Poem by William Cowper

Olney Hymn 41. Mourning and Longing

    The Saviour hides His face; 
    My spirit thirsts to prove 
Renew'd supplies of pardoning grace,
    And never-fading love.

    The favor'd souls who know 
    What glories shine in Him, 
Pant for His presence as the roe
    Pants for the living stream.

    What trifles tease me now! 
    They swarm like summer flies! 
They cleave to everything I do,
    And swim before my eyes.

    How dull the Sabbath day, 
    Without the Sabbath's Lord! 
How toilsome then to sing and pray,
    And wait upon the Word!

    Of all the truths I hear, 
    How few delight my taste! 
I glean a berry here and there,
    But mourn the vintage past.

    Yet let me (as I ought) 
    Still hope to be supplied; 
No pleasure else is worth a thought,
    Nor shall I be denied.

    Though I am but a worm, 
    Unworthy of His care, 
The Lord will my desire perform,
    And grant me all my prayer.

1. Olney Hymn 4. Jehovah-Nissi. The Lord My Banner
2. See Where the Thames, the Purest Stream
3. An Apology for Not Showing Her What I Had Wrote
4. Olney Hymn 55. The Heart Healed and Changed by Mercy
5. Olney Hymn 32. The Shining Light

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