The Life Everlasting

AS the hart panteth after the foun.tain of waters, so my soul panteth after thee, O God. My soul hath thirsted after the strong living God; when shall I come and appear before the face of God? O thou Fountain of life, thou spring of living waters, when shall I pass from this desert, pathless, barren land to the waters of thy sweetness, to see thy beauty and thy glory, and to slake my soul's thirst at the gushing streams of thy love? I thirst, O Lord: thou art the Fountain of life; give thou me to drink. I thirst, O my Lord; I thirst for thee, the living God: oh, when shall I come and appear before thy face! Shall I in very deed see that day, that day of joy and gladness, that day which the Lord hath made that we may rejoice and be glad in it?

O bright and glorious day, which knoweth no evening, whose sun shall no more go down; in which I shall hear the voice of praise, the voice of joy and thanksgiving, thy voice saying unto me: Enter into the joy of thy Lord; enter into joy everlasting, into the house of the Lord thy God, where are things great and unsearchable, and wonderful things without number; enter into joy wherein is no sorrow, but untroubled gladness; wherein is all manner of good, and no manner of thing that is evil; where all thine heart's desire shall be satisfied, and all thou fearest and hatest shall be far from thee; where life shall be calm, and glad, and thrilling; wherein the hateful enemy shall not enter, nor any breath of temptation shall come near thee; where is supreme and settled security, and tranquil joy, and joyful happiness, and a happy eternity, an eternal blessedness, the blessed Trinity, and the unity of the Trinity, the Godhead in unity, the blissful vision of the Godhead: the joy of thy Lord!

O joy upon joy, joy transcending all joys! when shall I enter into thee, and behold my Lord, whose dwelling is in thee! I shall go thither and see this great sight. And now what keepeth me back? Woe is me, that my sojourning is prolonged! How long, O Lord, shall it be said to me: Wait, wait, yet awhile? Come, O Lord, delay no longer! Come, Lord Jesus Christ, and visit us in peace; come and bring forth thy captives from their dungeon, that they may praise thee with a perfect heart! Come, thou desire of all nations, show thy face, and we shall be saved! Come, my light, my Redeemer, bring my soul out of prison, that it may give thanks to thy Name.

Blessed are they who have passed over the great and wide sea to the eternal shore, and are now blessed in their desired rest. Blessed are they who have escaped from all evils, and are secure of their unfading glory in thee, thou kingdom of blessedness! How long shall I be tossed about on the waves of this my mortal life, crying unto thee, O Lord God, while thou hearest me not? Hear me, O Lord, from this great and wide ocean, and bring me to the everlasting haven

O everlasting kingdom, kingdom of endless ages, whereon rests the untroubled light and the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, where the souls of the saints are at rest, and everlasting joy is upon their heads, and sorrow and sighing have fled away! Oh, how glorious is the kingdom in which all thy saints reign with thee, O Lord, clothed with light as with a garment, and having on their heads a crown of precious stones! For there is infinite unfading joy, gladness without sorrow, health without a pang, life without toil, light without darkness, life without death; there the vigour of age knows no decay, and beauty withers not, nor doth love grow cold, nor joy wane away, for there we look evermore upon the face of the Lord God of hosts.

O Christ, our refuge and strength, thou hope of human kind, whose light shineth from afar upon the dark clouds which hang around us; behold, thy redeemed ones cry unto thee, thy banished ones whom thou hast redeemed with thine own most precious Blood. Hear us, O God our Saviour, thou who art the hope of all the ends of the earth and of those that are afar off on the wide sea. We are tossed about on the wild and stormy waves in the dark night; and thou, standing on the eternal shore, beholdest our peril: save us for thy Name's sake. Guide us amongst the shoals and quicksands which beset all our course, and so bring us in safely to the haven where we would be. Amen.