Verily Vain

“Except the LORD build the house, they labor in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.  It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so He giveth His beloved sleep” (Psalm 127:1,2). 

How verily, verily, verily vain,

Is working, is warring, and worrying too,

Forgetting that only the Lord can sustain

The things that we thought (without Him) we could do.

The house that we build shall be destined to fall,

The city we’re trying to guard shall not stand,

The sleep that we forfeit won’t help us at all,

When we are not trusting the help of God’s hand. 

How verily vain, then, is any endeavor

To prosper without Him in thought, word, or deed.

The Tower of Babel, which men esteemed clever, 

Became a display of how NOT to succeed.

O Lord, we acknowledge there’s no true success

Without the provision of Your grace and power.

So help us succeed in the things You will bless,

Lest we be like builders of Babel’s vain tower!