Poems with Power to Strengthen the Soul

by Unknown

PEACE

REST, CALM, STILLNESS

THE PEACE OF GOD

When winds are raging o'er the upper ocean,

And billows wild contend with angry roar,

'Tis said, far down beneath the wild commotion,

That peaceful stillness reigneth evermore.

Far, far beneath the noise of tempest dieth,

And silver waves chime ever peacefully;

And no rude storm, how fierce soe'er he flieth,

Disturbs the Sabbath of that deeper sea.

So to the soul that knows thy love, O Purest,

There is a temple peaceful evermore.

And all the babble of life's angry voices

Dies hushed in stillness at its sacred door.

Far, far away the noise of passion dieth,

And loving thoughts rise ever peacefully;

And no rude storm, how fierce soe'er he flieth,

Disturbs that deeper rest, O Lord, in thee.

O rest of rest! O peace serene, eternal!

Thou ever livest, and thou changest never;

And in the secret of thy presence dwelleth

Fullness of joy, forever and forever.

—Harriet Beecher Stowe.

———

Life's burdens fall, its discords cease,

I lapse into the glad release

Of Nature's own exceeding peace.

—John Greenleaf Whittier.

———

BE STILL

Let nothing make thee sad or fretful,

Or too regretful;

Be still.

What God hath ordered must be right;

Then find in it thy own delight,

My will!

Why shouldst thou fill to-day with sorrow

About to-morrow,

My heart?

God watcheth all with care most true;

Doubt not that he will give thee too

Thy part.

—Paul Fleming.

———

SIT STILL

(Ruth 3. 18.)

Sit still, my child. 'Tis no great thing I ask,

No glorious deed, no mighty task;

But just to sit and patiently abide.

Wait in my presence, in my word confide,

"But oh! dear Lord, I long the sword to wield,

Forward to go, and in the battle field

To fight for thee, thine enemies o'erthrow,

And in thy strength to vanquish every foe.

"The harvest-fields spread out before me lie,

The reapers toward me look, and vainly cry—

'The field is white, the laborers are few;

Our Lord's command is also sent to you,'"

My child, it is a sweet and blessed thing

To rest beneath the shadow of my wing;

To feel thy doings and thy words are naught,

To trust to me each restless, longing thought.

"Dear Lord, help me this lesson sweet to learn,

To sit at thy pierced feet and only yearn

To love thee better, Lord, and feel that still

Waiting is working, if it be thy will."

———

THE QUIET MIND

I have a treasure which I prize;

The like I cannot find;

There's nothing like it in the earth:

It is a quiet mind.

But 'tis not that I'm stupefied,

Or senseless, dull, or blind:

'Tis God's own peace within my soul

Which forms my quiet mind.

I found this treasure at the Cross.

'Tis there to every kind

Of heavy-laden, weary souls

Christ gives a quiet mind.

My Saviour's death and risen life

To give this were designed;

And that's the root and that's the branch,

Of this my quiet mind.

The love of God within my heart

My heart to his doth bind;

This is the mind of heaven on earth;

This is my quiet mind.

I've many a cross to take up now,

And many left behind;

But present trials move me not,

Nor shake my quiet mind.

And what may be to-morrow's cross

I never seek to find;

My Saviour says, Leave that to Me,

And keep a quiet mind.

And well I know the Lord hath said,

To make my heart resigned,

That mercy still shall follow such

As have this quiet mind.

I meet with pride of wit and wealth,

And scorn and looks unkind,

It matters naught: I envy not,

For I've a quiet mind.

I'm waiting now to see the Lord,

Who's been to me so kind:

I want to thank him face to face

For this my quiet mind.

———

MY HEART IS RESTING

My heart is resting, O my God;

I will give thanks and sing:

My heart is at the secret source

Of every precious thing.

Now the frail vessel Thou hast made

No hand but thine shall fill—

The waters of the earth have failed,

And I am thirsty still.

I thirst for springs of heavenly life,

And here all day they rise;

I seek the treasure of Thy love,

And close at hand it lies.

And a "new song" is in my mouth,

To long-loved music set—

Glory to Thee for all the grace

I have not tasted yet.

I have a heritage of joy

That yet I must not see;

The hand that bled to make it mine

Is keeping it for me.

There is a certainty of love

That sets my heart at rest;

A calm assurance for to-day

That to be poor is best!

