 | Original, serious, and religious poetry |  |
79
FAITH.
Faith is first a firm belief,
Then the Spirit's mild relief
Then conviction, then 'tis hope,
Then it takes a wider scope,
Soon it makes possession strong,
Quickly strikes the heart in wrong;
Soon it shows the world in sin,
And renovates the mind within;
Then it fills the soul with thought,
Guards the body as it ought;
Lifts the mind in secret prayer,
Tells us what we truly are,
Mortals, full of pride and strife,
Mortals giving up our life:
Makes us kind, affectionate,
Neither fond of pomp nor state.
Interested here below,
In others weal, in others woe.
Faith is purity and peace,
Faith will last, till worlds shall cease;
Faith when mortals come to die,
Is always seen in verity.
Then the Spirit's mild relief
Then conviction, then 'tis hope,
Then it takes a wider scope,
Soon it makes possession strong,
Quickly strikes the heart in wrong;
Soon it shows the world in sin,
And renovates the mind within;
Then it fills the soul with thought,
Guards the body as it ought;
Lifts the mind in secret prayer,
Tells us what we truly are,
Mortals, full of pride and strife,
Mortals giving up our life:
80
Neither fond of pomp nor state.
Interested here below,
In others weal, in others woe.
Faith is purity and peace,
Faith will last, till worlds shall cease;
Faith when mortals come to die,
Is always seen in verity.
Lord receive and grant us all,
The gift of Faith, whene'er we call.
Make us die in truth relying,
On our blessed Saviour dying.
Whilst we look for his return,
Let such Faith within us burn.
The gift of Faith, whene'er we call.
Make us die in truth relying,
On our blessed Saviour dying.
Whilst we look for his return,
Let such Faith within us burn.
| Original, serious, and religious poetry | |