3 Hither, from earth's remotest end,
Lo! the redeemed of God ascend,
Their tribute hither bring;
Here, crowned with everlasting joy,
In hymns of praise their tongues employ,
And hail the immortal King.
Longing for the House of God.
1 EARLY, my God, without delay,
I haste to seek thy face;
My thirsty spirit faints away
Without thy cheering grace.
2 So pilgrims on the scorching sand.
Beneath a burning sky,
Long for a cooling stream at hand;
And they must drink, or die.
3 Not life itself, with all its joys,
Can my best passions move,
Or raise so high my cheerful voice,
As thy forgiving love.
4 Thus, till my last expiring day,
I'll bless my God and King;
Thus will I lift my hands to pray,
And tune my lips to sing.
The Worship of Earth and Heaven.
1 HOSANNA! Lord, thine angels cry:
Hosanna! Lord, we hear reply:
Above, benenth us, and around,
The dead and living swell the sound.
20 Father! with protecting care
Meet us in this, thy house of prayer;
Assembled in Messiah's name,
Thy promised blessing here we claim.
3 But, chiefest, in our cleansed breast, Eternal! let thy Spirit rest;
And make our secret soul to be
A temple pure, and worthy thee.
Watchfulness and Brotherly Reproof. Ps. 141.
1 My God, accept my early vows,
Like morning incense, in thy house;
And let my nightly worship rise
Sweet as the evening sacrifice.
2 Watch o'er my lips, and guard them, Lord,
From every rash and heedless word;
Nor let my feet incline to tread
The guilty path where sinners lead.
30 may the righteous, when I stray,
Smite and reprove my wandering way;
Their gentle words, like ointment shed,
Shall never bruise, but cheer, my head.
4 When I behold them prest with grief
I'll cry to heaven for their relief;
And by my warm petitions prove
How much I prize their faithful love.
The Pleasure of Public Worship. Ps. 84.
1 How pleasant, how divinely fair,
O Lord of Hosts, thy dwellings are!
With long desire my spirit faints
To meet the assemblies of thy saints.
2 Blest are the souls who find a place
Within the temple of thy grace;
There they behold thy gentler rays,
And seek thy face and learn thy praise.
3 Blest are the men whose hearts are set
To find the way to Zion's gate;
God is their Strength; and through the road
They lean upon their Helper, God.
4 Cheerful they walk with growing strength, Till all shall meet in heaven at length; Till all before thy face appear,
And join the nobler worship there.
"Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth."
1 WHILE thus thy throne of grace we seek,
O God, within our spirits speak!
For we will hear thy voice to-day,
Nor turn our hardened hearts away.
2 Speak in thy gentlest tones of love,
Till all our best affections move;
We long to hear no meaner call,
But feel that Thou art all in all.
3 To conscience speak thy quickening word, Till all its sense of sin is stirred:
For we would leave no stain of guile,
To cloud the radiance of thy smile.
4 Speak, Father, to the anxious heart,
Till every fear and doubt depart:
For we can find no home or rest,
Till with thy Spirit's whispers blest.
For a Blessing on Worship.
1 HERE, gracious God! do thou
For evermore draw nigh;
Accept each faithful prayer,
And mark each suppliant sigh:
In copicus showers, on all who pray,
This holy day, thy blessings pour.
2 Here may we find from heaven
The grace which we implore;
And may that grace once given,
Be with us evermore:
Until that day, when all the blest
To endless rest are called away.
1 CALLED by the Sabbath bells away,
Unto thy holy temple, Lord,
I'll go, with willing mind to pray,
To praise thy name and hear thy word.
2 O sacred day of peace and joy,
Thy hours are ever dear to me;
Ne'er may a sinful thought destroy
The holy calm I find in thee.
3 Dear are thy peaceful hours to me,
For God has given them in his love
To tell how calm, how blest shall be
The endless day of heaven above.
The Worship of the Heart.
1 WHEN, as returns this solemn day,
Man comes to meet his Maker, God,
What rites, what honors shall he pay?
How spread his Sovereign's praise abroad?
2 From marble domes and gilded spires,
Shall curling clouds of incense rise?
And gems, and gold, and garlands deck
The costly pomp of sacrifice?
3 Vain, sinful man! creation's Lord
Thy golden offerings well may spare: But give thy heart, and thou shalt find Here dwells a God who heareth prayer.
1 SACRED day, forever blest!
Day of all our days the best!
Welcome hours of praise and prayer,
Free from toil, fatigue, and care!
2 Happy, truly happy, Lord,
Those who hear and read thy word!
Happy those who dwell with thee!
Who thy grace and glory see.
3 We once more have heard thy voice,
Lord, in thee our souls rejoice;
Borne by faith to worlds on high,
Called to reign above the sky.
4 Though this day of rest we close,
Still in thee our hearts repose;
Guide and guard us all our days:
O may all our lives be praise!
Invitation to pure Worship.
1 At the portals of thy house,
Lord, we leave our mortal cares:
Nobler thoughts our souls engage,
|