The Hymnal ‎#85

85. O gracious Father of mankind

1 O gracious Father of mankind,
Our spirits’ unseen Friend,
High heaven’s Lord, our hearts’ dear Guest,
To Thee our prayers ascend.
Thou dost not wait till human speech
Thy gifts divine implore;
Our dreams, our aims, our work, our lives
Are prayers Thou lovest more.

2 Thou hearest these, the good and ill,
Deep buried in each breast;
The secret thought, the hidden plan,
Wrought out or unexpressed.
O cleanse our prayers from human dross,
Attune our lives to Thee,
Until we labor for those gifts
We ask on bended knee.

3 Thou seekest us in love and truth
More than our minds seek Thee;
Through open gates Thy power flows in
Like flood tides from the sea.
No more we seek Thee from afar,
Nor ask Thee for a sign,
Content to pray in life and love
And toil, till all are Thine.

Amen.

Text Information

• First Line: O gracious Father of mankind
• Author: Rev. Henry H. Tweedy (1926)
• Meter: C. M. D.
• Publication Date: 1950
• Topic: God the Father: His Love and Fatherhood; Fellowship; God: Love and Fatherhood, His; Prayer and Intercession; Trust and Confidence
• Copyright: This hymn, awarded first prize in a competition established by the Homiletic Review in 1925, is here printed by permission of the editor.
• Notes: Now Public Domain.

Tune Information

• Name: OLD 22ND
• Meter: C. M. D.
• Key: E♭ Major
• Source: "Anglo-Genevan Psalter," 1556