52/How to Get Rid of Guilt
so often completely overwhelming. In his distress he cried out, "Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation." The wonderful and assuring part of it is that God never despises a contrite heart. If you come to Him in this manner, He'll never turn you aside. There's Restoration For the Backslidden Robert Robinson, author of the hymn "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" fell into sin. It wasn't long before he lost the happy communion with the Savior which he had once enjoyed. The very song he had penned became distasteful to him. In his declining years he wandered into even deeper byways of iniquity. But you can't keep going in this direction without a day of accounting. Robinson, as a result, became deeply troubled in spirit. Hoping in some way to relieve his mind, he decided to travel. In the course of his almost aimless wandering he became acquainted with a woman who was a dedicated Christian. As they talked, she soon realized he was extremely well informed on spiritual matters. Hoping to help him out of his morose despondency, she showed him a copy of her favorite hymn and asked what he thought of its message. To his utter astonishment he found the song to be none other than his own composition. Bitterness again welled up in his heart. He tried to evade her question, but she continued to press for a response. Suddenly, he broke down and began to weep. With tears of remorse, built up over the years, streaming down his cheeks, he explained, "I'm the man who wrote that hymn many years ago. I'd give anything to experience again the joy I_knew then." Although greatly surprised, the faithful Chris– tian counseled and assured him that the streams of mercy so prominently mentioned in his song, "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing," were still flowing in abundance. He was deeply touched, and as history records, Robert Robinson turned his wandering heart back to the Lord.
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