Page:The Book of Family Worship.pdf/177



LORD God Almighty, merciful and gracious and of great goodness, we approach Thy mercy-seat this morning, we thank Thee for the blessing of sound and refreshing sleep, for the new vigour which we have acquired by our rest, for the strength which enables us to go forth to our work and to our labour.

We pray, O Lord, for Thy blessing upon the duties of this day: for strength and perseverance, that we may not be slothful in business; for grace, that we may be just, upright, and sincere in our callings; and for a well-regulated mind, that no improper levity may disgrace the sacred name of Christian which we bear.

O Lord, as Thy Word opens up before us the deceit and corruption of our hearts, we are led to see the necessity of more devoutly and humbly waiting upon Thee, that we may not fall victims to our own lusts or be ensnared and entangled in our own vices. Our earthly, or natural man, has become corrupt, our desires are ill regulated, and all our thoughts are set in us to do evil; even our holiest actions will not stand investigation as to the purity of their origin, for when we do good, it originates frequently in the expectation of receiving as much again. O how difficult do we find the practice of that self-denial which inculcates, "Love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again, and your reward shall be great in the heavens." Amen.

Our Father, etc.

SATURDAY EVENING.

HEAVENLY Lord and Saviour, our tender and beneficent Parent, again has time revolved and brought us to the conclusion of another week; and with the cessation of bodily toil, we now draw near to Thy footstool, and around our family altar we kneel in humble gratitude that we may express our thankfulness for the mercies of the past week, and prepare ourselves for the enjoyments and, privileges of the coming Sabbath. O how wonderfully hast Thou adapted all created objects to our necessities, so that there is nothing we behold but that either contributes to support our bodily frames, or to dclight and recreate us by their various qualities. For us, the world and ail it contains has been created, and the dominion thereof is delivered into our hands. The glorious orb of day, as it now sinks in the west, having run its course of use, brings into being the varied products which afford seed for the sower and bread for the eater; and all the multiplied forms of beauty which Thou hast created reflect but the glories of that luminary which Thou hast made to rule the day, while his own sublime appearance is but a faint image of Thine infinite perfections. O that we may feel the warmth of Thy heavenly love in our wills, as the rays of the natural sun fall warm upon our persons! O that the light of Thy truth may chase away the clouds of error from our minds, and fill us with the good of Thy love! Amen. Our Father, eto.