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Lead Us, Heavenly Father, Lead Us

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Lead us, heavenly Father, lead us, Over the world's tempestuous sea

Author: James Edmeston (1821)
Published in 355 hymnals

Printable scores: PDF, MusicXML
Playable presentation: Lyrics only, lyrics + music
Audio files: MIDI, Recording

Song available on My.Hymnary

Representative Text

1 Lead us, heavenly Father, lead us
o'er the world's tempestuous sea;
guard us, guide us, keep us, feed us,
for we have no help but thee;
yet possessing every blessing,
if our God our Father be.

2 Saviour, breathe forgiveness o'er us:
all our weakness thou dost know;
thou didst tread this earth before us,
thou didst feel its keenest woe;
lone and dreary, faint and weary,
through the desert thou didst go.

3 Spirit of our God, descending,
fill our hearts with heavenly joy,
love with every passion blending,
pleasure that can never cloy:
thus provided, pardoned, guided,
nothing can our peace destroy.

Source: Ancient and Modern: hymns and songs for refreshing worship #702

Author: James Edmeston

Edmeston, James, born Sept. 10, 1791. His maternal grandfather was the Rev. Samuel Brewer, who for 50 years was the pastor of an Independent congregation at Stepney. Educated as an architect and surveyor, in 1816 he entered upon his profession on his own account, and continued to practice it until his death on Jan. 7, 1867. The late Sir G. Gilbert Scott was his pupil. Although an Independent by descent he joined the Established Church at a comparatively early age, and subsequently held various offices, including that of churchwarden, in the Church of St. Barnabas, Homerton. His hymns number nearly 2000. The best known are “Lead us, Heavenly Father, lead us” and "Saviour, breathe an evening blessing." Many of his hymns were written for c… Go to person page >

Text Information

First Line: Lead us, heavenly Father, lead us, Over the world's tempestuous sea
Title: Lead Us, Heavenly Father, Lead Us
Author: James Edmeston (1821)
Meter: 8.7.8.7.8.7
Language: English
Copyright: Public Domain

Notes

Lead us, Heavenly Father, lead us. J. Edmeston. [Holy Trinity—Invocation of.] Appeared in his Sacred Lyrics, set two, 1821, in 3 stanzas of 7 lines, and entitled "Hymn, Written for the Children of the London Orphan Asylum (Air Lewes)." In 1858 it was included in the Baptist Psalms & Hymns, No. 564, and from that date it has grown gradually into favour until it has attained to a foremost place amongst modern hymns in all English-speaking countries. It is generally given in a correct and complete form as in Thring’s Collection, 1882. It has been rendered into several languages, including Latin. The Rev. R. Bingham, in his Hymnologia Christiana Latina, 1871, has translated it as "Due nos, Genitor Coelestis."

--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)

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Small Church Music #6967
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Instances

Instances (1 - 28 of 28)
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African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal #547

Text

Ancient and Modern #702

Anglican Hymns Old and New (Rev. and Enl.) #422

Church Family Worship #111

Church Hymnal, Fifth Edition #652

Page Scan

Common Praise (1998) #564

TextPage Scan

Common Praise #496

TextPage Scan

Complete Anglican Hymns Old and New #379a

Text

Complete Anglican Hymns Old and New #379b

Page Scan

Complete Mission Praise #400

TextPage Scan

CPWI Hymnal #424

Hymns Ancient and Modern, New Standard Edition #224

Hymns and Psalms #68a

Hymns and Psalms #68b

Hymns for Today's Church (2nd ed.) #525

TextPage Scan

Hymns for Today's Church (2nd ed.) #595

Hymns Old and New #293

Sing Glory #640

Singing the Faith #238

Audio

Small Church Music #6967

Songs of Fellowship #321

TextPage Scan

The Book of Praise #647

TextScoreAudio

The Cyber Hymnal #3619

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The Hymnal 1982 #559

The Irish Presbyterian Hymnbook #107

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The New English Hymnal #393

Text

The Song Book of the Salvation Army #607

Text

Together in Song #580

Include 327 pre-1979 instances
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