Edmund Clarence Stedman, ed. (1833–1908). A Victorian Anthology, 1837–1895. 1895.

Horatius Bonar 1808–89

Thy Way, Not Mine

E-Bonar-Ho

THY way, not mine, O Lord,

However dark it be!

Lead me by thine own hand,

Choose out the path for me.

Smooth let it be, or rough,

It will be still the best;

Winding or straight, it matters not,

Right onward to thy rest.

I dare not choose my lot;

I would not, if I might;

Choose thou for me, my God;

So shall I walk aright.

The kingdom that I seek

Is thine; so let the way

That leads to it be thine,

Else I must surely stray.

Take thou my cup, and it

With joy or sorrow fill,

As best to thee may seem;

Choose thou my good and ill;

Choose thou for me my friends,

My sickness or my health;

Choose thou my cares for me,

My poverty or wealth.

Not mine, not mine the choice,

In things or great or small;

Be thou my guide, my strength,

My wisdom, and my all.