Thou Helper of All in Distresss

Verse 1
Thou Helper of All in Distress,
Our Cry for a Widow attend,
And send us an Answer of Peace,
And Her to the Comforter send:
On Jesus’s Bosom reclin’d
Thy Fulness of Grace let her see,
And now, and eternally find
Her Heavenly Treasure in Thee.

Verse 2
Thou knowst the full Burthen she bears
For Him Thou hast kindly remov’d,
The Doubt and Distraction that tears
The Soul of thy Dearly-belov’d,

[incomplete]

Verse 3
O Father of Mercies, incline
Thine Ear to our humble Request,
And fill with Assurance Divine
Her tender affectionate Breast,
The Fiery Temptation remove,
Almighty to save as Thou art,
And send her a Sign from above,
And whisper a Word to her Heart.

Verse 4
For this do we earnestly groan,
With tenderest Sympathy grieve,
For this we beleaguer thy Throne,
Till Thou her Affliction relieve,
Accept our Importunate Prayer,
(With Thine if our Wishes agree)
The Bliss of her Consort declare,
And tell her—His Soul is with Thee!

Hymnal/Album: Originally titled: “To be sung by her friends.” This hymn appears in the mid-1750s manuscript “MS Richmond.” This manuscript is part of the collection of the Methodist Archive and Research Centre in The John Rylands Library, The University of Manchester (accession number MA 1977/551, Charles Wesley Notebooks Box 1). Accessed through the website of The Center for Studies in the Wesleyan Tradition, Duke Divinity School. Published in S.T. Kimbrough Jr. and Oliver A. Beckerlegge, eds., The Unpublished Poetry of Charles Wesley, vol. 3 (Nashville: Kingswood Books, 1992) pages 359-60.
Publishing: Public Domain