Hymns for every occasion
Morning hymns
Christians have always greeted the morning with praise. Morning hymns thank God for the night's rest and the gift of a new day, ask his guidance for the hours ahead, and dedicate the day's work to him. Many were written for daily prayer in homes and schools; others are favorites for an early service, a sunrise gathering or the first session of a retreat or camp.
The hymns below are listed with the most widely sung first. Several work well sung unaccompanied, and those marked “▶ Play along” have a free accompaniment if you want an instrument. All are in the public domain, so you may print or project them freely.
If you lead a camp, retreat or school assembly, a morning hymn is an easy way to begin each day together: the same hymn sung all week becomes something people take home. Print the words below, or put them on a screen, and choose a verse or two if time is short.
Print all lyricsBuild an order of service
Most widely sung
Ranked by how many hymnals print them (Hymnary.org), with chord-charted hymns first.
- Morning — Awake, my soul, and with the sun
- When Morning Gilds the Skies — When morning gilds the skies,
- For the Lord's Day Morning — Lord, in the morning thou shalt hear
- A Morning Song — Once more, my soul, the rising day
- The Morning of the Lord's Day — Early, my God, without delay,
- New every morning is the love
- Still, Still with Thee — Still, still with Thee, when purple morning breaketh,
- A Morning Hymn — God of the morning, at thy voice
- A Morning Hymn — See how the rising sun
- Morning — We lift our hearts to thee,
The full list
Questions about morning hymns
What is a good hymn for a morning service?
“When Morning Gilds the Skies” and “New Every Morning Is the Love” are both well-loved morning hymns, and both are on this page.
Are these morning hymns free to use?
Yes. Every text here comes from a hymnal printed before 1931 and is in the public domain in the United States.