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HAPPY NEW YEAR January 1948
H is for happiness
All the year through
P is for peace and
Perfection too,
Y is for yes;
Never delay,
Even though tired;
Work while ‘tis day.
Years pass quickly,
Evening is nigh;
All on the alter,
Ready to die. --Leslie Busbee, ( 9 years old, Guthrie
“STEADY AS YOU GO”
Remembering Bro Mart Samons
While ploughing through the stormy deep
Upon a ship of massive size
A youthful sailor strove to keep
Upon the helm his weary eyes.
The instruments in keen array,
The veer to left, the pull to right
Held his attention while the fray
Of dashing winds increased their might.
Rocked then the gallant cutter's form
Above the turbid water's grasp
Against the raging of the storm
Sustained by his unwavering clasp.
Fear mounted, panic sought to lay
Upon his mind its icy woe
Until he heard his Captain say:
"Now steady, steady as you go!"
From his command post over all
The Captain spoke these words sublime,
No dobbt his mem'ry did recall
The weathered storms of previous time.
Yes, through the storm they rode that night
Until its fury ebbed away
And in the east a tinge of light
Well meant the dawning of the day.
The years have passed, another sea
Now foams and dashes all around;
He sails toward eternity
Where everlasting joys are found.
He's living now the Christian life,
Embarked upon a course so true;
The waves of sorrow and of strife
Seek to prevent him going through.
But as before so earnestly
He rides the ocean's angry flow,
For Christ, his Captain, tenderly Says,
"Steady, steady as you go!" -Leslie C. Busbee
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January 1973
The New Year Dawns-1973
As dawns the New Year young and bright
Upon our pathway here,
As fades the Old Year from our sight
Eternity draws near.
Swift fly the monuments of time;
We near th' eternal .shore,
Where wait those· realms of bliss sublime,
Where death shall be no more.
Shines bright the future for the saint
Who walks in holiness,
Whose steadfast courage will . not faint
As onward does he press.
Above the glimm'ring gems of time,
He lifts his pray'rful eyes;
He hears the bells of Heaven chime:
His treasures in the skies.
"On to the goal!" we hear him shout,
Throughout the realms of earth.
Through stormy seas of fear and doubt,
He proves his lasting worth. ----
Today, if ye will hear His voice, ----
Oh, harden not your heart;
While there is time, make Him your choice,
And gain that better part.
While New Year's resolutions fail
Your spirit to transform,
The pow'r of Jesus can prevail,
Great wonders to perform.
We hail another New Year now;
We pause with solemn thought:
Oh, let us to God's purpose bow,
And live as Christians ought.
Leslie Busbee
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The Gift of Salvation
A wond'rous gift of God to man
Is found in free salvation;
The awful gulf of sin to span
For every tongue and nation.
For in the clutch of sin and pride
And doomed to dark damnation
The soul needs peace that will abide:
The hope of God's salvation.
Salvation from the yoke of sin
That bars the soul from Heaven,
The blood ·will cleanse without, within
And gladness will be given.
Delivered from this present world
And all her dark deception,
Salvation's banners are unfurled;
Oh, give it wide reception!
Judge not yourselves to be unfit
For life that's everlasting,
For Christ upon His ·throne doth sit;
On Him your burdens casting,
Trust in His pow'r to save alone;
Believe and do not falter;
See how His blood doth now atone
Upon the golden altar.
Salvation is the gift of God
He wills for every mortal,
An entrance from the lowly sod
Into the Heav'nly Portal.
Lay hold upon its sacred wealth,
Rejoice and praise Him ever,
And let the streams of saving Health
Flow over you forever!
Leslie Busbee September 1973
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Thanksgiving Day
One long ago December day
On the New England shore,
The Pilgrims came from far away
God’s favor to implore.
To worship Him in freedom’s land
They came with faith and zeal;
They were a brave and earnest band
Who sought God’s grace to heal.
The winter did their courage test,
And half of them were dead
When spring returned, and o’er the rest
Disease and hunger spread.
Not turning back, the Pilgrim heart
Looked forth to better things;
He planted corn and wheat to start
The joy that harvest brings.
A bounteous season God bestowed,
Their barns to fill withal;
A special day was set aside
When work was through that fall:—
A special day of thanks and praise
To God for all His care,
His loving kindness, gracious ways
That led them through despair.
