The Wilderness for me,
However drear it be,
For God is there;
God, and the desert sand,
God, and the feeble band
Beneath His care.
The Wilderness for me,
However drear it be,
Earth's darkest night;
Amid its depths and gloom.
His presence cloth ill lime,
Who is the " light of life."
The Wilderness for me,
However drear it be;
A feast is spread,
By God's own hand each day;
- My " portion " for the way
Is Christ the "living bread."
The Wilderness for me,
However drear it be;
The smitten rock
Sends forth a gushing tide
Of water from its side,
For God's redeemed flock.
The Wilderness for me,
However drear it he;
The desert sand
My weary feet may tread,
The while my heart and head
Are in Emmanuel's land.
The Wilderness for me,
However drear it be,
Since He passed through,
Who suffered, wept, and sighed,
Who loved, and bled, and died,
And all sorrows knew.
The Wilderness for me,
However drear it be,
Till Jesus come-
Then farewell toil and strife,
Then welcome each tried life
In my eternal home.
M. F. W.