Dear Lord and Father of Mankind (LBW 506, focus on verse 4)
1 Dear Lord and Father of mankind,
Forgive our fev’rish ways;
Reclothe us in our rightful mind;
In purer lives thy service find,
In deeper rev’rence, praise.
2 In simple trust like theirs who heard,
Beside the Syrian sea,
The gracious calling of the Lord,
Let us, like them, without a word
Rise up and follow thee.
3 Oh, Sabbath rest by Galilee,
Oh, calm of hills above;
Where Jesus knelt to share with thee
The silence of eternity,
Interpreted by love!
4 Drop thy still dews of quietness,
Till all our strivings cease;
Take from our souls the strain and stress,
And let our ordered lives confess
The beauty of thy peace.
5 Breathe through the heats of our desire
Thy coolness and thy balm;
Let sense be dumb, let flesh retire;
Speak through the earthquake, wind, and fire,
O still small voice of calm!
Devotion
It is a challenge to find moments and places of stillness and peace. In my retirement, I have found one such place to be the nearby indoor pool. I am not a great swimmer, but as I move through the water, I can imagine myself enveloped in baptismal waters of grace and love as I am buoyed up and warmed by the 83 degree pool water.
The hymn writer speaks of God’s dew drops of quietness. Whatever image of water you may choose, let it help you to sense the promise that we need not strive for happiness or success or security. Instead, we can trust in God to buoy us up and sprinkle us with surprising grace. May we say with Dag Hammarskjold “For all that has been, thanks. For all that will be, Yes.”
Prayer
God of peace, take from us the strain and stress of this day and fill us with the beauty of your peace. For all that has been, thanks. For all that will be, Yes! Amen.