Questions & Answers
Though in the wilderness we find the pathways rough and steep, The wild and tangled places, and the valleys dark and deep, Yet as we tread the pathways o'er with willing, patient feet, We find them fringed with flowers of God and budding roses sweet. We see the dry and thirsty ground there in the wilderness, The desolate, deserted land, all dim with weariness; Yet there we see the little streams of living water flow, Reviving, healing, blessing all the land wherein they go.
O precious Word, that through the Master came, To bring sweet peace and healing in God's name; The Word which, spoken to the swelling crowd, Rebuked the swinish thought, Made evil cry aloud, Torment us not; And yet in tender might Brought the repentant to the Master's feet! God's Word is law; and when it is obeyed, No matter what the trial, We need not be dismayed; His word a lamp, whose glorious shining rays Point on and up to higher, holier ways.
Father of all, in whom each one is living, Humbly and gratefully to Thee I pray; I have received so much, I would be giving. Father, I ask Thee to show me the way.
A jewel fair among encircling hills it lies, A mirror clear, wherein on surface still As in a glass reflected are the mountains, trees, Sky and sun and cloud; So pure, so peaceful, and so holy, quiet. So may my consciousness, O Love divine, Be still and quiet as this gentle lake, That Thou and Thou alone in it reflected be— Thy beauty, peace, Thy glory and Thy love; So losing self, lo! I am one with Thee.
To greet the gray dawn with a smile and say, Father, I thank Thee for another day, For the calm hours of a reposeful night Marked by Thy grace and guarded by Thy might; To store each glint of sun and leave no room Within a joy-filled heart for grief or gloom, Seeking the sky in every dancing brook And scent of violet in sheltered nook; To hear God's voice amid the city's hum, Where sense seems paramount and goodness dumb, Marking each day by growth of grace within, By healed conditions and forsaken sin; To make a barren life one harvest field Of God's abundance, by our prayers revealed; To stretch out hands and cry, Ah! God is here, There is no loneliness, or want, or fear; To make the evening bright with thanks and say, Father, I thank Thee for another day!
If I am then the guest of God, may I Not well rejoice? My every need is met. None sick, no sinner there; our Father's board Is laid abundantly.
Establish Thou my ways, dear Lord, And safety shall attend The path my searching feet shall find Wherever roads may bend. Keep Thou my heart with diligence, And sheltered shall it be From human woes and bitterness That nothing have of Thee.
Thou'rt not alone, then; on thy journey go The way God designates, where'er it be; If in a desert place, there thou shalt know The angel of His presence walks with thee.
She goes so quietly her busy way One hardly knows she passes, yet the day Is gladdened by her eager, loving smile, And sorrow seems less sharp and real the while. For in her heart a well of love supplies Refreshment that sustains and satisfies Those suffering from sin or grief or pain, And leads their thoughts to God and peace again.
Oh, troubled heart, do not forget That Love divine has ever met Each human need; His gracious hand, His tender care, Doth guard and guide thee everywhere, And gently lead. Thou too may'st feel the touch divine Of healing Love.