I stood alone along a mountain road,
Intently gazed into the star-lit skies,
My battered soul bore such a heavy load,
I wiped the bitter tears from both my eyes.
I was still a lad just in my teens,
The best part of my life before me lay,
I still had many hopes and many dreams,
With many things to do and things to say.
I thought I had the world right at my feet,
Fame and fortune surely would be mine,
Success I'd surely find down any street,
The dazzling sun for me would ever shine.
A "winsome" lass I'd taken for my wife,
A dark eyed baby girl to grace our home,
The two of them the center of my life,
Such happiness as this I'd never known.
But on a dark and gray September morn,
In memory now a dire and ominous day,
God's grand and glorious garden to adorn,
An angel came and took my bride away.
My dreams came crashing to the ground,
So many things I did not understand,
Answers I sought were never found,
I couldn't see God's face or feel His hand,
Long and lonely nights I spent alone,
And asked for God to tell me why?
The one I loved so dear now was gone,
I wouldn't understand and didn't try.
On the mountain side that starry night,
His voice so certain spoke to me,
As I surveyed that luminous sight,
God's face was plain for me to see.
My purpose, child, for you is not success,
Nor fame or fortune on your way,
My purpose is to, thru you, others bless,
Those kindred spirits struggling every day
Touch their lives, bind their broken hearts,
Share what I've safely led you though,
Help them find a fresh new start,
Tell what My Grace has done for you.
So if you're in the valley of despair,
I've been there, I know that this is true,
Seek the face of God in prayer,
There's a "Balm in Gilead" * for you.
