Hymns/Quotes/Prayers of Praise and Worship

Hymns/Quotes/Prayers of Praise and Worship

Our Love of Christ is tested by whether we seek Him, or His gifts.
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I neglect God
for the noise of a fly,
the rattling of a coach,
the creaking of a door.
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In the Garden

I come to the garden alone, 
While the dew is still on the roses,
And the voice I hear, Falling on my ear
The Son of God discloses.

Chorus:

And He walks with me, 
and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other has ever known.

He speaks, and the sound of His voice
Is so sweet the birds hush their singing,
And the melody That He gave to me,
Within my heart is ringing.

I'd stay in the garden with Him
Tho' this night around me be falling,
But He bids me go; 
Thro' the voice of woe His voice to me is calling.
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The Eternal Generation of the Son

Amid the eternal silences
God's endless Word was spoken
None heard but He who always spake,
And the silence was unbroken.

Chorus:

Oh marvelous! Oh Worshipful!
No song or sound is heard,
But everywhere and every hour,
In love, in wisdom, and in power,
The Father speaks His dear eternal Word.

For ever in the eternal land
The glorious day is dawning;
For ever is the Father's Light
Like an endless outspread morning.

From the Father's vast tranquility,
In light coequal glowing
The kingly consubstantial Word
Is unutterably flowing.

For ever climbs that Morning Star
Without ascent or motion;
For ever is its daybreak
On the Spirit's boundless ocean.

O Word! who fitly can adore
Thy Birth and Thy Relation,
Lost in the impenetrable light
Of Thine awful Generation?

Thy Father clasps Thee evermore
In unspeakable embraces,
While angels tremble as thy praise,
And shroud their dazzled faces.

And oh! in what abyss of love,
So fiery yet so tender,
The Holy Spirit encircles Thee
With His uncreated splendor!

O Word! O dear and gentle Word!
Thy creatures kneel before Thee,
And ecstasies of timid love
Delightedly adore Thee.

Hail choicest mystery of God!
Hail wondrous Generation!
The Father's self-sufficient rest!
The Spirit's jubilation!

Dear Person! dear beyond all words,
Glorious beyond all telling!
Oh with what songs of silent love
Our ravished hearts are swelling!

Chorus:

Oh marvelous! Oh Wonderful!
No song or sound is heard,
But everywhere and every hour,
In love, in wisdom, and in power,
The Father speaks His dear Eternal Word.

~Fredrick Faber~
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O Jesus, Jesus

O Jesus, Jesus, dearest Lord!
Forgive me if I say,
For very love, Thy sacred Name
A thousand times a day.

Refrain:

O Jesus, Lord, with me abide;
I rest in Thee, whate'er betide;
Thy gracious smile is my reward;
I love, I love Thee, Lord!

I love Thee so I know not how
My transports to control;
Thy love is like a burning fire
Within my very soul.

Burn, burn, O love, within my heart,
Burn fiercely night and day,
Till all the dross of earthly loves
Is turned, and burned away.

O light in darkness, joy in grief,
O heav'n begun on earth;
Jesus, my Love, my Treasure, who
Can tell what Thou art worth?

What limit is there to this love?
Thy flight, where will Thou stay?
On, on! our Lord is sweeter far
Today than yesterday.

~Fredrick Faber~
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Oh, come, dear Lord, and fill my heart with blessed desire for Thee. I lift my heart anticipating the shining of Thy blessed face. Amen
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Our Father which art in heaven, I come to Thee, adoring the mystery of that which is Thyself. The more I know Thee, the more I want to know Thee in all the beauty of Thy holiness. In the name of Jesus, I pray, Amen.

Hymns of Praise and Worship

The Fear of God

~Frederick Faber~

My fear of Thee, O Lord, exults
Like life within my veins,
A fear which rightly claims to be
One of love's sacred pains.

Thy goodness to Thy saints of old
An awful thing appeared;
For were Thy majesty less good
Much less would it be feared.

