Dear Refuge of my weary soul

Dear Refuge of my weary soul. Anne Steele* (1716-1778). From Steele’s Poems on Subjects Chiefly Devotional (1760). It was entitled ‘God the only Refuge of the Troubled Mind.’ It had eight stanzas: Dear Refuge of my weary soul,   On thee, when sorrows rise: On thee, when waves of trouble roll,   My fainting hope relies. While hope revives, though prest with fears,   And I can say, my God, Beneath thy feet I spread my cares,   And pour my woes abroad. To thee, I tell each rising grief,   For thou alone canst heal; Thy word can bring a sweet relief   For every pain I feel. But oh! when gloomy doubts prevail,   I fear to call thee mine; The springs of comfort seem to fail,   And all my hopes...