Second Week

SECOND -WEEK.

SABBATH MORNING. Jenks.

O Most blessed and gracious Lord our God, whose almighty hand has brought us out of nothing, to what we are; to see the light, and enjoy the comforts of life; and whose free grace has called us out of a state of sin and ruin, to the hope of thy heavenly glory! We bless thy name, that thou hast conducted us safe, through all states and events, and through all the trials and troubles in our lives, to see the comfortable light of this day; and that we have yet a day of grace wherein to attend to the things belonging to our peace. We bless thee that Ihou hast consulted the good of our souls, as well as the glory of thy name, in setting apart this₇day for holy uses, to engage us to a solemn attendance upon the Lord; in whose service consists all our honour and happiness. O how much higher might we have been in grace, and thy blessed favour—how much nearer to thee our God, and fitter for thy heavenly kingdom, had we rightly used, and conscientiously improved those seasons and means of grace, which thou hast been pleased to put into our hands, for the best advantage of our souls.

But we have been unkind and cruel to our own souls, as well as disobedient and rebellious against our Lordj many times frustrating the opportunities of appearing before thee; shunning and neglecting the duties of thy En v service; and even when we have set ourselves to seek thy face, it has been with such coldness, and dulnets and dis raction, that thou mightest justly abhor our ouls, despise our prayers, for any thing that there is in us or them, to recommend us to thy blessed favour and acceptance. . „ But be thou pleased to look upon us m the Son ot thvlove, the Lord our peace and righteousness; and toreive us all that is past wherein we have neglected thy work, or ill-performed it, or done what is inconsistent with it. Help us, O God of our salvation, and de iver us from the burden of our guilt; and purge away all our sins for the glory of thy name; that they may not stand as a partition-wall, to hinder the desire of our souls from ascending up to thee; nor hinder the light of hy countenance from descending upon us. But let thy peace, and love, and favour shine on our souls; that we may see the felicity of thy chosen, and with joy draw water out of the wells of salvation.

O let us not rest in any forms of godliness, denying the power thereof; nor take up with the name and show, and the profession of Christianity, but be swayed with its life, and power and spirit; that the gospel ot our Lord, and the graces of the good Spirit of God may shine forth in our lives, to the glory of thee our heavenly Father; and to the adorning of the doctrine ot God our Saviour in all things. O gracious God, be with us, and with all the ministers and stewards ot thy holv things, who are this day to speak thy word to thy neoDle: and furnish them with abilities suitable to their £reat work, that they may fitly apply themselves to the capacities, and to the necessities of their several hearers. And grant, Lord, unto us, and unto all the hearers of thy holy word, humble and teachable spirits; to receive thy truth in meekness, and in the love of it, so as to profit and grow by it. O do thou remove all the hinderances of our spiritual growth and improvement, that thy word may have free course, and be glorified among us. And let us this day go forth in the strength of the Lord God; and prosper and increase with the increase of God, by thy grace and blessing accompanying our desires and endeavours; till from serving thee imperfectly here upon earth, we may attain to glorify and enjoy thee, our God, in the perfection of holiness, and in those everlasting joys and glories of thy kingdom, which thou hast prepared for them that love thee.

•Attend, we beseech thee, with thy gracious help, all the endeavours that shall this day be made to promote the honour of thy holy name. Revive pure religion in all the churches of the Lord Jesus in this land, and throughout the Christian world; and graciously extend thy kingdom over other people; and bring distant nations to the knowledge of thy Son. Wherever amidst any people thy work may be commenced, wilt thou deepen and extend it. Wilt thou there this day especially bless thy truth, and upon those churches which are cold or lukewarm in thy service, wilt thou send down thy Holy Spirit, that they may awake to newness of life, and that thy power may there be seen in the conversion of sinners. Do thou mercifully restrain and reform the violators of the Holy Sabbath, and give them better minds and a due regard for thy holy laws. Be merciful to the profligate and profane. May they be inclined to reverence thy holy name. And may all classes and conditions of men be brought under the influence of religion, and the time soon come when on this thy day, the offerings of the whole world, converted unto thee, shall come up on thine altars, and the entire race praise and adore thee for the riches of redeeming mercy.*

And let thy grace and blessing, thy love and fellowship, thy direction and assistance, O Heavenly Father, Son and Holy Spirit, be with us and with all whom we ought to beg thy mercy for in our prayers, this day, and for evermore. Jlmea.

