"I will love Thee, O Lord."--Ps. xviii. 1.
Yes, even if I have never loved Thee before, I will love Thee, O Lord,
now!
I will love Thee, Lord Jesus, because Thou hast loved me, and because Thou
art loving me now, and wilt love me to the end. Oh, forgive me for not
having loved Thee! How could I have helped loving Thee, when Thou wast
waiting all the time for me, waiting so patiently while I did not care
about Thee! Oh, forgive me! and now I will love Thee always; for Thou wilt
take my love, and fix it on Thyself, and keep it for Thyself.
I will love Thee, O Lord Jesus; I will not listen to Satan, who tries to
keep me from loving Thee; I will not ask myself anything about it, lest I
should begin to get puzzled about whether I do love Thee or not. Thou
knowest that I do want to love Thee; and now, dear Lord Jesus, hear me say
that I _will_ love Thee, and that I will trust Thee to make me love Thee
more and more, always more and more.
I have said it, dear Lord Jesus, and Thou hast heard me say it. And I am
so glad I have said it. I do not want ever to take it back, and Thou wilt
not let me take it back. I am to love Thee always now; and Thou wilt give
me Thy Holy Spirit to shed abroad Thy love in my heart, so that it may be
filled with love. Fill me so full of Thy love that it may run over into
everything I do, and that I may love everybody because I love Thee.
Yes, I will love Thee, dear Lord Jesus!
"My Saviour, I love Thee, I know Thou art mine!
For Thee all the follies of sin I resign;
My gracious Redeemer, my Saviour art Thou;
If ever I loved Thee, my Saviour, 'tis now!
"I love Thee, because Thou hast first loved me,
And purchased my pardon on Calvary's tree;
I love Thee for wearing the thorns on Thy brow;
If ever I loved Thee, my Saviour, 'tis now!
"I will love Thee in life, I will love Thee in death,
And praise Thee as long as Thou lendest me breath:
And say, when the death-dew lies cold on my brow,
If ever I loved Thee, my Saviour, 'tis now!"