Thy Mighty Love O God Constraineth Me

Thy mighty love, O God, constraineth me,
Like some strong tide it presseth on its way,
Seeking a channel in my earth bound soul,
Seeking to sweep all barriers away.


Shall I not yield to that constraining power?
Shall I not say, O tide of love, flow in?
Thy love O God at last hath conquered me,
Life cannot be as it hath hither been.


Break through my nature, mighty, heavenly love,
Clear every avenue of thought and brain,
Flood my affections, purify my will,
Let nothing but Thine own pure life remain.


Thus wholly mastered and possessed by God,
Forth from my life, spontaneous and free,
Shall flow a stream of tenderness and grace,
Loving, because God loved, eternally.


This hymn is by Emily May Grimes.
It inspires me because it talks about being completely taken over by God, and surely that is the way it should be? I always feel uncomfortable with the "God in my pocket" type of God who fits in with my lifestyle and does not change me. God, to me is totally overwhelming and awesome. God is also one who loves us completely and our experience of His love should be as overpowering as He is Almighty, it should not be warm and cosy.


Loving God and being loved by God causes us to change, he draws us into more and more of His nature so we become pure as He is pure.


The other thing about the love of God is that he does overwhelm and posess us. Some people are scared of the idea of this kind of thing, they want to stay in control, but by being out of our control and into His we find an amazing freedom we can never know any other way. It is like we suddenly become everything we were meant to be. Like a caged animal let out of its controlled environment into the wild.


Last February I went for a walk along a river in the countryside, (that is I wore wellingtons and walked along the river itself- not on the bank). The force of the water and the sense of power yet peace made me think of this hymn. It made me consider how much of my life is motivated and controlled by the force of God (the river) and how much is controlled by my own self-will (walking against the flow). It makes me think how as a fishes home environment is the river, our "home environment" can be the presence of God 'cos the Holy Spirit is with us and in us and brings God to us- even in the everyday stuff.


Most of my life I am probably a million miles from this kind of ideal love. But it is still my ideal and my aim. I am probably happiest when I get away from people and into the open with God- but I don't do it enough!