Take My Life That I May Be, ELW 685 & LBW 406
1 Take my life, that I may be
consecrated, Lord, to thee;
take my moments and my days;
let them flow in ceaseless praise.
2 Take my hands and let them move
at the impulse of thy love;
take my feet and let them be
swift and beautiful for thee.
3 Take my voice and let me sing
always, only, for my King;
take my lips and let them be
filled with messages from thee.
4 Take my silver and my gold,
not a mite would I withhold;
take my intellect, and use
ev’ry pow’r as thou shalt choose.
5 Take my will and make it thine;
it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart, it is thine own;
it shall be thy royal throne.
6 Take my love; my Lord, I pour
at thy feet its treasure store;
take myself, and I will be
ever, only, all for thee.
Devotion
Hearing anew. Perhaps I am like some of you, having been raised in a Lutheran congregation offering hymnody each week in its complexity and grandeur, splendor and piety. I was fortunate enough to have a well-trained church musician on staff that co-facilitated worship each week with earnest sincerity and meticulous dexterity. I was lucky. It was important in the nurturing of my faith. Also, perhaps like many of you, I have a short list of personal hymn favorites, those that I wouldn’t mind if they were played at my funeral. “Take My Life That I May Be” is on that list. My chaplain colleague’s (Rev. Bill Dexheimer Pharris) passion put to work with this hymn helped me hear these sacred words of commitment anew. He wed a different tune with this familiar and meaningful text which elevated its significance and became an influence for me.
Prayer
As the Resonator and Timbre of Our Souls, may the gift of music and sacred text enable us to hear your message anew. Amen.