There is no joy the soul can meet
Upon life's various road
Like the sweet fear that sits and shrinks
Under the eye of God.

A special joy is in all love
For objects we revere;
Thus joy in God will always be
Proportioned to our fear.

Oh Thou art greatly to be feared,
Thou art so prompt to bless!
The dread to miss such love as Thine
Makes fear but love's excess.

The fullness of Thy mercy seems
To fill both land and sea;
If we can break through bounds so vast,
How exiled shall we be!

For grace is fearful, which each hour
Our path in life has crossed;
If it were rarer, it might be
Less easy to be lost.

But fear is love, and love is fear,
And in and out they move;
But fear is an intenser joy
Than mere unfrightened love.

When most I fear Thee, Lord! then most
Familiar I appear;
And I am in my soul most free,
When I am most in fear.

I should not love Thee as I do:
If love might make more free;
Its very sweetness would be lost
In greater liberty.

I feel Thee most a father, when
I fancy Thee most near:
And Thou comest not so nigh in love
As Thou comest, Lord! in fear.

They love Thee little, if at all,
Who do not fear Thee much;
If love is Thine attraction, Lord!
Fear is Thy very touch.

Love could not love Thee half so much
If it found Thee not so near;
It is Thy nearness, which makes love
The perfectness of fear.

We fear because Thou art so good,
And because we can sin;
And when we make most show of love,
We are trembling most within.

And Father! when to us in heaven
Thou shalt Thy Face unveil,
Then more than ever will our souls
Before Thy goodness quail.

Our blessedness will be to bear
The sight of Thee so near,
And thus eternal love will be
But the ecstasy of fear.
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Adoration of the Godhead

~Isaac Watts~

Eternal Power, whose high abode
Becomes the grandeur of a God:
Infinite lengths beyond the bounds
Where stars revolve their little rounds:

Thee while the first archangel sings,
He hides his face behind his wings:
And ranks of shining thrones around
Fall worshiping, and spread the ground.

Lord, what shall earth and ashes do?
We would adore our Maker too;
From sin and dust to Thee we cry,
The Great, the Holy, and the High.

Earth, from afar, hath heard Thy fame,
And worms have learned to lisp Thy Name;
But Of the glories of Thy mind
Leave all our soaring thoughts behind.

God is in heaven, and men below:
Be short our tunes; our words be few:
A solemn reverence checks our songs,
And praise sits silent on our tongues.
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The Thought of God

~Frederick Faber~

The thought of God, the thought of Thee,
Who liest in my heart,
And yet beyond imagined space
Outstretched and present art,

The thought of Thee, above, below,
Around me and within,
Is more to me than health and wealth,
Or love of kith and kin.

The thought of God is like the tree
Beneath whose shade I lie,
And watch the fleets of snowy clouds
Sail o'er the silent sky.

'Tis like that soft invading light,
Which in all darkness shines,
The thread that through life's sombre web
In golden pattern twines.

It is a thought which ever makes
Life's sweetest smiles from tears,
And is a daybreak to our hopes,
A sunset to our fears;

One while it bids the tears to flow,
Then wipes them from the eyes,
Most often fills our souls with joy,
And always sanctifies.

Within a thought so great, our souls
Little and modest grow,
And, by its vastness awed, we learn
The art of walking slow.

The wild flower on the messy ground
Scarce bends its pliant form,
When overhead the autumnal wood
Is thundering like a storm.

So is it with our humbled souls
Down in the thought of God,
Scarce conscious in their sober peace
Of the wild storms abroad.

To think of Thee is almost prayer,
And is outspoken praise;
And pain can even passive thoughts
To actual worship raise.

O Lord! I live always in pain,
My life's sad undersong,
Pain in itself not hard to bear,
But hard to bear so long.

Little sometimes weighs more than much,
When it has no relief;
A joyless life is worse to bear
Than one of active grief.

