Take My Life, that I May Be (ELW 685)
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 they 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
Take…Take…Take…. Living in an “I want more world,” those words can conjure up images of people doing all they can to satisfy their desires for power, prestige, possessions, and pleasures. Peer pressure, commercials, and social media popups bombard us with images of what the world thinks it means to be fulfilled. Getting slowly and imperceptibly worn down by the constant pressure, we might begin to wonder, “Why shouldn’t I…? God wants me to be happy.” Sadly, this misses the point of the gospel: that God is on a relentless pursuit to bring humanity into God’s presence forever. God wants us to be satisfied and fulfilled, not with what the world deems important, but in communion with God. Our hymn for this week transforms the concept of taking into giving. Rather than taking for ourselves, we give of ourselves to commune with God and to care for all God loves.
Prayer
“Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart; naught be all else to me, save that thou art: thou my best thought both by day and by night, waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.” In the name of our Triune God. Amen. (Text: Irish, 8th cent)