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anxieties of thy people, lest by any of their temper or carriage in the evil day, they should injure the religion they profess: let thy grace be sufficient for them: let faith and patience have their perfect work: let them glorify Thee in the fires.

Bless the king, and have respect unto the government under which we live in all its departments. May this Christian country be a country of Christians. Pour out of thy Spirit upon our great men; and let not those who are able to serve the state by their talents injure it by their vices.

May all those who are placed above others in condition, go before them in the profession of truth and the practice of holiness, and be examples to all inferior ranks in society. And may the grace of, &c. Amen.

FRIDAY MORNING.

O THOU eternal God! with Thee is the fountain of life. Thou art the Father of men and angels. Thou art the Governor of the universe, and the Judge of all. Thou dost from thy throne behold all the dwellers upon earth: and there is not a word on our tongue, or a thought in our heart, but lo! O Lord, Thou knowest it altogether. And Thou art not a God that hast pleasure in wickedness, neither can evil dwell with Thee.

How then can we presume to enter thy presence, who have rendered ourselves guilty before Thee, and have provoked thy righteous displeasure? O wretched creatures that we are! We have wearied thy patience, we have abused thy goodness, we have trampled on thy authority, and we have said unto God, Depart from us! we desire not the knowledge of thy ways. We lie at thy mercy. If Thou pity us not we are undone. But Thou art long-suffering, not willing that any should perish. Hast Thou not sworn by thyself, that Thou hast no pleasure in the death of him that dieth? Hast Thou not delivered up thine own Son for us all? And wilt Thou not with Him also freely give us all things?

Through Him as the way, the truth, and the life, may we return to Thee; and find Thee waiting to be gracious, and exalted to have mercy upon us. Awaken our consciences. Enlighten us in the knowledge of sin and of ourselves. May we feel our personal depravity, misery, and helplessness; and from self-despair, may we be led to value the discoveries of the gospel, and to flee for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us. May we rejoice in the suitableness, the all-sufficiency, and the perfect willingness of the Saviour; and find in Him for ourselves individually, wisdom and righteousness, and sanctification and redemption. As our prophet may we receive his instructions. As our High Priest, may we rely on his sacrifice and intercession. As our Prince, may we obey

Him. As our example, may we follow Him: and whatsoever we do, in word or deed, may we do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.

May integrity and uprightness preserve us. May we be Israelites indeed in whom is no guile; and herein exercise ourselves, to have always a conscience void of offence towards God and towards man. May the same mind govern us, and the same spirit actuate us, in prosperity and adversity, alone and in public, in thy house and in our own. May we fulfil our course with diligence and perseverance, and at last finish it with joy. When we have passed the wilderness, and our eyes behold the swellings of Jordan, deliver us from every fear; and give us a dry-shod passage overan abundant entrance into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour.

But, O Lord, we would not reach that felicity alone. May we awaken the attention of others, and induce them to join us in the path of life; ever remembering that if we convert a sinner from the error of his way, we shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins. May we therefore seek every opportunity of usefulness. May we walk in wisdom towards them that are without. May we hold forth the word of life, and adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things-To whom be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and for ever, Amen.

FRIDAY EVENING.

O GOD, Thou art greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about Thee. Thou art King of kings, and Lord of lords: Thou art the blessed and only potentate: Thou only hast immortality-thy greatness is unsearchable: but thy name is Love. Thy compassions never fail; thy mercies are over all thy works; and Thou hast displayed the exceeding riches of thy grace, in thy kindness towards us by Jesus Christ.

We are not only allowed, but even enjoined to seek thy face; and assured, that they who seek the Lord shall not want any good thing. We acknowledge that we have forfeited all claim to thy regard, and are not only unworthy but guilty. We are convinced that if ever we are saved, it must be according to thy mercy, for there is nothing in us from which our recovery can arise, or on which our hope can fix. But thou hast commended thy love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us-died for the ungodly. And thou hast sent the gospel to announce the intelligence, and to certify, that whosoever believeth on Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.

