A Heart at Leasure From Itself

Father, I know that all my life
Is portioned out for me;
And the changes that are sure to come
I do not fear to see;

I ask Thee for a present mind,
Intent on pleasing Thee.
I ask Thee for a thoughtful love,
Through constant watching wise,

To meet the glad and joyful smiles,
And wipe the weeping eyes,
And a heart, at leisure from itself,
To soothe and sympathize.

I would not have the restless will
That hurries to and fro,
E’er seeking some great thing to do,
Or secret thing to know;

I would be treated as a child,
And guided where I go.
Wherever in this world I am,
In whatsoe’er estate,

I have a fellowship with hearts
To keep and cultivate,
And a work of lowly love to do
For the Lord on whom I wait.

So I ask Thee for daily strength—
To none that ask denied—
And a mind to blend with outward life,
While keeping at Thy side;

Content to fill a little space,
If Thou be glorified.
There are briers besetting every path,
Which call for constant care;

There is a cross in every lot,
And an earnest need for prayer;
But a lowly heart that leans on Thee,
Is happy everywhere.

In a service which Thy love appoints
There are no bonds for me,
For my inmost heart has learned the truth
Which makes Thy children free,

And a life of self-renouncing love
Is a life of liberty.

--Anna L. Waring, ~1860