THE billows swell, the winds are high, Out of the depths to thee I call,- O Lord, the pilot's part perform, And guard and guide me through the storm, Amidst the roaring of the sea My soul still hangs her hope on thee; Though tempest-toss'd and half a wreck, Force back my shatter'd bark again. XXXVIII. LOOKING UPWARDS IN A STORM. GOD of my life, to thee I call, Afflicted at thy feet I fall; When the great water-floods prevail,* *Psalm lxix. 15. Friend of the friendless and the faint! Did ever mourner plead with thee, That were a grief I could not bear, Fair is the lot that's cast for me; XXXIX. THE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH. My soul is sad, and much dismay'd, *Psalm xl. 17. See, from the ever burning lake, Their fiery arrows reach the mark,* And finds abundant fuel there. I hate the thought that wrongs the Lord; Oh! I would drive it from my breast, With thy own sharp two-edged sword, Far as the east is from the west. Come, then, and chase the cruel host, Heal the deep wounds I have received! Nor let the powers of darkness boast, That I am foil'd, and thou art grieved! WHEN darkness long has veil'd my mind, And smiling day once more appears; Then, my Redeemer, then I find The folly of my doubts and fears. Straight I upbraid my wandering heart, Oh! let me then at length be taught What I am still so slow to learn; That God is love, and changes not, Nor knows the shadow of a turn. Sweet truth, and easy to repeat ! Unskilful, weak, and apt to slide. Thou, therefore, all the praise receive; XLI. MOURNING AND LONGING. THE Saviour hides his face! And never fading love. The favour'd souls who know What glories shine in him, Pant for his presence as the roe Pants for the living stream! What trifles tease me now! They swarm like summer flies, How dull the Sabbath day, How toilsome then to sing and pray, Of all the truths I hear, Yet let me (as I ought) No pleasure else is worth a thought, Though I am but a worm, Unworthy of his care, The Lord will my desire perform, DEAR Lord! accept a sinful heart, And mourns, with much and frequent smart, |