Sow ye beside all waters,
Where the dew of heaven may fall; Ye shall reap if ye be not weary, For the Spirit breathes o'er all. Sow, tho' the thorn may wound thee, One wore the thorns for thee; And tho' the cold world scorn thee, Patient and hopeful be.
Sow when the tempest lowers,
For calmer days may break;
And the seed in darkness nourished,
A goodly plant may make.
Sow when the morning breaketh
In beauty o'er the land;
And when the evening falleth,
Withhold not thou thine hand.
Sow, tho' the rock repel thee,
In its cold and sterile pride;
Some cleft there may be riven,
Where the little seed may hide.
Fear not for some will flourish,
And though the tares abound,
Like the willows by the waters,
Will the scatter'd grain be found.
Work while the daylight lasteth,
Ere the shades of night come on ;
Ere the Lord of the vineyard cometh,
And the labourer's work is done.
Watch not the clouds above thee,
Let the wild winds round thee sweep;
the seed time give thee,
But another's hand may reap.
Have faith, though ne'er beholding
The seed burst from its tomb;
Thou know'st not which may perish,
Or what be spared to bloom.
Room on the narrowest ridges,
The ripened grain will find;
That the Lord of the harvest coming,
In the harvest-sheaves may bind.
THE WHOLE FAMILY IN HEAVEN AND
COME, let us join our friends above,
That have obtained the prize;
And on the eagle-wings of love,
To joys celestial rise.
Let all the saints terrestrial sing,
With those to glory gone;
For all the servants of our King
In earth and heaven are one.
One family, we dwell in him;
One church, above, beneath;
Though now divided by the stream,
The narrow stream of death.
One army of the living God,
To his command we bow;
Part of his host have crossed the flood, And part are crossing now.
Ten thousand to their endless home
This solemn moment fly;
And we are to the margin come,
And we expect to die:
His militant, embodied host,
With wishful looks we stand,
And long to see that happy coast,
And reach the heavenly land.
Our old companions in distress,
We haste again to see,
And, eager, long for our release,
And full felicity.
Even now by faith we join our hands With those that went before;
And greet the blood-besprinkled bands On the eternal shore.
Our spirits, too, shall quickly join, Like theirs with glory crowned; And shout to see our Captain's sign, To hear his trumpet sound.
O that we now might grasp our Guide ;
And when the word is given,
O Lord of Hosts, the waves divide,
And land us all in heaven.
"THE DAYS OF THY MOURNING SHALL BE ENDED."
HEAR What God the Lord hath spoken:
"O my people, faint and few,
Comfortless, afflicted, broken,
Fair abodes I build for you.
Thorns of heart-felt tribulation
Shall no more perplex your ways:
You shall name your walls, Salvation,
And your gates shall all be Praise.
"There, like streams that feed the garden,
Pleasures without end shall flow:
For the Lord, your faith rewarding,
All his bounty shall bestow.
Still in undisturbed possession,
Peace and righteousness shall reign :
Never shall you feel oppression,
Hear the voice of war again.
"Ye no more your suns descending,
Waning moons no more shall see;
But, your griefs for ever ending,
Find eternal noon in me.
God shall rise, and, shining o'er you,
Change to day the gloom of night;
He, the Lord, shall be your glory,
God your everlasting light."
HE stood beside a moss-grown grave,
When day flung beauty o'er the wave;
And its far-off dash, like a gasp of fear,
Broke low on the old mourner's ear:
He stood beside a silent tomb,
Where the summer day had nought of gloom,
And the flowers that blossom'd all around
Flung scents upon the holy ground!
The sunny air was full of balm,
The rose was resting in its calm;
But a fairer rose, in a bed more deep,
Was sleeping a calmer and softer sleep!
A fairy thing on the lovely earth.
With a brow of beauty-a heart of mirth;
But the leaves had fallen and faded all-
And that weary mourner had watched their fall!
And now he was come with a tearful eye-
And a lonely heart-and a swelling sigh-
And the grieving thoughts of a soul, whose night
Was all too dark for hope to light.
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