← To the cross I long was clinging Hymns and Tunes (1888) · No. 1208

To the cross I long was clinging

1

To the cross I long was clingingAs a refuge from despair,Found relief from guilt of sinningWhile I lingered, clinging there.Still life's waves and storms assailed me,Doubts and fears my mind distressed,And with all the cross availed me,Clinging gave no perfect rest.

Chorus.

I was clinging, now I'm resting,Sweetly resting at the cross;I was clinging, now I'm resting,Sweetly resting at the cross.

2

To that cross I cling no longer,Doubts and fears no longer feel;Faith, and hope, and love, are stronger,Jesus' blood doth fully heal.Now my song is not, "I'm clinging,"That to me would now be loss,When with heart and voice I'm singing,"I am resting at the cross.

3

O what needless griefs I've carried,And what needless burdens borne!All because I, clinging, tarried,While the resting was unknown.Years of clinging were not wasted,Tho' they seem to me but loss,Since diviner sweets I've tastedIn the resting at the cross.