Hymnal: Hymns, Selected and Original #569 (1828) Meter: 8.8.8.8 Lyrics: 1 Father of mercies, bow thine ear,
Attentive to our earnest prayer:
We plead for those who plead for thee,
Successful pleaders may they be!
2 How great their work, how vast their charge!
Do thou their anxious souls enlarge:
Their best acquirements are our gain;
We share the blessings they obtain.
3 Clothe, then, with energy divine,
Their words, and let their words be thine:
To them thy sacred truth reveal,
Suppress their fear, inflame their zeal.
4 Teach them to sow the precious seed;
Teach them thy chosen flock to feed;
Teach them immortal souls to gain--
Souls that will well reward their pain.
5 Let thronging multitudes around
Hear from their lips the joyful sound,
In humble strains thy grace implore,
And feel thy new-creating power.
6 Let sinners break their massy chains,
Distressed souls forget their pains;
Let light through distant realms be spread,
And Zion rear her drooping head. Topics: Kingdom and Church of Christ Ordination and Licensure; Prayer for Ministers
Father of mercies, bow thine ear