A Door of Hope
by Charles Deayton

Fear not, nor be dismayed though clouds
May gather o'er thy head,
Fret not, nor be afraid although
Thy way be hard be-stead,
When circumstances seem combined
Against thy peace to be;
This sickness, or these losses, or
Whate'er befalleth thee –
One sits above, and orders all
According to His love,
The great Refiner's fitting thee
To shine with Him above:
So bow unto His ordering
Who knows just what you need,
The very thing you would escape
Doth from hand proceed!

How good to prove thy God's support
When in affliction's way,
When, in the wisdom of His love,
He sends a trying day,
A day when everything seems wrong,
And one is fain to cry
"These things, they all against me are",
So darkened is the sky.
These very things are from His hand,
And serve His sovereign will,
He holds them all, disposes all,
Love's purpose to fulfill.

And He who balances the clouds,
Withholds, or sends, the rain,
After the darkness gives our eyes
To see the sun again,

"This thing is from Me", gently says,
Be not afraid, believe!
Take from His hand what may seem ill
And good thou shalt receive.
For all God's wondrous pattern soon
Will be in full display,
The suff'rings of this present time
Be glory in that day!
The cross here borne exchangèd for
The crown of joy above,
The desert journey ended in
The Father's home of love.

The Name of Jesus, far above
All other names in heav'n or earth,
O may we all its sweetness prove,
Its glory, excellence and worth!

The blood of Jesus, precious blood!
The basis of a world of bliss;
Redemption's price – O give to God,
All praise for such a gift as this!

The cross of Jesus, wondrous sight
When He, the Lord of glory, died!
Fruit of His travail, we delight
To hail Him now, the Glorified.

The fame of Jesus – tell it out,
Sound forth His praise through all the earth
Until, with glad triumphant shout,
Creation wide acclaims His worth.

Do we hear His voice now speaking
Urgently, yet tones of love –
Shall we not provide an answer
To His message from above?

He would wake us to His coming –
Let's not sleep among the dead –
He will wake us at His coming,
Glorious Saviour, living Head!

Let us cast e'en now our moorings,
Ready for the upward flight,
This is not our place of resting –
Let us walk as sons of light!

Saints, awake, let us be ready,
Answ'ring to the call of love,
Sep'rate, pure, responsive, holy
By the Spirit from above.

Other lords have had dominion,
Lords that were not God –
Now the faithful prophet's speaking,
Hear the word!

See the sacrifice accepted,
See God's answer plain
To the prophet's prayer – He brings them
Back again!

As the fire falls, all the people
On their faces fell,
Own Jehovah God in heaven,
Earth as well.

Now the blessing falls from heaven,
Sweet abundant rain –
There's no blessing till He brings us
Back again!

Let us heed His voice, forsaking
All that would detain us here,
And be ready for His coming,
Watching for Him to appear.

And the Spirit is appealing,
He would lead our hearts to Christ,
Help us rightly take the Supper,
And to keep the holy tryst.

Why should we e'en wish to linger
In a world where He is not,
Where the enemy would hinder,
And obscure what God has wrought?

Let us then, our hearts made purer
By the challenge of His love,
Gird our loins, our feet set heav'nward,
Till we reach the goal above.

Turn me from myself as centre,
And the flesh where no good dwells,
Draw from Thee divine infusion,
Water from salvation's wells.

Turn depression into gladness,
And the mountain to a plain,
Give the oil of joy for sadness,
From Thy hand eternal gain.

Thou the Fount of every blessing,
Thou the Source of every grace,
Be Thou all to me, Lord Jesus,
In my heart all else displace.

Give me, by the Holy Spirit,
To be occupied with Thee,
And in spirit, soul and body,
In Thy glorious headship free.

In glorious pow'r His own He brings,
The objects of His mighty love,
Bearing them up on eagles' wings,
Bringing them to Himself above.

He gives us thus the power to rise
Far, far above earth's petty things –
Snare of the fowler, useless lies
For those who use the eagles' wings!

The heav'ns are opened, glorious sight!
Jesus we see enthroned on high,
The Spirit's pow'r providing might
To soar above, on wings to fly.

Heav'n is our home, O blessèd word!
The buoyant spirit upward springs,
Using, as strengthened by the Lord,
The heav'n-provided eagles' wings.

