2 Life is real! life is earnest!
And the grave is not its goal;
Dust thou art, to dust returnest,
Was not spoken of the soul.
3 Not enjoyment, and not sorrow,
Is our destined end and way;
But to act, that each to-morrow
Find us further than to-day.
4 Let us, then, be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing,
Learn to labor and to wait.
1 SPEAK gently, it is better far To rule by love than fear;
Speak gently,-let no harsh word mar The good we may do here.
2 Speak gently to the young, Will have enough to bear; Pass through this life as best they may, 'T is full of anxious care.
3 Speak gently to the aged one,
Grieve not the care-worn heart; The sands of life are nearly run, Let them in peace depart.
4 Speak gently to the erring ones, They must have toiled in vain ; Perchance unkindness made them so; O win them back again!
5 Speak gently, 't is a little thing,
Dropped in the heart's deep well;
The good, the joy, that it may bring,
Eternity shall tell.
I THINK gently of the erring one!
O let us not forget,
However darkly stained by sin,
He is our brother yet!
Heir of the same inheritance,
Child of the selfsame God,
He hath but stumbled in the path
We have in weakness trod.
2 Speak gently to the erring ones!
We yet may lead them back,
With holy words, and tones of love,
From misery's thorny track.
Forget not, brother, thou hast sinned,
And sinful yet mayst be;
Deal gently with the erring heart,
As God hath dealt with thee.
1 WHAT precept, Jesus, is like thine,— "Forgive, as ye would be forgiven!" In this we see the power divine
Which shall transform our earth to heaven.
2 O not the harsh and scornful word
The victory over sin can gain,
Not the dark prison, or the sword,
The shackle, or the weary chain.
3 But from our spirits there must flow
A love that will the wrong outweigh;
Our lips must only blessings know,
And wrath and sin shall die away.
4 'T was heaven that formed the holy plan
To win the wanderer back by love;
Thus let us save our brother, man,
And imitate our God above.
1 So let our lips and lives express
The holy Gospel we profess,
So let our works and virtues shine,
To prove the doctrine all divine.
2 Thus shall we best proclaim abroad
The honors of our Saviour, God,
When the salvation reigns within,
And grace subdues the power of sin.
3 Our flesh and sense must be denied,
Passion and envy, lust and pride,
While justice, temperance, truth, and love
Our inward piety approve.
4 Religion bears our spirits up,
While we expect that blessed hope,-
The bright appearance of the Lord,
And faith stands leaning on his word.
Joy and Peace in believing.
1 SOMETIMES a light surprises
The Christian while he sings;
It is the Lord, who rises
With healing on his wings:
When comforts are declining,
He grants the soul again
A season of clear shining,
To cheer it after rain.
We sweetly then pursue
The theme of God's salvation,
And find it ever new;
Set free from present sorrow,
We cheerfully can say,
"E'en let the unknown to-morrow Bring with it what it may!
"It can bring with it nothing
But he will bear us through;
Who gives the lilies clothing
Will clothe his people too;
Beneath the spreading heavens
No creature but is fed,
And he who feeds the ravens
Will give his children bread.
4 "Though vine nor fig-tree neither Their wonted fruit shall bear, Though all the field should wither, Nor flocks nor herds be there,
Yet, God the same abiding,
His praise shall tune my voice;
For while in him confiding,
I cannot but rejoice.
Christian Courage and Self-denial.
1 AM I a soldier of the cross,
A follower of the Lamb?
And shall I fear to own his cause,
Or blush to speak his name?
2 Must I be carried to the skies
On flowery beds of ease,
While others fought to win the prize,
And sailed through bloody seas?
3 Are there no foes for me to face?
Must I not stem the flood?
Is this vile world a friend to grace,
To help me on to God?
4 Sure I must fight, if I would reign;
Increase my courage, Lord!
I'll bear the toil, endure the pain,
Supported by thy word.
5 Thy saints, in all this glorious war,
Shall conquer, though they 're slain :
They see the triumph from afar,
And soon with Christ shall reign.
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