Before Battle

WE have toiled, O Lord, with our blood and might

And have offered a hymn to Thee;

And in pain and rage we have spent our light,

And our nights in misery;

We have dug the trench and built the site,

That we might be near to Thee;

O Lord our God, we have spent our light

In search of Thee.

Garish culture we spurned as we spurned all things

That were not in the grace of Thee;

And we bowed our heads and our hearts to kings

Who wore crowns by their claims in Thee;

In the deep of night we have sung Thy praise,

Unperishing songs of Thee;

O Lord our God, we have spent our days

In praise of Thee.

We’ve preserved our flesh from the joys of lust

That we might be clean with Thee;

We have fed our souls on the dryest dust,

That we might keep true to Thee;

We have fought, and many the odds have stood,

We have conquered the world for Thee;

O Lord our God, we have spilled our blood

For love of Thee.

We have toiled, O Lord, with our blood and might,

And have offered a hymn to Thee;

Yet our days You’ve cursed with the gloom of night,

And our nights with misery;

We have kept our faith through the bitterest strife,

Through the bitterest strife for Thee;

O Lord our God, take of our dust,

Our faith in Thee.