Elvina M. Hall (1820–1889) was a dedicated Methodist laywoman in Baltimore. On a spring Sunday morning in 1865, while sitting in the church choir loft during a long pastoral prayer, she felt overwhelmed by a deep sense of gratitude for Christ's sacrifice. Lacking paper, she grabbed the flyleaf of her hymnbook and hastily scribbled: 'I hear the Savior say, Thy strength indeed is small...' When she showed it to her pastor after the service, he realized it perfectly fit a new choir melody he was trying to pair with lyrics, resulting in the classic 'Jesus Paid It All'.