the custom of the time.

Biography

Morris was born in Pennsville, Ohio. While still a child, she moved with her family to Malta, OH. Later, she and her sister and her mother ran a millinery shop in McConnelsville, OH. In 1881, she married Charles H. Morris. The couple were active in the Methodist Episcopal Church, and attended camp meetings at places such as Old Camp Sychar, Mount Vernon, OH and Sebring Camp, Sebring, OH. In the 1890s, she began to write hymns and gospel songs; it has been said that she wrote more than 1,000 songs and tunes, and that she did so while doing her housework. In 1913, her eyesight began to fail; her son thereupon constructed for her a blackboard long with oversized staff lines, so that she could continue to compose.

Around 1928, she and her husband moved to live with their daughter in Auburn, NY, where she died. She is buried in McConnelsville Cemetery, McConnelsville, OH.^{[2] [3]}

Songs

• "Are You Looking For The Fullness"^[4]
• "Bring Your Vessels, Not a Few", 1912^[5]
• “Can the World See Jesus in You”^[6]
• "For A Worldwide Revival" ^[4]
• "For God So Loved This Sinful World"^[4]
• "Fully Surrendered To Jesus The Lord"^[7]
• "Hallelujah for the Blood"^[8]
• "Holiness Unto the Lord", a.k.a. "Called unto Holiness," 1900 ^{[5] [9]}
• "Hymn, to Fight!"
• "I Know God's Promise is True", 1899^[5]
• "Let All the People Praise Thee", 1906^[5]
• "Let Jesus Come into Your Heart"^[10]
• "Nearer, Still Nearer", 1898^[5]
• "Sanctifying Power", 1908^[5]
• "Sweet Will of God", a.k.a. "My Stubborn Will at Last Hath Yielded," 1900^[5]
• "Sweeter as the Years Go By", 1912^[5]
• "The Fight is On" circa 1905^[11]
• "The Stranger of Galilee"^[12]
• "'Tis Marvelous and Wonderful"^[5]
• "Victory all the Time", 1901^[5]
• " Where with God the Saint shall reign"

Notes and References

1. Web site: Morris. Lelia Naylor. Lelia Naylor Morris. Findagrave.com. 17 July 2017.
2. Web site: Mrs. C. H. Morris . hymnary.org . September 7, 2015 .
3. Web site: Leila Naylor Morris (Mrs. Charles H. Morris) 18621929 . nethymnal.org . September 7, 2015 .
4. Redemption Hymnal
5. Sing to the Lord (1993), Lillenas Publishing Co., Kansas City, Missouri
6. Web site: Can the World See Jesus in You?. hymnary.org . January 13, 2024 .
7. Web site: Fully surrendered to Jesus the Lord. hymnary.org . January 13, 2024 .
8. Web site: Hallelujah for the Blood . hymnary.org . January 13, 2024 .
9. Web site: Holiness Unto the Lord . hymnary.org . January 13, 2024 .
10. Web site: Let Jesus Come into Your Heart . hymnary.org . January 13, 2024 .
11. Web site: The Fight Is On . hymnary.org . January 13, 2024 .
12. Web site: The Stranger of Galilee . hymnary.org . January 13, 2024 .