Like many people, when I think of Autumn, I think of a special time of Thanksgiving to the Lord for His blessings. So, when I feel the crispness in the air, look at the brilliant foliage, and smell the fragrance of wood-smoke, I also feel a swelling of thankfulness in my heart. The words of the following hymn, For the Beauty of the Earth, express this thankfulness much more eloquently than I can:
1. For the beauty of the earth,
for the glory of the skies,
for the love which from our birth
over and around us lies;
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our hymn of grateful praise.
2. For the beauty of each hour
of the day and of the night,
hill and vale, and tree and flower,
sun and moon, and stars of light;
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our hymn of grateful praise.
3. For the joy of ear and eye,
for the heart and mind’s delight,
for the mystic harmony,
linking sense to sound and sight;
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our hymn of grateful praise.
4. For the joy of human love,
brother, sister, parent, child,
friends on earth and friends above,
for all gentle thoughts and mild;
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our hymn of grateful praise.
5. For thy church, that evermore
lifteth holy hands above,
offering up on every shore
her pure sacrifice of love;
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our hymn of grateful praise.
6. For thyself, best Gift Divine,
to the world so freely given,
for that great, great love of thine,
peace on earth, and joy in heaven:
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our hymn of grateful praise.
Text: Folliot S. Pierpoint
Music: Conrad Kocher; Arr. by W.H. Monk
Tune: DIX, Meter: 77.77.77
