Speaking of Heavenly . . .

This beautiful old hymn has been running through my head today. A friend of mine once called it the ultimate ode to hope. Something we can all use more of.

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?

Wherever 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 in life is free;
My Father has my treasure,
And He will walk with me.

-- A.L. Waring, 1850

Background on the author:
Anna Laetitia Waring (1820-1910) was born in Neith, Glamorganshire, South Wales, where she spent all ninety years of her life. She began writing hymns in her teens, and in 1850 she published her Hymns and Meditations, a small book of 19 hymns. Though she was raised a Quaker, she was impressed by the sacraments of the Anglican Church and identified herself with that body in 1842. She was also an excellent scholar, having learned Hebrew in order to read the Old Testament in the original. A contemporary writes, "She had a gentle but merry spirit and did helpful work for the Discharged Prisoners' Aid Society. . . . Her hymns are marked by great simplicity, concentration of thought, and elegance of diction. They are popular and deserve to be so."