Experience

 

We must live through the weary winter,
If we would value spring.
And the woods must be cold and silent,
Before the robins sing.

 

The flowers must be buried in darkness,
Before they can bud and bloom.
And the sweetest and warmest sunshine,
Comes after the storm and gloom.

 

So the heart, from the hardest trial,
Gains the purest joy of all.
And from the lips that have tasted sadness,
The sweetest songs will fall.

 

For as peace comes after suffering,
and love is reward of pain.
So, after earth, comes heaven,
And out of our loss, the gain.

 



Thou Art Near

 

O love Divine, that stooped to share

Our deepest pang, our bitterest tear,

On Thee we cast each earth-born care,

we smile at pain while Thou art near.

Though long the weary way we tread,

And sorrow crown each lingering year

No path we shun, no darkness dread,

Our hear still whispering "Thou art near."

 

~ Oliver Wendell Holmes

Understanding

 

No more of light, I ask, O God,

But eyes to see what is:

Not sweeter songs, but ears to hear

The present melodies:

Not more of strength, but how to use

The power that I possess:

Not more of love, but skill to turn

A frown to caress:

Not more of joy, but how to feel

Its kindly presence near

To give to others all I have

Of courage and of cheer.

No other gifts, dear God, I ask,

But only sense to see

How best these precious gifts to use

Thou hast bestowed on me.

 



Life's Seasons

  Life is life the seasons
Each one its changes bring,
A fertile seed takes root and grows
Thus youth is like the Spring.
Maturity comes in Summer
As we work and play and sing,
In the Fall we gather harvest
From the deeds we sowed, and then,
Alas too soon it's Winter
And our eyes have grown quite dim,
Have faith no need to worry
'Tis not the end of everything
For our souls will be returned again
To Heaven, where God is king.
 

~ Louis H. Guenther

Keep Me Near Thee

 

Keep me near Thee, dearest Jesus,
Always in Thy holy sight.
Draw me ever closer to Thee
Till the coming of the night.

 

Hold my hand and lead me onward
Through the trials and stress of day:
Let me see Thee, hear Thee, feel Thee ---
In my daily toil and play.

 

Hand in Thine I can not falter
Thou art ever at my side;
And my heavy heart seems lighter
When it in Thy heart confides.  

 

Use Me Lord

 

Lord, give me courage to be true

To You in all I say and do.

Give me your love to keep me sweet

To everyone I chance to meet.

Give me your power to keep me strong.

Grant me your presence all day long.

Give me the Faith that all may see

How very real you are to me.

Give me wisdom to choose the best.

Help me perform each task with zest.

Give me vision to see your plan

Use me, Lord, wherever you can.
 

God Promised

 

God did not tell me,

Only roses would grow.

That I'd find no sorrow,

On the path I must go.

 

But He promised to be there,

Each step of the way,

Providing a way to escape,

The temptations of each day.

 

His grace all sufficient,

Daily to see me through.

He'd help me to conquer,

And be victorious too.

 

~ Dottlee Dugan Reid

Morning Prayer

 

When little things would irk me, and I grow

Impatient with my dear ones, make me know

How in a moment joy can take its flight

And happiness be quenched in endless night.

Keep this thought with me all the livelong day

That I may guard the harsh words I might say

When I would fret and grumble, fiery hot,

At trifles that tomorrow are forgot ---

Let me remember, Lord, how it would be

If these, my loved ones, were not here with me.

 

God's Design

 

Philosophers may reason why
But I won’t take the time,
I only know I’m here on earth
Because of God’s design.
So I will just continue on
And do the best I can,
And know that God will do the rest
Because He made the Plan.
 

~ Ed Kane

We Thank Thee

 

We thank Thee, Lord,
That of Thy tender grace,
In our distress
Thou hast not left us

wholly comfortless.

We thank Thee, Lord,
That of Thy wondrous might,
Into our night
Thou hast sent down

the glory of the Light.

We thank Thee, Lord,
That all Thy wondrous ways,
Through all our days,
Are wisdom, right,

and ceaseless tenderness.

 

~ John Oxenham

Blessing On All Our Days

 

May blessings be ours in the morning,
May gladness be ours in the night,
May the breezes but gently caress us
And the sun give us softly its light.
In stress and in doubt and in danger
True courage and faith may we know,
And the Home Lights of God be our beacon,
Wherever we star or we go.

 

 Brian O'Higgins

A Morning Offering

 

My God, I offer You today…

My life and all its care…

Keep me from sin till evening comes…

Help me my cross to bear…

My day is long, my work is hard…

My life seems all a-wry…

I have no time to think or pray…

And the years pass swiftly by…

O God, accept my work today…

I do it all for You…

‘Tis badly done --- complainingly…

But the best that I can do...

And You are kind and gentle, Lord…

And the faults You will not see…

Such as it is, my life anew…

I dedicate to Thee.

~ Rev. Thomas Foy

Needless Worry

 

Some of your hurts you have cured,

And the sharpest you still have survived,

But what torments of grief your endured

From evils which have never arrived!

 

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Yesterday's Cross

 

 The cross that pressed so heavy

Is light and sweet today;

It lost its weight this morning

When Jesus came my way.

 

The cross that looked so dreary

A day or two ago,

Has, with His presence, brightened,

He helped me lift it so.

 

It now, is light, a feather,

I laugh amid my tears,

And raise, with Him, my burden ---

All flown my anxious fears.

 

The cross that weighed so heavy,

The tears that fell so fast;

are changed to glorious rainbow

In skies, all blue at last!
 

Open My Eyes

 

God open my eyes so I may see

And feel 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

And the best gifts of God
that we daily pass by
As we look at the world
with an unseeing eye.

~ Helen Steiner Rice