A prayer reposing on His truth,

Who hath made all things mine;

That draws my captive will to him,

And makes it one with thine.

—Anna Letitia Waring.

———

KEPT IN PERFECT PEACE

Peace, perfect peace, in this dark world of sin?

The voice of Jesus whispers Peace within.

Peace, perfect peace, by thronging duties pressed?

To do the will of Jesus, this is rest.

Peace, perfect peace, with sorrow surging round?

On Jesus' bosom naught but rest is found.

Peace, perfect peace, with loved ones far away?

In Jesus' keeping we are safe, and they.

Peace, perfect peace, our future all unknown?

Jesus we know, and he is on the throne.

Peace, perfect peace, death shadowing us and ours?

Jesus has vanquished death and all its powers.

It is enough: earth's struggles now do cease,

And Jesus calls us to heaven's perfect peace.

—Edward Henry Bickersteth.

———

PERFECT PEACE

Like a river glorious is God's perfect peace;

Over all victorious in its bright increase;

Perfect, yet it floweth fuller every day,

Perfect, yet it groweth deeper all the way.

Hidden in the hollow of His blessed hand,

Never foe can follow, never traitor stand;

Not a surge of worry, not a shade of care,

Not a blast of hurry touch the spirit there.

Every joy or trial falleth from above,

Traced upon our dial by the Sun of Love,

We may trust him fully, all for us to do;

They who trust him wholly find him wholly true.

—Frances Ridley Havergal.

———

ABIDING

In heavenly love abiding,

No change my heart shall fear

And safe is such confiding,

For nothing changes here.

The storm may roar without me,

My heart may low be laid,

But God is round about me,

And can I be dismayed?

Whenever he may guide me,

No want shall turn me back;

My Shepherd is beside me,

And nothing can I lack.

His wisdom ever waketh,

His sight is never dim,

He knows the way he taketh,

And I will walk with him.

Green pastures are before me,

Which yet I have not seen;

Bright skies will soon be o'er me

Where darkest clouds have been.

My hope I cannot measure,

My path to life is free,

My Saviour has my treasure,

And he will walk with me.

—Anna Letitia Waring.

———

CALM

I stand upon the Mount of God

With sunlight in my soul;

I hear the storms in vales beneath,

I hear the thunders roll.

But I am calm with thee, my God,

Beneath these glorious skies;

And to the height on which I stand,

No storms, nor clouds, can rise.

O, this is life! O, this is joy!

My God, to find thee so;

Thy face to see, thy voice to hear,

And all thy love to know.

—Horatius Bonar.

———

DIVINE PEACE

Peace upon peace, like wave upon wave,

This the portion that I crave;

The peace of God which passeth thought,

The peace of Christ which changeth not.

Peace like the river's gentle flow,

Peace like the morning's silent glow,

From day to day, in love supplied,

An endless and unebbing tide.

Peace flowing on without decrease,

From him who is our joy and peace,

Who, by his reconciling blood,

Hath made the sinner's peace with God.

Peace through the night and through the day,

Peace through the windings of our way;

In pain, and toil, and weariness,

A deep and everlasting peace.

O King of peace, this peace bestow

Upon a stranger here below;

O God of peace, thy peace impart,

To every sad and troubled heart.

Peace from the Father and the Son,

Peace from the Spirit, all his own;

Peace that shall never more be lost,

Of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

—Horatius Bonar.

———

A QUIET HEART

Quiet, Lord, my froward heart:

Make me teachable and mild;

Upright, simple, free from art;

Make me as a weanèd child,

From distrust and envy free,

Pleased with all that pleaseth thee.

What thou shalt to-day provide

Let me as a child receive;

What to-morrow may betide

Calmly to thy wisdom leave.

'Tis enough that thou wilt care:

Why should I the burthen bear?

As a little child relies

On a care beyond his own;

Knows he's neither strong nor wise,

Fears to stir a step alone;

Let me thus with thee abide,

As my Father, Guard and Guide.

—John Newton.

———

REST WHERE YOU ARE

When, spurred by tasks unceasing or undone,

You would seek rest afar,

And can not, though repose be rightly won—

Rest where you are.

Neglect the needless; sanctify the rest;

Move without stress or jar;

With quiet of a spirit self-possessed

Rest where you are.