May we, preserved from fears and qualms,
Be kept in holy buoyancy,
Whilst, underneath, th'eternal Arms
Give to our souls tranquility,

E'en in old age be satisfied,
Still from God's hand receive good things,
Our youth renewed, fresh strength supplied,
And using still the eagles' wings.

O mighty pow'r which made proud Saul
With fear and rev'rence bow –
All else is totally eclipsed
By Christ in glory now!

"Not I, but Christ", these words of grace
Paul in devotion cried,
Deeply affected by the cross
Of Christ – Him crucified!

"For me to live is Christ", he said,
No other lord for him –
The glory in the face of Christ
All other glories dim!

"Less than the least", O who could say
Of self such words as these,
But one who at the feet of Christ
Had truly bowed his knees?

To such as he what grace was giv'n,
Riches unsearchable,
The glory of that Man in heav'n
Commissioned now to tell.

And Paul's glad tidings still ring true,
Charming our hearts today,
Christ's glory soon will fill the scene –
Amen we gladly say.

May each heart be responsive,
Let none the blessing miss,
Let ev'ry tongue now praise Him,
Such glorious news is this,
Telling of God's salvation,
His remedy for sin –
Rejoice earth, mountain, forest
And ev'ry tree therein!

For Jesus died to save us,
God's grace is free to all,
How great is His salvation
To all who on Him call!
Sing, sing aloud the story
And wider praises win
For Him who made the forest
And ev'ry tree therein.

A model servant here we find,
A messenger indeed,
His words rang true, as sent by God
His holy rights to plead.

He spake of Christ, and Christ alone,
It was his humble lot,
When pressed as to himself, he said
Just simply – I am not.

The sermon, eloquent in words,
May lack a message true –
Five words may, by the Spirit's pow'r,
Bring Jesus into view.

Ten thousand words in unknown tongue
Can never save a soul –
Five words may serve, when used by God,
To make a sinner whole.

This lesson let us take to heart,
If we would serve the Lord,
To give the message we are giv'n,
And simply speak His word.

Fill our hearts, Lord Jesus, fully
With the sunshine of Thy love,
So that we might be reflecting
Here the light of heav'n above,
And that others
May its warmth and blessing prove.

Fill our minds, O glorious Saviour,
With the knowledge of Thyself,
And God's wondrous thoughts of blessing,
Op'ning to us heaven's wealth,
By the Spirit
Giving to us life and health.

Thou, the Christ, we'd have now dwelling
In our hearts by faith today,
That Thy love in all its power,
Now might hold us by its sway
Till all rivals
Have forever passed away.

Strengthened by the Father's Spirit
Which He, in His love, did send
That we might be fully able
With all saints to apprehend
Love so wondrous,
Far too great to comprehend!

Thus we're blessed with every blessing,
And our hearts are giv'n to know
Thy great love surpassing knowledge,
Filled to all God's fulness now,
And in worship
We in adoration bow.

Leaving all for Thee, blest Saviour,
Thine alone to be –
Whom have we on earth, in heaven,
Lord, like Thee!

For Thy sake our life here losing,
Finding it with Thee,
Counted here as sheep for slaughter
Now to be.

For in Thee, amongst Thy people,
We have wealth untold,
More than all we've left behind us –
Hundredfold!

"For My sake", Thou still art saying,
And our hearts would say
"For Thy sake", and be found faithful
Here today.

Thine own essential glory
Our minds could ne'er conceive,
But by the Spirit's power
We apprehend – believe
The truth which now has reached us,
God's love revealed we see,
Thy life, Thy death, Thy rising,
What glory shines in Thee!

Firstborn of all creation,
All things subsist by Thee;
O Lord, Thy glorious greatness
Our opened eyes now see.
Our hearts with joy acclaim Thee,
The Firstborn from the dead,
The first place Thine in all things,
Our glorious living Head.

Thou didst make Thine angels spirits,
Ministers a flame of fire,
Suited to Thy throne majestic
And Thy glorious attire;
Made the earth and man upon it,
Thine own purpose to fulfil,
Making all things for Thy pleasure,
And according to Thy will.

