Category: Love

Lord in you we find a welcome

Lord in you we find a welcome

That surpasses human warmth,

In the family of Jesus

Everyone can find their worth.

Here the silent unconnected

Find a melody and song,

Here the lonely and neglected

Find a place where they belong.

Lord in you we find such friendship

That surpasses human ties.

There’s a deep and sacred union

Held by love that never dies.

Harmony that’s born in heaven

Lives on earth in you and me

As we share the love of Jesus

In our Father’s family.

Lord in you we find protection

That surpasses human might,

In the darkness of division

Shines your unifying light.

There is safety in our numbers

And the love that now draws near

Like a golden chain of virtue

Holds us safe and drives out fear.

Lord in you we find a future

That outshines our wildest dreams

For together we are stronger

Than the devil’s darkest schemes.

And no power on earth or heaven

Can destroy or tear apart

This great love we find in Jesus

That unites us heart in heart.

Andrew J.Bale

His Prescence

In the secret of Thy presence,
Where the pure in heart may dwell,
Are the springs of sacred service
And a power that none can tell.
There my love must bring its offering,
There my heart must yield its praise,
And the Lord will come, revealing
All the secrets of His ways.

In the secret of Thy presence,
In the hiding of Thy power,
Let me love Thee, let me serve Thee,
Every consecrated hour.

More than all my lips may utter,
More than all I do or bring,
Is the depth of my devotion
To my Saviour, Lord and King.
Nothing less will keep me tender;
Nothing less will keep me true;
Nothing less will keep the fragrance
And the bloom on all I do!

Blessèd Lord, to see Thee truly,
Then to tell as I have seen –
This shall rule my life supremely;
This shall be the sacred gleam.
Sealed again is all the sealing,
Pledged again my willing heart,
First to know Thee, then to serve Thee,
Then to see Thee as Thou art.

general_albert_orsborn

How we all need to spend time being quiet and still in the Lord’s presence! This beautiful devotional song was written in 1920 by Albert Orsborn, the Salvation Army’s “Poet General”. He had been asked to write a song for a series of officers’ councils, but only made a start after the first session! For such a prolific hymnwriter, apparently the task would not be difficult! Orsborn is quoted as saying: “At about 5:30 (in the morning) I awoke with a very real sense of a Presence quite near me. Then slowly, but easily, these verses and the chorus came into my mind. All I had to do was to catch the inspiration and write down the words…by candlelight.” The song was used that evening but not published until 1923.

Love, Divine Forgiveness

The love that pours out on a cross,

Is love that wears the greatest cost.

Such love endures, forgiving all,

All sin, all pain, to death and fall.

Forgiven to the uttermost,

Though nails I’ve hit, to bloodied post.

My mountain weight of sin dissolved,

Though God I killed, I was involved.

So now I must forgive complete,

Account no wrongs, ’til death repeat,

And pour out like He did for me,

In love that costs, and sets me free.

This love, this love! Completes the law!

Forgiving love so rich to pour!

I lay down pride, my vanity,

Let go offense, sweet liberty!

And pour out love on every soul

Release the hurts, the love waves roll

For my eyes they are fixed on Him!

Who loved and freed me from my sin.

By Lisa Lawlor

To Serve

In you my God, so true and tender

I know my life is but to serve,

Within your light of glorious splendor

The path is lit and well preserved

Within your love is safe abiding

Far away from every tear

Sacred words gently entreating

Lest I forget that you are here

You banish every self made sorrow

Every anxious thought and care

Your message rises up before me

Now I see it everywhere

Joseph McTaggart

A Christian’s Heart

A Christian’s heart is like a flower

Where there is always room

For every lovely seed from God

Comes to perfect bloom

A Christian’s heart is like a Church

A room of peace and Love

Where Angels make their presence felt

With ideas from above

A Christian’s heart is like a fort

Of mighty rugged stone

Where sayings kept of our dear Lord

Rest upon its throne

A Christian’s heart is like a star

Reflecting light from God

Shining brightly in the night

On pathways deeply trod

A Christian’s heart is broken still

So God can build anew

A pathway closer to himself

Of purity and truth

A Christian’s Heart beats larger

When love is given free

Without condition or distrust

Our Hearts light up with glee

Joseph McTaggart

Psalm 137. By the Rivers of Babylon.

Deep within our mortal minds

We hear her gentle stream

Battles fought ravished by time

Reflect her gentle beams

Starry nights and sun-filled days

Upon her granite poised

Where Prophets prayed upon her banks

O´er shadowed now with noise.

Yet peace she brings with every stone

Where faltering birds do nest

And otters with their children come

To take their peace and rest.

In her divine appointed flow

Good leaves no saddened thoughts

For change is named upon her brow

With no heightened sense of loss.

And by her banks sweet angels flow

Attending to their wards

While we wait, there comes sad moods

With only darker thoughts.

Yet sweet repose and Love are here

For all who hear her song

Far away from bills to pay

And every sense of wrong.

Her gentle flowing higher streams

Do guide us in our thoughts

to a peaceful place of mind

flowing o´er the darker rocks.

Tis good for us to stop and hear

Her gentle peaceful flow

While Angels pass with quieter thoughts

Allowing us to grow.

Joseph McTaggart

The River Clyde

Once a hub of Irish People

Bustling, working on the Clyde

Building ships in ageing dockyards

Lost within long ravished times

And came the gentle touch of Father

With His voice so calm and still

“Trust always the Love of My Son”

“Look always to do his will”.

Powered by Love for food and shelter

To feed displaced families

Faithful tribes of Irish workers

He called to trust with dignity

Deep within the calming waters

Comes new light which shines on man

Of a deeper profound calling

To keep the Faith and take a stand

Now with waters largely silent

Contemplation draws us near

entreating all the generations

To keep our Faith and hold it dear

Blessed Father ever hear us

Protect us just like those gone by

And like our fathers with their calling

Let us ne’er our faith deny.

Joseph McTaggart

Wings of an Angel

Photo by Mario Wallner on Pexels.com

The Saviour’s Love is all embracing,

Give our thoughts to Him above,

His Angels come to lift us higher,

To the Throne of Grace and Love

Gently resting on those feathers,

In the warmth of their embrace,

Rising up our minds from shadows,

To a place of ever Faith.

Like a swan who treads the river,

With her babes not far behind,

A group of Angels soaring upwards,

To raise the thoughts of all mankind.

Yet still within the bliss we protest,

Mistaking pain for downward flight,

Still each thorn it sends us soaring,

Like a child with upward kite

O blessed Angels pointing skyward

Are Life’s tests which come from thee,

Taking us forever higher,

Rising upward by decree.

Without the pain we cannot reach him,

However long? We cannot say,

Long slender fingers promise heaven,

But first our sins must die away.

White robed figures swirl around us,

E’er mistaken for a curse

Rising upward nearing Heaven,

Always better never worse.

When you feel that Life is scourging

Rejoice an Angel does draw near,

Surrender to the journey upwards,

Old beliefs will die with tears.

James McTaggert

Loving Father walk with me

O loving Father walk with me

Across thy mountain way

Through the trees and thorny paths

From dawn to dusk each day

Help me heal my stubborn pride

Let my mind be still

Bind my own self righteousness

And let me do Thy will

When I err from Thy sweet path

The night comes dark and cold

Hold me in Thy mantle close

And Lead me to Thy fold

And when the storms and mists come down

With all their promised dreams

Keep me on the rugged road

However fair they seem

Teach me to love Thy footpath long

And those I chance to see

Let me follow and rejoice

And greet each one with glee.

J.McTaggert