O Thou God of all grace, as Thou hast given us a Saviour, produce in us that faith by which we shall be enabled to receive Him,

and make Him all our desire, all our hope, and all our glory. May we enter Him as our refuge; build on Him as our foundation; walk in Him as our way; follow Him as our guide; and conform to Him as our example.

May we never be ashamed of Jesus or of his words, but go forth to Him without the camp bearing his reproach. May we never draw upon ourselves reflections by unholy or imprudent conduct, nor count it a glory, when buffeted for a fault, to take it patiently; but if we suffer for truth and righteousness' sake, may we rejoice that we are partakers of Christ's sufferings, knowing that when his glory shall be revealed, we also shall rejoice with exceeding joy.

May we never make the multitude our model; never wait for the company and countenance of others, when conviction derived from thy word excites us to advance. Like Caleb, may we have another spirit, and follow the Lord fully; and with Joshua, say to all around us. Choose you whom you will serve but as for me and my house, we will serve

the Lord.

Preserve us from the present evil world. May its smiles never allure, nor its frowns terrify us from the path of duty. May its vices never defile, nor its errors delude us. May we not live looking at the things which are seen and temporal, but as heirs of immortality, may we feel that we are strangers and pilgrims on earth, and declare plainly that we seek a country. And may our title to it daily become more clear, and our meetness for it more perfect, and our foretastes of it more abundant.

May our house be the tabernacle of the righteous; and let it be ever filled with the voice of rejoicing and of salvation. May those who are stationed at the head of the family know their duty towards those who are placed under their care; and may they know their duty to us: and in our several relations may we walk by the rule of thy word, that mercy and peace may be upon us; and that observers may exclaim, Behold, how good and how pleasant a thing it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!

Bless the religious denomination to which we belong, and let every christian church flourish. Wherever we see the grace of God may we be glad, and willingly leave to the author of all good the choice of his own instruments. Bless the king as supreme, and the government under which we live. Regard all the righteous interests of the country, domestic and foreign. Sanctify and perpetuate and extend our religious advantages. Let thy word have free course and be glorified. Let thy way be known on earth, and thy saving health among all nations.

in us, unto Him be glory in the church, by Christ Jesus, throughout all ages, world with out end. Amen.

SATURDAY MORNING.

O GOD, Thou art glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders. And it is not one of the least of thy wonderful doings towards the children of men, that we are on this side an awful eternity, and not reaping the due reward of our deeds. Our whole life has been a series of provocations against thy divine majesty. Our offences have not only been countless but aggravated. Conscience has rebuked us; friends have admonished us; the examples of the wise and good have reproached and encouraged us. Thou hast often called us to reflection and repentance by the smart of the rod, and invited and allured us by a profusion of kindnesses. Our iniquities are increased over our head, and our trespass is gone up into the very heaven. And Thou hast seen all our sins, and Thou hast abhorred all; and Thou couldst have easily and justly punished us; yet Thou spared us, and instead of finding ourselves this morning, in the place where even God has forgotten to be gracious, and lifting upour eyes in hopeless torment, we can lift up our eyes unto the hills from whence cometh our help.

In ourselves we are poor and wretched and miserable, but Thou whom we have offended, even Thou hast provided every supply for our souls; and with the announcement we have the invitation, Come, for all things are now ready. O Lord, we thankfully obey thy call; we accept of thy goodness; we acquiesce in all the appointments of the Gospel. We believe the record Thou hast given of thy dear Son-that there is salvation in none other, but that in Him there is plenteous redemption; and apply to Him for all the benefits resulting from every office he sustains in the church. We give up our minds implicitly to his instruction; in the sacrifice he once offered, we trust and glory; we revere; we love his authority, and pray that his grace may reign in us through righteousness unto eternal life. We would not--we will not-love a world that crucified Him. We will not cherish or endure the sin that put Him to grief, or suffer Him to be wounded in the house of his friends. At the same cross which relieves our consciences from a burden too heavy for us to bear, we would learn lessons of self-denial, forgiveness, and submission; we would feel motives to obedience, and find resources for all the exigencies of the divine life.

