By Thy Crib and Thy Cross

 

O Little One
So small and fair
King though you are
No royal fanfare
Or regal trappings
Lying in a manger bare

I see Thee there
Poor and lone
Save the ass and ox
Aside Your throne
Of hay and cold
Yet such Light does shone

Ah, here lies a gift
Sublime and yet keen
All power and majesty
Lie in place so mean
Contained and swaddled
Unnoticed and unseen

No words do Thou speak
Silence is gold
For to the heart
Is Thou story told
The Word Made Flesh
The Love of God unfolds

The Glory of God
At rest in the cave
At one with man
So as to save
Those who had forsook
All that which He gave

I come before You
Oh Infant meek and mild
No fear and trembling
Before you, Almighty Child
For You came for me
Through Thy Mother undefiled

To save me, O Jesus
From the snare of sin
From the sadness of error
From the darkness and din
Of life without You
O Light, shine within

My lowly heart
I give to you, Sweet One
Make it beat sweetly
In rhythm with Thine Own
A song of peace and joy
For You, O Holy Son

Of Holy Mary
God and Man at One
Love shall reign
All sin and desolation gone
All through the Birth
Of He Who came
From Heaven Above

Soon to take His Cross
For the manger foretells
The Sorrow He shall bare
In full time,  it does  befell
The prick of the hay
Shadows the piercing of the nails

The Cross to carry
Is not a thing afar
In a distant time
The Sacred Flesh to mar
With You at Your Birth
Announced  Bethlehem’s Star

The Crib and the Cross
Made of the wood of the Tree
Fashioned by the hands of man
Guided by the Love of Thee
Nails to fasten, both cedar and flesh
Salvation is won triumphantly
Through Thou Love given
Do This in Memory of Me 

O Infant King
Sit upon Thy throne
In Crib, on Cross
O in Heaven above
Forevermore reign in my heart
Give to me Thy Love
Never again to sin
Never to leave Thee alone

To the Crib, to the Cross
To You do I cry
To you do I come
Hurriedly do I fly
To Bethlehem, to Calvary
Your Love do I seek
May it ever be so nigh

Oh my Jesus
Babe, God and man
I give you my heart
I place it Your Hand
In Your manger, I lay it down
On the Cross, as one can
I nail it with Thine.

To be Yours
In all things and ways
In all of my tomorrows
In days of yester and todays
I love Thee, Lord Jesus
Oh let me never stray. 
By Thy Crib and Thy Cross
Let me always stay.