Father of Spirits! Nature’s God!

Above:  Sandhill Cranes Flying

Image in the Public Domain

Text (1829) by Harriet Auber (1773-1862)

Hymn Source = A Collection of Psalms and Hymns for Christian Worship (1830), American Unitarian Association

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Father of spirits! Nature’s God!

Our inmost thoughts are known to thee;

Thou, Lord, canst hear each idle words,

And every private action see.

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Could we on morning’s swiftest wings

Pursue our flight through trackless air;

Or dive beneath deep ocean’s springs,

Thy presence still would meet us there.

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In vain may guilt attempt to fly,

Concealed beneath the pall of night,

One glance from thy all-piercing eye

Can kindle darkness into light.

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Search thou our hearts, and there destroy

Each evil thought, each secret sin;

And fit us for those realms of joy,

Where nought impure shall enter in.

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