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Before thy throne, O God, we kneel;
give us a conscience quick to feel,
a ready mind to understand
the meaning of thy chastening hand;
whate'er the pain and shame may be,
bring us, O Father, nearer thee.
Search out our hearts and make us true,
wishful to give to all their due;
from love of pleasure, lust of gold,
from sins which make the heart grow cold,
wean us and train us with thy rod;
teach us to know our faults, O God.
For sins of heedless word and deed,
for pride ambitious to succeed;
for crafty trade and subtle snare
to catch the simple unaware;
for lives bereft of purpose high,
forgive, forgive, O Lord, we cry.
Let the fierce fires, which burn and try,
our inmost spirits purify:
consume the ill; purge out the shame;
O God! be with us in the flame;
a new-born people may we rise,
more pure, more true, more nobly wise.
William Boyd Carpenter (1841-1918)