And yet, O Lord! a suffering life
One grand ascent may dare;
Penance, not self-imposed, can make
The whole of life a prayer.

All murmurs lie inside Thy Will
Which are to Thee addressed;
To suffer for Thee is our work,
To think of Thee our rest.

Hymns/Prayers of Praise and Worship

Hymns/Prayers of Praise and Worship

O Could I Speak the Matchless Worth

~Wolfgang Mozart~

O could I speak the matchless worth,
O could I sound the glories forth
Which in my Saviour shine!
I'd sing His glorious righteousness,
And magnify the wondrous grace
Which made salvation mine.

I'd sing the precious blood He split,
My ransom from the dreadful guilt of sin,
And wrath divine;
I'd sing His glorious righteousness,
In which all perfect, heavenly dress
My soul shall ever shine.

I'd sing the characters He bears,
And all the forms of love He wears,
Exalted on His throne;
In loftiest songs of sweetest praise,
I would to everlasting days
Make all His glories known.

Soon, the delightful day will come
When my dear Lord will bring me home,
And I shall see His face;
Then with my Saviour, Brother, Friend,
A blessed eternity I'll spend,
Triumphant in His grace.
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Thou Hidden Love of God

~Gerhard Tersteegen~

Thou hidden love of God, whose height,
Whose depth unfathom'd no man knows,
I see from far thy beauteous light,
Inly I sigh for thy repose;
My heart is pain'd, nor can it be
At rest, till it finds rest in thee.

Thy secret voice invites me still,
The sweetness of thy yoke to prove:
And fain I would: but tho' my will
Seem fix'd, yet wide my passions rove;
Yet hindrances strew all the way;
I aim at thee, yet from thee stray.

'Tis mercy all, that thou hast brought
My mind to seek her peace in thee;
Yet while I seek, but find thee not,
No peace my wand'ring soul shall see;
O when shall all my wand'rings end,
And all my steps to thee-ward tend!

Is there a thing beneath the sun
That strives with thee my heart to share?
Ah! tear it thence, and reign alone,
The Lord of ev'ry motion there;
Then shall my heart from earth be free,
When it hath found repose in thee.

O hide this self from me, that I
No more, but Christ in me may live;
My vile affections crucify,
Nor let one darling lust survive;
In all things nothing may I see,
Nothing desire or seek but thee.

O Love, thy sov'reign aid impart,
To save me from low-thoughted care:
Chase this self-will thro' all my heart,
Thro' all its latent mazes there:
Make me thy duteous child, that I
Ceaseless may Abba, Father, cry!

Ah no! ne'er will I backward turn:
Thine wholly, thine alone I am!
Thrice happy he who views with scorn
Earth's toys, for thee his constant flame;
O help that I may never move
From the blest footsteps of thy love!

Each moment draw from earth away
My heart that lowly waits thy call:
Speak to my inmost soul, and say,
I am thy love, thy God, thy all!
To feel thy power, to hear thy voice,
To taste thy love, be all my choice.
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The Holiness Of God

Glory be to God on high. We praise Thee, we bless Thee, we worship Thee, for Thy great glory. Lord, I uttered that I understand not, things too wonderful for me which I knew not. I heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine eye seeth Thee and I abhor myself in dust and ashes. O Lord, I will lay my hand upon my mouth. Once have I spoken, yea, twice, but I will proceed no further.
But while I was musing the fire burned. Lord, I must speak of Thee, lest by my silence I offend against the generation of Thy children. Behold, Thou has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise,and the weak things of the world to confound the mighty. O Lord, forsake me not. Let me show forth Thy strength unto this generation and Thy power to everyone that is to come. Raise up prophets and seers in Thy Church will shall magnify Thy glory and through Thine almighty Spirit restore to Thy people the knowledge of the holy. Amen
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My God, How Wonderful Thou Art

~Fredrick Faber~

My God, how wonderful Thou art,
Thy majesty, how bright;
How beautiful Thy mercy seat
In depths of burning light!