For we rejoice to think that by his being made a curse for us, the blessing of Abraham comes upon the Gentiles, and that we can reAnd now unto Him that is able to do ex-ceive the promise of the Spirit by faith. For ceeding abundantly above all that we ask or his sake, give thy Holy Spirit to them that think, according to the power that worketh now ask Thee-as a spirit of grace and of sup

plication, of truth and of holiness, of peace and of consolation; and may we not only possess-but be filled with the Spirit.

May we never consider ourselves as detached individuals. May we look not every man on his own things only, but also on the things of others. Never may we ask with Cain, when reproved for unkindness, or urged to beneficence, Am I my brother's keeper? But may we love our neighbour as ourselves. May we do good even to the unthankful and the unworthy; may we teach transgressors thy ways, and be the means of converting sinners unto Thee: and may none of our efforts be rendered fruitless by inconsistency of character and reproachfulness of conduct. May we be what we profess; and do as well as teach. May all our connexions see as well as hear our religion, and be constrained to acknowledge that we are the seed which the Lord hath blessed.

We bless Thee that again we have laid us down in peace and slept, because Thou, Lord, only makest us dwell in safety. Into thy hands we commit our bodies and spirits, for our going out and coming in this day. We are more exposed by day than by night; more surrounded with evil, and more liable to the seductions of sin. May we ever regard sin as our greatest foe, and holiness as our noblest attainment. And whether we are in solitude or society, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil; for thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

SATURDAY EVENING.

O GOD, Thou hast made and Thou upholdest all things by the word of thy power. Darkness is thy pavilion. Thou walkest upon the wings of the wind. All nations before Thee are as nothing. One generation passeth away and another cometh; and we are hastening back to the dust whence we were taken. The heavens we behold will vanish away like the cloud that covers them, and the earth we tread will dissolve like a morning dream; but Thou, incapable of change, independent of the vicissitudes of time, and the perishing of worlds, art from everlasting to everlasting, God over all blessed for evermore.

Infinitely great and glorious as Thou art, we are thy offspring and thy care. Thy hands have made us and fashioned us. Thou hast watched over us with more than parental, more than maternal tenderness. Thou hast holden our soul in life, and not suffered our feet to be moved. Thy divine power has given us all things, not only necessary for life but godliness. Bless the Lord, O our soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgiveth all our iniquities, who healeth all our diseases, who redeemeth our lives from destruction, E

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who crowneth us with lovingkindness and tender mercies; who satisfieth our mouth with good things, so that our youth is renewed like the eagle's.

We raise this evening a fresh Ebenezer, and inscribe it to the God of our salvation. Hitherto hath the Lord helped us. We have passed not only through another day, but through another week. The sun has not smitten us by day nor the moon by night. We have been preserved in our going out and coming in. But thine has been the vigilance that turned aside the evils which threatened us. Thine have been the supplies that have nourished us. Thine the comforts that have indulged us. Thine the relations and friends that have delighted us. Thine have been the means of grace which have edified us; and thine the book which amidst all our enjoyments has told us that this is not our rest; and that in all our successes, one thing is yet needful.

Nothing can equal the number of thy mercies, but our imperfections and sins. These, O God, we would not conceal nor palliate, but confess them with a broken heart and a contrite spirit.

In what a condition would our closet-reviews leave us this evening, were it not for the assurance, that there is forgiveness with Thee, that thou mayest be feared, and with Thee plenteous redemption. Yet while we hope for pardon through the blood of the cross, we pray to be clothed with humility, to be quickened in thy way, and to be more devoted to the things that belong to our everlasting peace.

How soon has the week rolled away! Its days have fled like a dream, a vapour, a shadow-So will all our days flee; so will they all appear when the end arrives. O help us to keep that end in remembrance, and endeavour to view things now as they will appear from the borders of the grave. May we know how frail we are, that we may be cured of the folly of delay and indecision; and so number our days that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom! .

May we call the approaching sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord honourable, and may we honour Thee in not doing our own ways, nor finding our own pleasures, nor speaking our own words. May the private moments of the day be sacred, and the social, innocent and edifying. And may we keep our foot when we go to the house of God, and offer not the sacrifice of fools. Let us not go as thy people go, and sit as thy people sit, and hear thy words, but do them not.