All the greatness of Thy purpose
Now we see in Christ the Son,
The effulgence of Thy glory
Shines in all that He has done.
The assembly, Thy conception,
Of Himself is formed, to be
Fit to share His glorious headship
For Thy praise eternally.

Thus, our God, Thy glorious greatness
Shining forth in Christ we see,
Shining in the face of Jesus
In life-giving radiancy.
As Thy sons, we now would bless Thee,
Filled with praise Thyself adore,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
Glorious now and evermore.

More wondrous day when Christ was born,
The skies were filled with praise;
How bright the heav'nly glory shone
Upon that day of days!

O solemn day, turned into night
When Christ was crucified!
Yet through that darkness we have light;
We live because He died!

Triumphant day when He arose,
The Firstborn from the dead,
Victorious over all His foes,
Of all creation Head.

O glorious day when Jesus comes
To take His pow'r and reign,
As King of kings and Lord of lords,
Jesus, the Lamb once slain.

Then finally, the day of God,
God all in all shall be,
His tabernacle then with men
In love's complacency.

And every idol disappear,
And fall, no more to rise again,
Be Thou Thyself our Object here,
Within our hearts alone to reign.

For we are Thine, Lord, Thou hast died,
And paid the purchase in Thy blood,
And from Thy fulness we're supplied,
As in Thee now we live to God.

And so, in holy splendour now,
We worship as Thyself we see,
No rival to Thy claims allow,
For none, Lord, can compare with Thee!

Thy Spirit, too, in faithful love
Would guide our footsteps here below,
And fix our eyes on Thee above,
That we in holiness may grow.

Until we reach the end divine,
Where, in bright holiness above,
We shall in Thy blest image shine,
The crown of Thine own perfect love.

May we sit in His blest presence,
Contemplate His thoughts so great,
Which in Christ are all towards us,
And upon His word to wait.

Then to stand as priests before Him,
Lifting holy hands to bless,
Consecrated now to render
Sacrifice of righteousness.

Thus, our God, Thy saints would bless Thee,
As in Christ before Thee now,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
We in adoration bow.

The morning breaks, behold Him there
As on the shore He stands,
So full of grace, and love and pow'r –
All things are in His hands!

"Children" – how tenderly He speaks!
Surely it is the Lord,
Their labour now is not in vain,
As they obey His word.

When through the night we've toiled in vain
And, weary, spent and sore,
How good to see the morning break
And Jesus on the shore!

He turns our sorrow into joy,
Our labour now is blest,
As under His control we move,
Then 'neath His shadow rest.

O wondrous love that stooped so low,
Amazing grace that brought Thee down
To this dark world of sin and woe;
Suff'rings unfathomed Thou hast known.

Our hearts are moved as we retrace,
O Lord, that lowly path of Thine,
And ponder o'er the matchless grace
Which did in Thee so brightly shine.

O perfect love, o'er all supreme,
Abounding grace displayed down here,
Its glory our eternal theme,
Its triumph will to all appear.

A glorious harvest Thou wilt reap,
The Corn of Wheat who here hast died –
Thou'lt raise all those who in Thee sleep,
And take us all to Thy blest side.

And there at home with Thee above,
Fruit of the travail of Thy soul,
We'll praise the glory of Thy love
In song while endless ages roll.

Image of the heav'nly One,
Soon, as heav'nly ones we'll bear,
Who, of Adam, were but dust,
Now Christ's glory called to share.
See how great the Father's love,
Wondrous grace on us bestows,
Calling us His children now,
Love in all its fulness flows.

Thus our great and glorious God
For His pleasure now has wrought,
Through redemption brought again
All the lost ones He has sought.
Made again, and giv'n a place,
To the Potter's own design,
Met by mercy, saved by grace,
All the fruit of love divine.

Lord, we're waiting for Thy coming,
Yes, to see Thy face we long,
When the sleeping saints, then waking,
We shall join with rapt'rous song.
Glorious climax for the watchers
Who have waited through the night,
Wondrous recompense for suff'ring,
Faith long tested changed to sight.

We shall see Thy face, Lord Jesus,
What delight Thy voice to hear!
If to know in part be precious,
What when Thou, Lord, shalt appear!
Face to face, what joy unmingled
When we see Thee on Thy throne,
Share this bliss with all Thy loved ones,
And to know as we are known!