How dread are Thine eternal years,
O everlasting Lord,
By prostrate spirits day and night
Incessantly adored!

How beautiful, how beautiful,
The sight of Thee must be,
Thine endless wisdom, boundless power,
And awful purity!

O how I fear Thee, living One,
With deepest, tenderest fears,
And worship Thee with trembling hope,
And penitential tears!

Yet I may love Thee too, O Lord,
Almighty as Thou art;
For Thou hast stooped to ask of me
The love of my poor heart.

Oh then this worse than worthless heart
In pity deign to take,
And make it love Thee, for Thyself
And for Thy glory's sake.

No earthly father loves like Thee,
No mother, e'er so mild,
Bears and forbears as Thou hast done,
With me, Thy sinful child.

Only to sit and think of God,
Oh, what a joy it is!
To think the thought, to breathe the name,
Earth has no higher bliss.

Father of Jesus, love's reward!
What rapture it will be,
Prostrate before Thy throne to lie,
And gaze and gaze on Thee!
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The Sovereignty of God

Who wouldst not fear Thee, O Lord God of Hosts, most high and most terrible? For Thou art Lord alone. Thou has made heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth and all things that are therein, and in Thy hand is the soul of every living. Thou sittest king upon the flood; yea, Thou sittest king forever. Thou art a great king over all the earth. Thou art clothed with strength; honor and majesty are before Thee. Amen
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The Lord Descended From Above

~Thomas Sternhold~

[Psalm paraphrase]
The Lord descended from above,

And bowed the heavens most high,

And underneath His feet He cast

The darkness of the sky.

Oh cherubim and seraphim

Full royally He rode,

And on the wings of mighty winds

Came flying all abroad.

He sat serene upon the floods,

Their fury to restrain;

And He, as sovereign Lord and King,

For evermore shall reign.

Hymns/Prayers of Praise and Worship

The Mercy of God

Holy Father, Thy wisdom excites our admiration, Thy power fills us with fear. Thy omnipresence turns every spot of earth into holy ground; but how shall we thank Thee enough for Thy mercy which comes down to the lowest part of our need to give us beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and for the spirit of heaviness a garment of praise? We bless and magnify Thy mercy, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
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When All Thy Mercies, O My God

~Joseph Addison~

When all thy mercies, O my God,
my rising soul surveys,
transported with the view, I'm lost
in wonder, love and praise.

Unnumbered comforts to my soul
thy tender care bestowed,
before my infant heart conceived
from whom those comforts flowed.

When in the slippery paths of youth
with heedless steps I ran,
thine arm unseen conveyed me safe,
and led me up to man.

Ten thousand thousand precious gifts
my daily thanks employ,
and not the least a cheerful heart
which tastes those gifts with joy.

Through every period of my life
thy goodness I'll pursue,
and after death in distant worlds
the glorious theme renew.

Through all eternity to thee,
a joyful song I'll raise;
for O, eternity's too short
to utter all thy praise.
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O My Soul, Arise

~Charles Wesley~

Arise, my soul, arise
Shake off your guilty fears
The bleeding sacrifice
On my behalf appears
Before the throne my surety stands
Before the throne my surety stands
My name is written on His hands.

He ever lives above
For me to intercede
His all redeeming love
His precious blood to plead
His blood atoned for every race
His blood atoned for every race
And sprinkles now the throne of grace.

Chorus:
O my sou, arise
Behold the risen Christ
Your Great High Priest
Your spotless sacrifice
O my soul, arise
God owns you as His child
Shake off your guilty fears
My soul, arise

Five bleeding wounds He bears
Received on Calvary
They poor effectual prayers
They strongly plead for me:
"Forgive him, O forgive," they cry
"Forgive him, O forgive," they cry
"Don't let that ransomed sinner die!"

