My Gracious Lord, I Own Thy Right

My gracious Lord, I own Thy right
To every service I can pay,
And call it my supreme delight
To hear Thy dictates, and obey.

What is my being but for Thee,
Its sure support, its noblest end?
’Tis my delight Thy face to see,
And serve the cause of such a Friend.

I would not sigh for worldly joy,
Or to increase my worldly good;
Nor future days nor powers employ
To spread a sounding name abroad.

’Tis to my Savior I would live,
To Him Who for my ransom died;
Nor could all worldly honor give
Such bliss as crowns me at His side.

His work my hoary age shall bless,
When youthful vigor is no more;
And my last hour of life confess
His dying love, His saving power.

Author: Philip Doddridge

Year: 1755

This hymn is from Doddridge's collection "Hymns Founded on Various Texts in the Holy Scriptures" (posthumously published 1755). It is sometimes titled "My Gracious Lord, I Own Thy Right" or "Christ's Service the Joy of Life" and is based on a text from 2 Corinthians 5:15.