My dear and kind defender ASPIRATIONS OF THE SOUL AFTER GOD. My Spouse! in whose presence I live, Who know'st what a flame I conceive, I find even sorrow made sweet; Because 'tis assign'd me by thee. Transported I see thee display For thou art as faithful as strong; My spirit and faculties fail; Oh finish what love has begun! Destroy what is sinful and frail, And dwell in the soul thou hast won! Dear theme of my wonder and praise, 'Tis all that is left to me now. Oh glory in which I am lost, Too deep for the plummet of thought; On an ocean of Deity toss'd, I am swallow'd, I sink into nought. Yet, lost and absorb'd as I seem, I chant to the praise of my King; And, though overwhelm'd by the theme, Am happy whenever I sing. GRATITUDE AND LOVE TO GOD. ALL are indebted much to thee, From many a deadly snare set free, Overwhelm me, from above, What bonds of gratitude I feel To return thee love for love? Spirit of charity, dispense Thy grace to every heart; Break the chains in which we lie! All selfish souls, whate'er they feign, He whose bosom glows with thee, Oh blessedness, all bliss above, We learn its name, but not its powers, HAPPY SOLITUDE-UNHAPPY MEN. My heart is easy, and my burden light; I taste thy goodness, and I love thee more. There, while a solemn stillness reigns around, Faith, love, and hope within my soul abound; And, while the world suppose me lost in care, The joys of angels. unperceived, I share. Thy creatures wrong thee, O thou sovereign good ! Thou art not loved, because not understood; This grieves me most, that vain pursuits beguile Frail beauty and false honour are adored; LIVING WATER. THE fountain in its source No drought of summer fears; But shallow cisterns yield A scanty short supply; The morning sees them amply fill'd, At evening they are dry. TRUTH AND DIVINE LOVE REJECTED BY THE WORLD. O LOVE, of pure and heavenly birth! O simple truth, scarce known on earth! Whence comes it, that, your power the same Or heart that makes you welcome here ?— The world is proud, and cannot bear Then, let the price be what it may, DIVINE JUSTICE AMIABLE. THOU hast no lightnings, O thou Just! And, if thou strike me into dust, |