My God is reconciled
His pard'ning voice I hear
He owns me as His child
I can no longer fear
With confidence I now draw nigh
With confidence I now draw nigh
And "Father, Abba, Father," cry.
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The Grace of God

God of all grace, whose thoughts toward us are ever thoughts of peace and not of evil, give us hearts to believe that we are accepted in the Beloved; and give us minds to admire that perfection of moral wisdom which found a way to preserve the integrity of heaven and yet receive us there. We are astonished and marvel that one so holy and dread should invite us into Thy banqueting house and cause love to be the banner over us. We cannot express the gratitude we feel, but look Thou on our hearts and read it there. Amen
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Return, O Wanderer, Return

~William Bengo Collyer~

Return, O wanderer, return,
And seek an injured Father's face;
Those warm desires that in thee burn
Were kindled by reclaiming grace.

Return, O wanderer, return
And seek a Father's melting heart;
His pitying eyes thy grief discern,
His hand can heal thy inward smart.

Return, O wanderer, return;
Thy Saviour bids thy spirit live.
Go to His bleeding feet and learn
How freely Jesus can forgive.

Return, O wanderer, return
And wipe away the falling tear;
'Tis God who says, "No longer mourn;"
'Tis merc'y voice invites thee near.

Amen
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The Eternal Father

~Fredrick William Faber~

Father! the sweetest, dearest Name that 
men or angels know!
Fountain of life, that had no fount
From which itself could flow!

Hymns/quotes/Prayers of Praise and Worship

Hymns/Quotes/Prayers of Praise and Worship

The Faithfulness of God

It is a good thing to give thanks unto Thee and to sing praises unto Thy name, O Most High, to show forth Thy loving-kindness in the morning and Thy faithfulness every night. As Thy Son while on earth was loyal to Thee, His Heavenly Father, so now in heaven He is faithful to us. His earthly brethren; and in this knowledge we press on with every confident hope for all the years and centuries yet to come. Amen
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I'll Praise My Maker

~Isaac Watts~

[John Wesley gave out this hymn just before preaching for the last time in City Road Chapel, Tuesday evening, February 22, 1791. The following Monday afternoon, though very ill, he amazed the friends at his bedside by singing the hymn throughout in a strong voice. The next night, his biographer, Tyermann, tells us, he tried scores of times to repeat the hymn, but could only say, "I'll praise - I'll praise -" And with praise for His Maker on his lips and in his heart he passed to that life where "immortality endures."]

I'll praise my Maker while I've breath,
And when my voice is lost in death,
Praise shall employ my nobler powers;
My days of praise shall ne'er be past,
While life, and thought, and being last,
Or immortality endures.

Why should I make a man my trust?
Princes must die and turn to dust;
Vain is the help of flesh and blood:
Their breath departs, their pomp, and power,
And thoughts, all vanish in an hour,
Nor can they make their promise good.

Happy the man whose hopes rely
On Israel's God: He made the sky,
And earth, and seas, with all their train:
His truth for ever stands secure;
He saves th' oppressed, He feeds the poor,
And none shall find His promise vain.

The Lord has eyes to give the blind;
The Lord supports the sinking mind;
He sends the labr'ing conscience peace;
He helps the stranger in distress,
The widow, and the fatherless,
And grants the pris'ner sweet release.

He loves His saints, He knows them well,
But turns the wicked down to hell;
Thy God, O Zion! ever reigns:
Let every tongue, let every age,
In this exalted work engage:
Praise Him in everlasting strains.

I'll praise Him while He lends me breath,
And when my voice is lost in death,
Praise shall employ my nobler powers;
My days of praise shall ne'er be past,
While life, and thought, and being last,
Or immortality endures.
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The Goodness of God

Do good in Thy good pleasure unto us, O Lord. Act toward us not as we deserve, but as it becomes Thee, being the God Thou art. So shall we have nothing to fear in this world or in that which is to come. Amen
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O God, My Hope, My Heavenly Rest

~Charles Wesley~

O God, my hope, my heavenly rest, 
My all of happiness below,
Grant my importunate request,
To me, to me, thy goodness show;
Thy beatific face display,
The brightness of eternal day.

