Memories of Childhood's Slavery Days

<h2><SPAN name="MY_FAVORITE_HYMNS" id="MY_FAVORITE_HYMNS"></SPAN>MY FAVORITE HYMNS</h2> <p class="center"><ANTIMG src="images/image_04.jpg" alt="Decorative Image" width-obs="600" height-obs="48" /></p> <h3>&nbsp;</h3> <h3>The Ninety and Nine</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">There were ninety and nine that safely lay<br/></span> <span class="i1">In the shelter of the fold,<br/></span> <span class="i0">But one was out on the hills away,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Far-off from the gates of gold&mdash;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Away on the mountains lone and bare,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Away from the tender Shepherd's care.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">"Lord, Thou hast here Thy ninety and nine:<br/></span> <span class="i1">Are they not enough for Thee?"<br/></span> <span class="i0">But the Shepherd made answer: "This of mine<br/></span> <span class="i1">Has wandered away from me,<br/></span> <span class="i0">And, although the road be rough and steep,<br/></span> <span class="i0">I go to the desert to find my sheep."<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">But none of the ransomed ever knew<br/></span> <span class="i1">How deep were the waters crossed;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Nor how dark was the night that the Lord passed through<br/></span> <span class="i1">Ere he found His sheep that was lost.<br/></span> <span class="i0">Out in the desert he heard the cry&mdash;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Sick and helpless, and ready to die.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">"Lord, whence are those blood-drops all the way<br/></span> <span class="i1">That mark out the mountain's track?"<br/></span> <span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[88]</SPAN></span><span class="i0">"They were shed for one who had gone astray<br/></span> <span class="i1">Ere the Shepherd could bring him back."<br/></span> <span class="i0">"Lord, whence are Thy hands so rent and torn?"<br/></span> <span class="i0">"They are pierced tonight by many a thorn."<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">But all through the mountains, thunder-riven,<br/></span> <span class="i1">And up from the rocky steep,<br/></span> <span class="i0">There arose a glad cry to the height of heaven,<br/></span> <span class="i1">"Rejoice! I have found my sheep!"<br/></span> <span class="i0">And the angels echoed around the throne:<br/></span> <span class="i0">"Rejoice, for the Lord brings back His own!"<br/></span></div> </div> <h3>My Faith looks up to Thee</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">My faith looks up to Thee,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Thou Lamb of Calvary,<br/></span> <span class="i2">Saviour divine!<br/> </span> <span class="i0">Now hear me while I pray,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Take all my guilt away,<br/></span> <span class="i0">O, let me from this day<br/></span> <span class="i2">Be wholly Thine.<br/> </span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">May Thy rich grace impart<br/></span> <span class="i0">Strength to my fainting heart,<br/></span> <span class="i2">My zeal inspire;<br/> </span> <span class="i0">As Thou hast died for me,<br/></span> <span class="i0">O, may my love to Thee<br/></span> <span class="i0">Pure, warm, and changeless be,<br/></span> <span class="i2">A living fire.<br/> </span> <span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[89]</SPAN></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">When ends life's transient dream,<br/></span> <span class="i0">When death's cold, sullen stream<br/></span> <span class="i2">Shall o'er me roll,<br/> </span> <span class="i0">Blest Saviour, then, in love,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Fear and distrust remove;<br/></span> <span class="i0">O, bear me safe above,<br/></span> <span class="i2">A ransomed soul.<br/> </span></div> </div> <h3>Jordan's Strand</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">My days are gliding swiftly by,<br/></span> <span class="i1">And I, a pilgrim stranger,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Would not detain them as they fly,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Those hours of toil and danger.<br/></span></div> </div> <p class="center"><i>Chorus</i></p> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">For, O we stand on Jordan's strand,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Our friends are passing over;<br/></span> <span class="i0">And, just before, the shining shore<br/></span> <span class="i1">We may almost discover!<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">We'll gird our loins, my brethren dear,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Our heavenly home discerning;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Our absent Lord has left us word,<br/></span> <span class="i1">"Let every lamp be burning."<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Should coming days be cold and dark,<br/></span> <span class="i1">We need not cease our singing;<br/></span> <span class="i0">That perfect rest nought can molest,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Where golden harps are ringing.<br/></span> <span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[90]</SPAN></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Let sorrow's rudest tempest blow,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Each cord on earth to sever;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Our King says, "Come!" and there's our home,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Forever, O forever.<br/></span></div> </div> <h3>Over the Line</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">O tender and sweet was the Master's voice<br/></span> <span class="i1">As he lovingly call'd to me,<br/></span> <span class="i0">"Come over the line, it is only a step&mdash;<br/></span> <span class="i1">I am waiting my child, for thee.<br/> &quot;</span></div> </div> <p class="center"><i>Refrain</i></p> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">"Over the line," hear the sweet refrain,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Angels are chanting the heavenly strain:<br/></span> <span class="i0">"Over the line,"&mdash;Why should I remain<br/></span> <span class="i1">With a step between me and Jesus?