Draw Me Nearer, also know as I am Thine, O Lord is a hymn written by Fanny Crosby. In this lesson, we’ll cover the guitar chords, sheet music for the melody including tabs, and also a finger-style guitar arrangement. Let’s get started!
How to read the guitar chord charts
To clarify how to read the chord charts in the next section, the top horizontal line represents the high E string and the bottom horizontal line represents the low E string. The vertical lines separate each fret. The numbers in the blue dots tell you which fingers to use on the fretting hand.
For example, on the C Major chord, you use the:
- 1st finger on the 2nd string, 1st fret
- 2nd finger on the 4th string, 2nd fret
- 3rd finger on the 5th string, 3rd fret
- Circles represent open strings
- X means to avoid the string
You can check this link for more on how to read guitar notation symbols.
Draw Me Nearer chords
In the key of C Major, the chords for this song are C Major, G Major, A minor, and F Major. You can click on the chords with links to learn different ways of playing that chord.
Try the following chords one at a time until you feel comfortable switching between them. These chords will be written above the melody in the next section.
Here are some other resources on chords:
- What are the first chords you should learn on guitar?
- 6 tips to get better at switching between chords on guitar
Draw Me Nearer guitar tabs and chords
This section shows you the melody of the song with guitar tabs and the chords written above the staff. Keep in mind that the melody and chords are meant to be played as separate parts. We’ll look at how to connect these parts later in the arrangement section of this lesson.
You can refer to this simple guide to understanding music symbols if needed.
By the way, you can get all the PDFs of this song below.
You can learn a finger-style guitar arrangement of this song after the lyrics below.
Draw Me Nearer lyrics
Verse 1:
I am Thine, O Lord, I have heard Thy voice,
And it told Thy love to me;
But I long to rise in the arms of faith,
And be closer drawn to Thee.
Chorus:
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer, blessed Lord,
To the cross where Thou hast died;
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer, blessed Lord,
To Thy precious, bleeding side.
Verse 2:
Consecrate me now to Thy service, Lord,
By the pow’r of grace divine;
Let my soul look up with a steadfast hope,
And my will be lost in Thine. (Chorus)
Verse 3:
Oh, the pure delight of a single hour
That before Thy throne I spend,
When I kneel in prayer, and with Thee, my God,
I commune as friend with friend! (Chorus)
Verse 4:
There are depths of love that I cannot know
Till I cross the narrow sea;
There are heights of joy that I may not reach
Till I rest in peace with Thee. (Chorus)
Reference: Draw Me Nearer. hymnary.org
Draw Me Nearer guitar arrangement
In this section, we are essentially connecting the melody and chords together using a finger-style method of playing. The numbers next to some notes on the top staff indicate which fingers to use on the fretting hand.
Some of the chords in this guitar arrangement have been modified with chord inversions and using 7th chords. If needed, check out this lesson to learn how to finger pick on guitar.
If you like this style of playing, you can check out this lesson to learn how to connect a melody and chords on guitar.
📘 Get the free guitar practice guide here!
Want to learn more songs? Check out the sheet music with guitar tabs resource on this site.
All the best,
JG Music Lessons
