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Be Thou My Vision Lyrics
Be Thou My Vision
Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart,
Naught be all else to me, save that
thou art. Thou my best thought, by day or by night.
Waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.
Be though my wisdom, and thou my true word.
I ever with thee and thou with me, Lord.
Thou my greatFather, and I thy true son.
Thou in me dwelling and I with thee one.
Riches I heed not, nor vain, empty praise.
Thou mine inheritance, now and always.
Thou and thou only first in my heart.
High King of heaven, my treasure thou art.
High King of heaven, my victory won
. May I reach heaven's joys, O bright heaven's sun.
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my vision, O ruler of all.
Translator: Mary E. Byrne, 1905 Versifier: Eleanor H. Hull
Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart,
Naught be all else to me, save that
thou art. Thou my best thought, by day or by night.
Waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.
Be though my wisdom, and thou my true word.
I ever with thee and thou with me, Lord.
Thou my greatFather, and I thy true son.
Thou in me dwelling and I with thee one.
Riches I heed not, nor vain, empty praise.
Thou mine inheritance, now and always.
Thou and thou only first in my heart.
High King of heaven, my treasure thou art.
High King of heaven, my victory won
. May I reach heaven's joys, O bright heaven's sun.
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my vision, O ruler of all.
Translator: Mary E. Byrne, 1905 Versifier: Eleanor H. Hull
Listen to the Video
Quotes #1
Do not turn to prayer hoping to enjoy spiritual delights; rather come to prayer totally content to receive nothing or to receive great blessing from God’s hand, whichever your heavenly Father’s will for you at that time.
—Madame Jeanne Guyon, 1648–1717
Be imitators of God and live a life of love.
—Ephesians 5:1
Cultivate my heart, Lord, so I may catch every word that falls from heaven—every syllable of encouragement, every sentence of rebuke, every paragraph of instruction, every page of warning. Help me to catch these words as the soft, fertile soil catches seeds.
—Ken Gire
Accept, O Lord, my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding and my will. All that I am and have thou hast given to me; and I give all back to thee to be disposed of according to thy good pleasure. Give me only the comfort of thy presence and the joy of thy love; with thee I shall be more than rich and shall desire nothing more.
—St. Ignatius of Loyola
As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God.
—Psalm 42:1
Keep a clear eye toward life’s end. Do not forget your purpose and destiny as God’s creature. What you are in His sight is what you are and nothing more. Remember that when you leave this earth, you can take nothing that you have received — but only what you have given; a full heart enriched by honest service, love, sacrifice and courage.
—Saint Francis of Assisi
—Madame Jeanne Guyon, 1648–1717
Be imitators of God and live a life of love.
—Ephesians 5:1
Cultivate my heart, Lord, so I may catch every word that falls from heaven—every syllable of encouragement, every sentence of rebuke, every paragraph of instruction, every page of warning. Help me to catch these words as the soft, fertile soil catches seeds.
—Ken Gire
Accept, O Lord, my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding and my will. All that I am and have thou hast given to me; and I give all back to thee to be disposed of according to thy good pleasure. Give me only the comfort of thy presence and the joy of thy love; with thee I shall be more than rich and shall desire nothing more.
—St. Ignatius of Loyola
As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God.
—Psalm 42:1
Keep a clear eye toward life’s end. Do not forget your purpose and destiny as God’s creature. What you are in His sight is what you are and nothing more. Remember that when you leave this earth, you can take nothing that you have received — but only what you have given; a full heart enriched by honest service, love, sacrifice and courage.
—Saint Francis of Assisi
Reflection Prompts #1
What do you see as your purpose and destiny?
What do you want to have given when you leave this earth?
What actions do you want to be remembered for?
What words do you want to be remembered for?
What do you want to have given when you leave this earth?
What actions do you want to be remembered for?
What words do you want to be remembered for?
Quotes #2
In the name of Jesus Christ, who was never in a hurry, we pray, O God, that You will slow us down, for we know that we live too fast. With all of eternity before us, make us take time to live—time to get acquainted with You, time to enjoy Your blessings, and time to know each other.