SABBATH EVENING. Jenks'

Holy God, we are all as an unclean thing, and all our very righteousnesses are as filthy rags; nor can we ever hope to be justified in thy sight, upon account of any works or worth of our own; for by our own hearts and deeds we are reproved and condemned, and should be left speechless in thy judgment, if thou, O Lord

shouldst call us to account, according to even our best services. But we desire to take refuge and sanctuary under the shadow of our crucified Saviour; and to be found in him, not having our own righteousness, but that which is by the faith of Jesus Christ, that all our sinful deformities may be hid from thine eyes; that thou mayest forgive us mercifully, and receive us graciously, and love us freely in the Son of thy love in whom thou art well pleased.

Command a blessing, we pray thee, O Lord, upon the word, which this day we have heard, and upon all the means of grace that have been used for the good of our souls. It is not of him that planteth, nor of him that watereth, but of thee, our God, who giveth the increase. O be thou pleased to attend the preaching of thy word with the powerful influences of thy grace and Holy Spirit; that it may be the savour of life to our souls, and the power of God to our salvation.

*And we especially beseech of thee, Almighty Father, that thou wilt be pleased to follow with thy blessing the instructions imparted this day in Sunday schools. May the truths of thy holy word be deeply impressed on the minds of children, and may they grow up in the knowledge and love of Jesus Christ the Saviour. May those truths so influence their minds and hearts, as to guide and comfort them in all the journey of life. Grant, O Lord, that as they advance in years they may evince the benefits of the instruction received in Sabbath schools; and that this generation may be trained up devoted to thy cause, and prepared to promote thy glory, when their parents and teachers shall have descended to the tomb.

Will the God of grace be also pleased to bless all Sunday school teachers. Let their hearts be comforted by seeing thy work prosper in their hands. In their own souls may they experience the reward of their self-denials and toils; and in thine everlasting kingdom may they at last be admitted to a seat at thy right hand with thousands saved by the instrumentality of Sabbath schools.*

Supply the want of thy public ordinances, we beseech thee, by the immediate teachings of thy good Spirit, to all such as through any unavoidable impediments are kept from them; and continue to us, O gracious Lord, the light of thy gospel, and all the happy opportunities which we enjoy for our souls' advantage. And preserve us also, by thy grace, from the curse of barrenness, under all thy holy means and abundant mercies. That they may not, therefore, hereafter rise up in judgment against us, O make them now efficacious to us; and write thy laws in our hearts, and cause them to accomplish all the purposes of thy grace in our souls, and to shine'.forth with a convincing splendour in our lives; to make us every way such as thou wouldst have us.

And now we give thanks, as we are infinitely bound, to thee, O Lord God, our heavenly Father, for the mercies of this day; and for thy great mercy and goodness that has hitherto followed us all the days of our lives. O how wonderful is thy patience and ilong-suffering, that thou shouldst all day long stretch forth thy hands to a rebellious and gainsaying people! And how unwearied thy kindness and love, that we still enjoy so many comforts with our lives. Blessed be thy name, O most merciful Father, that thou hast defended us from so many dangers in our lives, which threatened to destroy us; and delivered us out of so many troubles, under which we should have sunk and perished, if thou hadst not been nigh to us, and done great things for us. We bless thee for our health and plenty, peace and liberty; for the use of our reason, limbs and senses; for the kindness of friends, and safety from our enemies; for the benefits and refreshments of society, and the success and prosperity of our affairs here in the world. But above all, we bless thee for the mercies and blessings relating to the world to come; for Jesus Christ, and all spiritual blessings in heavenly things in him tending to the salvation of our souls; for remembering us in our low estate, and sending eternal redemption to us by the hands of thy dear Son; for the light and direction of thy word; for the teachings and strivings, the aids and consolations of thy Spirit; for all the means and helps which we have to do us good; for all thy grace wrought in us, and bestowed upon us; and for all the discoveries and hopes of eternal glory which thou hast given to us. O how infinitely indebted are we to the kindness and love of God our Saviour! O

