How oft, alas! this wretched heart
Has wandered from the Lord,
How oft my roving thoughts depart,
Forgetful of His Word.

Yet sovereign mercy calls, “Return”;
Dear Lord, and may I come?
My vile ingratitude I mourn;
O take the wanderer home.

And canst Thou, wilt Thou yet forgive,
And bid my crimes remove?
And shall a pardoned rebel live
To speak Thy wondrous love?

Almighty grace, thy healing power
How glorious, how divine!
That can to bliss and life restore
So vile a heart as mine.

Thy pardoning love, so free, so sweet,
Dear Savior, I adore;
O keep me at Thy sacred feet,
And let me rove no more.

Wilt Thou forgive that sin, by man begun,
Which was my sin though it were done before?
Wilt Thou forgive that sin, through which I run,
And do run still, though still I do deplore?
When Thou hast done, Thou hast not done,
For I have more.

Wilt Thou forgive that sin which I have won
Others to sin, and made my sin their door?
Wilt Thou forgive that sin which I did shun
A year or two, but wallowed in a score?
When Thou hast done, Thou hast not done,
For I have more.

I have a sin of fear, that when I’ve spun
My last thread, I shall perish on the shore;
But swear by Thyself, that at my death Thy Son
Shall shine, as He shines now and heretofore:
And, having done that, Thou hast done:
I fear no more.

Among the princes, earthly gods,
There’s none hath power divine;
Nor is their nature, mighty Lord,
Nor are their works, like Thine.

The nations Thou hast made shall bring
Their offerings round Thy throne;
For Thou alone dost wondrous things,
For Thou art God alone.

Lord, I would walk with holy feet;
Teach me Thine heav’nly ways,
And my poor scattered thoughts unite
In God my Father’s praise.

Great is Thy mercy, and my tongue
Shall those sweet wonders tell,
How by Thy grace my sinking soul
Rose from the deeps of hell.

By all whom Thou hast made
Be praise and worship paid
Through earth abroad;
Thy Name be glorified,
There is none great beside,
Matchless Thy works abide,
For Thou art God.

Help me Thy will to do,
Thy truth I will pursue,
Teach me to fear;
Give me the single ye
Thy Name to glorify,
O Lord, my God most high,
With heart sincere.

How great Thy love appears
That bade death’s gloomy fears
No more dismay;
O God, to anger slow,
Save me from every foe,
Thy lovingkindness show,
Thy truth display.

Savior, may a little child
In its weakness, come to Thee?
Thou wert ever meek and mild;
Can my heart as gentle be?

Refrain

Teach me how, teach me how,
By Thy Spirit lead me now;
So my feet will never stray
From Thy fold away.

Tho’ my years are only few,
Gladly I would work for Thee;
Is there something I can do?
Can I ever useful be?

Refrain

Oft I wonder when I hear
Older ones that talk of Thee;
What it is Thy yoke to bear,
Wilt Thou give it, Lord, to me?

Refrain

I will give Thee all my heart:
Wilt Thou help me come to Thee?
Kind and loving as Thou art,
Savior, I would like to be.

Refrain

Shine forth, O Sun of boundless love,
The night within our souls remove;
Be Thou our Light, be Thou our Guide,
O’er ev’ry thought and step preside.

The Light of truth, O Lord of might,
That we may know and choose Thy way;
Plant holy fear within each heart,
That we may ne’er from Thee depart.

Teach me, my God and King,
In all things Thee to see,
And what I do in anything
To do it as for Thee.

A man that looks on glass,
On it may stay his eye;
Or if he pleaseth, through it pass,
And then the heaven espy.

To scorn the senses’ sway,
While still to Thee I tend:
In all I do be Thou the Way,
In all be Thou the End.

All may of Thee partake;
Nothing so small can be
But draws, when acted for Thy sake,
Greatness and worth from Thee.

If done to obey Thy laws,
E’en servile labors shine;
Hallowed is toil, if this the cause,
The meanest work divine.

This is the famous stone
That turneth all to gold;
For that which God doth touch and own
Cannot for less be sold.

Teach me, O Lord, Thy way of truth,
And from it I will not depart;
That I may steadfastly obey,
Give me an understanding heart.

In Thy commandments make me walk,
For in the law my joy shall be;
Give me a heart that loves Thy will,
From discontent and envy free.

Turn Thou my eyes from vanity,
And cause me in Thy ways to tread;
O let Thy servant prove Thy Word,
And thus to godly fear be led.

Turn Thou away reproach and fear,
Thy righteous judgments I confess;
To know Thy precepts I desire,
Revive me in Thy righteousness.

Teach me, O Lord, Thy holy way,
And give me an obedient mind;
That in Thy service I may find
My soul’s delight from day to day.

Guide me, O Savior, with Thy hand,
And so control my thoughts and deeds,
That I may tread the path which leads
Right onward to the blessèd land.

Help, me, O Savior, here to trace
The sacred footsteps Thou hast trod;
And, meekly walking with my God,
To grow in goodness, truth and grace.

Guard me, O Lord, that I may ne’er
Forsake the right, or do the wrong;
Against temptation make me strong,
And round me spread Thy sheltering care.

Bless me in every task, O Lord,
Begun, continued, done for Thee;
Fulfill Thy perfect work in me;
And Thine abounding grace afford.

Teach me Thy way, O Lord, teach me Thy way!
Thy guiding grace afford, teach me Thy way!
Help me to walk aright, more by faith, less by sight;
Lead me with heav’nly light, teach me Thy way!

When I am sad at heart, teach me Thy way!
When earthly joys depart, teach me Thy way!
In hours of loneliness, in times of dire distress,
In failure or success, teach me Thy way!

When doubts and fears arise, teach me Thy way!
When storms o’erspread the skies, teach me Thy way!
Shine through the cloud and rain, through sorrow, toil and pain;
Make Thou my pathway plain, teach me Thy way!

Long as my life shall last, teach me Thy way!
Where’er my lot be cast, teach me Thy way!
Until the race is run, until the journey’s done,
Until the crown is won, teach me Thy way!

Arise, my soul, my joyful powers,
And triumph in my God;
Awake, my voice, and loud proclaim
His glorious grace abroad.

He raised me from the deeps of sin,
The gates of gaping hell,
And fixed my standing more secure
Than ’twas before I fell.

The arms of everlasting love
Beneath my soul He placed;
And on the Rock of ages set
My slippery footsteps fast.

The city of my blessed abode
Is walled around with grace,
Salvation for a bulwark stands
To shield the sacred place.

Satan may vent his sharpest spite,
And all his legions roar;
Almighty mercy guards my life,
And bounds his raging power.

Arise, my soul; awake, my voice,
And tunes of pleasure sing;
Loud hallelujahs shall address
My Savior and my King.