Preserve us from trifling with the things of the soul and eternity, or trusting in those privileges which unimproved will only augment our guilt and our misery.

Thy people the Jews were distinguished

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by thy favours above all the families of the earth; but wrath came upon them to the uttermost. The churches of Asia provoked Thee to remove the candlestick out of its place, and they were left in darkness. We have awful examples still nearer. How many who once heard and professed the gospel, have been turned by the abuse of it into apostates and infidels, blasphemers and persecutors-tenfold more the children of hell than before: while numbers who yet maintain the form of godliness, are too hardened to feel the power of it.

While therefore we go to thy house in the multitude of thy mercies, may we in thy fear worship towards thy holy temple; for Thou art greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints. O let us not perish under means designed to save us―O let not the savour of life unto life prove to us only the savour of death unto death.

Make the place of thy feet glorious. Bring us to thy holy mountain, and if we are not made joyful in thy house of prayer-for we would not dictate to thy goodness-convince us, alarm us, humble us, banish the spirit of the world from our hearts, and fill us with all the fulness of God.

So we thy people, and the sheep of thy pasture will give Thee thanks for ever, we will show forth thy praise throughout all generations. Amen.

THIRD WEEK.

SUNDAY MORNING.

We bless Thee for the scriptures of truth which make known thy designs concerning us, and assure us that they are thoughts of peace and not of evil. We rejoice in thy word as one that findeth great spoil. We love to peruse its doctrines, promises, and invitations; to contemplate the great mystery of godliness, God manifest in the flesh; and to dwell on the history and experience of those who have obtained mercy. For all who have ever been saved, have been saved by thy grace, and have been thy workmanship. And Thou art the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever: thy hand is not shortened that it cannot save, nor thine ear heavy that it cannot hear.

Bow down thy ear, and hearken to the voice of our supplication: employ thy hand for our deliverance and relief. We are already the creatures of thy power, O make us the subjects of thy grace. We are already the charge of thy providence, O bless us with all spiritual blessings-blessings for our souls and for eternity. Though by nature afar off, may we be made nigh by the blood of Christ: no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints and of the household of God. Bless us we pray Thee with a present salvation-that being justified by faith, we may have peace with God; that the love and power of sin may be subdued in our hearts; that we may be dead to the world, alive to the glory of God, and concerned to serve our generation according to thy will.

May we never be blots or mere blanks in life. May we never cause the way of truth to be evil spoken of: may our liberty never prove an occasion to the flesh, but by love may we serve one another. May every one O God, we desire with all reverence and of us please his neighbour for his good to edihumility to approach Thee, as a Being infi- fication. May we attend not only to what nitely great and glorious. Thou art the per- is essential in our religious character, but fection of all excellency, the fountain of all what is ornamental. May we pursue whatlife, and the source of all blessedness. How soever things are lovely and of good report, immense is the family of creatures produced and render our profession of the gospel not by thy word and depending on thy care. Mil-only impressive, but amiable and inviting. lions are visible; and myriads of myriads in the air, the earth, and the sea, are invisible: and all these have their wants and their appetites, and are capable of receiving relief and pleasure. And the eyes of all wait upon Thee, and Thou givest them their meat in due season; Thou openest thine hand and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.

May we hold forth the word of life with our tempers as well as our tongues, with our lives as well as our lips, and thus be continually saying to those we meet-We are journeying towards a place of which the Lord said, I will give it you, come with us and it will do you good, for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel.

But they never forfeited the care of their Send out thy light and thy truth; let them Creator, nor swerved from the end of their lead us, let them guide us to thy holy hill being: while we have revolted from Thee; and to thy tabernacles. Bless this day the we have joined in alliance with thy foes; dispensation of thy gospel by means of preachand deserve as children of disobedience, that ing. While Paul plants and Apollos waters the wrath of God should come upon us. And it is all that they can do give Thou the yet such is the excellency of thy lovingkind- increase. May thy ministers be wise to win ness, O Lord, that the children of men, un- souls; and help those much which have beworthy and guilty as they are, are allowed to lieved through grace. come and put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.

