Two Hymns of Aspiration

O Come and Dwell in Me

O Come and dwell in me, 

Spirit of power within,

And bring thy glorious liberty

From sorrow, fear and sin.

Hasten the joyful day

Which shallmy sins consume,

When old things shall be done away,

And all things new become.

I want the witness, Lord,

That all I do is right,

According to thy mind and word,

Well-pleasing in thy sight.

I ask no higher state;

Indulge me but in this,

And soon or later then translate

To thine eternal bliss. 

O for a Heart to Praise My God

O for a heart to praise my God,

A heart from sin set free,

A heart that always feels thy blood,

So freely shed for me.

 A humble, lowly, contrite heart,

Believing, true and clean,

Which neither life nor death can part

From him that dwells within.

 A heart in every thought renewed,

And full of love divine;

Perfect and right and pure and good,

A copy, Lord, of thine!

Thy nature, gracious Lord, impart;

Come quickly from above,

Write thy new name upon my heart,

Thy new best name of love. 

By Charles Wesley

[Christian History originally published this article in Christian History Issue #69 in 2001]

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