that I scribbled the enclosed rhymes in a state of mind not very different from what you describe:—
Solitary Musings.
Lord, when dejected I appear,
And love is half absorbed in fear.
E'en then I know I'm not forgot,
Thou 'rt present, though I see Thee not;
Thy boundless mercy 's still the same,
Though I am cold, nor feel the flame,
Though dull and hard my sluggish sense,
Faith still maintains its evidence.
Oh, would Thy cheering beams so shine
That I might always feel Thee mine!
Yet, though a cloud may sometimes rise
And dim the brightness of my skies,
By faith Thy goodness I will bless,
I shall be safe though comfortless;
Still, still my grateful soul shall melt
At what in brighter days I felt.
O wayward heart, thine be the blame,
Though I may change, God is the same.
Not feebler faith, not colder prayer,
My state and sentence shall declare;
Nor nerves nor feelings shall decide,
By safer signs I shall be tried.
Is the fixed tenor of my mind
To righteousness and Christ inclined?
For sin is my contrition deep,
For past offences do I weep?
Do I submit my stubborn will
To Him who guards and guides me still?
Then shall my peaceful bosom prove
That God, not loving is, but Love.
Mrs. More had expected to end her days in the
