Be True

Thou must be true thyself,
If thou the truth wouldst teach;
Thy soul must overflow, if thou
Another's soul wouldst reach!
It needs the overflow of heart
To give the lips full speech.

Think truly, and thy thoughts
Shall the world's famine feed;
Speak truly, and each word of thine
Shall be a fruitful seed;
Live truly, and thy life shall be
A great and noble creed.

~ Horatius Bonar

Steadfast Heart

I've dreamed many dreams

than never came true

I've seen them vanished at dawn,
Thank God,
To make me want to dream on,

I've prayed many prayers
when no answer came,
Though I waited patient and long,
But answers have come
to enough of my prayers
To make me keep praying on.

I've trusted many a friend that filed,
And left me to weep alone,
But I've found enough
of my friends true blue,
To make me keep trusting on.

I've sown many seed
that fell by the way
For the birds to feed upon,
But I've held enough golden sheaves
in my hands
To make me keep sowing on.

I've drained the cup
of disappointment and pain
And gone may ways without song,
But I've sipped enough nectar
from the roses of life
To make me want to live on.

 ~ Hazel Cassens

The Meaning

 

I will not doubt

Though there be questions in the heart;

Though eyes be damp with tears

that course from streams within,

I will not doubt.

 

There is a certain strength

that grace has given in my need,

and hope lends inward voice

to make my spirit strong...

 

I still can sing; for more and more

Christ holds the mourning heart ---

There is the clasp of comfort

that no human will can take in hand,

For, in the depths of ache

the soul has mind to understand.

 

~ Roxie Lusk Smith

This Day

 

God forgive my angered voice

My wail when things go wrong,

For forgetting I am --- Oh so weak

And only Thou art strong.

 

God forgive my restless heart

That so often strays from home,

And help me in Thee to find

A place to call my own.

 

God forgive my faltering steps

Amid hardships, pain and care,

Let me remember the heavy cross

That You were glad to bear.

 

God forgive my hurried steps

In life's preparatory way,

And cause me, God, to often stop

and help someone each day.

 

~ Charlotte L. Darwin

A Morning Prayer

 

Lord grant me strength to meet this day;

Please take my hand and lead the way.

Teach me trust and patience too,

In daily trasks which I must do.

When I may falter hear my prayer,

Strength is knowing You are there.

 

~ Mary H. Wittner

God's Love

 

God is always with me

I have no need for words

For even in the stillness

His love is ever heard.

 

His warming presence fills me

So deep within my soul

And fills my heart with gladness

His love does make me whole.

 

~ Dolores Karides

If Just One Soul

 

If just one soul

Has been enriched

Because you trod this earth,

Or if one doubting heart

Can trust

And realize its worth,

And turn to Christ

Because you shared

Your joy

To ease his pain,

You'll know, beyond

The slightest doubt,

You'll not have lived in vain!

 

~ Alice Hansche Mortenson

Assurance

 

In bitter anguish and despair

I sought my Lord,

And He was there ---

I sought Him through

The day along;

He moved to make

My spirit strong.

In sorrow, joy, whatever be

He lifts to bless

The whole of me.

 

~ Roxie Lusk Smith 



God Understands

 

God understands; it is sweet to know

When we are tired and when the hand of pain

Lies on our hearts, and when we look in vain

For human comfort, that the Heart Divine

Still understands those cares of yours and mine.

 

Not only understands, but day by day,

Lives with us while we tread the earthly way,

Bears with us all our weariness, and feeels

The shadow of the faintest cloud that steals

Across our sunshine, even learns again

The depth and bitterness of human pain.

 

There is no sorrow that He will not share,

No cross, no burden for our hearts to bear

Without His help; no care of ours too small

To cast on Jesus; Let us tell Him all,

Lay at His Feet the story of our woes,

And in His sympathy find sweet repose.
 

Mountain Te Deum

 

I thank Thee just for life,

The chance to live,

To be alive! So great Thy gift,

If Thou dost nothing give

Beside, it is enough,

To breathe Thy air,

To walk this mountain sod,

To feel the play of mighty winds,

To look Thee in the face,

And call Thee God!

 

~ From THE MESSAGE OF STEWARDSHIP by Ralph Spaulding

Cushman, copyright 1973 by Elizabeth G. Stiles, used by

permission.

The Passing Years

 

Life passes by so fast, Lord,

I know I'm sure to miss
A vital part unless You keep

Reminding me of this.
There's so much that I want to do,

A lot I've left undone,
So many plans discarded,

And a few I've not begun.

 

Life passes by so fast, Lord,

How often I've been told,
It always does around the time

That we are growing old.
"For everything a season"

Is wise as well as just,
But I had rather wear me out,

Than fall apart with rust.

 

Life passes by so fast, Lord,

The days, months, the years,
Lord, keep a smile upon my lips,

And blot away my tears.
Teach me to lean upon Your arm,

When pain and sickness strike,
To tell the facts from fancies,

That sometimes look alike.