that we may ever be sensible and thankful as we ought! And with all that thou hast given us, blessed God, give us hearts filled with thy love, and lifted up in thy praise, and devoted to thy honour and service.

And help us, O Lord our God, to glorify thy name, not only in speaking to thy praise, but so entirely devoting ourselves to thy pleasure, that we may be thine in faithfulness, and in the sincerity of our hearts, even all the days of our lives.

O make us truly penitent, and humbled for all which this day we have done amiss, and make us unfeignedly thankful for all the good that we have received; and for all which thou hast, in any manner or measure, enabled us to do aright. The evil is from ourselves alone, and to us belong shame and confusion of face for it; but all the good is of thy free grace, and thy mere mercy; and to thy blessed name, O Lord our God, be all the praise and glory rendered, .with the most sensible and grateful hearts, now and for evermore. Amen.

MONDAY MORNING. Jenks.

O Lord God, merciful and gracious, long suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth! Thou keepest mercy for thousands, pardonest iniquity, transgression and sin, and dost not retain thy anger forever, because thou delightest in mercy. How excellent is thy loving kindness, O God! therefore do the sons of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. And therefore do we desire still to look up to that bountiful hand of thine, from whence we have received all our good things. O Lord our God! be thou pleased to look down mercifully upon us, and be gracious and favourable to us, as thou art unto those that love thy name. O look not upon the sins of our hearts and lives; which are more than we can remember, and greater than we can express; and such as make us seem vile, even in our own eyes, and so highly guilty before thy holy Majesty, that it is of the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because thy compassions fail not. But beJhold us in mercy, through the merits and mediation of thy Son our Saviour, who did no sin, and was manifested that he might take away our sins: by whom it is that we have this access to the Majesty on high, and encouragement to come into thy presence, to ask what we need.

And seeing there is in Christ Jesus an infinite fulness of all that ever we can want or wish to make us holy, and to make us most blessed eternally, O that we may all receive of his fulness grace sufficient for us; to pardon our sins and subdue our iniquities; to justify our persons, and to sanctify our souls; and to complete upon our hearts and lives that holy renovating change, which may still more and more transform us into the blessed image after which thou didst create us; and make us still more meet to be partakers of the inheritance of thy saints in light.

And teach us, O Lord our God, to use this world without abusing it, and to enjoy the things of it, without losing our part in thy love, which is better than life. Whatever we have of the world, O may we have the same with thy leave and love, sanctified to us by the word of God, and prayer; and by the right employment and improvement thereof to thy glory, who art the gracious Giver of all our good things. And whatsoever we want of the things of this life, O Lord, our heavenly Father, leave us not destitute of any of those things that accompany salvation, but adorn our souls with all such graces of thy Holy Spirit, as may enable us to adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things, by such a conversation as does become it.

Help us, O gracious Lord, in the whole of our duty to thee our God; and also in the discharge of all relative duties which we owe to men, whether superiors, equals, or inferiors, all with whom we have our conversation in the world: that we may walk wisely toward them that are without, and kindly toward them that are within; and not to be justly offensive unto any; but, what in us lies, useful and beneficial to all. And thus let us pass the time of our sojourning here, in thy fear and favour, and to thy honour and glory; that at our last review thereof, thy name may have the praise, and our souls the comfort, in the hour of death, and in the great day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

