All things
Life brings ?
O Lord, Thou surely canst not mean
That I should bear
The taunts that tear
And cut me to the heart!
Wilt Thou not take my part
Against my foes, and stand between ?

Not now, my child,
The tempest wild,
The cruel taunts of men I bore for thee,
Now thou must bear for Me.

Oh, why Must I
Be tossed and driven to and fro,
And ill at ease
O'er things that tease,
And fret, my heart and mind,
With sometimes thoughts unkind ?
Lord, speak the word, and bid them go.

Hast thou forgot ''
Love envieth not,
Endureth all, and seeketh not her own " ?
No wonder thou dost groan !

How long?
This strong
And adverse wind is wearying me.
My heart is sore.
How can I more
Endure, from those who care
Not what I have to bear ?
Why cannot I, as they, be free ?

Not yet:'tis thine
Not to repine;
But, for My sake, to be both kind and strong
Of heart, to suffer long.

O Lord,
Some word
Of comfort I but crave from Thee.
Why should I have
Such care and love
For those who love me not,
And have no evil thought
Of those who wrong both Thee and me?

Wouldst follow Me ?
Then thou must be
All patiently, with sweet obedience yoked,
Nor easily provoked.

It is
For this
I've left thee here, midst storm and tide.
My child, I mean
Thy heart to wean
From earthly things to Me;
For I would have thee be
As gold, by furnace purified.

A beacon light, Mid earth's dark night
Of sorrow, My loved witness, to proclaim
Salvation, through My name.

I bore
Far more
Than I could ask of thee. Ah, no,
Thou couldst not go
To depths of woe,
Nor in that anguish share
It was My lot to bear.
I only ask thee in thy life below,
My path to choose,
Nor e'er refuse
To follow where I lead. The reason why
I'll tell thee by and by.

H. McD.