 

Life passes by so fast, Lord,

And yet how kind You are,
In granting me the precious years,

That I have had so far.
So let the days grow shorter,

The darkest shadows part,
But put the wrinkles on my face,

...And never on my heart!

 

~ Grace E. Easley

Prayers Can't Be Answered Unless They Are Prayed

 

Life without purpose

is barren indeed ---
There can't be a harvest

unless you plant seed,
There can't be attainment

unless there's a goal,
And man's but a robot

unless there's a soul...
If we send no ships out,

no ships will come in,
And unless there's a contest,

nobody can't win...
For games can't be won

unless they are played,
And prayers can't be answered

nless they are prayed...

So whatever is wrong

with your life today,
You'll find a solution

if you kneel down and pray
Not just for pleasure,

enjoyment and health,
Not just for honors

and prestige and wealth...
But pray for a purpose

to make life worth living.
And pray for the joy

of unselfish giving,
For great is your gladness

and rich your reward
When you make your life's purpose

the choice of the Lord.

 

~ Helen Stenier Rice

The House Of Prayer

 

"The House of Prayer"

is no farther away

Than the quiet spot

where you kneel and pray.

For the heart is a temple

when God is there

As you place yourself

in His Loving Care.

 

~ Helen Steiner Rice

Day By Day

 

If you have a sack of troubles

That you cannot set aright,

Close beside you through the day,

And long into the night,

If you are sore with sorrow,

From which you cannot flee,

Groping through the shadows,

For a path you cannot see.

 

If you are disillusioned,

With a lot of faded dreams,

Clutching tarnished treasures

That are splitting at the seams,

Wading through the marshes

Of a bunch of wasted years,

Grasping straws you cannot reach,

and drowning in your tears.

You've got to learn to give before

You earn the right to take,

Who doesn't bend before the wind,

Is mighty apt to break.

Just as a rose needs sunlight,

To nourish tender shoots,

So each of us needs love to grow,

Beginning at the roots.

 

And if today is cloudy,

Tomorrow might be fine.

No one has ever failed who kept

A happy state of mind.

The longest journey taken,

Starts with a single mile,

And one-day-at-a-time can change

The worthless to worthwhile!

~ Grace E. Easley

I Know You're There

I know You're there

when dawn begins to paint
The skies with color high above my head.
I know You're there when birds begin to sing
In spite of rain, a happy song instead.
I know You're there along the narrow path
That winds beyond the summit of a hill.
And when the twilight falls,

'neath stars above,
Within the silence I have found You still.

I know You're there

throughout the busy hours
I scarce have time to whisper Your sweet Name,
When snowflakes turn the winter world to white,
And autumn burns the hills with her bright flame.
I know You're there

when spring peeps through the ground.
And bluebells softly ripple in the wind,
When summer comes and dappled shadows lend
A quiet peace beyond the river's bend.

I know You're there

beyond the slightest doubt,
So many times I've felt Your presence when
Doubt blocked the way or when a bridge was out,
And once again You helped me on again.
And through the years when it may well appear
I walk alone and there are none to care,
Dear Lord,

what breathless joy to turn around,
...And find You there!

 

~ Grace E. Easley

Dreams And Deeds

 

Dear Master, in whose life I see

All that I long and fail to be;

Let thy clear light for ever shine,

To shame and guide this life of mine.

Though what I dream and what I do
In my poor days are always two,
Help me, oppressed by things undone,
O thou, whose dreams and deeds were one.

~ John Hunter

Adoration, Praise, and Thanksgiving

 

I thank thee, God, that I have lived
In this great world and known it's many joys;
The song of birds, the strong, sweet scent of hay
And the cooling breezes in the secret dusk,
The flaming sunsets at the close of day,
Hills, and lonely, heather-covered moors,
Music at night, and moonlight on the sea,
The heat of waves upon the rocky shore
And wild, white spray, flung high in ecstasy:
The faithful eyes of dogs, and treasured books,
The love of kin and fellowship of friends,
And all that makes life dear and beautiful.

I thank Thee, too, that there has come to me
A little heartache and the loneliness
That comes with parting, and the word, "Goodbye,"
Dawn breaking after dreary hours of pain,
When I discovered that night's gloom must yield
And morning light break through to me again.
Because of these and other blessing poured
Unasked upon my wondering head,
Because I know there is yet to come
An even richer and more glorious life,
And most of all, because Thine only Son
Once sacrificed life's loveliness for me ---
I thank Thee, God, that I have lived.

~ Elizabeth Craven

God Is In Every Tomorrow

 

God is in every tomorrow,

Therefore I live for today,

Certain of finding at sunrise,

Guidance and strength for the way;

 

Power for each moment of weakness,

Hope for each moment of pain,

Comfort for every sorrow,

Sunshine and joy after rain.

 

~ Laura A. Barter Snow

The Highest Good

 

To attain the highest good

Of true man and womanhood,

Simply do

your honest best ---

God with joy

will do the rest.

 

~ James Whitcomb Riley

Can You Say?

