Classic Poem

We will finish this another time. "
He said, with emotion he could not stay;
But the story, crowned with a thought sublime,
Was finished then in the Lord's own way.

It simply told of a time and place
Where a brave young heart on trial stood
With a strong temptation, face to face,
Eschewed the evil and chose the good.

A beautiful lesson of heart and pen —
Not taught for a price in gold or fame,
But to strengthen the hearts of tempted men,
And stay young feet from the path of shame.

And he who had passed that hour supreme
With a blameless conscience and stainless hand,
Had gained a height in the world's esteem,
Where only the noble few may stand.

Earnest and upright, trusted and true,
He bridged no duty for ease or gain,
But faithfully did what he found to do,
And kept his record undimmed by stain.

And, looking back on the way he past,
Through the shade and shine of storm and sun,
To the humble home where his lot was cast,
When the hopes and dreams of youth begun.

Where a tender mother's love had sown
Good seeds when the morning dew was rife,
And prayerfully laid the cornerstone
Of a truly good and useful life;

He felt the clasp of a gentle hand
That drew him in by an unseen door,
To the light and life of that blessed land
Where the soul finds rest forevermore.

And the silent messenger of grace
So quickly wrought the Eternal will,
That those who looked on his pallid face
Could never know when his heart grew still.

Many will follow as years go by,
And some will leave an immortal name;
But never a man will live and die
With a truer heart or fairer fame.