revelations of new heavens and a new earth...

This morning, the conclusion of a prayer by T. T. Stone found in his book of 1858, "The Rod and the Staff." (find the rest of the text in 2 posts made yesterday)

"When I leave the vision of thy day and thy night, and rest in lonely thought, thou art with me still. Thy sun and moon and stars, thine earth and skies, dwell ever fresh within me. Thou hast planted their image in my mind; thou renewest the creation to me with every sun that riseth, with every evening as it soothes me by its peace. And in them all, and in my soul which loves them, thou hast engraven a holier image, so that neither in nature nor in myself can I for a moment live, but thy benignity surrounds me and fills me. In thee, Father, I live; in thee, Power of powers, I move ; in thee, Lord of existence, I have my being. My heart overflows with joy; thine the joy which makes me glad; from thee, the heart which drinks it in. Let heart and joy, and all I am and all I have, rise, returning to the supreme fountain. Even if changes come, and clouds gather over me, and pleasures wither in my hand, let no thought of repining dwell in me; fill me with that trust which shall give me revelations of new heavens and a new earth. Thy Sabbath fold me to its rest!

Father! save me, that I do not wander or fall. While I feel thee near, all pleasure is pure to me, sweet and heavenly ; so soon as I am away from thee, pleasure is corrupt and becomes bitter, and I am earthly and know nothing but earth and earthly things. Keep me so near to thee; so quicken my sight to see thy presence ; fill me with such fulness of thy spirit, that I shall never lose thee from my soul, that I shall never see the world void of thy life. There is no darkness with thee; there is no light without thee. For ever, thou life and joy of all, let thy child find the path to his home, and come to live and rest and rejoice, as thou givest him now to rejoice, in thee. Amen."

Blessings