Man the Life-Boat! (Stryker)

Man the life-boat! Man the life-boat!

Strong and short above the roar

Sounds the or­der to the watch­ers

On the tem­pest bea­ten shore

Hark! again the guns ap­peal­ing!

Signals burn for swift re­lief;

There are men and wives and child­ren

Facing death

on yon­der reef!

Man the life-boat! Man the life-boat!

Help

for Christ’s sake

them that drown!

In the per­il of great wa­ters

Let them not in sin go down!

Man the life-boat! Man the life-boat!

Fog and night and cru­el sea

All the odds of death against them

And eter­nal jeo­par­dy.

Thou

who bidd’st us dare the surg­es

Stay us at the strug­gling oar!

Nay! go with us to the res­cue!

Shall they sink in sight of shore?

Man the life-boat! Man the life-boat!

Courage

fel­low men! ’Tis He

Guiding us to your de­liv­er­ance

Once that trod the Ga­li­lee!

Lo

the Church that car­ri­eth Je­sus

Not death’s flood-gates shall o’er­whelm;

Scourging storms but urge us shore­ward

Life and Love are at the helm!

Man the life-boat! Man the life-boat!

Think how once on break­ing deck

Thou didst stand aghast

till Je­sus

Brought thee from the lurch­ing wreck.

To the oars then! O Re­deem­er

Let Thy heart throb thro’ our hand

Till the souls in mor­tal dan­ger

Find thro’ Thee the so­lid land.