Tuesday, October 23, 2012

I found the following poem in The Treasury of Religious Verse and it blessed me.  Our faith isn't based on how things are going but on the unshakable fact that God is for us and that He works all things together for good to those that love Him. It doesn't mean we don't grieve in the pain and loss but that we cling to Him and to a sure reward in spite of the difficulties and disappointments at hand. 




                               Faith

I will not doubt, though all my ships at sea
  Come drifting home with broken masts and sails';
  I shall believe the Hand which never fails,
From seeming evil worketh good to me;
  And though I weep because those sails are battered
  Still will I cry, while my best hopes be shattered,
     "I trust in Thee."

I will not doubt, though all my prayers return
  Unanswered from the still, white realm above;
  I shall believe it is an all-wise Love
Which has refused those things for which I yearn;
  And though, at times, I cannot keep from grieving,
  Yet the pure ardor of my fixed believing
      Undimmed shall burn.

I will not doubt, though sorrows fall like rain,
  And troubles swarm like bees about a hive;
Are only reached by anguish and by pain;
  And, though I groan and tremble with my crosses,
  I yet shall see, through my severest losses,
     The greater gain.

I will not doubt; well anchored in the faith,
  Like some stanch ship, my soul braves every gale,
  So strong its courage that it will not fail
To breast the mighty, unknown sea of death.
  Oh, may I cry when body parts with spirit,
  "I do not doubt,"  so listening worlds may hear it
     With my last breath.

                                            Ella Wheeler Wilcox

3 comments:

  1. Yes, that is a beautiful poem! Who are the artists that did the paintings?

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  2. I don't actually know - I just found them on Google Images....

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