“Haste to Me, Lord…” Poetry by George MacDonald

Haste to Me, Lord

by George MacDonald

Haste to me, Lord, when this fool-heart of mine
Begins to gnaw itself with selfish craving;
Or, like a foul thing scarcely worth the saving,
Swoln up with wrath, desireth vengeance fine.
Haste, Lord, to help, when reason favours wrong;
Haste when thy soul, the high-born thing divine,
Is torn by passion’s raving, maniac throng.

Fair freshness of the God-breathed spirit air,
Pass through my soul, and make it strong to love;
Wither with gracious cold what demons dare
Shoot from my hell into my world above;
Let them drop down, like leaves the sun doth sear,
And flutter far into the inane and bare,
Leaving my middle-earth calm, wise, and clear.

-George Macdonald (1824-1905) “May 11&12” from A Book of Strife in the Form of the Diary of an Old Soul (1880)

Patrick: Bishop and Missionary of Ireland

St. PatrickA Prayer of St. Patrick

Permit us not, O Lord, to hear your word in vain. Convince us of its truth, cause us to feel its power and bind us to yourself with chords of faith and hope and love that never shall be broken. We bind to ourselves today, you our God: your power to hold us, your wisdom to teach us, your word to give us speech, your presence to defend us, this day and every day; in the name of the blessed Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, to whom be the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever and forever. Amen.

Further Resources

The Canticle of St. Patrick 

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,

Christ within me,  Christ beneath me, Christ above me,

Christ on my right, Christ on my left….

Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,

Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks to me,

Christ in every eye that sees me,

Christ in every ear that hears me.