371.

Humble Praise.

1

My God! whene'er my longing heart
The grateful tribute would impart,
In vain my tongue, with feeble aim,
Attempts the glories of thy name.

2

In vain my boldest thoughts arise
I sink to earth and lose the skies:
Yet I may still thy grace implore,
And, low in dust, thy name adore.

;

With humble fear let love unite,
And mix devotion with delight;
Then shall thy name be all my joy,
Thy praise my constant, blest employ.

4

Oh let thy grace guide every song,
And fill my heart and tune my tongue!
Then shall the strain harmonious flow,
And heaven's sweet work begin below.
372.

Desiring to praise God,

1

ALMIGHTY Author of my frame!
To thee my vital powers belong :
Thy praise-delightful, glorious theme!
Demands my heart, my life, my tongue.

2

My heart, my life, my tongue, are thine;
Oh be thy praise my blest employ !
Yea, may my song with angels' join;
Nor sacred awe forbid the joy.

3

Thy glories the seraphic lyre,

On all its strings, attempts in vain :
Then, how shall mortals dare aspire
In thought, to try the unequal strain?

4

Yet the great Sovereign of the skies
To mortals bends a gracious ear;
Nor the mean tribute will despise,
When offer'd by a heart sincere.

5

Great God! accept the humble praise,
And guide my heart, and guide my tongue,
While to thy name I trembling raise
The grateful, though unworthy song.

373.

Obligations to ratitude and Praise.

1

My Maker and my King!
To thee my all I owe :

Thy sovereign bounty is the spring
Whence all my blessings flow.

2

Thou ever good and kind! A thousand reasons move, A thousand obligations bind My heart to grateful love.

3

The creature of thy hand,
On thee alone I live:

My God! thy benefits demand

More praise than tongue can give.

4

Oh let thy grace inspire

My soul with strength divine; Let all my powers to thee aspire, And all my days be thine.

374.

Praise to God in Life and Death.

1

My soul shall praise thee, O my God,
Through all my mortal days;

N

And to eternity prolong

Thy vast, thy boundless praise.

2

In each bright hour of peace and hope,
Be this my sweet employ;
Devotion heightens all my bliss,
And sanctifies my joy.

3

When gloomy care, or keen distress,
Invades my throbbing breast,

My tongue shall learn to speak thy praise,
And soothe my pains to rest.

4

Nor shall my lips alone proclaim
The honours of my God;

My life, with all its active powers,
Shall spread thy praise abroad.

5

When death is past, in endless strains
My grateful praise I'll pay;

The theme demands a nobler song,
And an eternal day.

JEHOVAH God! thy gracious power
On every side we see ;

Oh may the blessings of each hour
Lead all our thoughts to thee!

2

If on the wings of morn we speed
To earth's remotest bound,
Thy hand will there our footsteps lead,
Thy love our path surround.

3

Thy power is in the ocean deeps,
And reaches to the skies;

Thine eye of mercy never sleeps,
Thy goodness never dies.

4

From morn to noon, till latest eve,
The hand of God we see;
And all the blessings we receive,
Unceasing come from thee.

5

In all the varying scenes of time,
On thee our hopes depend;
Through every age, in every clime,
Our Father, and our Friend!

376.

Divine Support to Human Weakness.

1

LET others boast how strong they be,
Nor death nor danger fear;
But we confess, O Lord, to thee,
What feeble things we are.

2

Fresh as the grass our bodies stand,
And flourish bright and gay;
A blasting wind sweeps o'er the land,
And fades the grass away.

3

Our life contains a thousand springs,
And dies if one be gone;
Strange! that a harp of thousand strings
Should keep in tune so long.

4

But 'tis our God supports our frame,
Who rais'd us from the dust:

Hosanna to his mighty name!

In him is all our trust.

While we have breath, or use our tongues,

Our Maker we'll adore;

His spirit moves our heaving lungs,

Or they would breathe no more.

377.

Fleeting Life the Object of Divine Goodness.

1

TIME-what an empty vapour 'tis !
Our days-how swift they are!
Swift as a rapid arrow flies,

Or as a shooting star.

2

Our life is ever on the wing,
And death is ever nigh;

The moment when our lives begin,
We all begin to die.

3

Yet, mighty God! our fleeting days
Thy lasting favours share ;
Yet, with the bounties of thy grace,
Thou load'st the rolling year.

4

Thy goodness runs an endless round :
All glory to the Lord!

Thy mercy never knows a bound,
And be thy name ador'd.

5

Thus we begin the eternal song;
And when in dust we lie,
Let age to age thy praise prolong,
Till time and nature die.

378.

The innumerable Mercies of God acknowledged.

1

IN glad amazement, Lord, I stand,
Amidst the bounties of thy hand:
How numberless those bounties are!
How rich, how various, and how fair!

2

But oh what poor returns I make!
What feeble thanks I pay thee back!