And ought not we with like accord
To praise the Lord of love,
For fruitful seasons He hath poured
Upon us from above,
To count our blessings most of all
Rejoicing just to know
That Christ hath saved us from our fall
And washed us white as snow?
Leave Fret and Murmur far behind;
Give thanks in everything;
For out of Zion God hath shined
Salvation’s joys to bring -----
Leslie Busbee--November 1973
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A Saviour Is Born Unto You!
December 1973
I think of the wonderful story!
In Bethlehem Jesus was born;
He came to restore us to glory,
Our spirits with grace to adorn.
And it seems as I study and ponder,
A gladness awakes in my breast,
Its message becomes so much fonder
And brings to my spirit sweet rest.
’Tis true that the angels all hailed Him
The Saviour and Ruler of men,
And man in his darkness assailed Him
When came He to save them from sin.
What worth! What a treasure was given—
Unending, unchanging, and true;
The love of our Father in heaven:
“ A Saviour is born unto you!”
What greater bestowance of treasure
To man in his trouble could be;
What richer and bountiful measure
Than grace in salvation so free?
To save us from all of our sorrow
And guilt of transgression and shame,
(And hope for a brighter tomorrow
He gives us today in His name.
“ O come,” as the song says, “ behold H im !”
Look up from your burdens and see,
In all of thy bosom enfold Him
And taste of His goodness so free.
Look not for Him now in the manger;
Seek not for His face in the throng;
He reigns now above all this danger
Triumphant o’er evil and wrong.
The song of the angels we cherish,
Its message we ever shall pen:
“ All glory to God in the highest,
On earth peace, good will toward men!”
Leslie Busbee
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New Year—January 1974
Once more the bells are tolling out
The old year passed and gone;
Its rays of hope, its shades of doubt
On fleeting wings have flown.
While rock the worldly to and fro
In drunken night of sin,
We face a future full of woe,
The nations sink within.
Another year! What will it be?
For better or for worse?
What will the stream of history
To future man rehearse?
Oh, shall we sink in dark despair?
But wait! in yonder skies
A star of hope does now appear
Before our wond’ring eyes!
The star that shone on Bethl’em’s plain
The Christ-child to reveal,
Becomes the Light of hope and gain,
Our troubled hearts to heal.
Yet shining in our human sky,
A Light to never cease;
Beams of a Love that will not die,
It shows the way of peace.
And in the light of truth and grace
Our souls fresh courage take.
We see our Father’s smiling face,
And with His Son partake.
Thus in this New Year coming forth,
Bright prospects do we see
Of great accomplishment and worth
For all eternity.
Ring out the bells, the New Year greet
With hearty hand and voice;
Make straight the pathway of your feet,
Good Christian men, Rejoice!
Leslie Busbee
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Every Trial Is a Mountain
Every trial is a mountain,
Heights of glory unexplored.
We must strive to reach the summit
Where our strength can be restored.
We must conquer, we must triumph,
Leaving earthly cares behind,
Climbing higher, pressing onward,
Reaching forth to joys sublime.
Every trial is a challenge,
Unknown blessings in disguise,
Stepping in the path of wisdom
Will unveil the promised prize.
Trails of sorrow, trails of gladness,
Climbing onward here we plod,
We must hold to faith and courage,
Supported by the hand of God.
Kites do have their heights of glory,
And the upward pull we feel,
Holding fast the thread of promise
Reassures us God is real.
Every trial is a mountain,
Be it large, or be it small,
Let your burden be unloaded,
Christ will gladly bear it all.
Strip yourself of earthly treasures,
Run with patience all the way;
Soon you’ll reach yon peak of glory
Content whate’er may be their lot,
They triumph o’er disaster.
They have a joy that knows no blot
Who live to serve the Master!
This Peace so great Christ died to give,
Our burdens gladly bearing;
Where He in all His grace doth live,
His Peace with all is sharing.
Peace that will keep the heart and mind,
A Kingdom e’er increasing,
A Treasure, one so rich to find,
A pleasure never ceasing.
Come to Him now, confess your sin,
Let Jesus live within you,
Great peace is yours without an end,
And nothing shall offend you. — Leslie Busbee
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New Year 1975
Now once more upon the threshold
Of a New Year clear and bright,
We are pausing and reflecting
As the Old Year fades from sight.
Swifter than a soaring arrow
From an archer, we would say
Down the path of life so narrow
We are passing every day.