May this prospect, bright and glorious,
Fill our minds and hearts today,
Help us step more firmly heav'nward
In the bright and shining way.
Thou hast marked the road to glory,
Leading from this world away,
Girt our loins, with quickened footsteps
We would walk, as "in the day".

Found worthy to escape this world
Where Thou hast died,
Share Thy rejection here where Thou
Wast crucified.

Found worthy to obtain that world
Where Thou dost live,
Share with Thine own th'eternal life
Which Thou dost give.

Thy love makes sacrifice a joy,
And makes us bold,
How great the recompense e'en now –
A hundredfold!

Thy Spirit makes us to rejoice,
The rapture's nigh,
The brightness of Thy coming soon
Will fill the sky!

Our Covert from the tempest,
Our Shelter from the storm,
Stronghold in time of trouble,
Protector from all harm;
O keep us near Thee always,
No strength ourselves have we,
Yet, through Thee we may conquer,
But only, Lord, through Thee.

Our Strength in all our weakness,
Our Comfort in distress,
Our Joy in times of sorrow,
Our Stay when foes oppress;
Our Peace in scenes of turmoil,
Our Light all through the night,
Our Succour in the conflict,
Our Vict'ry in the fight.

We cannot do without Thee,
We need Thee all the way,
Beneath Thy wing then keep us,
Blest Saviour, ev'ry day;
Proving Thy great salvation
From every hostile pow'r,
Our Rock, our Shield, our Fortress,
Thy name a mighty tow'r.

Soon there above in glory,
We'll see Thee face to face,
And, in Thy blissful presence,
Drink fully of Thy grace.
Faith will be changed to seeing,
Earth's trials ever o'er,
Exchanged for bliss eternal
With Thee, Lord, evermore.

Let us go on – the Spirit do not hinder,
Seeing that He would lead our hearts to Christ,
To leave this scene and all its claims behind us,
Set free to keep, e'en now, the holy tryst.

Let us go on in fellowship together,
Pursuing righteousness, faith, love and peace,
Out of pure hearts upon the Lord still calling
Till safe above, and opposition cease.

Let us go on till trav'lling days are over,
Let us keep on until the race is run,
Go on until the combat here is finished,
Go on until the victor's crown is won.

Let us not then entangled be
In bondage once again,
But stand fast in this liberty,
Rejoice that grace doth reign.

Yes, grace now reigns through righteousness,
Christ died that we might live,
And now in love's devotedness,
Ourselves to Him we'd give.

And we would by the Spirit walk,
Hold fast to Christ, our Head,
In holy conversation talk,
As by the Spirit led.

And, by the Spirit, now would live
In this sweet liberty,
That which the law could never give,
'Tis grace that sets us free!

Restoring grace here, too, is found –
"Ye who are spiritual",
No more in legal fetters bound,
The law of Christ fulfil.

Yes, we have heard the joyful sound,
The trump of Jubilee,
A happy people heav'nward bound –
The sons of God are free!

Thy God Himself awaketh
To bring thee back again,
In His unfailing mercy –
He does not move in vain!
His glorious arm prevaileth
His promise to fulfil,
And all must yield before Him,
Bow to His sovereign will.

Behold upon the mountains,
How beautiful His feet,
Who bringeth thee glad tidings,
Hark to the message sweet!
Zion, thy God still reigneth,
Waste places, lift your voice,
Break forth and sing together,
And in thy God rejoice.

'Tis thy set time, O Zion,
Thy day, Jerusalem,
Put on thy robes of glory,
And wear thy diadem.
Thy walls shall be salvation,
And all thy gates be praise,
Thy God Himself thy glory
Through everlasting days.

Showing here the life of Jesus,
And His dying day by day,
Manifest in mortal bodies
All along the suff'ring way.

Thus once spake the great apostle,
Brightly did his light appear,
Happy leader in devotion,
Shining for the Master here.

May we his example follow,
So that we as lights appear,
As good soldiers in the conflict,
Take our share in suff'ring here.

In this path our God would help us,
With fresh grace from heav'n supplied,
To be reckoned sheep for slaughter,
True to Jesus where He died.

Unknown here, well known in heaven,
Walking 'neath God's eye alone,
Patiently to wait till Jesus
Occupies His glorious throne.

