"Jesus, While Our Hearts are Bleeding" (Epitaph for David and Elizabeth Wynn)

A tombstone in Fork Cemetery (Madison County, Georgia) stands to memorialize the lives of David Wynn (1838-1904) and wife Elizabeth (1827-1898). A portion of the epitaph on their shared marker -- inscribed below a pair of clasped hands (one male, one female; possibly symbolizing matrimony) -- is the first two verses of a hymn written by Thomas Hastings about 1834: "Jesus, While Our Hearts Are Bleeding."

Jesus, while our hearts are bleeding,
O'er the spoils that death has won,
We would at this solemn meeting,
Calmly say thy will be done.

Tho' cast down we're not forsaken,
Though afflicted, not alone.
Thou didst give and thou hast taken,
Blessed Lord thy will be done.

The third verse:

Though today we're filled with mourning,
Mercy still is on the throne;
With thy smiles and love returning,
We can sing, "Thy will be done."

As a side note, this hymn is also mentioned in The Sound of the Dove: Singing in Appalachian Primitive Baptist Churches by Beverly Bush Patterson (1995). Madison County, Georgia is recognized by the Appalachian Regional Commission as being part of the region.

David and Elizabeth J. Russell were married 19 December 1867 at Madison County.

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