—Peter Marshall, 1902–1949
O God, Light of lights, keep us from inward darkness. Grant us so to sleep in peace, that we may arise to work according to your will.
—Lancelot Andrewes, 1555–1626
Upon thy bended knees, thank God for work, work—once man’s penance, now his high reward! For work to do, and strength to do the work, we thank thee Lord!
—John Okenham
—Peter Marshall, 1902–1949
O God, Light of lights, keep us from inward darkness. Grant us so to sleep in peace, that we may arise to work according to your will.
—Lancelot Andrewes, 1555–1626
Upon thy bended knees, thank God for work, work—once man’s penance, now his high reward! For work to do, and strength to do the work, we thank thee Lord!
—John Okenham
Reflection Prompts #2
Do you thank God for the work of writing?
What about the work you do to support yourself if writing doesn’t bring in enough?
Both jobs have equal standing in God’s eyes. How can you do them as unto the Lord?
What about the work you do to support yourself if writing doesn’t bring in enough?
Both jobs have equal standing in God’s eyes. How can you do them as unto the Lord?
Quotes #3
Let us weigh the gain and the loss in wagering that God is. Consider these alternatives: if you win, you win all, if you lose, you lose nothing. Do not hesitate, then, to wager that he is.
—Blaise Pascal, 1623–1662
I am never better than when I am on the full stretch for God.
—George Whitefield
You will never understand who you are until you understand who God is. —Billy Graham
—Blaise Pascal, 1623–1662
I am never better than when I am on the full stretch for God.
—George Whitefield
You will never understand who you are until you understand who God is. —Billy Graham
Reflection Prompts #3
The more you understand who God is, the more you can begin to
understand yourself. And when you understand yourself, you can begin to
understand your characters and what their motivations are. What do you understand about God?
What do you understand about yourself?
How can you reflect that in your fictional characters or your nonfiction writing?
What do you understand about yourself?
How can you reflect that in your fictional characters or your nonfiction writing?
Quote #4
To fall in love with God is the greatest romance; to seek him, the greatest adventure; to find him, the greatest human achievement.
—Saint Augustine
—Saint Augustine
Reflective Prompts #4
What does your romance with God look like?
How has your adventure been so far?
Above all else—completing your first book, winning writing awards, landing a publishing contract, starting your family, raising your kids—do you still consider coming to God your greatest achievement?
How is this reflected in your writing?
How has your adventure been so far?
Above all else—completing your first book, winning writing awards, landing a publishing contract, starting your family, raising your kids—do you still consider coming to God your greatest achievement?
How is this reflected in your writing?
Quotes #5
Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise.
—James 5:13
Let us never forget to pray. God lives. He is near. He is real. He is not only aware of us but cares for us. He is our Father. He is accessible to all who will seek Him.
—Gordon B. Hinckley
Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
—Mark 11:24
If you prayed as much as you worry, you’d have nothing to worry about.
—Rick Warren
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
—Philippians 4:6
I call on you, my God, for you will answer me; turn your ear to me and hear my prayer.
—Psalm 17:6
Prayer ... the key of the day and the lock of the night.
—Thomas Fuller
If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
—2 Chronicles 7:14
Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?
—Corrie Ten Boom
Prayer is not monologue, but dialogue; God’s voice is its most essential part. Listening to God’s voice is the secret of the assurance that He will listen to mine.
—Andy Murray
The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.
—Psalm 145:18
The Spirit of prayer makes us so intimate with God that we scarcely pass through an experience before we speak to Him about it, either in supplication, in sighing, in pouring out our woes before Him, in fervent requests, or in thanksgiving and adoration.
—Ole Hallesby
Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
—1 Thessalonians 5:16–18
If weak in prayer we are weak everywhere.
—Leonard Ravenhill
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
—1 John 5:14
Don’t ever hesitate to take to [God] whatever is on your heart. He already knows it anyway, but He doesn’t want you to bear its pain or celebrate its joy alone.
—Billy Graham
Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.
—Jeremiah 33:3
The purpose of prayer is to reveal the presence of God equally present, all the time, in every condition.