Fresh supplies from Christ in glory,
Coming from the heav'nly sphere,
By the Spirit who sustains us
In the testimony here.

Soon the suff'ring will be ended,
Our rejoicing eyes shall see
All the fruits for Christ's own glory,
And God's praise eternally.

This gives us boldness now
T'approach and enter in,
As by the new and living way,
Free from all taint of sin.

The precious blood of Christ –
Efficacy divine!
The basis of our standing now
Where all in glory shine.

The deepest cause of song,
The sweetest notes we raise
Are prompted by this mighty gift,
Promoting endless praise.

To look upon the things unseen,
Now by the Spirit known,
How blessèd are the eyes that see,
To whom these things are shown!

Abiding things which far transcend
The fleeting things below,
Prepared for them who, loving God,
Are giv'n these things to know.

To taste the love, to know the pow'r,
Which heav'nly things afford,
Anticipate fulfilment soon
Of ev'ry precious word.

To see what God Himself has gained,
Hope of His calling high,
His great inheritance, the saints
As now to Him brought nigh.

Things which are seen will pass away,
The unseen things remain –
Lord, make Thyself more real to us,
Thy things our present gain!

Eyes of the heart, O give us, Lord,
As Paul once prayed of old,
That we may each enlightened be
Thy glory to behold.

Shine on in Thy splendour,
Life-imparting Sun!
Second Man, from heaven,
God's all-glorious Son.
Healing grace and power,
Fulness all divine,
In Thy glorious headship
On Thy saints doth shine.

Keep us in this shining,
Hold our hearts to-day,
Blessèd wondrous Saviour!
Soon Thou wilt display
All Thy saints in glory,
Fruit of Thine own grace,
Firstborn-glory shining
Ever in Thy face.

Quickened, revived, empowered,
Lord, by Thy touch divine,
Though frail and weak the outward,
Make Thou the inward shine.

For Thou canst make affliction
Work out eternal gain,
Cause spiritual formation
Through present trials and pain,

Our ears would be attentive
To what Thou, Lord, would'st say,
Thy quick'ning voice renewing
The inward day by day.

Our eyes would be directed
To unseen things above,
The things which are eternal,
Prepared by God in love.

And calmly face the break-up
Of ev'rything down here –
Eternal in the heavens
Our house will soon appear!

Spirit of God, engage us
With Christ enthroned above,
That we, whilst for Him waiting,
May Thy rich comfort prove.

And, by Thy power strengthened,
That we may grow in grace,
And learn more of our Saviour
Until we see His face.

We all, with eyes uplifted
Upon His glorious face,
Behold His glory shining
In liberating grace;
By the Lord Spirit's power
Transformed e'en now are we,
From glory unto glory –
His image all will see!

We all, by faith, arriving,
The end to which is giv'n
Gifts from our Head in glory
To bring us all to heav'n;
There, for the Father's pleasure,
The Son of God to know,
As sons in glory with Him
Where ceaseless praises flow.

Meekness of Christ, come down from heav'n,
Attractive trait of grace divine,
Obtaining here amongst His own,
As they in testimony shine.

Meekness of Christ, the pow'r that wins,
Subdues and melts the hardest heart,
Which brought proud Saul of Tarsus down,
And did to Paul such grace impart.

Fruit of the Spirit seen today,
Still in its royal loveliness,
In the "new man", as formed by God,
Holy, in truthful righteousness.

Blest Saviour, Model, Teacher, Friend,
Our Leader in the upward way,
Draw Thou our hearts, Lord, after Thee,
Cause us to hear Thy words today.

'O take my yoke, and learn from Me,
The meek and lowly One in heart' –
We answer: Keep us near to Thee,
Grace upon grace to us impart.

Spirit of Christ, shine brightly Thou
Within the hearts of all His own,
Form us in correspondence now
To that blest Man upon the throne.

Tempted and tried He went His way,
That path of suff'ring, patient trod,
Perfect obedience every day,
Devoted to the will of God.

On to the cross – behold Him there,
Expression of God's wondrous love!
He died for us, now ris'n again,
And rightly crowned in heav'n above.

And there enthroned as Priest on high,
He bears each saint upon His heart,
His ear attentive to their cry,
And active to fresh help impart.