Before my faith's enlightened eyes
Make Thy gracious goodness pass;
Thy goodness is the sight I prize,
O might I see Thy smiling face!
Thy nature in my soul proclaim,
Reveal Thy love, Thy glorious name!

There, in the place beside Thy throne,
Where all that find acceptance stand,
Receive me up into Thy Son;
Cover me with Thy mighty hand;
Set me upon the rock, 
And hide my soul in Jesus' wounded side.

Put me in the cleft;
Empower my soul the glorious sight to bear!
Descend in this accepted hour,
Pass by me, and thy name declare;
Thy wrath withdraw, Thy hand remove,
And show Thy self the God of love.
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The Justice of God

Our Father, we love Thee for Thy justice. We acknowledge that Thy judgments are true and righteous altogether. Thy justice upholds the order of the universe and guarantees the safety of all who put their trust in Thee. We live because Thou art just - and merciful. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, righteous in all Thy ways and holy in all Thy works. Amen
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Jesus, Thy Blood and Righteousness

~Nicolaus Ludwig, Graf von Zinzendorf~

Jesus, Thy blood and righteousness
My beauty are, my glorious dress;
Midst flaming worlds, in these arrayed,
With joy shall I lift up my head.

Bold shall I stand in that great day,
Cleansed and redeemed, no debt to pay;
Fully absolved through these I am
From sin and fear, from guilt and shame.

Lord, I believe Thy precious blood,
Which at the mercy seat of God
Pleads for the captives' liberty,
Was also shed in love for me.

Lord, I believe were sinners more
Than sands upon the ocean shore,
Thou hast for all a ransom paid,
For all a full atonement made.

When from the dust of death I rise
To claim my mansion in the skies,
This then shall be my only plea;
Jesus hath lived and died for me.

Jesus, be endless praise to Thee,
Whose boundless mercy hath for me,
For me, and all Thy hands have made,
An everlasting ransom paid.

Hymns/Poems of Praise and Worship

Yearning for Purity of Heart

I Thirst, Thou Wounded Lamb of God

~John Wesley~

I thirst, Thou wounded Lamb of God,
To wash me in Thy cleansing blood;
To dwell within Thy wounds; then pain
Is sweet, and life or death is gain.

Take my poor heart, and let it be
Forever closed to all but Thee:
Seal Thou my breast,and let me wear
That pledge of love forever there.

How blest are they who still abide
Close shelter'd in Thy bleeding side!
Who thence their life and strength derive,
And by Thee move, and in Thee live.

What are our works but sin and death,
Till Thou Thy quick'ning Spirit breathe?
Thou giv'st the power Thy grace to move;
O wondrous grace! O boundless love!

How can it be, Thou heavenly King,
That Thou shouldst us to glory bring;
Make slaves the partners of Thy throne,
Deck'd with a never-fading crown?

Hence our hearts melt, our eyes o'erflow,
Our words are lost, nor will we know,
Nor will we think of aught beside,
My Lord, my Love is crucified.
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Jesus, Thine All-victorious Love

~Charles Wesley~

Jesus, thine all-victorious love
Shed in my heart abroad:
Then shall my feet no longer rove,
Rooted and fix'd in God.

O that in me the sacred fire
Might now begin to glow;
Burn up the dress of base desire,
And make the mountains flow.

O that it now from heaven might fall,
And all my sins consume:
Come, Holy Ghost, for Thee I call;
Spirit of burning, come.

Refining fire, go through my heart;
Illuminate my soul;
Scatter Thy life through every part,
And sanctify the whole.

