Romans 12:1, A Living Sacrifice

Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Give to God your wholehearted devotion is the call issued by the Apostel Paul. All that we are comes from Him. God made us with a mind, with a heart and with a will that we might think, love and obey Him freely.

Frances Ridley Havergal (1836-79) of England began writing verse at age seven. Her insatiable thirst for the Bible led her to memorize the entire New Testament, Psalms, Isaiah, and the Minot Prophets. She was a concert contralto soloist and a brilliant classical pianist. She gave her life to Christ at age fifteen.

At age twenty-one she stood in the art gallery at Dusseldorf, Germany, looking at the painting of the crucifixion with the engraving beneath it: “This I have done for thee; what hast thou done for Me?” In the previous century the wealthy young Count Zinzendorf of Moravian missionary fame read these same words and was led to consecrate his life to Christ. As she stood there, her very soul was stirred. Tears cascaded down her cheeks. From that moment she dedicated her talents to the service of the Lord.

Through her life she was frail and dedicate in health and died at the early age of forty-two. When she wrote “Take my life, and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee,” it was for her a prayer. And when she penned the words, “Take my silver and my gold,” she did exactly that! She gave fifty pieces of jewelry (heirlooms) to the Church Missionary Society, including a jewel cabinet that she said was “fit for a countess.” She retained only a brooch for daily wear that was a memorial of her parents, and a locket with a portrait of her niece who had gone to heaven. Of that experience she wrote, “I don’t think I need tell you I never packed a box with such pleasure.” Despite the dark nights of frequent sickness and suffering, the dedicated life of this poetess can best be summed up in her prayer lyrics.

Despite the dark nights of frequent sickness and suffering, the dedicated life of this poetess can best be summed up in her prayer lyrics.

Take My life, and let it be

Consecrated, Lord, to thee;

Take my moments and my days,

Let them flow with ceaseless praise.

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 for Thee

Take my silver and my gold,

Not a mite would I withhold;

Take my intellect, and use

Every power 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.

Take my love, my Lord, I pour

At Thy feet its treasure-store;

Take myself, and I will be

Ever, only, all for thee.

May the words of this beautiful hymn echo the prayer and consecration of our life. Amen.

[Extracted and edited from Songs in the Night by Henry Gariepy]