Not in event, restriction, or release,

Not in scenes near or far,

But in ourselves are restlessness or peace,

Rest where you are.

Where lives the soul lives God; his day, his world,

No phantom mists need mar;

His starry nights are tents of peace unfurled:

Rest where you are.

———

BE ALL AT REST

Be all at rest, my soul toward God; from him comes my salvation. Psa. 62. 1.

"Be all at rest, my soul." Oh! blessed secret

Of the true life that glorifies thy Lord:

Not always doth the busiest soul best serve him,

But he who resteth on his faithful word.

"Be all at rest."—"let not your heart be rippled,"

For tiny wavelets mar the image fair

Which the still pool reflects of heaven's glory—

And thus the Image he would have you bear.

"Be all at rest,"—for rest is highest service;

To the still heart God doth his secrets tell:

Thus shall thou learn to wait, and watch, and labor,

Strengthened to bear, since Christ in thee doth dwell.

For what is service but the life of Jesus

Lived through a vessel of earth's fragile clay;

Loving and giving; poured forth for others;

"A living sacrifice" from day to day?

And what shall meet the deep unrest around thee

But the calm peace of God that filled his breast?

For still a living voice must call the weary

To him who said, "Come unto me and rest."

Therefore "be all at rest, my soul," toward him,

If thou a revelation of the Lord would'st be;

For in the quiet confidence that never doubts him,

Others his truth and faithfulness shall see.

"Be all at rest," for rest alone becometh

The soul that casts on him its every care;

"Be all at rest"—so shall thy life proclaim him

A God who worketh and who heareth prayer.

"Be all at rest"—so shalt thou be an answer

To those who question, "Who is God, and where?"

For God is rest, and where he dwells is stillness,

And they who dwell in him that rest shall share.

—Freda Hanbury Allen.

———

REST

Sweet is the pleasure

Itself cannot spoil!

Is not true leisure

One with true toil?

Thou that wouldst taste it,

Still do thy best;

Use it, not waste it,

Else 'tis no rest.

Wouldst behold beauty

Near thee all round?

Only hath duty

Such a sight found.

Rest is not quitting

The busy career;

Rest is the fitting

Of self to its sphere.

'Tis the brook's motion,

Clear without strife,

Fleeing to ocean

After its life.

Deeper devotion

Nowhere hath knelt;

Fuller emotion

Heart never felt.

'Tis loving and serving

The Highest and Best!

'Tis onwards, unswerving,

And that is true rest.

—John Sullivan Dwight.

———

There is peace in power; the men who speak

With the loudest tongues do least;

And the surest sign of a mind that is weak

Is its want of the power to rest.

—John Boyle O'Reilly.

———

EQUANIMITY

Tost on a sea of troubles, Soul, my Soul,

Thyself do thou control;

And to the weapons of advancing foes

A stubborn breast oppose:

Undaunted 'mid the hostile might

Of squadrons burning for the fight

Thine be no boasting when the victor's crown

Wins thee deserved renown;

Thine no dejected sorrow, when defeat

Would urge a base retreat;

Rejoice in joyous things—nor overmuch

Let grief thy bosom touch

'Midst evil, and still bear in mind

How changeful are the ways of humankind.

—Archilochos, tr. by William Hay.

———

GOD'S PEACE

Grant us Thy peace, down from thy presence falling,

As on the thirsty earth cool night-dews sweet;

Grant us thy peace, to thy pure paths recalling,

From devious ways, our worn and wandering feet.

Grant us Thy peace, through winning and through losing,

Through gloom and gladness of our pilgrim way;

Grant us thy peace, safe in thy love's enclosing,

Thou who all things in heaven and earth dost sway.

Give us Thy peace, not as the world has given,

In momentary rays that fitful gleamed,

But calm, deep, sure, the peace of spirits shriven,

Of hearts surrendered and of souls redeemed.

Grant us thy peace, that like a deepening river

Swells ever outward to the sea of praise.

O thou of peace the only Lord and Giver,

Grant us thy peace, O Saviour, all our days.

—Eliza Scudder.

———

THE INNER CALM

Calm me, my God, and keep me calm,

While these hot breezes blow;

Be like the night-dew's cooling balm

Upon earth's fevered brow.

Calm me, my God, and keep me calm,

Soft resting on thy breast;

Soothe me with holy hymn and psalm

And bid my spirit rest.

