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!
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!
~John Greenleaf Whittier, “Dear Lord and Father of Mankind”
Have I told you lately how grateful I am to meet here with you each week?
In the stillness,
Sandy
Welcome to the Still Saturday Community where we pause after a busy week, move in quiet pilgrimage, maybe linger a while in some still place, and soak in the beauty of images and reflect on the depth of sparse words. We’d love for you to join us. Grab the button and link up below. We all love to hear if something especially speaks to your heart, but please don’t feel pressured to comment. Simply take some time to be still together, to gaze long and drink deep.
“let our ordered lives confess the beauty of thy peace”…oh, how I want that!
Me, too!
Beautiful.
It’s a hymn/poem to soak in, yes?
As I read this beautiful poem/song, I began to feel the peace this morning. I have been doing laundry and the many Saturday chores, yet I am held in His arms right now and want to stay here a while.
I am going to read it again. Thanks for sharing.
Caring through Christ, ~ linda
I needed to come back and read it again… it’s been a crazy week. 🙂
Soaking this up this morning!
🙂 🙂
Oh Sandy, this is one of my all-time favorite hymns, and I have it memorized. And I love the poetry of Whittier. I just heard Elisabeth Elliot quote this on Gateway to Joy two days ago, so it is a lovely re-emphasis here. It speaks to me on so many levels, and as you and I go through a decluttering stage, I’m sure it speaks to you (as it does me) about order and calm and the beauty of that. It also speaks to me of calling. And I am struggling with that righ tnow. Oh, that I could just rise up and follow Him effortlessly (meaning willingly) wherever He leads!
thank you dear one.
Love
Lynn
So we’ve heard holy echoes this week? 😉
I can’t wait to reach that stage where I feel calm and order again. Praying for you, sweet friend, as you go through this stage with me and as you seek to hear and lean into His calling. xo
This is simple beautiful, Sandra. It exudes peace. Hope you are having a wonderful Saturday, my beautiful friend. xox
So I’m just getting back here to reply to comments. It was a busy Saturday–all day at a cheer competition. I don’t know where the week went. 🙂
Beautiful poem and photos! Thanks for hosting & God bless!
Bless you, Laurie. You are a faithful friend.
Thank you so much, Sandra, for sharing these beautiful photos and words full of truth.
Loved this part:
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.
Oh, that we would rise up and follow him in simple trust!
Blessings to you and yours.
Oh yes. I’m with you on that, Heather.
This is just beautiful. But this right here —> “speak through the earthquake, wind, and fire,
O still, small voice of calm!” So very grateful He speaks through whatever may come our way! May you be blessed in a special way today!
I hope you’ve had a beautiful week, Joanne… and that you’ve heard him in the noise and the silence.
“take from our souls the strain and stress” yes! I always find peace here, thank you, Sandy. You are appreciated! Blessings
Thanks so much, June. And I appreciate you!
The lines of that first photo are so beautiful. Lovely encouragement as always! Thanks Sandra.
Sometimes wind and storm can also create beauty, yes? Thanks, Jason.
I’m soaking in this. Thank you, Sandy, for this post. And this place. I’m grateful for you! xoxoxo
Love you big, Sheila.