1. Make me a captive, Lord,
and then I shall be free.
Force me to render up my sword,
and I shall conqueror be.
I sink in life’s alarms
when by myself I stand;
Imprison me within Thine arms,
and strong shall be my hand.
2. My heart is weak and poor
until it master find;
It has no spring of action sure,
it varies with the wind.
It cannot freely move
till Thou has wrought its chain;
Enslave it with Thy matchless love,
and deathless it shall reign.
3. My power is faint and low
till I have learned to serve;
It lacks the needed fire to glow,
it lacks the breeze to nerve.
It cannot drive the world
until itself be driven;
Its flag can only be unfurled
when Thou shalt breathe from heaven.
4. My will is not my own
till Thou hast made it Thine;
If it would reach a monarch’s throne,
it must its crown resign.
It only stands unbent
amid the clashing strife,
When on Thy bosom it has leant,
and found in Thee its life.
George Matheson
The Methodist Hymnal 1939 edition
<idle musing>
I don't recall ever singing this hymn, and it is fairly rare, occurring in about 120 hymnals. But this is an excellent hymn illustrating what Michael Gorman calls cruciformity, or what Scot McKnight calls Christoformity. Either way, it is the way of the cross—we win by surrendering to God. Our own striving simply binds us more tightly in the spiderweb of sin.
Oh, and if you read his brief biography that is linked to above, you will see that he knew a good bit about surrender.
</idle musing >
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