So do not faint but turn to Him,
In all your need to Jesus go –
The great High Priest enthroned above
Was "Man of sorrows" here below!

In Christ Thy healing pow'r and grace
Was manifest below,
Sent to a lost benighted race,
The way of peace to show.

Blest intervention, grace divine,
Thy sovereign love we see,
In sending Thine own Son to die,
From sin to set us free.

Now ris'n, we see Him glorified
At Thy right hand above,
The Dayspring of eternal joy,
Of everlasting love.

And, wondrous gift, Thy Spirit dwells
Within our hearts today,
The Wellspring of a living tide
Which will not pass away.

The Dayspring lighting up our hearts,
Shining from heav'n above –
The Wellspring here, we're doubly blest,
The fruit – responsive love!

By the Spirit's power
We may enter in
To those realms of glory
Where no trace of sin,
Where no curse, or shadow
Ever shall be found –
Love divine, unclouded,
In those scenes abounds.

Lord, Thou dost attract us
To Thyself above,
Centre of God's glory,
Object of His love,
Head of Thine assembly,
Glorious Man art Thou,
Richly blessed, we hail Thee,
Christ, our life e'en now.

Soon the wide creation
Shall Thy glory see,
And Thy saints, all with Thee,
Manifest will be,
Sharing in Thy headship,
In that glory bright,
By Thy side forever,
For Thy heart's delight.

Flesh wants to rush and settle things
Itself to vindicate –
The man of God possessed his soul,
Faith can afford to wait!

When famine filled Samaria
With dire calamity,
To-morrow, said the prophet calm,
Abundance there will be!

When mighty armies Judah pressed
'Neath infidel command,
To-morrow, said the singer bold,
Our God will show His hand!

And, in a later day, when he
Was being sore beset,
To-morrow, said the servant true,
We'll know! – he did not fret.
Note: Refers to an incident in the life of J.T. C.D.

O wondrous lesson for us now,
When Satan presses sore,
The issue leave in God's own hand –
Thou'lt praise Him yet the more!

One Spirit, out of heaven,
The Earnest in our heart,
Bears witness of Christ's glory,
Tells of our heav'nly part.
We all, His face beholding,
Transformed e'en now, to be
Unto the same blest image –
This is true unity!

One body, wondrous triumph!
God's masterpiece we see,
That Christ enthroned in heaven
Should here continued be;
Th'assembly is Christ's body,
With joy this truth we see,
Merged in this glorious vessel –
This is true unity!

One heart, to Him responsive,
One soul, with feelings true,
One mind to answer to Him
In all we say or do;
Thus bound in love together
As one, we'd loyal be
To Christ our Head in heaven
In happy unity.

Theme of the prophets who, of old,
Wrote on the sacred page,
The psalmist, too, Thy glories told
Our interest to engage;
And now all heav'n owns Thee, the King,
There all the angels bow,
And gladly we our tribute bring –
To Thee be glory now!

Thy wondrous path we trace below,
The grace which shone in Thee,
What depths of suff'ring Thou didst know
In dark Gethsemane!
Obedient to Thy Father's will,
The cross Thou didst endure,
At such a cost His will fulfil
And sin's full judgment bore.

Now Thou art crowned, a glorious Man,
In righteousness above,
Fulfilling thus God's wondrous plan,
The counsels of His love.
Thou art the King of glory now,
The crown is on Thy head,
With great delight to Thee we bow,
The Firstborn from the dead.

Ride prosp'rously in splendour Thou,
Almighty Lord of all,
Peace and salvation bringing now
To all who on Thee call;
Soon all will own Thy rightful sway,
Thy royal Name confess,
Now, whilst we wait that glorious day,
Our souls Thy Name would bless.

We'll sing of mercy infinite,
Extol the matchless grace of God;
Our praise shall be, with great delight,
Of Jesus, and His precious blood.

Of Jesus, glorious Son of God,
The spotless Lamb, for sinners slain,
Jesus, whose precious, precious blood
Has washed our souls from every stain.

O let the song on earth begun,
Rise higher, filling heav'n above,
Flowing from hearts divinely won
To God's own heart, the source of love.

And to see what spirit marks us,
Let all evil speaking cease –
Fruit of righteousness is only
Sown for those who make for peace!

