Hymns for Christian Devotion Part 165

4 Walk in the light! and thine shall be A path, though th.o.r.n.y,--bright: For G.o.d, by grace, shall dwell in thee, And G.o.d himself is light!

999. L. M. Anonymous.

The Cause of Humanity Hopeful.

1 The past is dark with sin and shame, The future dim with doubt and fear; But, Father, yet we praise thy name, Whose guardian love is always near!

2 For man has striven ages long With faltering steps to come to thee, And in each purpose high and strong The influence of thy grace could see.

3 He could not breathe an earnest prayer But thou wert kinder than he dreamed, As age by age brought hopes more fair, And nearer still thy kingdom seemed.

4 But never rose within his breast, A trust so calm and deep as now; Shall not the weary find a rest?

Father! Preserver! answer thou!

5 'Tis dark around, 'tis dark above, But through the shadow streams the sun; We cannot doubt thy certain love, And man's great aim shall yet be won!

1000. 8s. & 7s. M. Montgomery.

Joyful Hope.

1 Know, my soul, thy full salvation; Rise o'er sin, and fear, and care; Joy to find, in every station, Something still to do, or bear.

Think what spirit dwells within thee; Think what Father's smiles are thine; Think what Jesus did to win thee;-- Child of heaven! canst thou repine?

2 Haste thee on from grace to glory, Armed with faith, and winged with prayer; Heaven's eternal day's before thee, G.o.d's own hand shall guide thee there: Soon shall cease thine earthly mission, Soon shall pa.s.s thy pilgrim days; Hope shall change to glad fruition, Faith to sight, and prayer to praise.

1001. S. M. Wesleyan.

For a Holy Heart.

1 Great Source of life and light, Thy heavenly grace impart, And by thy holy spirit write Thy law upon my heart.

My soul would cleave to thee; Let nought my purpose move; O, let my faith more steadfast be, And more intense my love!

2 Long as my trials last, Long as the cross I bear, O, let my soul on thee be cast In confidence and prayer!

Conduct me to the sh.o.r.e Of everlasting peace, Where storm and tempest rise no more, Where sin and sorrow cease.

1002. 8s. & 7s. M. Waterston.

"As for the truth, it endureth and is always strong."

1 Theories, which thousands cherish, Pa.s.s like clouds that sweep the sky; Creeds and dogmas all may perish; Truth herself can never die.

2 From the glorious heavens above her, She has shed her beams abroad, That the souls who truly love her, May become the sons of G.o.d.

3 Worldlings blindly may refuse her, Close their eyes and call it night; Learned scoffers may abuse her, But they cannot quench her light!

4 Thrones may totter, empires crumble, All their glories cease to be; While she, Christ-like, crowns the humble, And from bondage sets them free.

5 G.o.d himself will e'er defend her From the fury of her foe, Till she, in her native splendor, Sits enthroned o'er all below.

1003. 7s. M. 6l. Anonymous.

Active Benevolence.

1 In the morning sow thy seed, Nor at eve withhold thy hand; Who can tell which may succeed, Or if both alike shall stand, And a glorious harvest bear, To reward the sower's care?

2 Sow it 'mid the haunts of vice-- Scenes of infamy and crime; Suddenly, may Paradise Burst, as in the northern clime Spring, with all its verdant race, Starts from Winter's cold embrace.

3 Sow it with unsparing hand; 'Tis the kingdom's precious seed, 'Tis the Master's great command, And his grace shall crown the deed; He hath said, the precious grain Never shall be sown in vain.

1004. H. M. J. G. Adams.

Death of a Magistrate or Public Man.

1 Death moves with victor's tread In our high places, Lord!

The honorable dead We mourn with one accord; Our souls, oppressed, before thee bow, Heed thou the prayer, accept the vow.

2 While thus we feel the rod Of thine afflictive love, Teach us, our fathers' G.o.d, Thy justice to approve.

Though all thy ways we cannot trace, May we not doubt thy guardian grace.

3 O keep us in thy hand, A chosen race for thee; And make our own loved land The true home of the free; Where sin shall cease, and righteousness Forever dwell, forever bless.

1005. C. M. Mrs. Sigourney.