Sabbath

By Joseph Longking Townsend

O, blessed day of peace and rest,
Thou art the day I love the best!
Through precious hours thy gifts are sown
With blessings from the Savior’s throne.

With songs of joy attune my lyre,
And feed my soul’s celestial fire;
Let love with love its pleasures meet,
And happiness be mine complete.

I know the joy of rest and peace
That from my toil brings sweet release;
And when the evening hours have passed
Yet shall thy precepts ever last.

And so repeated days replace
Thy happy hours of love and grace;
And Heaven, each departed year,
In vision thou hast made more clear!

(1920)