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Man is born to trouble: and it is of the greatest importance to him that he should know where to turn his eyes in the day of adversity. The Gospel directs us to a reconciled God in Christ Jesus, who has engaged to be our support and comfort under every distress. The Christian has many trials peculiar to himself: but the Gospel is fully adequate to his necessities. Its power to support him may be seen in the passage before us. St. Paul is exhorting Timothy to steadfastness in the cause of Christ: and, for his encouragement, he tells him what was the ground of his own consolations under the heavy afflictions which he was now enduring for the sake of Christ. He tells him, that, notwithstanding he was immured in a dungeon, and in daily expectation of a violent and cruel death, he was neither ‘ashamed’ nor afraid: for that he had a firm persuasion of God’s ability to keep him; and that persuasion afforded him ample support.

Verse 1

Lead, kindly Light, amid th’ encircling gloom,
Lead thou me on,
The night is dark, and I am far from home,
Lead thou me on;
Keep thou my feet; I do not ask to see
The distant scene; one step enough for me.

Verse 2

I was not ever thus, nor prayed that thou
Shouldst lead me on;
I loved to choose and see my path, but now
Lead thou me on;
I loved the garish day, and spite of fears,
Pride ruled my will. Remember not past years.

Verse 3

So long thy pow’r has blessed me, sure it still
Will lead me on;
O’er moor and fen, o’er crag and torrent, till
The night is gone;
And with the morn those angel faces smile
Which I have loved long since, and lost awhile.

Verse 1

How tender is thy hand,
Oh, thou beloved Lord!
Afflictions come at thy command,
And leave us at thy word.

Verse 2

How gentle was the rod
That chastened us for sin!
How soon we found a smiling God,
Where deep distress had been!

Verse 3

A Father’s hand we felt,
A Father’s heart we knew;
With tears of penitence we knelt,
And found his word was true.

Verse 4

We told him all our grief,
We thought of Jesus’ love;
A sense of pardon brought relief,
And bade our pains remove.