1. Return to bless my waiting eyes,
And cheer my mourning heart, O Lord!
Without Thee, all beneath the skies
No real pleasure can afford.
2. When Thy loved presence meets my sight,
It softens care, and sweetens toil;
The sun shines forth with double light,
The whole creation wears a smile.
3. Upon Thine arm of love I rest,
Thy gracious voice forbids my fear;
No storms disturb my peaceful breast,
No foes assault when Thou art near.
4. But ah! since Thou hast been away,
Nothing but trouble have I known;
And Satan marks me for his prey
Because he sees me left alone.
5. My sun is hid, my comforts lost,
My graces droop, my sins revive;
Distressed, dismayed, and tempest tossed,
My soul is only just alive!
6. Lord, hear my cry and come again!
Put all mine enemies to shame,
And let them see, ’tis not in vain
That I have trusted in Thy name.
Source: The Cyber Hymnal #5786
John Newton (b. London, England, 1725; d. London, 1807) was born into a Christian home, but his godly mother died when he was seven, and he joined his father at sea when he was eleven. His licentious and tumultuous sailing life included a flogging for attempted desertion from the Royal Navy and captivity by a slave trader in West Africa. After his escape he himself became the captain of a slave ship. Several factors contributed to Newton's conversion: a near-drowning in 1748, the piety of his friend Mary Catlett, (whom he married in 1750), and his reading of Thomas à Kempis' Imitation of Christ. In 1754 he gave up the slave trade and, in association with William Wilberforce, eventually became an ardent abolitionist. After becoming a tide… Go to person page >
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