Longings of Life

“Rachel… said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die” (Genesis 30:1).  “Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ… According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:6-21). 

There is a longing in our life

To leave a legacy that’s blest,
As Rachel, who was Jacob’s wife,
Was childless and thus distressed. 

“Lord, give me children or I die,”

Reflects the missionary’s heart. 
The Lord shall hear that longing cry,
For such a longing He’ll impart.

In this we may be confident:  

The work of Christ in us begun
With longings by His Spirit sent
Shall be performed until He’s done.

This is our earnest expectation

That we shall never be ashamed
As we declare our Lord’s salvation
And in our life He is proclaimed.

As God shall lend another breath,

Until the day that we have died,
The longing in our life or death
Should be that Christ is magnified!

All others longings are in vain

Which will not glorify our Savior.
To live is Christ, to die is gain:
May this be seen in our behavior! 

Lord, give us longings more like Yours

That we may be as Your reflection
And live as Your ambassadors,
The workmanship of Your perfection. 

Revive these longings, Lord, anew

To show the life You freely gave,
That we may draw more souls to You
Whom You are longing yet to save.