Or from nature's solitude-
Every voice devoutly blending,
We address thee, wise and good,
At thy holy altar bending.

2.

Thou, our fathers' God and ours, Teach us all to love and fear thee:

Lead us through life's varied hours, Fixt on heaven and ever near thee; When our little task is done, May our children still revere thee; So thy work shall hasten on,

Till assembled worlds shall hear thee.

448. C. M.

MONTGOMERY.

Prayer.

1.

PRAYER is the soul's sincere desire,

Uttered, or unexpress'd;

The motion of a hidden fire

That trembles in the breast.

2.

Prayer is the burthen of a sigh,
The falling of a tear,

The upward glancing of an eye
When none but God is near.

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Prayer is the simplest form of speech
That infant lips can try:

Prayer, the sublimest strains that reach
The Majesty on high.

4.

Prayer is the Christian's vital breath,
The Christian's native air;

His watchword in the hour of death,-
He enters heaven with prayer.

5.

O thou, by whom we come to God,
The life, the truth, the way!
The path of prayer thyself hast trod;
Lord, teach us how to pray.

449. C. M.

DODDRIDGE.

Trust in the divine presence and help.

1.

AND art thou with us, gracious Lord,
To dissipate our fear?

Dost thou proclaim thyself our God,
Our God for ever near?

2.

Doth thy right hand, which form'd the earth
And bears up all the skies,
Stretch from on high its friendly aid
When dangers round us rise?

3.

Dost thou a father's kindness feel
For all thy humble saints;
And in such tender accents speak
To soothe their sad complaints?

4.

On this support my soul shall lean,
And banish every care;

The gloomy vale of death must smile
If God be with me there.

S

5.

While I his gracious succour prove
Midst all my various ways,

The darkest shades through which I
Shall echo with his praise.

450. L. M. MRS. ROGERS.
Pious confidence in God.

1.

pass

WHY should I murmur or repine
At what may be my Father's will?
Wisdom and power and love are thine:
Thy grace is all-sufficient still.

2.

Thy plans, beyond the bounds of time,
Eternal ages comprehend;

To form the soul to joys sublime

In that blest world which ne'er shall end.

3.

Bow then, my soul, submissive bow,
And trust thy gracious Father's love;
His kind design in bringing low
Is to prepare for joys above.

4.

This transient scene will soon be o'er,
Its joys, its sorrows, pass away:
This night of gloom returns no more,
But ushers in a glorious day.

5.

Then shall the goodness of my God
In full resplendent lustre shine,
Diffusing through the blest abode
A joy unspeakably divine.

451. c. M. MRS. STEELE.

Refuge and strength in the mercy of God.

1.

My God, 'tis to thy mercy-seat
My soul for shelter flies;
"Tis here I find a safe retreat
When storms and tempests rise.

2.

My cheerful hope can never die,
If thou, my God, art near;
Thy grace can raise my comforts high,
And banish every fear.

3.

My great protector and my Lord,
Thy constant aid impart;

And let thy kind thy gracious word
Sustain my trembling heart.

O never let

4.

my soul remove

From this divine retreat;

Still let me trust thy power and love,
And dwell beneath thy feet.

452. C. M. EXETER COLLECTION.
Faith in the promises of God.

1.

BLEST is the man who fears the Lord;

His well-establisht mind

In every varying scene of life
Shall true composure find.

2.

Oft through the deep and stormy sea
The heavenly footsteps lie;
But on a glorious world beyond
His faith can fix its eye.

3.

Though dark his present prospects be,
And sorrows round him dwell;
Yet hope can whisper to his soul
That all shall issue well.

4.

Full in the presence of his God,
Through every scene he goes;
And, fearing him, no other fear
His steadfast bosom knows.

5.

No dangers can his soul alarm,
No gloomy views affright;
For faith assures his humble heart
Whatever is, is right.

453. L. M.

BOWRING.

[We walk by faith, and not by sight. 2 Cor. v. 7.]

1.

WE walk by faith and not by sight;
And if we ever go astray,

Do thou, O Lord, conduct us right,
And lead us in our onward way.

2.

Onward from earth to heaven we go;

And gently guided, Lord, by thee,
The path which is begun below
Conducts to immortality.