Spirit of God, Descend upon My Heart
Ephesians 4:29,30
Words by George Croly, 1780-1860
Music by Frederick C. Atkinson, 1841-1897


Following the celebration of Easter, there are two other important Church calendar days which many evangelical Christians often neglect to recognize. The first is Ascension Day-forty days following Easter (see No. 55). The second important day is Pentecost Sunday-ten days after Christ's ascension. It is thrilling at Christmas to recall the events of our Savior's birth, or at Easter his triumph over death. Yet if He had never ascended to make intercession for us or had never sent the Holy Spirit to dwell within and to guide us, our relationship with God would be most incomplete.

One of the finest of all hymns for Pentecost is this hymn, "Spirit of God, Descend Upon My Heart." It was written by the Rev. George Croly, a minister in the Anglican Church. Croly was born in Dublin, Ireland, and was graduated from Trinity College. He came to London, England, around 1810, where he served a small parish church. He was also active during this time as a literary writer of poems and novels as well as biographical, historical and scriptural material. Later, in 1835, he was asked by the church's leadership to re-open a church in the worst slum area of London, St. Stephen's Church, which had been closed for more than a century. His forceful, magnetic preaching soon attracted large crowds. Croly was characterized by his associates as a "fundamentalist in theology, a fierce conservative in politics, and intensely opposed to all forms of liberalism." In 1854, when he was seventy-four years of age, he desired a new hymnal for his congregation and eventually prepared and published his own Psalms and Hymns for Public Worship. This text is from that collection and was originally entitled "Holiness Desired." It is Croly's only surviving hymn from that collection.

The four stanzas, though strongly personal, have a moving, universal appeal for each of us today:

Stanza One-A desire to change the focus of one's life from things temporal to things spiritual- "to love Thee as I ought to love."

Stanza Two-The total dedication of one's self to God- "soul, heart, strength and mind."

Stanza Three-A prayerful concern for knowing fully the Spirit's abiding presence as an antidote for the soul's impatience when confronted with struggle, doubt, rebellion, or a delayed answer to prayer- "teach me the patience of unanswered prayer."

Stanza Four-The last phrase of this verse is considered by many students of hymnody to be one of the most beautiful metaphors found in any hymn- "my heart an altar, and Thy love the flame." The tune, "Morecambe," was written by Frederick C. Atkinson, an English church organist, in 1870. It was originally intended for Henry Lyte's hymn, "Abide with Me" (No. 2). It is thought that the tune was named after an English town in the Midland district where music festivals were held periodically.

Quoted from "101 Hymn Stories" by Kenneth Osbeck. Kregel Publishers, P.O. Box 2607, Grand Rapids, MI 49501, 1982.
Used by permission - duplication without permission is a violation of U.S. copyright law.

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Spirit of God, Descend upon My Heart

Verse 1

Spirit of God, descend upon my heart,
Wean it from earth, through all its pulses move;
Stoop to my weakness, mighty as Thou art,
And make me love Thee as I ought to love.

Verse 2

I ask no dream, no prophet ecstasies,
No sudden rending of the veil of clay,
No angel visitant, no opening skies:
But take the dimness of my soul above.

Verse 3

Hast Thou not bid us love Thee, God and King?
All, all Thine own, soul, heart and strength and mind!
I see Thy cross, there teach my heart to cling:
O let me seek Thee, and O let me find!

Verse 4

Teach me to feel that Thou art always nigh;
Teach me the struggles of the soul to bear,
To check the rising doubt, the rebel sigh;
Teach me the patience of unanswered prayer.

Verse 5

Teach me to love Thee as Thine angels love,
One holy passion filling all my frame;
The baptism of the heaven descended Dove;
My heart an altar, and Thy love the flame.

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