O'er the crusty heights and ridges
Of life's long uneven road;
Round the curves and o'er the bridges,
Often with a heavy load
We are pilgrims on a journey
T'ward a distant land so fair,
But our Saviour! He is leading;
We are safe beneath His care.
Looking back, we see Hfs goodness
Shining on our path below;
Looking forward, He has promised
To be with us, this we know.
For His service we are yearning
More efficient to be found,
Every lesson wisely learning,
As we tread His holy ground.
For a light to shine in darkness
Let us each resolve to be;
Fill the New Year with the message
Of His grace so full and free.
For some day the books He'll open,
And each year will something show
For a crown of endless glory
In that land where pleasures flow.
Face the New Year, then, with courage;
Seek to do God's perfect will;
Peace which passeth understanding
Will your happy spirit fill. ----Leslie Busbee
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The New Jerusalem –April 1975
Have you seen the New Jerusalem
Coming down from God above,
As a bride of rich adorning
For the Bridegroom of her love?
Have you seen her sacred beauty
And her charm of holiness,
As she fills each saintly duty
While t’ward Heaven she does press?
Have you seen? or are you looking
T’ward that city far away,
Where the armies still are camping,
Ready for the battle’s fray?
Where the ancient walls are crumbling,
Falling ’neath old Time’s decree;
Where the Voice no longer echoes
Of the Man of Galilee?
Turn, oh, turn; behold and listen
To the words of truth divine,
And a vision new will glisten,
And upon your pathway shine!
There’s a new and better City!
One that never will decay,
And the sight of this her beauty
Drives the darkness all away.
For no more is God abiding
In the temples made with hands,
And our Lord is not confiding
With the wealth of earthly lands.
He has found His rest forever
In the love of holy men—
Souls who from all else will sever,
Who are washed and pure from sin.
Here we find this City standing
Firm upon the solid Rock,
Following Her Lord’s commanding,
Raedy for the Judgment shock. —Leslie Busbee
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Mother Hood
May 1975
There is a noble place to fill,
There is a call of Heaven’s will
To be a Mother wise and true
With much important work to do.
It blends the strain of toil and tear
With happiness and love so dear;
Throughout the passing years of time
It rings a sweet and sacred chime.
To be a Mother oft is not
The choicest, and most easy lot,
But rich reward it offers here,
And great rejoicing over there.
For every man how great or small,
There is a Mother back of all ;
Though oft obscure and out of sight,
A Mother shines her sacred light.
But in this evil day there flows
A tide of dark, deceptive foes,
Invading Home's sweet sacred ground
Where Mother surely should be found.
We find her oft so far away,
Engaged in traffic of the day.
To someone else the task is given
To watch her brood that came from Heaven.
Unwilling here to subject be
To God's great wise and just decree,
She seeks a loftier, higher sphere
Of worldly praise and earthly fear.
Hark! From the Holy Book is heard
The call of God's unshaken Word,
For Mothers to be born anew
To do what God has bid them do:
To guide the house and keep the home,
And from her duties never roam:
Her children and her husband love,
Possess that wisdom from above.
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He Looketh Down
(Psalm 102:19) September 1975
From heights above the Lord looks down;
From heav’n He views the sons of men
Who tread the broad encircling crown
Of earthly realm and worldly din.
He looketh down, O precious thought!
The windows of His holy place
Are drawn aside for visions caught
Of mortals’ need of truth and grace.
He looketh down: what does He see?
The restless churn of human strife,
The roar of nations’ vanity,
The loss and gain of human life?
Is this what causes Him to lean
His majesty the earth toward?
What else is heard, what else is seen
That cometh up before the Lord?
The souls of men, His handiwork,
Their groans, their sighs, their bitter tears,
Their pall of death, their stain of sin—
Is what the Saviour sees and hears.
Thus in His fullness all sublime
From heav’n the blessed Lord descends,
His holy name to be in time
Proclaimed to earth’s remotest ends.
His work completed, sufferings o’er,
The cross and dismal tomb behind,
This risen Saviour ever more
Breaks forth upon the heart and mind.
The gospel to the poor is preached,
The story of the Saviour’s love,
And hungry, thirsty souls are reached
And drawn to heaven’s courts above.
And I, unworthy, now behold
The face of Him who died for me
He beckons me to joys untold,
And gives me peace and purity.
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POEMS OF LESLIE BUSBEE