Still the voice of James is speaking,
"Listen unto me", he said;
Still the Spirit clothes with power
Those same words, although he's dead.

For his words so wisely spoken,
With the prophets all agree,
Giving them compelling power
And divine authority.

Let us then, as brethren, listen
To those golden words today,
And may wisdom, grace and patience,
Have with us their perfect way!

How bitter is the morrow
David's decline has brought,
When, with the foes of Israel,
He sanctuary sought!

And now with bitter weeping,
Exhausted by their grief,
David again would lead them
To God, who gives relief.

Guided by God, he leads them,
As strengthened inwardly,
Once more, as shepherd shining –
How great the victory!

Having himself recovered
From his disastrous fall,
Faith in His God now marks him,
David recovers all!

And so God turns the battle,
And gives them for their toil
Fresh wealth, each man enriching –
How great is David's spoil!

There is a wondrous story,
That often has been told,
So full of grace and glory,
So new and yet so old.
And now again we tell it,
So rich, so full, so free;
And hosts unnumbered swell it
Throughout eternity.

He who was rich in glory
Came down to earth below
In love, O wondrous story!
To lowest depths did go.
Jesus, the spotless Victim,
Died there upon the tree,
That we might know God's favour,
From judgment ever free.

How dark that night of sorrow
Through which the Saviour passed!
And deep the stormy waters,
And fierce the tempest blast!
But O the mighty Saviour,
Victorious o'er the grave,
Has ris'n in glorious power,
And lives the lost to save.

The darkness all is ended,
That night for ever past;
To God's right hand ascended,
He'll come again at last,
To call His ransomed people
To yonder glory bright –
Made like to His own image,
To dwell with Him in light.

Hark to the message sounding
Out from the throne above,
Telling of grace abounding,
Telling of perfect love.
Hark to the wondrous story
Redemption's price is paid;
Jesus is crowned with glory,
Both Lord and Christ is made.

None other name is given,
Jesus alone can save;
In love He came from heaven,
Himself a ransom gave.
In Him was grace abounding,
He paid in full the price;
O love immense, astounding,
O wondrous sacrifice!

The Spirit now bears witness
To Christ enthroned on high:
Redemption's work accomplished
By Him who came to die.
And now, in accents tender,
The Saviour speaks today;
Be wise, to Him surrender;
His gracious call obey!

With loyal hearts, O Lord, to Thee,
We'd serve Thine interests here,
Grant that we each may faithful be
Until Thou shalt appear.

And by the Spirit from above,
Now in Thy service free,
Here in the diligence of love,
Our hands would active be.

Now with the things that are of Thee
We would be occupied;
With true assembly feelings see
That Thou art glorified.

Do Thou our hearts, Lord Jesus, hold,
And with us have Thy way,
Our wills subdued, our minds controlled,
Thy will obtain to-day.

Lord, as we come together
To read the scriptures now,
We own Thee Lord and Teacher,
And in subjection bow.

May we, as in the temple,
Enquire, O Lord, of Thee;
Grant further rich unfoldings
Of truth which sets us free.

Lord, by Thy Spirit teach us
Thy word for us to-day;
With heart and mind attentive,
We would Thy voice obey.

May we, Thy word accepting,
Be helped and edified,
That through Thee now in all things
God may be glorified.

Though men may watch with anxious eyes
O'er their possessions here,
And guard their worldly goods to keep
The things they hold so dear;
Death and destruction e'er assail,
Dread foes will entrance gain –
'Except the Lord the city keep,
The watchman wakes in vain'.

Awake! Arise! Why toil in vain?
What shall it profit thee
If thou the whole wide world should gain
And, for eternity
Thy soul is lost? for without Christ,
No matter what thy gain,
'You rise up early in the morn
And sit up late in vain'.

O be ye steadfast, saints of God,
Your labour's not in vain,
Since Jesus Christ our Lord is ris'n
And glorified to reign:
God gives to us the victory
Through Him who lives again –
So toil we on, for in the Lord
Our labour's not in vain.

Always abounding may we be,
Steadfast in heart kept true:
Held in the power of His Love
Controlling all we do;
Then in "that day", how blest 'twill be
With Him, our Lord, to reign
And prove in glory, to the full,
For Him 'twas not in vain.