<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">But my sins are many, my faith is small,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Lo! the answer came quick and clear;<br/></span> <span class="i0">"Thou needest not trust in thyself at all,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Step over the line, I am here."<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">But my flesh is weak, I tearfully said,<br/></span> <span class="i1">And the way I cannot see;<br/></span> <span class="i0">I fear if I try I may sadly fail,<br/></span> <span class="i1">And thus may dishonor Thee.<br/></span> <span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[91]</SPAN></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Ah, the world is cold, and I cannot go back<br/></span> <span class="i1">Press forward I surely must;<br/></span> <span class="i0">I will place my hand in his wounded palm<br/></span> <span class="i1">Step over the line, and trust.<br/></span></div> </div> <h3>O could I speak the Matchless Worth</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">O could I speak the matchless worth,<br/></span> <span class="i0">O could I sound the glories forth,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Which in my Saviour shine,<br/></span> <span class="i0">I'd soar, and touch the heav'nly strings,<br/></span> <span class="i0">And vie with Gabriel while he sings,<br/></span> <span class="i1">In notes almost divine.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">I'd sing the precious blood He spilt,<br/></span> <span class="i0">My ransom from the dreadful guilt<br/></span> <span class="i1">Of sin and wrath divine;<br/></span> <span class="i0">I'd sing His glorious righteousness,<br/></span> <span class="i0">In which all-perfect, heavenly dress<br/></span> <span class="i1">My soul shall ever shine.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">I'd sing the characters He bears,<br/></span> <span class="i0">And all the forms of love He wears,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Exalted on His throne;<br/></span> <span class="i0">In loftiest songs of sweetest praise,<br/></span> <span class="i0">I would to everlasting days<br/></span> <span class="i1">Make all His glories known.<br/></span> <span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[92]</SPAN></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Well, the delightful day will come<br/></span> <span class="i0">When my dear Lord will bring me home,<br/></span> <span class="i1">And I shall see His face;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Then with my Saviour, Brother, Friend,<br/></span> <span class="i0">A blest eternity I'll spend,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Triumphant in His grace.<br/></span></div> </div> <h3>O God, beneath Thy Guiding Hand</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">O God, beneath Thy guiding hand,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Our exiled fathers cross'd the sea;<br/></span> <span class="i0">And when they trod the wintry strand,<br/></span> <span class="i1">With pray'r and psalm they worshipp'd Thee.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Thou heard'st, well pleased, the song, the prayer:<br/></span> <span class="i1">Thy blessing came and still its power<br/></span> <span class="i0">Shall onward through all ages bear<br/></span> <span class="i1">The memory of that holy hour.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Laws, freedom, truth, and faith in God<br/></span> <span class="i1">Came with those exiles o'er the waves;<br/></span> <span class="i0">And where their pilgrim feet have trod,<br/></span> <span class="i1">The God they trusted guards their graves.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">And here Thy name, O God of love,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Their children's children shall adore<br/></span> <span class="i0">Till these eternal hills remove<br/></span> <span class="i0">And spring adorns the earth no more.<br/></span> <span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[93]</SPAN></span></div> </div> <h3>America</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">My country, 'tis of thee,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Sweet land of liberty,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Of thee I sing;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Land where my fathers died,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Land of the pilgrim's pride,<br/></span> <span class="i0">From every mountain side<br/></span> <span class="i1">Let freedom ring.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">My native country, thee,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Land of the noble free,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Thy name I love;<br/></span> <span class="i0">I love thy rocks and rills,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Thy woods and templed hills;<br/></span> <span class="i0">My heart with rapture thrills<br/></span> <span class="i1">Like that above.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Let music swell the breeze,<br/></span> <span class="i0">And ring from all the trees<br/></span> <span class="i1">Sweet freedom's song;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Let mortal tongues awake,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Let all that breathe partake,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Let rocks their silence break,<br/></span> <span class="i1">The sound prolong.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Our fathers' God to Thee,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Author of liberty,<br/></span> <span class="i1">To Thee we sing;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Long may our land be bright<br/></span> <span class="i0">With freedom's holy light;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Protect us with Thy might,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Great God our King.<br/></span> <span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[94]</SPAN></span></div> </div> <h3>In the Cross of Christ I Glory</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">In the cross of Christ I glory,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Towering o'er the wrecks of time;<br/></span> <span class="i0">All the light of sacred story<br/></span> <span class="i1">Gathers round its head sublime.