4 Absent from Thee, my Guide, my Light, Without one cheering ray,

Through dangers, fears, and gloomy night,
How desolate my way!

5 O shine on this benighted heart,
With beams of mercy shine;
And let Thy SPIRIT'S voice impart
A taste of joys divine!

Hymn.

Unsettled Heart made a house of Prayer.

1 THY mansion is the Christian's heart, O LORD, Thy dwelling-place secure! Bid the unruly throng depart,

And leave the consecrated door.

2 Devoted as it is to Thee,

A thievish swarm frequents the place;
They steal away my joys from me,
And rob my SAVIOUR of His praise.

3 There too a sharp designing trade

Sin, Satan, and the world, maintain; Nor cease to press me, and persuade, To part with ease, and purchase pain. 4 I know them, and I hate their din;

Am weary of the bustling crowd;
But while their voice is heard within,
I cannot serve Thee as I would.

5 Oh! for the joy Thy presence gives!
What peace shall reign when Thou art here!
Thy presence makes this den of thieves
A calm delightful house of pray'r.

Hymn.

Afflictions permitted.

1 AFFLICTIONS do not come alone, A voice attends the rod;

2

By both He to His saints is known,
A FATHER and a GOD!

'Let not My children slight the stroke
I for their chast'ning send;

Nor faint beneath My kind rebuke;
For still I am their Friend.

3 The wicked I perhaps may leave
Awhile, and not reprove;
But all the children I receive
I scourge, because I love.

4 If therefore you were left without
This needful discipline,

You might with cause admit a doubt
If you, indeed, were Mine.

5 I see your hearts at present fill'd
With grief and deep distress;
But soon these bitter seeds shall yield
The fruits of righteousness."

6 Break thro' the clouds, dear LORD, and shine! Let us perceive Thee nigh!

And to each mourning child of Thine
These gracious words apply.

Hymn.

Benefit of Afflictions.

1 WHEN the LORD rebukes His servant, 'Tis to save, and not destroy; "Tis to make my spirit fervent; "Tis to give me real joy; "Tis to make me better know That my rest is not below.

2 Shall I then repine at trials,

By my FATHER's love decreed?
What if GOD had pour'd the vials
Of His wrath upon my head?
Death, of sin the wages is:
All is mercy short of this.

3 Since the LORD has giv'n me reason
To expect a place above,
In affliction's sharpest season,
Let me own that GOD is love;
Let me own that all he does,
From paternal kindness flows.

4 Shall I murmur at His dealings?
Shall I not His kindness trust,

Since He knows my frame and feelings,

And remembers I am dust?

Shall I not receive the rod,
And confess the hand of GOD?

5 Hear me, LORD, in my petition:
O sustain me lest I faint!
Teach me patience and submission;
Keep Thy servant from complaint;
And in every trying hour,

LORD, uphold me by Thy pow'r.

Hymn.

Protection in the greatest Trouble.

1 PEACE, doubting heart, my GOD's I am;
Who form'd me man, forbids my fear:
The LORD hath call'd me by my name;
The LORD protects, for ever near:
His blood for me did once atone,
And still He loves and guards His own.

2 When passing through the watʼry deep,
I ask in faith His promis'd aid,
The waves an awful distance keep,
And shrink from my devoted head:
Fearless their violence I dare;

They cannot harm; for GOD is there!

3 Still nigh me, O my SAVIOUR, stand! And guard in fierce temptation's hour; Hide in the hollow of Thy hand;

Shew forth in me Thy saving pow'r: Still be Thy arms my sure defence; Nor earth nor hell shall pluck me thence.

4 When darkness intercepts the skies,

And sorrow's waves around me roll,
When high the storms of trouble rise,
And half o'erwhelm my sinking soul;
My soul a sudden calm shall feel,
And hear a whisper, "Peace; be still!"

Hymn.

Looking beyond the Vale.

1 COME on, my partners in distress, My comrades through the wilderness, Who still your bodies feel;

Awhile forget your griefs and fears,
And look beyond this vale of tears,
To that celestial hill.

2 Beyond the bounds of time and space Look forward to that heav'nly place, The saints' secure abode :

On faith's strong eagle pinions rise,
And force your passage to the skies,
And scale the mount of GOD.

3 Who suffer with our Master here,
We shall before His face appear,
And by His side sit down:

To patient faith the prize is sure;
And all that to the end endure

The cross, shall wear the crown.

4 Thrice blessed bliss-inspiring hope!
It lifts the fainting spirits up;
It brings to life the dead:
Our conflicts here will soon be past,
And you and I ascend at last,
Triumphant with our Head.

5 In hope of that ecstatic pause,
JESUS, we now sustain the cross,
And at Thy footstool fall;
Till Thou our hidden life reveal;
Till Thou our ravish'd spirits fill,
And GOD be all in all!