Invocation of our Father's Presence.
1 O FATHER,- draw us after thee!
So shall we run and never tire;
Thy presence still our comfort be,
Our hope, our joy, our sole desire;
Thy spirit grant;- for neither fear
Nor sin can come, while that is here.
2 From all eternity, with love
Unchangeable, thou hast us viewed;
Before these beating hearts did move,
Thy tender mercies us pursued:
Ever with us may they abide,
And close us in on every side.
3 In suffering be thy love our peace;
In weakness be thy love our power;
And when the storms of life shall cease,
O God! in that important hour,
In death as life be thou our guide,
And bear us through death's whelming tide.
Invocation to Divine Love.
1 LOVE divine, all love excelling,
Joy of heaven, to earth come down!
Fix in us thy humble dwelling,
All thy faithful mercies crown.
Father! thou art all compassion,
Pure, unbounded love thou art;
Visit us with thy salvation,
Enter every longing heart.
2 Breathe, O breathe thy loving spirit
Into every troubled breast;
Let us all in thee inherit,
Let us find thy promised rest.
Come, almighty to deliver,
Let us all thy life receive;
Graciously come down, and never,
Never more thy temples leave.
Rejoicing in Divine Love.
1 O LOVE, thou fathomless abyss !
Our sins are swallowed up in thee;-
From all our past unrighteousness
And condemnation we are free;
While Jesus' voice, through earth and skies,
Mercy-free, boundless mercy - cries.
2 In faith we cast our souls on thee!
Here is our hope, our joy, our rest;
Hither, when fears assail, we flee:
We look into our Savior's breast.
Away, sad doubts and anxious fear,-
Mercy is all that's written there!
3 Though waves and storms go o'er our head, Though strength, and health, and friends' be
Though joys be withered all, and dead, —
Though every comfort be withdrawn,-
Steadfast on this our soul relies,
Father, thy mercy never dies!
4 Fixed on this ground would we remain,
Though our heart fail, and flesh decay;
This anchor shall our soul sustain,
When earth's foundations melt away;
Mercy's full power we then shall prove,
Loved with an everlasting love.
Invocation of the Divine Spirit.
1 COME, holy Spirit, heavenly Dove,
With all thy quickening powers,
Kindle a flame of sacred love
In these cold hearts of ours.
2 Look, how we grovel here below,
Fond of these trifling toys;
Our souls can neither fly nor go
To reach eternal joys.
3 In vain we tune our formal songs,
In vain we strive to rise;
Hosannas languish on our tongues,
And our devotion dies.
4 Dear Lord! and shall we ever live
At this poor dying rate?
Our love so faint, so cold to thee,
And thine to us so great?
5 Come, holy Spirit, heavenly Dove,
With all thy quickening powers,
Come, shed abroad a Savior's love,
And that shall kindle ours.
1 ETERNAL Spirit, source of light,
Enlivening, consecrating fire!
Descend, and, with celestial heat,
Our dull, our frozen hearts inspire;
Our souls refine, our dross consume;
Come, condescending Spirit, come!
2 In our cold breasts, O, strike a spark
Of that pure flame which seraphs feel;
Nor let us wander in the dark,
Or lie benumbed and stupid still.
Come, vivifying Spirit, come!
And make our hearts thy constant home.
3 Let pure devotion's fervors rise!
Let every pious passion glow!
O let the raptures of the skies
Kindle in our cold hearts below.
Come, purifying Spirit, come,
And make our souls thy constant home!
Prayer for the Saving Graces.
1.WE'RE in a world of hopes and fears,A wilderness of toils and tears,
Where foes alarm, and dangers threat,
And pleasures kill, and glories cheat.
2 Shed down, O Lord, a heavenly ray,
To guide us in the doubtful way;
And o'er us hold thy shield of power,
To guard us in the dangerous hour.
3 Teach us the flattering path to shun,
In which the thoughtless many run;
Who for a shade the substance miss,
And grasp their ruin for their bliss.
4 Each sacred principle impart :
The faith that sanctifies the heart;
Hope that to endless life aspires;
And love that warms with holy fires.
5. Let neither pleasure, wealth, nor pride
Allure our wandering souls aside;
But, through this maze of mortal ill,
Safe lead us to thy heavenly hill.
6 There glories shine and pleasures roll, That charm, delight, transport the soul; And every panting wish shall be Possessed of boundless bliss in thee.
1 WHAT shall we ask of God in prayer?
Whatever good we want;
Whatever man may seek to share,
Or God in wisdom grant.
2 Father of all our mercies,
In whom we move and live,
Hear us in heaven, thy dwelling, now,
And answer, and forgive.
3 When, harassed by ten thousand foes,
Our helplessness we feel,
O give the weary soul repose,
The wounded spirit heal.
4 When dire temptations gather round,
And threaten or allure,
By storm or calm, in thee be found
A refuge strong and sure.
5 When age advances, may we grow
In faith, in hope and love;
And walk in holiness below
To holiness above.
6 When earthly joys and cares depart,
Desire and envy cease,
Be thou the portion of our heart, —
In thee may we have peace.
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