Imatges de pàgina
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Forbid my unbelief to say
There is no mercy here!

2 Oh! may I, Lord, desire the pain
That comes in kindness down,
Far more than sweetest earthly gain,
Succeeded by a frown.

3 Then, though thou bend my spirit low,
Love only shall I see ;

The gracious hand, that strikes the blow,
Was wounded once for me.

332

C. M.

Grafton. Stamford.

IT is the Lord-enthroned in light,
Whose claims are all divine,
Who has an undisputed right
To govern me and mine.

2 It is the Lord-who gives me all
My wealth, my friends, my ease;
And of his bounties may recall
Whatever part he please.

3 It is the Lord-my covenant God,
Thrice blessed be his name!

Whose gracious promise, sealed with blood,
Must ever be the same.

4 And can my soul, with hopes like these,
Be sullen, or repine?

No-gracious God!-take what thou please;
To thee I all resign.

333

C. M.

Spencer. Litchfield.

SINCE all the varying scenes of time
God's watchful eye surveys,

Oh, who so wise to choose our lot,
Or to appoint our ways!

2 Good, when he gives-supremely good,
Nor less when he denies;

Ev'n crosses, from his sovereign hand,
Are blessings in disguise.

3 Why should we doubt a Father's love,
So constant and so kind?

To his unerring gracious will
Be every wish resigned.

4 In thy fair book of life divine,
My God, inscribe my name;

There let it fill some humble place
Beneath my Lord the Lamb!

334

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IN thy rebukes, all-gracious God,
What soft compassion reigns!
What gentle accents of thy voice
Allay thy children's pains!

2 "When I correct my chosen sons,
A father's bowels move:

One transient moment bounds my wrath,
But endless is my love."

mf 3 Our faith shall look through every tear,
And view thy smiling face;

And hope, amid our sighs, shall tune
An anthem to thy grace.

mp 4 Receive, at length, my weary soul
To join thy saints above;

mf Then shall I learn a song of praise, Eternal as thy love.

335

C. M.

Dedham. Oakland.

Safe trusting in God.

O LORD! my best desires fultil,

And help me to resign

Life, health, and comfort, to thy will,
And make thy pleasure mine.

2 Why should I shrink at thy command,
Whose love forbids my fears?
Or tremble at the gracious hand
That wipes away my tears?
3 No-rather let me freely yield
What most I prize to thee,
Who never hast a good withheld,
Or wilt withhold from me.

4 Wisdom and mercy guide my way;
Shall I resist them both?-

A poor, blind creature of a day,

And crushed before the moth!

5 But ah! my inward spirit cries,
Still bind me to thy sway;

Else the next cloud that vails my skies
Will drive these thoughts away.

336

S. M.

Faith prevailing in Trouble.

IF, through unruffled seas,

Toward heaven we calmly sail,
With grateful hearts, O God, to thee
We'll own the fostering gale.

2 But should the surges rise,

And rest delay to

Blest be the sorrow me,

the storm,

Which drives us nearer home.

3 Soon shall our doubts and fears
All yield to thy control:
Thy tender mercies shall illume
The midnight of the soul.

4 Teach us, in every state,
To make thy will our own;
And when the joys of sense depart,
To live by faith alone.

337

Bethany.

C. M. Westford. Eastport. Princeton mp WHEN languor and disease invade This trembling house of clay, 'Tis sweet to look beyond my pain, And long to fly away :

2 Sweet to look inward, and attend
The whispers of his love;
Sweet to look upward, to the place
Where Jesus pleads above :-

3 Sweet to look back, and see my name
In life's fair book set down;
Sweet to look forward, and behold
Eternal joys my own:-

4 Sweet on his faithfulness to rest,
Whose love can never end;
Sweet on the covenant of his grace
For all things to depend :-

5 Sweet, in the confidence of faith,
To trust his firm decrees;
Sweet to lie passive in his hands,
And know no will but his.

6 If such the sweetness of the stream,
What must the fountain bc,

Where saints and angels draw their bliss,
O Lord, direct from thee!

338

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A submissive and docile Spirit.

THOU boundless source of every good!

Our best desires fulfil:

Help us t'adore thy wondrous grace,
And mark thy sovereign will.

2 In all thy mercies may our souls
Thy bounteous goodness see;
Nor let the gifts thy grace imparts
Estrange our hearts from thee.

3 Teach us, in time of deep distress,
To own thy hand, O God!
And in submissive silence learn
The lessons of thy rod.

4 In every changing scene of life,
Whate'er that scene may be,
Give us a meek and humble mind,
A mind at peace with thee.

5 Do thou direct our steps aright;
Help us thy name to fear:

Oh give us grace to watch and pray,
And strength to persevere.

6 Then may we close our eyes in death,
Free from distracting care;

For death is life-and labor rest,

If thou art with us there.

mf

339

C. M.

Contentment.

Dundee. Barby.

FATHER, whate'er of earthly bliss
Thy sovereign will denies,

Accepted at thy throne of grace

Let this petition rise:

mp 2 Give me a calm, a thankful heart,
From every murmur free;
The blessings of thy grace impart,
And make me live to thee.

mf

3 Oh let the hope that thou art mine,
My life and death attend-

Thy presence through my journey shine,
And crown my journey's end.'

C. M.

Stamford, Colchester.

340 God's Covenant a Security in Trouble.

MY God, the covenant of thy love
Abides forever sure;

And in its boundless grace I feel
My happiness secure.

2 Since thou, the everlasting God,
My Father art become-

My Saviour my almighty Friend,
And heaven my final home;-
3 I welcome all thy sovereign will,
For all that will is love;

And when thy way, great God, is dark,
I wait thy light above.

4 Thy covenant, in my dying hour,
Shall dwell upon my tongue,

<And when I wake, shall still employ
My everlasting song.

mf

341

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Casting our Cares on God.

HOW gentle God's commands!

How kind his precepts are!

Come, cast your burdens on the Lord,
And trust his constant care.

2 His bounty will provide ;
His saints securely dwell;
That hand which bears creation up,
Shall guard his children well.

3 Why should this anxious load
Press down your weary mind?

Oh, seek your heavenly Father's throne,
Ánd peace and comfort find.

4 His goodness stands approved,
Unchanged from day to day;

mf I'll drop my burden at his feet,
And bear a song away.

342

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Humbly waiting on God.

AND shall I sit alone,

Oppressed with grief and fear?

To God, my Father, make my moan,
And he refuse to hear?

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