"Lead Kindly Light"

A friend shared this and it meant so much to me in this time of tragedy and desolation and despair ... "The Pillar of the Cloud" by John Henry Cardinal Newman ... perhaps more popularly known as the hymn, "Lead, Kindly Light":

Lead, Kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom Lead Thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home— Lead Thou me on!
Keep Thou my feet;
I do not ask to see The distant scene—one step enough for me.

I was not ever thus, nor pray'd that Thou Shouldst lead me on.
I loved to choose and see my path, but now Lead Thou me on!
I loved the garish day,
and, spite of fears, Pride ruled my will:
remember not past years.

So long Thy power hath blest me, sure it still Will lead me on,
O'er moor and fen, o'er crag and torrent, till The night is gone;
And with the morn those angel faces smile
Which I have loved long since, and lost awhile.

How lovely and how comforting in this time of darkness ... thank you Lord! And thank you for brothers and sisters in Christ who encourage and support us in time of need.

Charles Delacroix