The substance of thy hope and trust now fearlessly declare, Amid the cheerful hymns of praise and solemn tones of prayer. Stand up in holy reverence, yet lowly bend the knee To Him, who in the pangs of death once "bowed his head" for thee; O! wert thou prostrate in the dust, as low as thou couldst fall, Yet to the Saviour of thy soul the homage would be small. Stand up in bold sincerity, and fearless look abroad For him who from the "scorner's seat" would stigmatize thy Lord; Yet dare not to espouse his cause by fierce and worldly strife, But let thy strong contention be for "Holiness of life." Stand up, thy breastplate righteousness, and faith thy chosen shield, And in Salvation's panoply essay to take the field; The "Word of God," thy trusty sword that pierceth through and through, Will render thee invincible, to conquer and subdue. Stand up against the EVIL ONE: though he should come arrayed In all the strong world's wickedness, do thou be not dismayed; Amid the fight Christ's presence still the battle shall restore, For in His name is victory, and glory evermore Stand up then in his temple, and look towards the board, Where he the riches of his love perpetually hath stored; Stand up the cross to magnify, thy zeal a heavenly flame; Yet in thy heart, and thought, and word, now bow before his name. W. MARTIN. THOUGHTS AMONG THE STARS. Whence come ye? and why fix your steadfast look By telescopic vision far in space And full of truth. These are the shadows only To that alone is given the privilege To know its Deity. Rejoice then, man! Rejoice through all thy powers; rejoice through all The glorious works of nature; still rejoice In him through all the stages of the day, And through the star-lit watches of the night out the dust; Let thy heart shout with joy: for thou shalt spring, Thou canst not bear With tears, thy aspirations made in sighs, Thy high conceptions-what are they? how weak, How vain, how abject! why, the very whole Of boundless space, with all its glittering stars Of the high archangels in all their glory, Would be a sight but mean and poor compared Unto that which doth await thee:-THOU SHALT LOOK UPON THY GOD. W. MARTIN. A MORNING THOUGHT. "Who hast safely brought us to the beginning of this day, defend us in the same by thy mighty power."-COLLECT FOR GRACE. SAFELY from darkness, and the deep Wild chaos of our midnight sleep, Where fitfully our inward world Seem'd into dire confusion hurl'd, Thy love was with us still to bless Our dreams of tangled nothingness. When bound in chains of living death, Spite of the heart-throb, and the breath, Thy goodness, Lord, then set us free In daylight's sunny liberty. But now our ministers of sense, Our reason's bright intelligence, And its vast temple, were cast down, Their trophies of high wisdom strewn About in fragments through a gloom Black as the night shades of the tomb. But yet through all Thou hast been by To watch this solemn mystery; Our thoughts and powers didst soon restore, In which vague dreams of power and pride, To win our spirits from the skies. The world is all with danger fraught; Deceit and falsehood through it wrought |