Father, I know that all my life

1
Father, I know that all my life is portioned out for me,
And the changes that are sure to come I do not fear to see;
But I ask Thee for a present mind intent on pleasing Thee.
2
I ask Thee for a thoughtful love, through constant watching wise,
To meet the glad with joyful smiles, and to wipe the weeping eyes;
And a heart at leisure from itself, to soothe and sympathize.
3
I would not have the restless will that hurries to and fro,
Seeking for some great thing to do or secret thing to know;
I would be treated as a child, and guided where I go.
4
Wherever in the world I am, in whatso’er estate,
I have a fellowship with hearts to keep and cultivate;
And a work of lowly love to do for the Lord on whom I wait.
5
So I ask Thee for the daily strength, to none that ask denied,
And a mind to blend with outward life while keeping at Thy side;
Content to fill a little space, if Thou be glorified.
6
And if some things I do not ask in my cup of blessing be,
I would have my spirit filled the more with grateful love to Thee,
More careful, not to serve Thee much, but to please Thee perfectly.
7
There are briers besetting every path that call for patient care;
There is a cross in every lot, and an earnest need for prayer;
But a lowly heart that leans on Thee is happy anywhere.
8
In a service which Thy will appoints there are no bonds for me;
For my inmost heart is taught “the truth” that makes Thy children “free”
And a life of self-renouncing love is a life of liberty.

Very little is known about the author of this hymn, because of her remarkably retiring disposition. She was Anna Laetitia Waring, and was born in Neath, a town of South Wales, in 1820. In 1850 she published her "Hymns and Meditations," and in 1858 she published "Additional Hymns." It is believe that she was a Friend, and that her life was full of suffering and pain. Hymn #305 in the Chinese Hymnal is a translation of this hymn by Watchman Nee.

34
Glory

Best I've ever come across.


J.O.

United States

I especially appreciate the last line of the last two stanzas: "But a lowly heart that leans on Thee is happy anywhere" and "And a life of self-renouncing love is a life of liberty." The author is not writing words of doctrine but is writing something that was her sweet experience. May we experience the same kind of life, a life leaning on Him and a life of "self-renouncing love."


Steve Miller

Detroit, MI, United States

My favorite hymn. The tender tune and all 3 lines of each verse rhyming together are beautiful.

The best thing is that the hymn contains so many gems of faith, love and truth. The gems express truths or heart desires that I did not have words to express:

v1 "I know that all my life is portioned out for me"

"the changes that are sure to come I do not fear to see"

"I ask Thee for a present mind intent on pleasing Thee" - what a good prayer!

v2 - "a thoughtful love"

"thru constant watching wise"

"a heart at leisure from itself"

v3 "I would not have the restless will that hurries to and fro" - this whole verse is convicting to me.

v4 - My treasures are "a fellowship with hearts" and "a work of lowly love to do". The world can't take these away from me.

v5 - "I ask Thee for the daily strength, to none that ask denied" - includes the faith that it will be granted.

"a mind to blend with outward life while keeping at Thy side"

"Content to fill a little space, if Thou be glorified" - So lowly, yet uncommonly glorious.

v6 "More careful, not to serve Thee much, but to please Thee perfectly" - to always be ruled by


Simon Tay

Penang, Malaysia

What a finely written hymn! The sentiments are highly poetic and deep, uttered from a heart that had been dealt with to such an extent that almost every line rings with immediacy and can move us deeply. The hymn also reveals a trained mind attuned with scripture. For instance, the components of the soul (the mind, emotion and will) are alluded brilliantly in the first three stanzas. The mature flow of thought is outstanding. The music matches the hymn beautifully.