William Cowper

“ Here may we prove the power of prayer, To strengthen faith, and sweeten care; To teach our fain desires to rise, And bring all heaven before our eyes.
Behold, at thy commanding word We stretch the curtain and the cord; Come thou, and fill this wider space, And bless us with a large increase.
Lord, we are few, but thou art near, Nor short thine arm, nor deaf thine ear; Oh rend the heavens, come quickly down, And make a thousand hearts thine own. ”

“ Comfort XLVI. THE HAPPY CHANGE HOW blessed thy creature is, O God, When, with a single eye, He views the lustre of thy word, The dayspring from on high!
Through all the storms that veil the skies And frown on earthly things, The Sun of Righteousness he eyes, With healing on his wings.
Struck by that light, the human heart, A barren soil no more, Sends the sweet smell of grace abroad, Where serpents lurked before.
The soul, a dreary province once Of Satan's dark domain, Feels a new empire formed within, And owns a heavenly reign. ”

“ Light appears with early dawn, While the sun makes haste to rise; See his bleeding beauties drawn On the blushes of the skies.
Evening with a silent pace, Slowly moving in the west, Shows an emblem of his grace, Points to an eternal rest.
LXVIII. LONGING TO BE WITH CHRIST TO Jesus, the Crown of my Hope, My soul is in haste to be gone; Oh bear me, ye cherubim, up, And waft me away me away to his throne!
My Saviour, whom absent I love, Whom, not having seen, I adore; Whose name is exalted above All glory, dominion, and power ”

“ But, oh! no foe invades the bliss, When glory crowns the Christian's head; One view of Jesus as he is Will strike all sin for ever dead.
LVIII. THE NEW CONVERT THE new-born child of Gospel grace, Like some fair tree when summer's nigh, Beneath Emmanuel's shining face Lifts up his blooming branch on high.
No fears he feels, he sees no foes, No conflict yet his faith employs, Nor has he learnt to whom he owes The strength and peace his soul enjoys.
But sin soon darts its cruel sting, And comforts sinking day by day, What seemed his own, a self-fed spring, Proves but a brook that glides away. ”

“ Man's wisdom is to seek His strength in God alone; And even an angel would be weak Who trusted in his own.
Retreat beneath his wings, And in his grace confide! This more exalts the King of kings Than all your works beside.
In Jesus is our store, Grace issues from his throne; Whoever says, "I want no more," Confesses he has none.
LXIV. NOT OF WORKS GRACE, triumphant in the throne Scorns a rival, reigns alone; Come and bow beneath her sway, Cast your idol works away! Works of man, when made his plea, Never shall accepted be; Fruits of pride (vain-glorious worm!) Are the best he can perform. ”

“ Blind unbelief is sure to err, And scan his work in vain: God is his own interpreter, And He will make it plain.
XXXVI. WELCOME CROSS 'TIS my happiness below Not to live without the cross, But the Saviour's power to know, Sanctifying every loss: Trials must and will befall; But with humble faith to see Love inscribed upon them all, This is happiness to me.
God in Israel sows the seeds Of affliction, pain, and toil; These spring up and choke the weeds Which would else o'erspread the soil: Trials make the promise sweet, Trials give new life to prayer ”

“ On Occasional Subjects Seasons XXII. PRAYER FOR A BLESSING ON THE YOUNG BESTOW, dear Lord, upon our youth, The gift of saving grace; And let the seed of sacred truth Fall in a fruitful place.
Grace is a plant, where'er it grows, Of pure and heavenly root; But fairest in the youngest shows, And yields the sweetest fruit.
Ye careless ones, oh hear betimes The voice of sovereign love! Your youth is stained with many crimes, But Mercy reigns above. ”

“ See, Lord, what legions of my foes With fierce Apollyon at their head, My heavenly pilgrimage oppose!
See, from the ever-burning lake, How like a smoky cloud they rise! With horrid blasts my soul they shake, With storms of blasphemies and lies.
Their fiery arrows reach the mark, My throbbing heart with anguish tear; Each lights upon a kindred spark, And finds abundant fuel there. ”

“ Thus will he bring our spirits down, And draw our ebbing comforts low, That saved by grace, but not our own, We may not claim the praise we owe.
LIX. TRUE AND FALSE COMFORTS O GOD, whose favourable eye The sin-sick soul revives, Holy and heavenly is the joy Thy shining presence gives.
Not such as hypocrites suppose, Who with a graceless heart Taste not of thee, but drink a dose Prepared by Satan's art.
Intoxicating joys are theirs, Who while they boast their light, And seem to soar above the stats, Are plunging into night. ”

“ A cheerful confidence I feel, My well-placed hopes with joy I see; My bosom glows with heavenly zeal, To worship him who died for me.
As man, he pities my complaint, His power and truth are all divine; He will not fail, he cannot faint; Salvation's sure, and must be mine.
Ordinances XXVI. ON OPENING A PLACE FOR SOCIAL PRAYER JESUS! where'er thy people meet, There they behold thy mercy-seat; Where'er they seek thee, thou art found, And every place is hallowed ground. ”

“ If guilt and sin afford a plea, And may obtain a place, Surely the Lord will welcome me, And I shall see his face!
XXVIII. JESUS HASTENING TO SUFFER THE Saviour, what a noble flame Was kindled in his breast, When hasting to Jerusalem, He marched before the rest!
Good will to men, and zeal for God, His every thought engross; He longs to be baptized with blood, He pants to reach the cross! ”

“ Is this the grace the saints imbibe From Christ the living head?
Ah, Lord, we know thy chosen few Are fed with heavenly fare; But these,—the wretched husks they chew Proclaim them what they are.
The liberty our hearts implore Is not to live in sin; But still to wait at Wisdom's door, Till Mercy calls us in.
LXII. THE NARROW WAY WHAT thousands never knew the road! What thousands hate it when 'tis known! None but the chosen tribes of God Will seek or choose it for their own.
A thousand ways in ruin end, One only leads to joys on high ”

“ In holy contemplation, We sweetly then pursue The theme of God's salvation, And find it ever new: Set free from present sorrow, We cheerfully can say, E'en let the unknown to-morrow Bring with it what it may! ”

“ And blame the song that thus commends The Man who bore the cross?
Trust me, I draw the likeness true, And not as fancy paints; Such honour may he give to you, For such have all his saints.
XLIX. JOY AND PEACE IN BELIEVING SOMETIMES a light surprises The Christian while he sings; It is the Lord who rises With healing in his wings: When comforts are declining, He grants the soul again A season of clear shining, To cheer it after rain. ”

“ Lulled in a soft and fatal sleep, They sin and yet rejoice; Were they indeed the Saviour's sheep, Would they not hear his voice?
Be mine the comforts that reclaim The soul from Satan's power; That make me blush for what I am, And hate my sin the more.
'Tis joy enough, my All in All, At thy dear feet to lie; Thou wilt not let me lower fall, And none can higher fly.
LX. A LIVING AND A DEAD FAITH THE Lord receives his highest praise From humble minds and hearts sincere; While all the loud professor says Offends the righteous Judge's ear. ”

“ LIGHT SHINING OUT OF DARKNESS GOD moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform; He plants his footsteps in the sea, And rides upon the storm. ”

“ And Satan trembles when he sees The weakest saint upon his knees. ”

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