Spirit of God, descend upon my heart;
Wean it from earth; through all its pulses move;
Stoop to my weakness, mighty as Thou art,
And make me love Thee as I ought to love.
I ask no dream, no prophet ecstasies,
No sudden rending of the veil of clay,
No angel visitant, no op’ning skies;
But take the dimness of my soul away.
Teach me to feel that Thou art always nigh;
Teach me the struggles of the soul to bear,
To check the rising doubt, the rebel sigh;
Teach me the patience of unceasing prayer.
Teach me to love Thee as Thine angels love,
One holy passion filling all my frame;
The kindling of the heaven descended Dove,
My heart an altar, and Thy love the flame.
George Croly, 1854
Read Galatians 5:22-26
(What an earnest, fervent prayer for the Holy Spirit to work in and through us. The second stanza of “Spirit of God, Descend upon My Heart” especially strikes me. How often do we look for, ask for the great and miraculous, when what we need most is our own illumination? Holy Spirit, take away the dimness of my own soul.)
Read more: Jesus, Lover of My Soul