291

5 Oh wondrous love!—to bleed and die,
To bear the cross and shame,
That guilty sinners, such as I,
Might plead thy gracious name.

1 THOU Lord of all above,
And all below the sky,
Prostrate before thy feet I fall,
And for thy mercy cry.

2 Forgive my follies past,

The crimes which I have done;
Oh, bid a contrite sinner live,
Through thine incarnate Son.

3 Guilt, like a heavy load,

Upon my conscience lies;
To thee I make my sorrows known,
And lift my weeping eyes.

4 The burden which I feel,

Thou only canst remove;
Do thou display thy pardoning grace,
And thine unbounded love.

5 One gracious look of thine

Will ease my troubled breast:
Oh! let me know my sins forgiven,
And I shall then be blest.

Absence from God deprecated.

1 OH thou, whose tender mercy hears
Contrition's humble sigh;

Whose hand indulgent wipes the tears
From sorrow's weeping eye;—

2 See, Lord, before thy throne of grace,
A wretched wanderer mourn:
Hast thou not bid me seek thy face?
Hast thou not said-' Return'?

3 And shall my guilty fears prevail
To drive me from thy feet?
Oh! let not this dear refuge fail,
This only safe retreat.

4 Absent from thee, my Guide! my Light!
Without one cheering ray,

Through dangers, fears, and gloomy night,
How desolate my way!

292

5 Oh! shine on this benighted heart,
With beams of mercy shine!
And let thy healing voice impart
A taste of joy divine.

293

S. M.

Returning to Christ.

mf 11 YE sons of earth, arise!

Ye creatures of a day!

Haverhill. Hudson

Redeem the time-be bold-be wise,
And cast your bonds away.

2 The year of gospel-grace,
With us rejoice to see;
And thankfully in Christ embrace
Your proffered liberty.

Aff 3 Blest Saviour-Lord of all!
Thee help us to receive;
Obedient to thy gracious call,
Oh, bid us turn and live!

4 Our former years misspent,
Now let us deeply mourn;
And, softened by thy grace, repent,
And to thine arms return!

294

V

-

1 HOW oft, alas! this wretched heart
Has wandered from the Lord!
How oft my roving thoughts depart,
Forgetful of his word!

2 Yet sovereign mercy calls- Return.'
Dear Lord, and may I come?
My vile ingratitude I mourn:
Oh, take the wanderer home.

3 And canst thou-wilt thou yet forgive,
And bid my crimes remove?
And shall a pardoned rebel live,
To speak thy wondrous love.
4 Almighty grace, thy healing power,
How glorious-how divine!

That can to life and bliss restore
A heart so vile as mine.

5 Thy pardoning love-so free-so sweet!—
Dear Saviour, I adore ;

Oh keep me at thy sacred feet,

And let me rove no more.

295

L. M.

Medway. Middlebury.
1 RETURN, my roving heart, return,
And life's vain shadows chase no more;
Seek out some solitude to mourn,
And thy forsaken God implore.

20 thou great God, whose piercing eye
Distinctly marks each deep retreat,
In these sequestered hours draw nigh,
And let me here thy presence meet.
3 Through all the windings of my heart,
My search let heavenly wisdom guide;
And still its beams unerring dart,
Till all be known and purified.

4 Then let the visits of thy love,
My inmost soul be made to share,
Till ev'ry grace combine to prove
That God has fixed his dwelling there.

296

L. M.

Windham. Hamburg.
1 AH! wretched, vile, ungrateful heart,
That can from Jesus thus depart;
Thus fond of trifles vainly rove,
Forgetful of a Saviour's love.

2 Dear Lord, to thee I would return,
And at thy feet repenting mourn:
There let me view thy pardoning love,
And never from thy sight remove.
3 Oh, let thy love, with sweet control,
Bind every passion of my soul;
Bid every vain desire depart,
And dwell forever in my heart.

297

C. M.

Baldwin. Litchfield.
1 MY Saviour, let me hear thy voice
Pronounce the word of peace;
And all my warmest powers shall join
To celebrate thy grace.

2 With gentle voice, call me thy child,
And speak my sins forgiven;

The accents mild shall charm mine ear
Like all the harps of heaven.

mf 3 With joy, where'er thy hand shall lead,
The darkest path I'll tread ;

P

f

Len

With joy I'll quit these mortal shores,
And mingle with the dead.

4 When dreadful guilt is done away,
No other fears we know;

298

1

That hand, which seals our pardon sure,
Shall crowns of life bestow.

Faith, the Evidence of Things not seen.
FAITH is the brightest evidence
Of things beyond our sight;
It pierces through the vail of sense,
And dwells in heavenly light.
2 It sets time past in present view,
Brings distant prospects home,
Of things a thousand years ago,
Or thousand years to come.

3 By faith we know the world was made
By God's almighty word;

We know the heavens and earth shall fade,
And be again restored.

4 Abrah'm obeyed the Lord's command,
From his own country driven;

By faith he sought a promised land,
But found his rest in heaven.

5 Thus through life's pilgrimage we stray,
The promise in our eye;

299

By faith we walk the narrow way,
That leads to joy on high.

S. M. Mornington. Southfield.
Source and Office of Faith.

1 FAITH-'tis a precious grace,
Where'er it is bestowed;
It boasts a high, celestial birth,
And is the gift of God.

2 Jesus it owns as King,

And all-atoning Priest;
It claims no merit of its own,
But looks for all in Christ.

3 To him it leads the soul,

When filled with deep distress;
Flies to the fountain of his blood,
And trusts his righteousness.

4 Since 'tis thy work alone,
And that divinely free;

Lord, send the Spirit of thy Son,
To work this faith in me.

300

f

Len

1 MISTAKEN souls, that dream of heaven
And make their empty boast
Of inward joys, and síns forgiven,
While they are slaves to lust!
2 Vain are our fancy's airy flights,
If faith be cold and dead;
None but a living power unites
To Christ, the living head.
3 "Tis faith that purifies the heart;
"Tis faith that works by love;
That bids all sinful joys depart,
And lifts the thoughts above.
4 This faith shall every fear control
By its celestial power:

301

With holy triumph fill the soul
In death's approaching hour.

L. M.

Walking by Faith.

1 "TIS by the faith of joys to come,

Duke Street

We walk through deserts dark as night;
Till we arrive at heaven, our home,

Faith is our guide-and faith our light.
2 The want of sight she well supplies;
She makes the pearly gates appear;
Far into distant worlds she pries,
And brings eternal glories near.
3 Cheerful we tread the desert through,
While faith inspires a heavenly ray,
Though lions roar-and tempests blow,
And rocks and dangers fill the way.

302

C. M.

Patmos. Dedham.

1 FAITH adds new charms to earthly bliss,
And saves us from its snares:

It yields support in all our toils,
And softens all our cares.

2 The wounded conscience knows its power,

The healing balm to give;

That balm the saddest heart can cheer,

And make the dying live.