us. ful creatures; depraved in heart, depraved in practice. We have lost the divine image. We are by nature the children of wrath.We are dead in sin. If we justify ourselves, our own mouths shall condemn If we should plead our own perfection, this would prove us to be perverse. Lord, if thou shouldest be strict to mark our iniquities against us, our mouths would be stopped, and we could not stand before thee. But blessed be thy name, with thee there is forgiveness that thou mayest be feared; with thee there is mercy; with thee, through the atoning blood of Jesus, there is plenteous redemption. Thou hast not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us after our iniquities; but thou waitest to be gracious. unto us. Oh, that knowing the plague of our own hearts, we may look to him whom we have pierced with our sins; and may mourn for them with that godly sorrow, which worketh repentance unto salvation, not to be repented of. Our only hope is in the Lord Jesus. Of ourselves we can do nothing. It is the name, the all-prevailing name of the Lord Jesus, we plead before thee. By his all-sufficient righteousness he hath magnified thy holy law. He hath made it honorable for thee, to have mercy on whom thou wilt have mercy. This is our encouragement to come before thee, polluted with sin, as we are; and this is our only hope, that we may find mercy. Hear us, therefore, in his name; and, for his sake, freely forgive us all our sins. For we have sinned; and sinned greatly, O Father, before heaven and in thy sight. We are no more worthy to be called thy children. We have sinned in thought, in word, and in deed. We have sinned by omitting known duties, and by actual transgressions of thy holy law. But, blessed be thy name, through the riches of thy grace, we have an advocate with thee, even Jesus Christ, the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins; and for the sins of the whole world. Wash away our sins in his blood; and cleanse us from all our transgressions. With his stripes may we be healed. Oh, for Jesus, sake, show us thy mercy, and grant us thy salvation. Give us truly penitent hearts for all our sins. By the Holy Spirit create within us a clean heart, and renew within us a right frame of spirit. Open our eyes to read, our ears to hear, and our hearts to understand thy law and gospel.May we learn of Christ to be meek and lowly in heart, and find the divine rest of the gospel to refresh our souls, in this world of trial. May Christ be in our souls the hope of glory.May we walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time. Whether we live, or die, may we be the Lord's. And while we plead for our own souls, we desire to plead for Zion. Bless the ministers of thy gospel. Give them wisdom and grace to be faithful in the great work of their calling. May they preach the truth, in Jesus. Clothe them with salvation, that thy saints may shout N aloud for joy. Send them forth into all the earth, to plant and build up thy church, as instruments of divine appointment. Bless thy servant, the pastor of the church, in this place. Strengthen his hands and encourage his heart, in the work of the Lord. May he be a blessing to this people. Revive among this people and in all our towns, the good work of thy grace. May we experience a day of divine power, in the gracious ingathering of thousands into thy church of such as shall be saved. May the whole earth be filled with thy glory. Bless this family in him, in whom all the happy families of the earth are blessed. Bless it with all needed temporal and spiritual blessings. May every member of it be renewed by thy grace; and be enabled truly and faithfully to serve and glorify thy name. Then will we speak thy praise from the heart, with unfeigned lips. Then will we declare what thou hast done for our souls, and magnify the Lord.We bless thee, O Lord, for the salvation of our lives another night; that we have been refreshed by sleep in its appointed season; that we are alive, while others are dead; that we have awaked this morning in so comfortable a measure of health; that we are on this side of the grave and out of a miserable eternity; and, that we have now an opportunity of calling on thy name. We bless thee, that we have food to cat, and raiment to wear, and a comfortable habitation to dwell in. We thank thee, for thy law and gospel, as a divine rule, to direct us in the way of duty, that we may know thee, and the way of salvation; but above all, for the unspeakable gift of thy only begotten Son, to deliver us from the curse of the law, by being made a curse for us For this, the angels praise thee; and for this, we would glorify thy name. May we never forget the wonders of redeeming love; but prize them with the whole heart. Give us this day, our daily bread. Lead us not into temptation to sin against thee in any manner; but deliver us from evil. May our words and meditations be acceptable in thy sight. Do for us abundantly above what we are able to ask or think, both for soul and for body, for time and for eternity; and all the praise shall be given to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, for ever. Amen. A Morning Prayer for a Family. INFINITELY great and glorious God! Thou art the great fountain of life and light, and the source of all good. With the light of this morning, we pray thee to lift upon us the light of thy countenance, and grant us the joys of thy presence. Wilt thou, who didst command the light to shine out of darkness, shine into our dark and benighted souls to give us light of the knowledge of the glory of God. May we feel it to be a peculiar privilege, as well as an important duty, to draw near to thee in prayer, ask of thee the thing which we need, and cast our cares and burdens upon thee. Wilt thou mercifully meet with us, and commune with us from off the mercy seat. Encouaged by the gracious declarations of thy word, we would come in the name of Christ Jesus, confessing our sins, and imploring thy grace and mercy. We humbly acknowledge our great guilt and unworthiness; we have an evil heart of unbelief, which inclines us to depart from thee, the living God, and have indulged the carnal mind, which is enmity against God. We have been wickedly opposed to thine holy character and righteous government, and have transgressed thy laws, which are holy, just, and good. Our hearts have been a sink of sin and pollution, and our lives a series of wickedness and rebellion. How greatly have we fallen short in every duty? and in many things we have all offended. We have great reason to blush and be ashamed, when we reflect upon our numerous sins, and to cry, God, be merciful to us sinners. For Jesus' sake, we entreat thee to be gracious to us; and to pardon our iniquities, for thy name's sake; for they are great. Justify us freely by thy grace through the redemption, which is in Christ Jesus. Oh, be not strict to mark iniquity against us, for our sins are more in number than the hairs of our heads, and are awfully aggravated. Wilt thou purify us from sin, and work in us both to will and to do. Glorify the riches of thy free grace in making heirs of eternal life. May we feel our infinite |