My steadfast soul, from falling free,
Shall then no longer move;
While Christ is all the world to me,
And all my heart of love.
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Self-Love

~Fredrick Faber~

Oh, I could go through all life's troubles singing,
Turning earth's night to day,
If self were not so fast around me, clinging
To all I do or say.

My very thoughts are selfish, always building
Mean castles in the air;
I use my love of others for a gilding
To make myself look fair.

I fancy all the world engrossed with judging
My merit or my blame;
Its warmest praise seems an ungracious grudging
Of praise which I might claim.

In youth or age, by city, wood, or mountain,
Self is forgotten never;
Where'er we tread, it gushes like a fountain,
And its waters flow for ever.

Alas! no speed in life can snatch us wholly
Out of self's hateful sight;
And it keeps step, whene'er we travel slowly,
And sleeps with us at night.

No grief's sharp knife, no pain's most cruel sawing
Self and the soul can sever:
The surface, that in joy sometimes seems thawing,
Soon freezes worse than ever.

Thus we  are never men, self's wretched swathing
Not letting virtue swell;
Thus is our whole life numbed,for ever bathing
Within this frozen well.

O miserable omnipresence, stretching
Over all time and space,
How have I run from thee, yet found thee reaching 
The goal in every race.

Invitable self! vile imitation
Of universal light,
Within our hearts a dreadful usurpation
Of God's exclusive right!

The opiate balms of grace may haply still thee,
Deep in my nature lying;
For I may hardly hope, alas! to kill thee,
Save by the act of dying.

O Lord! that I could waste my life for others,
With no ends of my own,
That I could pour myself into my brothers,
And live for them alone!

Such was the life Thou livedst, self-abjuring,
Thine own pains never easing,
Our burdens bearing, our just doom enduring,
A life without self-pleasing!
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Father, glorify Thy name! Whatso'er our Portion Be

~John Bowring~

Father! glorify Thy name!
Whatso'er our portion be,
Wheresoever led by Thee,
If to glory, - if to shame, -
Father! glorify Thy name!

Let Thy name be glorified!
If in doubt and darkness lost,
Hope deceived and purpose crost,
Naught amiss can e'er betide, -
Let Thy name be glorified!

Father! glorify Thy name!
Vain and blind our wishes are;
This can be no idle prayer,
This can be no worthless claim, -
Father, glorify Thy name!
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Clay to Clay, and Dust to Dust

~John Bowring~

Clay to clay, and dust to dust!
Let them mingle, - for they must!
Give to earth the earthly clod,
For the spirit's fled to God.

Never more shall midnight's damp
Darken round this mortal lamp;
Never more shall noonday's glance
Search this mortal countenance.

Look aloft! The spirit's risen;
Death cannot the soul imprison:
'Tis in heaven that spirits dwell,
Glorious, though invisible.

Thither let us turn our view;
Peace is there, and comfort too;
There shall those we love be found,
Tracing life's eternal round.

Hymns/Poems/quotes of Praise and Worship

My God, How Wonderful Thou Art

~Fredrick Faber~

My God, how wonderful Thou art,
Thy majesty, how bright;
How beautiful Thy mercy seat
In depths of burning light!

How dread are Thine eternal years,
O everlasting Lord,
By prostrate spirits day and night
Incessantly adored!

How beautiful, how beautiful,
The sight of Thee must be,
Thine endless wisdom, boundless power,
And awful purity!

O how I fear Thee, living One,
With deepest, tenderest fears,
And worship Thee with trembling hope,
And penitential tears!

Yet I may love Thee too, O Lord,
Almighty as Thou Art;
For Thou hast stooped to ask of me
The love of my poor heart.

Oh then this worse than worthless heart
In pity deign to take,
And make it love Thee, for Thyself
And for Thy glory's sake.

No earthly father loves like Thee,
No mother, e'er so mild,
Bears and forbears as Thou hast done,
With me, Thy sinful child.

