Page:The Book of Family Worship.pdf/163

 Lord, may the very appearance of evil admonish us to be watchful. Take away from us our stony hearts and give unto us hearts of flesh, that henceforth we may be kind, compassionate, and tender, loving one another even as Thou hast loved us.

O Lord, Thou knowest how prone we are to exalt ourselves, and to imagine our own righteousness, how frequently we gratulate ourselves and despise others. Who shall understand his errors unless convicted by Thy Word of truth? Lord, we beseech Thee, cleanse Thou us from secret faults. Bring us out of the delusions of our own hearts, and render us penitent and humble. Amen.

Our Father, etc.

GOD, the Father, the Friend of Thy people, there is none like Thee in all the earth. How tender and merciful are all Thy dispensations; how constant and unwavering Thy friendship to us poor sinners! When we survey Thy numerous acts of loving-kindness, and contrast them with our unworthiness and frequent ingratitude, we are constrained to exclaim, "Who is like unto the Lord our God; who can be compared unto Him, who forgiveth all our iniquities, who healeth all our infirmities, who crowneth us with tender mercy and loving-kindness, who redeemeth our souls from death, so that our lives are renewed as the eagle? Bless the Lord, O our souls, and all that is within us bless His holy name."

Lord, we desire to glorify Thee for the power Thou hast endowed us with to behold the works of Thy hands; we see Thy wisdom in every blade of grass that grows, and in the ever active operations which mark the labour of the husbandman. Thou bringest round the seasons, the vernal spring, the beauteous summer, the glowing autumn, the bracing winter; and in all these seasons Thy bounty is still felt; Thy hand, is still open, and we are blessed with every good. Thou crownest the year with Thy goodness, and all Thy paths drop fatness; the parched fields are watered by Thy rains, and by the heat of Thy sun the earth is rendered fruitful." O may Thy holy name be praised! May every forest and river and valley, where abundant traces of Thy beneficence may be seen, call forth thanksgiving, gratitude, and praise from us for whom the Lord sends forth this teeming abundance. We feel, O Lord, that there is no object in the wide creation but should stimulate us to adore the goodness of Him whose mercy endureth for ever. Amen.

Our Father, etc.

LORD Almighty, our heavenly Father, at the commencement of another Sabbath teach us to consider the insecurity of our present state of existence, and how speedily we may be called upon to change it for one of eternity; so teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom; and may Thy Word of truth so effect a change in our inward parts that we, through its spirit and life, may be made wise unto salvation.