5 The dearest idol I have known,
Whate'er that idol be,

Help me to tear it from thy throne,
And worship only Thee.

6 So shall my walk be close with God,
Calm and serene my frame;

So purer light shall mark the road
That leads me to the Lamb.

378.

Remembrance of Christ.

1 IF human kindness meets return,
And owns the grateful tie;
If tender thoughts within us burn,
To feel a friend is nigh,-

2 Oh! shall not warmer accents tell
The gratitude we owe

To Him who died, our fears to quell,
Our more than orphan's wo!

3 While yet his anguish'd soul survey'd
Those pangs He would not flee;
What love his latest words display'd,
"Meet and remember me !"

4 Remember Thee! thy death, thy shame,
Our sinful hearts to share!
O memory! leave no other name
But His recorded there!

379.

The Heart of Stone.

1 OH! for a glance of heavenly day,
To take this stubborn stone away;
And thaw with beams of love divine,
This heart, this frozen heart of mine.

2 The rocks can rend; the earth can quake;
The sea can roar; the mountains shake;
Of feeling all things show some sign,
But this unfeeling heart of mine.

3 To hear the sorrows Thou hast felt, Dear Lord, an adamant would melt; But I can read each moving line,

And nothing move this heart of mine. 4 Thy judgments, too, unmoved I hear, (Amazing thought!) which devils fear: Goodness and wrath in vain combine, To stir this stupid heart of mine.

5 But something yet can do the deed;
And that dear something much I need:
Thy Spirit can from dross refine,
And move and melt this heart of mine.

1

380.

Hope Reviving.

AND shall I sit alone,

Oppress'd with grief and fear;
To God my Father make my moan,

And He refuse to hear?

His pity He will show;

From cruel bondage set me free,

'Tis but my faith to try;

He knows and feels whene'er I weep,

And softens every sigh.

Then will I humbly wait,

Nor once indulge despair;

My sins are great, but not so great
As his compassions are.

381.

Resignation under sore Trials.

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-should I distrust,
Or contradict his will,

Who cannot do but what is just,
And must be righteous still?
3 It is the Lord-who gives me all,
My wealth, my friends, my ease;
And of his bounties may recal
Whatever part He please.

4 It is the Lord-who can sustain
Beneath the heaviest load,
From whom assistance I obtain
To tread the thorny road.

5 It is the Lord-whose matchless skill
Can from afflictions raise
Blessings, eternity to fill

With ever-growing praise.

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

Whose gracious promise, seal'd with blood,
Must ever be the same.

7 His covenant will my soul defend,
Should Nature's self expire,

And the great Judge of all descend
In awful flames of fire.

8 Can I, with hopes so firmly built,
Be sullen, or repine?

No, gracious God, take what Thou wilt,
To Thee I ALL resign.

382.

The vanity of earthly joys.

1 How vain are all things here below!
How false, and yet how fair!
Each pleasure has its poison too,
And every sweet a snare.

2 The brightest things below the sky
Shine with deceitful light;

We should suspect some danger nigh
Where we possess delight.

3 Our dearest joys and nearest friends,
The partners of our blood,
How they divide our wavering minds
And leave but half for God!

4 The fondness of a creatures love
How strong it strikes the sense!
Thither the warm affections move,
Nor can we call them thence.

5 Dear Saviour, let thy beauties be
My soul's eternal food,

And grace command my heart away
From all created good!

383.

Secret trials.

THE Lord will happiness divine
On contrite hearts bestow-
Then tell me, gracious God, is mi
A contrite heart or no?

2 I hear, but seem to hear in vain, Insensible as steel;

If aught is felt, 'tis only pain,
To find I cannot feel.

3 I sometimes think myself incline
To love Thee, if I could;
But often feel another mind,
Averse to all that's good.

4 My best desires are faint and fev
I fain would strive for more;
But when I cry, "My strength
Seem weaker than before.

5 Thy saints are comforted, I kno And love thy house of prayer I therefore go where others go, But find no comfort there.

60 make this heart rejoice or ache;
Decide this doubt for me;

And if it be not broken, break,
And heal it, if it be.

384.

The light and glory of God's word.
1 THE Spirit breathes upon the word,
And brings the truth to sight;
Precepts and promises afford
A sanctifying light.

2 A glory gilds the sacred page,
Majestic, like the sun;

It gives a light to every age,
It gives, but borrows none.

3 The hand that gave it still supplies
The gracious light and heat;
His truths upon the nations rise,
They rise, but never set.

4 Let everlasting thanks be thine,
For such a bright display,
As makes a world of darkness shine
With beams of heavenly day.

5 My soul rejoices to pursue

The steps of Him I love,
Till glory breaks upon my view
In brighter worlds above.

385.

Prayer answered by crosses.

1 I ASK'D the Lord, that I might grow
In faith, and love, and every grace;
Might more of his salvation know,
And seek more earnestly his face.

2 'Twas He who taught me thus to pray,
And He, I trust, has answer'd prayer;
But it has been in such a way,
As almost drove me to despair.