Only to sit and think of God,
Oh, what a joy it is!
To think the thought, to breathe the name,
Earth has no higher bliss.
Father of Jesus, love's reward!
What rapture it will be,
Prostrate before Thy throne to lie,
And gaze and gaze on Thee!
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Father! The sweetest, dearest Name

~Fredrick Faber~

Father! The sweetest, dearest Name
That men or angels know!
Fountain of life, that had no fount
From which itself could flow!

When heaven and earth were yet unmade,
When time was yet unknown,
Thou in Thy bliss and majesty
Did'st live and love alone.

Thy vastness is not young or old;
Thy life hath never grown;
No time can measure out Thy days,
No space can make Thy throne.
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God of All Being, Throned Afar

~Oliver Wendell Holmes~

Lord of all being, throned afar,
Thy glory flames from sun and star;
Center and soul of every sphere,
Yet to each heart how near!

Sun of our life, Thy quickening ray
sheds on our path the glow of day;
Star of our hope, Thy softened light
cheers the long watches of the night.

Our midnight is Thy smile withdrawn,
our noontide is Thy gracious dawn,
our rainbow arch Thy mercy's sign;
all, save the clouds of sin, are Thine.

Lord of all life, below, above,
whose light is truth, whose warmth is love,
before Thy ever-blazing throne
we ask no luster of our own.

Grant us Thy truth to make us free,
and kindling hearts that burn for Thee,
till all Thy altars claim
one holy light, one heavenly flame.
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The Unity of God

~Fredrick Faber~

One God! one Majesty!
There is no God but Thee!
Unbounded, unextended Unity!

Awful in unity,
O God! we worship Thee
More simply one, because supremely Three!

Dread, unbeginning One!
Single, yet not alone,
Creation hath not set Thee on a higher throne.
Unfathomable Sea!
All life is out of Thee,
And Thy life is Thy blissful Unity.

All things that from Thee run,
All works that Thou hast done,
Thou didst in honor of Thy being One.

And by Thy being One,
Ever by that alone,
Couldst Thou do, and doest, what Thou hast done.

We from Thy oneness come,
Beyond it cannot roam,
And in Thy oneness find our one eternal home.

Blest be Thy Unity!
All joys are one to me,
The joy that there can be no other God than Thee!
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Majesty Divine!

~Fredrick Faber~

Full of glory, full of wonders,
Majesty Divine!
Mid Thine everlasting thunders
How Thy lightenings shine!
Shoreless Ocean! who shall sound Thee?
Thine own eternity is round Thee,
Majesty Divine!

Timeless, spaceless, single, lonely,
Yet sublimely Three,
Thou art grandly, always, only
God in Unity!
Lone in grandeur, lone in glory,
Who shall tell Thy wondrous story,
Awful Trinity?

Speechlessly, without beginning, 
Sun that never rose!
Vast, adorable, and winning,
Day that hath no close!
Bliss from Thine own glory tasting,
Everlasting, everlasting,
Life that never grows!

Thine own Self for ever filling
With self-kindled flame,
In Thyself Thou art distilling
Unctions without name!
Without worshiping of creatures
Without veiling of Thy features,
God always the same!

In Thy praise of Self untiring
Thy perfections shine;
Self-sufficient, self-admiring,
Such life must be Thine;
Glorifying Self, yet blameless
With a sanctity all shameless
It is so divine!

'Mid Thine uncreated morning,
Like a trembling star
I behold creation's dawning
Glimmering from afar;
Nothing giving, nothing taking,
Nothing changing, nothing breaking,
Waiting at time's bar!

With life and love diurnal
See myself in Thee,
All embalmed in love eternal,
Floating in Thy sea:
'Mid Thine uncreated whiteness
I behold Thy glory's brightness
Feed itself on me.

Splendors upon splendors beaming
Change and intertwine;
Glories over glories streaming
All translucent shine!
Blessings, praises adorations
Greet Thee from the trembling nations
Majesty Divine!
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