Especially bless thy dear servant on whose labours we are this day to attend. Let him

come forth from his sacred retirement in the fulness of the blessing of the gospel of peace; and may he enter the sanctuary as Aaron entered the tabernacle of the congregation when the holy oil was poured upon his head, and the fragrance filled the place and O let him not prove the savour of death unto death to any that shall hear him. Open our ear to discipline; may we hear for ourselves, hear for our souls; so hear as that our souls may live. And may great grace rest upon all the assemblies of thy people.

Despise not the prisoners of thy providence. Follow those who are unable to follow Thee; and while forbidden to hear the preaching of the word, may they hear the voice of the rod, and have reason to say-It is good for us that we have been afflicted. Make them thankful, that to will is present with them; and that in their hearts are the ways of those who repair to Zion. Prove thyself a very present help in trouble; and render the bed of languishing, the chamber of sickness, the house of mourning-none other than the house of God, and the gate of heaven.

And by all the discipline of thy providence and the ordinances of religion, may we be increasingly prepared for the remaining duties of life, the solemnities of a dying hour, and the services and joys that are beyond the

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SUNDAY EVENING.

IT is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto thy Name, O Most High; to show forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night.

We have this evening to acknowledge the blessings, not only of another day, but of another sabbath. We bless Thee that the sabbath was made for man, and that Thou hast hallowed such a portion of our time, for purposes the most important, but which, alas! we are prone to neglect. Thus thou art affording us opportunities to retire, and compare the objects which court our attention; to learn, among all the cares of life, that one thing is needful; and to hear the inquiryWhat is a man profited, if he should gain the whole world and lose his own soul? Thus we have moments of abstraction and leisure in which we can more fully investigate our character, examine our condition, and ask for what purpose we entered this mortal stage, and what will become of us when the scene closes.

We thank Thee that the lines are fallen to us in pleasant places, and that we have a goodly heritage; so that we can add to pri

vate meditation and devotion the public ordinances of religion, and can sit under our own vine and fig-tree, none daring to make us afraid. We bless Thee that we have not only the scriptures, but the ministry of the gospel; and have this day not only read, but heard the words of eternal life. We hope we have seen thy power and thy glory in the sanctuary, and have found the house of God to be the gate of heaven.

But, O God, the effects we experience while waiting upon Thee though delightful, are as often transitory, and prove like the morning cloud and early dew. Before the lapse of a single day we are compelled to complain, My soul cleaveth unto the dust; and to pray, Quicken Thou me according to thy word. Render therefore the impressions made upon us deep and durable; keep these things for ever in the imagination of the hearts of thy people; and let thy word dwell in us richly in all wisdom.

May the instructions we receive attend us in every part of our ordinary life, and regulate and excite us in the discharge of all our relative duties, so that whether we are husbands or wives, parents or children, masters or servants, we may adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things. May we be satisfied with no knowledge, no belief, no professions, no feelings in religion-while our hearts are void of thy love, and we are strangers to that grace which bringeth salvation, and teacheth us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present world.

We take shame to ourselves, not only for our open violations of thy law, but for our secret faults, our omissions of duty, our unprofitable attendances on the means of grace, our carnality in worshipping Thee, and all the sins of our holy things. Our iniquities are increased over our head, and our trespass is gone up into the very heavens and there He is gone also, who is our advocate with the Father and the propitiation for our sins. Behold his hands and his feet; and hear, O hear the voice of the blood of sprinkling that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

Pity those who have this day been deprived of the public means of grace by sickness or infirmity. Let them know that Thou art not confined to temples made with hands; be with them in trouble; and give them their vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope.

And remember the millions who were never favoured with the advantages we enjoy, and would be grateful for the crumbs that fall from our table. But they never smiled when a sabbath appeared: they never heard of the name of Jesus: they feel guilt, but know nothing of the blood that cleanseth from all sin: they feel depravity, but know nothing of the renewing of the Holy Ghost;

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