Serious Reflections on the Uncertainty of Life.
1 ETERNAL bliss and lasting woe,
Hang on this span of life below,
This short, uncertain breath;
My heav'nly Father only knows,
Whether another day shall close,
Ere I expire in death.
2 Before thy throne, great Gon! I bow,
And, in these solemn moments, now
Would learn my real state;
While life, and healthy and time endure,
May I thy pard'ning grace secure,
Before it be too late.
3 If in destruction's road I stray,
Teach me to choose that better way
Which leads to joys on high;
My soul renew, my sins forgive;
Nor let me ever dare to live,
Such as I dare not die.
291. B. M.
Seeking God.
GOD! permit my tongue
This joy to call thee mine:
And let my earnest cries prevail,
To taste thy love divine.
For life without thy love,
No relish can afford;
No joy can be compar'd with this,
To serve and please the LORD.
To thee I'll lift my hands,
And praise thee while I live;
Not all that earth and sense can yield,
So pure a pleasure give.
4 Since thon hast been my help
To thee my spirit flies;
And on thy watchful providence,
My cheerful hope relies.
5 The shadow of thy wings
My soul in safety keeps;
I follow where my Father leads,
And he supports my steps.
292 c. M.
ATHER divine! thy piercing eye
Looks through the shades of night;
In deep retirement thou art nigh,
With heart-discerning sight.
2 There shall that piercing eye survey
My humble worship paid,
With ev'ry morning's dawning ray,
And ev'ry ev'ning's shade.
3 I'll leave behind each earthly care;
To thee my soul shall soar;
While grateful praise and fervent pray'r,
Employ the silent hour.
4 So shall the sun in smiles arise,
The day shall close in peace; So wilt thou train me for the skies, Where joy shall never cease.
Praise to God through the Whole of Existence. GOD of my life! through all its days,
My grateful pow'rs shall sound thy praise;
The song shall wake with op'ning light,
And cheer the darkest gloom of night.
2 When anxious cares would break my rest,
And griefs would tear my throbbing breast
Thy tuneful praises, rais'd on high,
Shall check the murmur, and the sigh.
3 When death o'er nature shall prevail,
And all the pow'rs of language fail,
Joy through my swimming eyes shall break,
And mean the thanks I cannot speak.
4 Those thanks for ever will I pay,
In the bright realms of endless day;
A theme so sweet, a work so high,
Demands and crowns eternity.
The innumerable Mercies of God thankfully owned
1 IN glad amazement, LORD! I stand,
Amidst the bounties of thy hand;
How numberless these bounties are!
How rich, how various, and how fair!
2 But oh! what poor return I make !
What lifeless thanks I pay thee back!
LORD! I confess with humble shame,
My off'rings scarce deserve the name.
3 Fain would my labouring heart devise,
To bring some nobler sacrifice;
It sinks beneath the mighty load :
What shall I render to my God!
4 To thee I consecrate my praise,
And vow the remnant of my days;
Yet, what at best, can I pretend,
Worthy such gifts from such a Friend!
5 In deep abasement LORD! I see
My emptiness and poverty:
Give me a likeness more divine,
And make me worthier to be thine.
6 Give me at length an angel's tongue,
That heaven may echo with my song
The theme, too great for time, shall be
The joy of immortality....
295. c. M.
General Hymn of Praise.
NDULGENT Father! how divine,
How rich thy bounties are!
Through nature's ample round they shine,
Thy goodness to declare.
2 But in the nobler work of grace,
What sweeter mercy smiles,
Reflected from the Saviour's face,
And ev'ry fear beguiles !
3 Such wonders, LORD! while I
To thee my thanks shall rise,
When morning ushers in the day,
Or ev❜ning veils the skies.
4 When glimmering life resigns its flame,
Thy praise shall tune my breath.
The sweet remembrance of thy name
Shall gild the shades of death.
But oh! how bless'd my song shall rise,
In a seraphic lay,
When all thy glories meet my eyes
Through an eternal day.
296. c. M.
Praise to God for Life and Death. 1 MY soul shall praise ₺ 19e, my GOD! Through all my mortal days; In heav'n for ever I'll prolong Thy vast, thy boundless praise. 2 In every smiling happy hour,
Be this my sweet employ ;
Thy praise refines my earthly blias,
And heightens all my joy.
3 When gloomy sare, and keen distress,
Afflict my throbbing breast,
My tongue shall learn to speak thy praise,
And lull each pain to rest.
4 Nor shall my tongue alone proclaim.
The honours of my GoD ;
My life, with all my active pow'rs,
Shall spread thy praise abroad.
5 When death is past, in endless strains
My grateful praise I'll pay :
The theme demands a nobler song
And an eternal day.
Gratitude to God for Individual Mercies 1 WHEN all thy mercies, O my God! My rising soul surveys,
Transported with the view, I'm lost
In wonder, love, and praise,
2 O how shall words, with equal warmth
The gratitude declare,
That glows in my enraptur'd heart!
But thou canst read it there.
3 Unnumber'd comforts, gracious GCD!
Thy tender care bestow'd,
Before my infant heart conceiv'd
From whom those comforts flow'd,
4 Ten thousand thousand precious gifts
My daily thanks employ !
Nor is the least a cheerful heart,
That tastes those gifts with joy.
5 Through ev'ry period of my life,
Thy goodness I'll pursue;
And, after death, in scenes of bliss,
The glorious theme renew.
6 Through all eternity, to thee
A joyful song I'll raise;
But oh! eternity's too short,
To utter all thy praise,
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