Yes, keep me calm, though loud and rude

The sounds my ear that greet;

Calm in the closet's solitude,

Calm in the bustling street;

Calm in the hour of buoyant health,

Calm in my hour of pain,

Calm in my poverty or wealth,

Calm in my loss or gain;

Calm when the great world's news with power

My listening spirit stir;

Let not the tidings of the hour

E'er find too fond an ear;

Calm as the ray of sun or star

Which storms assail in vain;

Moving unruffled through earth's war,

The eternal calm to gain.

—Horatius Bonar.

———

Father, take not away

The burden of the day,

But help me that I bear it

As Christ his burden bore

When cross and thorn he wore

And none with him could share it;

In his name help I pray!

I only ask for grace

To see that patient face

And my impatient one;

Ask that mine grow like His—

Sign of an inward peace

From trust in thee alone,

Unchanged by time or place.

———

And they who do their souls no wrong,

But keep at eve the faith of morn,

Shall daily hear the angel-song,

To-day the Prince of Peace is born.

—James Russell Lowell.

———

Drop thy still dews of quietness,

Till all our strivings cease;

Take from our souls the strain and stress,

And let our ordered lives confess

The beauty of thy peace.

Breathe through the heats of our desire

Thy coolness and thy balm;

Let sense be dumb, let flesh retire;

Speak through the earthquake, wind, and fire,

O still, small voice of calm!

—John Greenleaf Whittier.

———

As flows the river calm and deep.

In silence toward the sea,

So floweth ever, and ceaseth never,

The love of God to me.

What peace He bringeth to my heart,

Deep as the soundless sea;

How sweetly singeth the soul that clingeth,

My loving Lord, to thee.

———

He fails never.

If He cannot work by us He will work through us.

Let our souls be calm.

We should be ashamed to sit beneath those stars,

Impatient that we're nothing.

Get work, get work; be sure 'tis better

Than what you work to get.

—Elizabeth Barrett Browning.

———

Calm Soul of all things, make it mine

To feel amid the city's jar,

That there abides a peace of thine

Man did not make and cannot mar.

The will to neither strive nor cry,

The power to feel with others give;

Calm, calm me more, nor let me die

Before I have begun to live.

—Matthew Arnold.

———

What secret trouble stirs thy heart?

Why all this fret and flurry?

Dost thou not know that what is best

In this too restless world is rest

From over-work and hurry?

—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

———

We bless thee for thy peace, O God,

Deep as the boundless sea,

It falls like sunshine on the road,

Of those who trust in thee;

That peace which suffers and is strong,

Trusts where it cannot see:

Deems not the trial way too long,

But leaves the end with thee.

———

Be calm in arguing: for fierceness makes

Error a fault, and truth discourtesy.

Why should I feel another man's mistakes

More than his sicknesses or poverty?

In love I should; but anger is not love,

Nor wisdom, neither; therefore gently move.

—George Herbert.

———

Why fret thee, soul,

For things beyond thy small control?

But do thy part, and thou shalt see

Heaven will have charge of them and thee.

Sow then thy seed, and wait in peace

The Lord's increase.

———

What is the use of worrying

And flurrying and scurrying

And breaking up one's rest;

When all the world is teaching us

And praying and beseeching us

That quiet ways are best.

———

I feel within me

A peace above all earthly dignities

A still and quiet conscience.

—William Shakespeare.

———

The stormy blast is strong, but mightier still

The calm that binds the storm beneath its peaceful will.

—John Sterling.

———

As running water cleanseth bodies dropped therein

So heavenly truth doth cleanse the secret heart from sin.

—From the Sanskrit, tr. by Frederic Rowland Marvin.

———

From our ill-ordered hearts we oft are fain to roam,

As men go forth who find unquietness at home.

—Richard Chenevix Trench.

———

A mind from every evil thought set free

I count the noblest gift of Deity.

—Æschylus, tr. by Frederic Rowland Marvin.

———

A stone makes not great rivers turbid grow;

When saints are vexed their shallowness they show.

—Saadi.

———

Yes, Lord, one great eternal yes

To all my Lord shall say;

To what I know, or yet shall know,

In all the untried way.

———

Good striving

Brings thriving.

Better a dog who works

Than a lion who shirks.

—From the Persian.

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