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">When the woes of life o'ertake me,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Hopes deceive and fears annoy,<br/></span> <span class="i0">Never shall the cross forsake me:<br/></span> <span class="i1">Lo! it glows with peace and joy.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">When the sun of bliss is beaming<br/></span> <span class="i1">Light and love upon my way,<br/></span> <span class="i0">From the cross the radiance streaming,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Add more luster to the day.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure,<br/></span> <span class="i1">By the cross are sanctified;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Peace is there that knows no measure,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Joys that through all time abide.<br/></span></div> </div> <h3>Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Pilgrim thro' this barren land;<br/></span> <span class="i0">I am weak, but Thou art mighty;<br/></span> <span class="i1">Hold me with Thy pow'rful hand;<br/></span> <span class="i2">Bread of heaven,<br/> </span> <span class="i0">Feed me till I want no more.<br/></span> <span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[95]</SPAN></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Open now the crystal fountain<br/></span> <span class="i1">Whence the healing waters flow;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Let the fiery, cloudy pillar<br/></span> <span class="i1">Lead me all my journey through;<br/></span> <span class="i2">Strong Deliverer,<br/> </span> <span class="i0">Be Thou still my strength and shield.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">When I tread the verge of Jordan,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Bid my anxious fears subside;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Bear me through the swelling current,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Land me safe on Canaan's side;<br/></span> <span class="i2">Songs of praises<br/> </span> <span class="i0">I will ever give to Thee.<br/></span></div> </div> <h3>Christ receiveth Sinful Men</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Sinners Jesus will receive;<br/></span> <span class="i1">Sound this word of grace to all<br/></span> <span class="i0">Who the heav'nly pathway leave,<br/></span> <span class="i1">All who linger, all who fall.<br/></span></div> </div> <p class="center"><i>Chorus</i></p> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Sing it o'er and o'er again:<br/></span> <span class="i1">Christ receiveth sinful men;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Make the message clear and plain:<br/></span> <span class="i1">Christ receiveth sinful men.<br/></span> <span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[96]</SPAN></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Come, and He will give you rest;<br/></span> <span class="i1">Trust Him, for His word is plain;<br/></span> <span class="i0">He will take the sinfulest;<br/></span> <span class="i1">Christ receiveth sinful men.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Christ receiveth sinful men,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Even me with all my sin;<br/></span> <span class="i0">Purged from ev'ry spot and stain,<br/></span> <span class="i1">Heav'n with Him I enter in.<br/></span></div> </div> <h3>Some Day the Silver Cord will break</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Some day the silver cord will break,<br/></span> <span class="i1">And I no more as now shall sing;<br/></span> <span class="i0">But, O, the joy when I shall wake<br/></span> <span class="i1">Within the palace of the King!<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">And I shall see Him face to face,<br/></span> <span class="i0">And tell the story&mdash;Saved by grace.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Some day my earthly house will fall,<br/></span> <span class="i1">I cannot tell how soon 'twill be,<br/></span> <span class="i0">But this I know&mdash;my All in All<br/></span> <span class="i1">Has now a place in heaven for me.<br/></span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Some day; till then I'll watch and wait,<br/></span> <span class="i1">My lamp all trimmed and burning bright,<br/></span> <span class="i0">That when my Saviour ope's the gate.<br/></span> <span class="i1">My soul to Him may take its flight.<br/></span> <span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[97]</SPAN></span></div> </div> <h3>Battle Hymn of the Republic</h3> <div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;<br/></span> <span class="i0">He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;<br/></span> <span class="i0">He hath loos'd the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword;<br/></span> <span class="i4">His truth is marching on.<br/> </span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps;<br/></span> <span class="i0">They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps;<br/></span> <span class="i0">I can read His righteous sentence in the dim and flaring lamps;<br/></span> <span class="i4">His day is marching on.<br/> </span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">I have read a fiery gospel writ in burnished rows of steel,<br/> </span> <span class="i0">"As ye deal with my contemners, so with you My grace shall deal&quot;;<br/> </span> <span class="i0">Let the hero born of woman crush the serpent with his heel;<br/></span> <span class="i4">Since God is marching on.<br/> </span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never sound retreat,<br/></span> <span class="i0">He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat;<br/></span> <span class="i0">O, be swift, my soul, to answer Him, be jubilant, my feet!<br/></span> <span class="i4">Our God is marching on.<br/> </span></div> <div class="stanza"> <span class="i0">In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,<br/></span> <span class="i0">With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me;<br/></span> <span class="i0">As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,<br/></span> <span class="i4">While God is marching on.<br/> </span></div> </div> <hr style="width:65%" /> <div style="break-after:column;"></div><br />