Hymns Supplied Through the Gracious Generosity
of the Cyber Hymnal Website
Words: John Greenleaf Whittier, in the Atlantic Monthly, April 1872.
The words are from a long, narrative poem, "The Brewing of Soma." It describes Vedic priests going into the forest and drinking themselves into a stupor with a concoction called "soma." They try to have a religious experience and contact the spirit world. It is after setting that scene that Whittier draws his lesson: "Dear Lord, and Father of mankind, forgive our foolish ways…" This hymn is as relevant today as when it was written. In a modern context, it speaks to the drug culture, and all those looking for an "experience" to prove the reality of God.
Music: "Rest (Maker)," Frederick Charles Maker, 1887
Dear Lord and Father of mankind,
Forgive our foolish ways;
Reclothe us in our rightful mind,
In purer lives Thy service find,
In deeper reverence, praise.
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.
O Sabbath rest by Galilee,
O calm of hills above,
Where Jesus knelt to share with Thee
The silence of eternity,
Interpreted by love!
With that deep hush subduing all
Our words and works that drown
The tender whisper of Thy call,
As noiseless let Thy blessing fall
As fell Thy manna down.
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.
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.
The Blue Letter Bible ministry and the BLB Institute hold to the historical, conservative Christian faith, which includes a firm belief in the inerrancy of Scripture. Since the text and audio content provided by BLB represent a range of evangelical traditions, all of the ideas and principles conveyed in the resource materials are not necessarily affirmed, in total, by this ministry.
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