Love Divine

Love divine, all loves excelling,
Joy of heaven to earth come down;
Fix in us thy humble dwelling;
All thy faithful mercies crown!
Jesus, Thou art all compassion,
Pure unbounded love Thou art;
Visit us with Thy salvation;
Enter every trembling heart.

Breathe, O breathe Thy loving Spirit,
Into every troubled breast!
Let us all in Thee inherit;
Let us find that second rest.
Take away our bent to sinning;
Alpha and Omega be;
End of faith, as its Beginning,
Set our hearts at liberty.

Come, Almighty to deliver,
Let us all Thy life receive;
Suddenly return and never,
Never more Thy temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing,
Serve Thee as Thy hosts above,
Pray and praise Thee without ceasing,
Glory in Thy perfect love.

Finish, then, Thy new creation;
Pure and spotless let us be.
Let us see Thy great salvation
Perfectly restored in Thee;
Changed from glory into glory,
Till in heaven we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before Thee,
Lost in wonder, love, and praise.

~Charles Wesley, 1747

O love divine! no soul has e’er
Thy wondrous depths explored;
O priceless gift! we fain would have
Thy riches on us poured.
Let mortals join with all their might,
Let earth and heaven both unite
To sing thy praise both day and night—
The half can ne’er be told.

O love divine, what treasures yet
Within Thy coffers lie!
The gold and silver of the earth
Would not Thy riches buy.
E’en though the sands upon the shore
Of every sea should turn to ore
Of choicest metal, ’twere no more
Than naught compared to Thee.

O love divine, in Thee our souls
Eternal pleasures find,
Surpassing all that earth could give,
Were all its pow’rs combined.
Thy music sweet we love to sing,
Our spirits e’er to thee would cling,
An off’ring now of praise we bring,
In humble sacrifice.

O love divine, ’tis wonderful
That mortals here below
May share thy grace most excellent,
Thy wondrous power know!
Around our hearts fore’er entwine,
And let Thy beauties in us shine,
That we may be, O love divine,
Completely lost in Thee.

~Echoes from Heaven, 1976 / Faith Publishing House
=======================================
At the risk of sounding old-fashioned (or straight out of the 70s)
Let us Love, Lord. Let us Love with Your Love so
unique, so powerful and wise.
Let us Love like a devoted Mother, a surprising
gift, a trustworthy friend, a beautiful sky, a merciful
victim, a deft and honorable surgeon, a hopeful
gardener, a firm Father, a loyal Child.
Let us Love sincerely in thought, word, and deed, seeing
how it weaves through all our spare time, making sure
to allow it all the room it desires, both earnestly and
unashamedly.
Let us Love one another
in His Love, together
with utter sincerity of heart!
~mkg sept 1 2009 19.31pm london