I WONDER WHAT I WOULD DO?
Out on the street a beggar waits
In the driving storm so cold—
A homeless child with a famished look,
And garments thin and old.
I give from my bounty a meager dole,
And pennies I spare her few;
If I knew that my Saviour was standing there,
I wonder what I would do? In yonder attic cold and bare,
There's a woman that sits and sews
For her children's shelter and scanty fare,
Till the weary midnight goes.
She is stitching her life in those seams for me;
Am I giving her back her due?
If I knew that my Saviour was keeping account,
I wonder what I would do? I have home and friends, and silver and gold,
Far more than I daily need;
And clothe myself in a costly garb,
While these for a pittance plead.
My house is full of beautiful things
That are only for taste and show;
If I knew that my Lord had need of these,
I wonder what I would do? There comes a time in the future new,
When this life has passed away,
When these needy ones will stand with me
In the light of a judgment day.
When the angel reads from the Book of Life
My deeds for that great review,
If these should speak and accuse me there,
I wonder what I should do? Then the Son of Man, with His angels fair,
Will sit on the great white throne,
And out from the millions gathered there
He will know and claim His own.
If He saith to me those words I've read
In that Book so old and true,
“Inasmuch as ye did it not to these”—
I wonder what I should do?