Be Thou My Vision (ELW 793)
1 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.
2 Be thou my wisdom, and thou my true word;
I ever with thee and thou with me, Lord.
Thou my soul’s shelter, and thou my high tow’r,
raise thou me heav’nward, O Pow’r of my pow’r.
3 Riches I heed not, nor vain, empty praise,
thou mine inheritance, now and always:
thou and thou only, the first in my heart,
great God of heaven, my treasure thou art.
4 Light of my soul, after victory won,
may I reach heaven’s joys, O heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
still be my vision, O Ruler of all.
Devotion
In a time of such weariness and exhaustion, it can be challenging to make space to reflect on God’s blessings. The first and foremost blessing we have been given is the love of Jesus our Savior. Loving Jesus means following him, but following Jesus is rarely easy. Jesus often leads us to places and into situations that challenge and provoke us.
As we sing the prayerful first verse of “Be Thou My Vision,” we are asking Jesus to be first in our hearts and minds as we step out into the world each day. When we find ourselves in situations for which we don’t feel prepared, the presence of Jesus is there to serve as our guiding light. We won’t always get it right, but we can never lose the love of God in Christ Jesus and that love will enable us to try again.
Prayer
Lord of our hearts, be the vision of our church. We pray that the time and effort we invest into a life of ministry in your name will help others see and know your guiding and constant presence. Amen.