Psalm 42

This Psalm has been on my mind lately.  Here is my version:

My soul, O God, doth pant for thee--
I lap up truth on bended knee.
When shall thy face adorn my gaze?
My tears are meat both night and days.
My enemies do me deride:
Where is thy God? Where doth He hide?"

Yet I have kept thy holy days,
And sung with voice of joy and praise.
Why art thou cast down, O my soul?
Yet hope in God to make thee whole.
I will remember what God wrought,
Through angry deep with billows fraught.

And if, to distant Jordan's hill
My pathway leads, I'll praise thee still.
Thy lovingkindness shall not cease,
Midst toil and strife, I'll know thy peace.
Awake, my soul, and praise him yet--
Thy God shall never thee forget.

Christmas in July: Emmanuel, Emmanuel

Remember the Christmas in July sales?  They don't seem to happen much anymore, but here's a bit of Christmas in July.  It's a contrafactum I wrote last year for O Tannenbaum.  I haven't been writing as much lately, but I feel I'm coming out of a dormant period, and reading my old stuff gets my creative juices flowing.  Besides, I have to write some Psalm texts as part of one of my ticket items from the Wood Badge course I attended in May.

Emmanuel, Emmanuel, is born in lowly stable.
No royal bed to lay his head, a manger is his cradle,
While Mary watches through the night,
The star shines down its holy light--
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, is born in lowly stable

Emmanuel, Emmanuel, the shepherds kneel before thee.
No gift to bring the newborn King, they only shall adore thee.
The sheep now bleat, the oxen call,
To praise the God and Lord of all--
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, the shepherds kneel before thee.

Emmanuel, Emmanuel, O may I e'er remember,
Through deepest plight and dark of night, thy love a burning ember--
The price paid in Gethsemane,
The cruel cross on Calvary--
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, O may I e'er remember.

Emmanuel, Emmanurl, O let thy arms enfold me
Till life is done, the vic'try won. O may I then behold thee.
Before thy throne, on bended knee,
I'll praise thy name eternally!
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, O let thy arms enfold me.

Enos

The lesson I'm preparing to teach my Primary class tomorrow (I have the 9/10 year old class, the one my oldest child is in) is on Enos. Since I've written a hymn on Enos as part of my prophet cycle--which is still very much incomplete--I thought I'd put it in here.

Enos, hunting forest beasts,
Did yearn to be made whole.
Deeply sunk his father’s words
Into his hungry soul.

Then he knelt in mighty prayer
That stretched from morn till night.
Sweetly, softly, came God’s voice
To set his soul aright.

Humbly, then, the prophet asked:
“O Lord, how is it done?
Newly, I am born again,
For Thou canst lie to none.”

God replied, “By faith in Christ,
Thy guilt is swept away.
Thou didst hearken to my voice
And sought to walk my way.”

Gladly, then, I’ll seek his face,
With grateful heart, o’erfull,
For God only can assuage
The hunger in my soul.

Jacob and Sherem

I teach a class of 9- and 10-year-olds in Primary (junior
Sunday School). Tomorrow, our lesson is about Jacob, the brother of Nephi, and his confrontation with Sherem, the anti-Christ. I thought I'd post this text about Jacob from my series about prophets. I'm going to read it tomorrow and try to have the class guess who I am talking about.

In wilderness I came to earth,
A wanderer, alone since birth.
The promised land I sought in youth,
By heeding Liahona's truth.

Though elder brothers strayed apart,
Still Nephi's words did pierce my heart,
And goodly parents planted me,
Like nether branch of olive tree.

The mantle passed, I prophesied,
When came the anti-Christ who lied,
Sign-seeking Sherem, who did shame
By blaspheming against his name--

'Till by the word of holy God,
I smote him dead, my mouth the rod.
Astonished, all the people fell,
And bid Christ save from awful hell.

My life has passed as if a dream.
World-weary, soon I leave life's stream,
My body spent to last sinew--
My brethren, I bid adieu.

I'm guessing none of the kids in my class know who this is about on the first reading, though they may get it if I read it a second time carefully and point out clues.

God, Who Rules the Heavens High

God, who rules the heavens high,
And the lilies of the field,
Be my sovereign King, I pray;
Make my stony heart to yield.

God, who knows my every thought,
Bid my troubled mind be still.
Bend my feet to seek thy throne;
Break my pride to seek thy will.

God, who sent his Son to die,
Make that gift for me not vain.
Cleanse from sin through his spilt blood--
Bring me to thy face again.

Psalm 126

The last line contains a tweak from the text to identify the source of deliverance. Compare with the original...

When the Lord delivered Israel,
It was as a wondrous dream,
Filled with cloud and fiery pillar,
Parting sea and blood-red stream.

Then was our mouth filled with laughter,
And our tongue was made to sing.
Then said they among the heathen,
"God for them hath done great things."

Turn us, Lord, again from bondage:
Flaxen cords of sin that bind.
Bring us safe into Thy presence,
Blessed Savior of mankind.