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Discussion
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May all my life be less, and Christ be more!
May need and duty, plan and paradigm…
The urgencies that fill my race with time…
Oh, may they all be less, and Christ be more!
May other good be less, and Christ be more!
The selfless service, and the ministry,
The wages of obedience… let them be
Lost in the light of Him… whom I adore!
May other loves be less, and Christ be more!
May those I love the most still stand apart
And yield to Him the center of my heart,
That I may love more truly than before!
May sacrifice be less, and Christ be more!
May pain and peril, counting all as loss,
Be swallowed in the glory of His cross,
The joy of knowing Him whom I long for!
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Replies
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I love that this text goes through all the things that we value, even very legitimately, and puts them in proper perspective.
A few notes:
“That I may love more truly than before!” is a bit ambiguous. I assume what’s meant is “That I may love them more truly than I did before”–which of course doesn’t fit the rhythm. But if it could be clearer that placing all loves beneath the love of Christ is actually heightening and sanctifying those loves, that would be nice.
Rhythm is a bit wonky in this line: “The joy of knowing Him whom I long for!” Especially since it’s the final line in the text, it should have a rhyming syllable that is naturally accented.
I’ve always found pentameter hard to write music to. But this text flows well enough naturally that I’m sure there are tunes out there that would work.
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A couple thoughts…
“Be swallowed in the glory of His cross,”
To my ear the word “swallowed” sounds less than beautifully poetic when coupled with the concept of glory and I wonder if changing that one word might be worth considering.
“May those I love the most still stand apart. “
On that one I think it might be worth thinking about rewording the thought to clarify the meaning.
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