Take My Life and Let it Be

Take my life and let it be, consecrated, Lord, to Thee;
Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of Thy love.

Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for Thee;
Take my voice and let me sing, always, only for my King.

Take my lips and let them be filled with messages from Thee;
Take my silver and my gold, Not a mite would I withhold.

Take my moments and my days, Let them flow in endless praise;
Take my intellect and use every pow’r as Thou shalt choose.

Take my will and make it Thine, It shall be no longer mine;
Take my heart, it is Thine own, It shall be Thy royal throne.

I like the following phrases in this particular hymn:

• “Consecrated, Lord, to Thee” – Consecrate means to “set apart for the service of God.”  We may think about a Church building being consecrated or dedicated to the Lord’s work, but the Bible reminds us that our bodies are the “temple of God.”  In the Old Testament, the priests did many things to consecrate the temple and the items used in the temple.  Those items had a specific purpose and weren’t to be used haphazardly or irreverently.  The author reminds us in this hymn that our hands, feet, voices, mind, etc. can all be “set apart” and used in service to the Lord.   Whether it is the “hands” the help an elderly person on a daily basis, the “feet” that carry the gospel around the world, or the “voice” that sings the mighty power of God, all of our bodies can be used to further the Kingdom if we will consecrate them to the Lord’s service.

• “Swift and Beautiful for thee” –  I like the word “swift” versus the word “hasty.”  Swift connotes to me immediate action and responsiveness.  Hasty, on the other had, can be defined as “unduly quick,” “rash” or “impatient.”  We should respond to the Spirit’s leading immediately.  If we know it is the Spirit urging us, we shouldn’t delay but be “swift” to respond.  However, we should balance this with tempering our desire to do what we want to do without confirmation from the Lord.  I wish I had the formula for always balancing this out.  But there have been times, I have been unresponsive, and there have been times when I have gotten ahead of the Lord.  If, however, our prayer is like the author of this hymn and we yield our will and our lives to His, I am confident He knows how to lead us.

• “Not a mite would I withhold” –  This phrase is a passing reference to the story of the widow’s mite in Mark chapter 12.  Jesus commended the widow and stated that she had given more than the all of the rich who had given their offerings.  His statement was as follows in the NIV – “They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”   The “Message” version reads as follows “The truth is that this poor widow gave more to the collection than all the others put together. All the others gave what they’ll never miss; she gave extravagantly what she couldn’t afford—she gave her all.”  The question for us is “Are we giving to the Lord out of our abundance, and only when we have an abundance, or are we giving our all out of devotion and love for Him?”  Another good question to ask yourself is “Are there things in your life that you are withholding from the Lord, or things that you refuse to let Him rule over?”

I will admit that I like to watch the Star Trek shows (primarily the Next Generation), but I would not consider myself a “Trekkie.”  If you are familiar at all with the show, you will know that Captain Picard often will give the command to reduce speed to “Impulse” power from “Warp” speed.  When the ship is at “impulse” power, it is able to do a few things that it can’t do at warp speed.  1)  Maneuver better – respond to the Captain’s command.  2) Engage in battle – Defend itself against the enemy.  3) Have the ship’s sensors work more effectively.  The author makes a statement in the first verse of the hymn praying that his hands will move at the “Impulse of thy word.”  The question for us is “Are we traveling through our lives at “warp speed”  or at “impulse power?  Are we too busy to pause and adjust the pace of our life to take instruction from the Lord?  Are we ill-equipped to battle the enemy because our lives are so busy we don’t read the Word and listen to the Holy Spirit speak to us?  Are we going so fast that we cannot sense and discern the Spirit speaking to us on a daily basis?  This hymn reminds us that if we will surrender our life (our will, our bodies, our finances, etc.) completely to the Lord, then we can be right in the center of God’s will.  My prayer for you, and for myself, is that we will offer our lives completely to the Lord, and let Him do as He pleases.  Then we can rest in His will, “live long, and prosper.”