My Lord, my Life, my Love

My Lord, my Life, my Love

Author: Isaac Watts; Adapter: Robert Bridges
Tune: SONG 20
Published in 10 hymnals

Printable scores: PDF, MusicXML
Audio files: MIDI

Representative Text

1 My Lord, my Life, my Love,
To thee, to thee I call;
I cannot live if thou remove:
Thou art my joy, my all.

2 My only sun to cheer
The darkness where I dwell;
The best and only true delight
My song hath found to tell.

3 To thee in very heaven
The angels owe their bliss;
To thee the saints, whom thou has called
Where perfect pleasure is.

4 And how shall man, thy child,
Without thee happy be,
Who hath no comfort nor desire
In all the world but thee?

5 Return my Love, my Life,
Thy grace hath won my heart;
If thou forgive, if thou return,
I will no more depart.

Source: The New English Hymnal #411

Author: Isaac Watts

Isaac Watts was the son of a schoolmaster, and was born in Southampton, July 17, 1674. He is said to have shown remarkable precocity in childhood, beginning the study of Latin, in his fourth year, and writing respectable verses at the age of seven. At the age of sixteen, he went to London to study in the Academy of the Rev. Thomas Rowe, an Independent minister. In 1698, he became assistant minister of the Independent Church, Berry St., London. In 1702, he became pastor. In 1712, he accepted an invitation to visit Sir Thomas Abney, at his residence of Abney Park, and at Sir Thomas' pressing request, made it his home for the remainder of his life. It was a residence most favourable for his health, and for the prosecution of his literary… Go to person page >

Adapter: Robert Bridges

Robert S. Bridges (b. Walmer, Kent, England, 1844; d. Boar's Hill, Abingdon, Berkshire, England, 1930) In a modern listing of important poets Bridges' name is often omitted, but in his generation he was consid­ered a great poet and fine scholar. He studied medicine and practiced as a physician until 1881, when he moved to the village of Yattendon. He had already written some poetry, but after 1881 his literary career became a full-time occupation, and in 1913 he was awarded the position of poet laureate in England. Bridges published The Yattendon Hymnal (1899), a collection of one hundred hymns (forty-four written or translated by him with settings mainly from the Genevan psalter, arranged for unaccompanied singing. In addition to volumes… Go to person page >

Text Information

First Line: My Lord, my Life, my Love
Adapter: Robert Bridges
Author: Isaac Watts
Meter: 6.6.8.6
Source: Methodist Hymn; Based on verses by Isaac Watts
Language: English
Copyright: Public Domain

Timeline

Media

The Cyber Hymnal #4281
  • Adobe Acrobat image (PDF)
  • Noteworthy Composer score (NWC)
  • XML score (XML)

Instances

Instances (1 - 2 of 2)
TextScoreAudio

The Cyber Hymnal #4281

TextPage Scan

The New English Hymnal #411

Include 8 pre-1979 instances
Suggestions or corrections? Contact us