—Oswald Chambers
When you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.
—Mark 11:25
In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.
—Psalm 5:3
Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.
—Matthew 26:41
I know that through your prayers and God’s provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance.
—Philippians 1:19
Listen, my friend! Your helplessness is your best prayer. It calls from your heart to the heart of God with greater effect than all your uttered pleas. He hears it from the very moment that you are seized with helplessness, and He becomes actively engaged at once in hearing and answering the prayer of your helplessness.
—Ole Hallesby
Hear my prayer, Lord, listen to my cry for help; do not be deaf to my weeping. I dwell with you as a foreigner, a stranger, as all my ancestors were.
—Psalm 39:12
To pray without expectation is to misunderstand the whole concept of prayer and relationship with God.
—Aiden Wilson Tozer
We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
—Romans 8:28
The moment we change our thinking and start connecting with God, we start connecting with His plans, which always exceed our small plans.
—Danny Gokey
“I know the thoughts that I think toward you,” says the Lord, “thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.”
—Jeremiah 29:11–12
To be friends with God means to pray with simplicity, like children talking to their parents.
—Pope Francis
May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.
—Psalm 19:14
See your weakness as a reason to pray the more. It should not be the reason for sadness or to abandon your post.
—T. B. Joshua
Lord, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness come to my relief.
—Psalm 143:1
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
—Romans 12:12
If God has made your cup sweet, drink it with grace; if He has made it bitter, drink it in communion with Him.
—Oswald Chambers
Father, write Your Word in our heart; make us men and women who understand Your truth.
—Alistair Begg
—James 5:13
Let us never forget to pray. God lives. He is near. He is real. He is not only aware of us but cares for us. He is our Father. He is accessible to all who will seek Him.
—Gordon B. Hinckley
Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
—Mark 11:24
If you prayed as much as you worry, you’d have nothing to worry about.
—Rick Warren
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
—Philippians 4:6
I call on you, my God, for you will answer me; turn your ear to me and hear my prayer.
—Psalm 17:6
Prayer ... the key of the day and the lock of the night.
—Thomas Fuller
If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
—2 Chronicles 7:14
Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?
—Corrie Ten Boom
Prayer is not monologue, but dialogue; God’s voice is its most essential part. Listening to God’s voice is the secret of the assurance that He will listen to mine.
—Andy Murray
The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.
—Psalm 145:18
The Spirit of prayer makes us so intimate with God that we scarcely pass through an experience before we speak to Him about it, either in supplication, in sighing, in pouring out our woes before Him, in fervent requests, or in thanksgiving and adoration.
—Ole Hallesby
Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
—1 Thessalonians 5:16–18
If weak in prayer we are weak everywhere.
—Leonard Ravenhill
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
—1 John 5:14
Don’t ever hesitate to take to [God] whatever is on your heart. He already knows it anyway, but He doesn’t want you to bear its pain or celebrate its joy alone.
—Billy Graham
Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.
—Jeremiah 33:3
The purpose of prayer is to reveal the presence of God equally present, all the time, in every condition.
—Oswald Chambers
When you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.
—Mark 11:25
In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.
—Psalm 5:3
Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.
—Matthew 26:41
I know that through your prayers and God’s provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance.
—Philippians 1:19
Listen, my friend! Your helplessness is your best prayer. It calls from your heart to the heart of God with greater effect than all your uttered pleas. He hears it from the very moment that you are seized with helplessness, and He becomes actively engaged at once in hearing and answering the prayer of your helplessness.
—Ole Hallesby
Hear my prayer, Lord, listen to my cry for help; do not be deaf to my weeping. I dwell with you as a foreigner, a stranger, as all my ancestors were.
—Psalm 39:12
To pray without expectation is to misunderstand the whole concept of prayer and relationship with God.
—Aiden Wilson Tozer
We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
—Romans 8:28
The moment we change our thinking and start connecting with God, we start connecting with His plans, which always exceed our small plans.
—Danny Gokey
“I know the thoughts that I think toward you,” says the Lord, “thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.”
