Be Thou My Vision

I am participating in the 'From the Heart of Worship' meme run by Growing In Grace Magazine. Worshiping the Lord is one of my favorite, favorite things to do in the whole world!

"Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Ephesians 5:19-20) I love hymns. They are so rich in messages, meanings, & melodies, and deep in thoughts & feelings towards God; they are truly inspiring, and often Biblically-based.

"Hymns breathe the praise of the saints,
The vision of the prophets,
The prayers of the penitent and the spirit of the martyrs.

They bring solace to the sad, assurance to the perplexed,
Faith to the doubter and comfort to the oppressed.

They span the centuries of history and bridge the barriers of denominations.

Study them to be pure in heart;
Sing them to be joyful in spirit,
Store them in the mind to possess a treasury of worship."

~Unknown


I never get tired of listening to (or singing) "Be Thou My Vision." The words were translated from the 8th century Irish hymn by Mary E. Byrne (1880-1931) and versified by Eleanor H. Hull (1860-1935). These words are so meaningful to me that I want to share with everyone.

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart
Nought 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 Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Riches I heed not, nor man's 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 heav'n's Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

I like to quietly sing and reflect upon these words (sometimes with tears in my eyes). This hymn means so much to me because it is not only my all-time favorite hymn, but also my heart's desire and my prayer!

Note: Please turn off my music playlist at the bottom of this page before starting the video.

By the way, this month on Growing In Grace, my daughter wrote an article on "Eye Exam Month." Eyes...vision...how appropriate :).