* Let the spirit of thy holy Sabbath go with us into the duties of this week. May we, in all our employments, have that seriousness, calmness, peace, prayerfulness, and conscientiousness, which the observance of thy holy day is fitted to produce. May thy truth be seasonably brought to our remembrance. May we be enlightened by that truth in the knowledge of our duty to thee, and to our fellow creatures. Suffer us not to become worldly minded—to be influenced inordinately, by the things of this life; or to forget that thy people are advancing to a world of eternal purity and love. Amid all our worldly employments, may we remember that our treasure should be laid up in a world where moth and rust do not corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. Amid all our perplexities and trials, may we remember that there remaineth a rest to the people of God,—and may we so live as to be prepared to enter upon that eternal Sabbath, which awaits Christians beyond the grave.*

And now that thou hast renewed our lives and thy mercies to us this morning, help us, good God, to renew our desires, and resolutions, and endeavours, to live in the obedience of thy holy will, and to the honour of thy blessed name. O restrain us from the evils and follies into which we are prone to fall; and quicken us to the offices and duties which we are averse to perform. And grant that we may think and speak, and will and do, the things becoming the children of our heavenly Father; and so find the strong consolation of thy gracious acceptance in Jesus Christ our Saviour; who, when we pray, has taught us to say, Our Father, &c.

MONDAY EVENlNG.t Jenks.

O Lord our God! thou art infinitely great, and infinitely good. Thy glory is above all our thoughts, and thy mercies are over all thy works. And above all thy mercies, have we cause to admire, and bless, and praise thee for those mercies which, in so large a measure,

♦ The second Monday in the month is extensively observed as a. concert of prayer for Sunday schools.

and especial manner, thou hast been pleased still to vouchsafe unto us, who are daily objects of thy bounty, and who continue still the living monuments of thy goodness.

Thou didst create us, O Lord, after thy own blessed image, in an holy and happy estate; but we have made ourselves vile and miserable, averse to good and prone to evil. But thou hast so far declared thy willingness to be reconciled even to thy enemies, that thou hast sent thy only Son into the world, upon the great errand of our salvation; that whosoever believe in him, should not perish in their sins, but have everlasting life, for his sake. O Lord, we believe, help our unbelief; and give us the true repentance towards God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ; that we may be of the number of those who do indeed repent and believe, to the saving of the soul.

And save us, O good Lord, from our sinful selves, and from the love and course of this present evil world, and from every self-destroying way which we are tempted to follow. Make us a way to escape, out of all the snares of temptation, wherewith we have been entangled and held, and hindered in running the race set before us. Make thy ways plain before us. Establish, O Lord, and strengthen and settle us; that going forth in thy strength, we may do thy will to all well-pleasing; and continue in thy fear and love to our lives' end.

Which things we beg, not for ourselves alone, but also in behalf of all whom we ought to intreat thy mercy for in our prayers. O bring nigh unto thee all those that are yet afar off; and make manifest the savour of thy knowledge in every place; that such as yet sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, may come to see the light of thy truth, and the joy of thy salvation. O that every one who names the name of Christ may depart from iniquity, and so live up to their high and holy profession, that they may give no just occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme; but adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things, and so put to silence the ignorance of foolish men by well doing.

Be gracious and favourable, O Lord, in an especial manner, to thy church. Arise, O God, and plead thy own cause, and maintain thy true, and holy religion, which thou hast so long and so wonderfully owned and asserted. O let not the enemies of thy church ever have cause to say, that they have prevailed against thy people; but let all that do espouse thy cause, and stand up for the honour and defence of thy truth, be still prevalent and prosperous in all their pious designs; and still have cause to say, the Lord be magnified, who has pleasure in the prosperity of his servants.