—Jeremiah 29:11–12
To be friends with God means to pray with simplicity, like children talking to their parents.
—Pope Francis
May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.
—Psalm 19:14
See your weakness as a reason to pray the more. It should not be the reason for sadness or to abandon your post.
—T. B. Joshua
Lord, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness come to my relief.
—Psalm 143:1
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
—Romans 12:12
If God has made your cup sweet, drink it with grace; if He has made it bitter, drink it in communion with Him.
—Oswald Chambers
Father, write Your Word in our heart; make us men and women who understand Your truth.
—Alistair Begg
Prayer
In Your Time (A Writer’s Prayer)
By Bob Hostetler
Heavenly Father,
You make everything beautiful in your time (Ecclesiastes 3:11).
I submit to Your timing.
I await Your timing.
I desire what You will,
as You will,
when You will.
That goes for my writing too.
I long to touch lives with my words ... in Your time.
I want to write passionately, effectively, impactfully ... in Your time.
I yearn to think and communicate clearly and sharply ... in Your time.
I pray to craft artful, beautiful words, sentences, and passages ... in Your time.
I ask for publication, for contracts, for endorsements, for readers, and for life-changing influence ... in Your time.
In Jesus’s name, amen.
Copyright Bob Hostetler (www.bobhostetler.com).
Used with the permission of the author.
By Bob Hostetler
Heavenly Father,
You make everything beautiful in your time (Ecclesiastes 3:11).
I submit to Your timing.
I await Your timing.
I desire what You will,
as You will,
when You will.
That goes for my writing too.
I long to touch lives with my words ... in Your time.
I want to write passionately, effectively, impactfully ... in Your time.
I yearn to think and communicate clearly and sharply ... in Your time.
I pray to craft artful, beautiful words, sentences, and passages ... in Your time.
I ask for publication, for contracts, for endorsements, for readers, and for life-changing influence ... in Your time.
In Jesus’s name, amen.
Copyright Bob Hostetler (www.bobhostetler.com).
Used with the permission of the author.
Reflective Prompts #5
How do you pray?
Do you make time to listen as well as speak?
How do you pray about your writing?
Do you pray as you sit down to write each day?
Whenever you have writer’s block?
At the start of each chapter?
Write your own writer’s prayer.
Do you make time to listen as well as speak?
How do you pray about your writing?
Do you pray as you sit down to write each day?
Whenever you have writer’s block?
At the start of each chapter?
Write your own writer’s prayer.
Holy, Holy, Holy Lyrics
Holy, Holy, Holy!
Holy, holy, holy!
Lord God Almighty
Early in the morning
Our song shall rise to Thee.
Holy, holy, holy!
Merciful and mighty
God in three persons
Blessed Trinity!
Holy, holy, holy!
Though the darkness hide thee
Though the eye of sinful man
Thy glory may not see.
Only Thou art holy
There is none beside Thee
Perfect in power, in love and purity.
Holy, holy, holy!
Lord God Almighty
All Thy works shall praise Thy name
In earth and sky and sea.
Holy, holy, holy!
Merciful and mighty
God in three persons
Blessed Trinity!
Songwriters: John B. Dykes / Reginald Heber / Ronn L. Huff
Holy, holy, holy!
Lord God Almighty
Early in the morning
Our song shall rise to Thee.
Holy, holy, holy!
Merciful and mighty
God in three persons
Blessed Trinity!
Holy, holy, holy!
Though the darkness hide thee
Though the eye of sinful man
Thy glory may not see.
Only Thou art holy
There is none beside Thee
Perfect in power, in love and purity.
Holy, holy, holy!
Lord God Almighty
All Thy works shall praise Thy name
In earth and sky and sea.
Holy, holy, holy!
Merciful and mighty
God in three persons
Blessed Trinity!
Songwriters: John B. Dykes / Reginald Heber / Ronn L. Huff
Listen to the Video
Quotes #6
To worship God in truth is to recognize Him for being who He is, and to recognize ourselves for what we are.
—Brother Lawrence
Happy moments, PRAISE GOD. Difficult moments, SEEK GOD. Quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD. Painful moments, TRUST GOD. Every moment, THANK GOD.