Can you say tonight in parting with the day

that's slipping fast,

 That you helped a single person of the

many you have passed?

Is a single liferejoicing over what you

did or said?

Does some one whose hopes were fading,

now with courage look ahead?

Did you waste the day or lose it, was

it well or poorly spent?

Did you leave a trend of kindness or a

scar of discontent?

As you close your eyes in slumber do you

think that God will say ---

You have made the world much better

for the life you've lived today.

~ Cecilia Felsenthal 

Minutes of Gold

 

Two or three minutes --- two or three hours,
What do they mean in this life of ours ?
Not very much if it but counted as time,
But minutes of gold and hours sublime,
If onlywe'll use them once in awhile,
To make someone happy --- make someone smile.

A Minute may dry a little lad's tears,
An hour sweep aside trouble of years,
Minutes of my time may bring to an end

Hopelessness somewhere, and bring me a friend.

Polite Prayer

 

The polite part

of speaking

with God

is to be still

long enough

to listen.

 

~ Edward Gloeggler

Climbing

 

Feeling the wind on my face,

Climbing the mountain height,

Walking beneath the stars alone,

Seeing beauty in the night ---

Rising above the earth to dream,

Hearing monnlight's melody,

I must believe with all my heart

God will work out the daw for me!

 

~ Marion Schoeberlein

from "Roofs"

 

They say that life is a highway

and its milestones are the years,
And now and then there's a tollgate

where you buy your way with tears.
It's a rough road and a steep road

and it stretches broad and far,
But at last it leads to a golden town

where golden houses are.

 

~ Joyce Kilmer

Just To Be Alive Is Worth A "Thank You"...

 

Accept, dear Lord,
from this unasking heart
a staunchless well of gratitude;
All that creation can afford
is mine --- at least in part.
Joy or pain ---
from Thy hands ---
all is good.

~ G.M. Carr

Second Sight

 

I cannot weave a tapestry,

Whose vibrant colors gleam,
But I can thread a needle,

And sew a little seam.
I have no silver notes to turn

Into a lovely song,
But I can sit and listen

To the tune and hum along.

I cannot preach a sermon,

To edify the year,
But I can say a little prayer,

The Lord can always hear,
I cannot climb a mountain,

All wreathed in clouds of white,
But I can walk a woodland path,

And feel my heart grow light.

I cannot paint a masterpiece,

I cannot carve in stone,
But there is something I can do,

That is my very own.
For though I do not weave or climb,

Nor paint, or carve, or sing,
Somehow I find a bit of God,

...In every living thing.
 

~ Grace E. Easley

God's Plans

 

God's plans are like the ocean,

Varied as the winds that fall ---

All the products of His wisdom,

All the subject to His call.

Not a breeze that stirs the tempest ---

Or a sparrow down doth fall,

But our Heavenly Father knoweth ---

For He watches over all.

 

~ Elizabeth E.S. Williams

Open My Eyes

 

God open my eyes so I may see

And feel your Your presence close to me...

Give me strength for my stumbling feet

As I battle the crowd

on life's busy street,

And widen the vision of my unseeing eyes

So in passing faces I'll recognize

Not just a stranger, unloved and unknown,

But a friend with a heart

that is much like my own....

Give me perception to make me aware

That scattered profusely

on life's thoroughfare

Are the best gifts of God

that we daily pass by

As we look at the world

with an unseeing eye.

 

~ Helen Steiner Rice

Never Be Discouraged

 

Never be discouraged

When failure comes to light ---

Just use them for stepping stones

And make a stronger fight.

 

~ Loreta Inman

Look To This Day

 

Look to this day, For it is life,
The very life of life,
In its brief course lies all
The realities and verities of existence,
The bliss of growth,
The splendor of action,
The glory of power ---

For yesterday is but a dream
And tomorrow is only a vision.
But today, well lived,
Makes every yesterday a dream of happiness
And every tomorrow a vision of hope.

Look well, therefore, to this day.
 

~ Sanskrit Proverb

One Day At A Time

 

One day at a time,

with its failures and fears,
With its hurts and mistakes,

with its weakness and tears,
With its portion of pain

and its burden of care;
One day at a time

we must meet and must bear.

One day at a time

to be patient and strong,
To be calm under trial

and sweet under wrong;
Then its toiling shall pass

and its sorrow shall cease;
It shall darken and die,

and the night shall bring peace.

One day at a time ---

but the day is so long,
And the heart is not brave,

and the soul is not strong,
O Thou pitiful Christ,

be Thou near all the way;
Give courage and patience

and strength for the day.

Not yesterday's load

we are called on to bear,
Nor the morrow's uncertain

and shadowy care;
Why should we look forward

or back with dismay?
Our needs, as our mercies,

are but for the day.

One day at a time,

and the day is His day;
He hath numbered its hours,

though they haste or delay.
His grace is sufficient;

we walk not alone;
As the day, so the strength

that He giveth His own.

 

~ Annie Johnson Flint