—Rick Warren
It is impossible to worship God and remain unchanged.
—Henry Blackaby
Our heart’s desire should be to worship God; we have been designed by God for this purpose. If we don’t worship God, we’ll worship something or someone else.
—John Wimber
We must never rest until everything inside us worships God.
—Aiden Wilson Tozer
If your life does not worship God, your lips do not worship God either.
—Aiden Wilson Tozer
Worship is the believer’s response of all that they are—mind, emotions, will, body—to what God is and says and does.
—Warren W. Wiersbe
In worship, God imparts himself to us.
—C. S. Lewis
When we cease to worship God, we do not worship nothing, we worship anything.
—Gilbert K. Chesterton
Worship is giving God the best that He has given you. Be careful what you do with the best you have. Whenever you get a blessing from God, give it back to Him as a love gift. Take time to meditate before God and offer the blessing back to Him in a deliberate act of worship. —Oswald Chambers
In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart.
—John Bunyan
It is in the process of being worshipped that God communicates His presence to men.
—C. S. Lewis
An unschooled man who knows how to meditate upon the Lord has learned far more than the man with the highest education who does not know how to
meditate. —Charles Stanley
Some go to church to take a walk; some go there to laugh and talk. Some go there to meet a friend; some go there their time to spend. Some go there to meet a lover; some go there a fault to cover. Some go there for speculation; some go there for observation. Some go there to doze and nod; the wise go there to worship God.
—Charles Spurgeon
We only learn to behave ourselves in the presence of God.
—C. S. Lewis
Satan is willing to have us worship anything, however sacred—the Bible, the crucifix, the church—if only we do not worship God Himself.
—Dwight L. Moody
—Brother Lawrence
Happy moments, PRAISE GOD. Difficult moments, SEEK GOD. Quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD. Painful moments, TRUST GOD. Every moment, THANK GOD.
—Rick Warren
It is impossible to worship God and remain unchanged.
—Henry Blackaby
Our heart’s desire should be to worship God; we have been designed by God for this purpose. If we don’t worship God, we’ll worship something or someone else.
—John Wimber
We must never rest until everything inside us worships God.
—Aiden Wilson Tozer
If your life does not worship God, your lips do not worship God either.
—Aiden Wilson Tozer
Worship is the believer’s response of all that they are—mind, emotions, will, body—to what God is and says and does.
—Warren W. Wiersbe
In worship, God imparts himself to us.
—C. S. Lewis
When we cease to worship God, we do not worship nothing, we worship anything.
—Gilbert K. Chesterton
Worship is giving God the best that He has given you. Be careful what you do with the best you have. Whenever you get a blessing from God, give it back to Him as a love gift. Take time to meditate before God and offer the blessing back to Him in a deliberate act of worship. —Oswald Chambers
In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart.
—John Bunyan
It is in the process of being worshipped that God communicates His presence to men.
—C. S. Lewis
An unschooled man who knows how to meditate upon the Lord has learned far more than the man with the highest education who does not know how to
meditate. —Charles Stanley
Some go to church to take a walk; some go there to laugh and talk. Some go there to meet a friend; some go there their time to spend. Some go there to meet a lover; some go there a fault to cover. Some go there for speculation; some go there for observation. Some go there to doze and nod; the wise go there to worship God.
—Charles Spurgeon
We only learn to behave ourselves in the presence of God.
—C. S. Lewis
Satan is willing to have us worship anything, however sacred—the Bible, the crucifix, the church—if only we do not worship God Himself.
—Dwight L. Moody
Reflective Prompts #6
Do you consider your writing an act of worship, or have you come to worship writing itself?
Is your writing still an act of worship if it never gets published?
Is the act of writing good enough for you?
How do you keep God at the center of your writing, giving Him your best, and making the act of writing an act of worship unto Him?
Is your writing still an act of worship if it never gets published?
Is the act of writing good enough for you?
How do you keep God at the center of your writing, giving Him your best, and making the act of writing an act of worship unto Him?