* And on this day, set apart by many of thy people as a season of prayer for thy mercy on Sunday schools, we humbly implore thy blessing on all who are engaged in those schools as teachers, or learners. Enlighten by the Holy Spirit all teachers, that they may truly understand thy word. Make them the true friends of Jesus Christ. May they be endowed with his spirit of selfdenial, patience, humility, and prayer. May they evermore copy the example of Him who, when on earth, said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not to come unto me. While engaged in instructing the rising generation, in leading others to the cross of Christ, may they themselves be interested in thy promises, and sanctified by all their efforts to promote thy glory. And grant, O gracious God, that their labours may be attended with thy blessing. Do thou send down thy Spirit on all Sunday schools, that the rising generation may grow up in the knowledge of Jesus Christ, and in preparation for great usefulness in the church, and in the state. May schools be established in all the destitute places of our land; and all the means used to enlarge and perpetuate these blessings be crowned with success. Never suffer the zeal of thy people to languish in this cause, or thy ministers to forget their obligations to use every influence in their power to promote the religious training of the rising generation. Hear and answer the prayers which this day may have been offered in behalf of Sunday schools; excite in all thy people a spirit of benevolence; and fill the earth with thy glory*

Comfort all that want the comforts which we enjoy. Remember with the favour which thou bearest to thy people, all our friends and benefactors, our kindred after the flesh, and whomsoever are dear to us, on any other account. Make them, O Lord, such as thou wouldst have them, and such as, in Christ Jesus, thou wilt mercifully accept of them, here to thy gTacious favour, and hereafter to thy glorious kingdom. Forgive our enemies, and turn their hearts; and turn ours to forgive them. And direct all our ways to please thee, that thou mayest make even our enemies to be at peace with us.

Hear us, O God of the spirits of all flesh! hear us for ourselves and others; others for themselves and us: and hear the Son of thy love, the lover of our souls, for us and all the members of thy church militant here on earth, whereof Christ Jesus in heaven is the glorious head. For him and to him with thine eternal self, most holy Father, and the blessed Spirit of grace, our Guide and Comforter, be all thanks and praise, and honour, and glory, humbly and heartily rendered and ascribed of us, and all thy people, now and for evermore. Amen.

TUESDAY MORNING. Jenks.

O Lord, thou art the God whose we are, and whom we ought to serve, with all the endowments and abilities for thy service, wherewith thou hast blessed us. For thou hast laid upon us all the obligations of thy laws, and all the endearments of thy love, to be faithful in the covenant of our God, and to abound in the work of the Lord. And we desire to humble ourselves here before thee, that our lives have been so unserviceable to thee, and so full of provocation against thee; that we have lived to ourselves, more than to the Lord and Giver of our lives; and that we have served our own lusts and pleasures more than thy holy blessed will; which is the rule of all righteousness, and in the performance whereof, there is the greatest reward. O how we have disbelieved thy truths, disobeyed thy commands, disregarded thy promises and threats! and resisted and defeated all thy gracious methods to reclaim us from the evil of our ways, and to bring us over entirely to thyself.

We have sinned against thee, our God, to the infinite wrong and damage of our own souls, and by our sins we have spoiled and destroyed ourselves; but it is not in us to recover and save ourselves. In thee alone is all our help. Yea, thou hast laid help upon one that is mighty and able to save to the uttermost all that come to God through him: through whom thou hast encouraged us to come boldly to thy throne of grace; that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in every time of need. In him, therefore, we beg, Lord, that thou wilt be reconciled to us, and at peace with us; as a Father of mercies, and a God of consolation.

And for his sake, enable us also, we beseech thee, to demean ourselves as becomes the children of God, the redeemed of the Lord, and the followers of Jesus Christ. O put such principles of grace and holiness into our hearts, as may make us to hate all iniquity, and every false way. And put thy Spirit within us, causing us to walk in thy statutes, and to keep thy judgments, and to do them. Not only lay thy commands upon us, but be pleased, O Lord, to enable us for the performance of every duty required of us. And so engage our hearts to thyself, that we may make it our meat and drink to do thy will; and with enlarged hearts run the way of thy commands. O make our services acceptable to thee while we live, and our souls ready for thee when we die. And as long as we are in this world, keep us, O Lord our God, from the evil of it, and from the snares and dangers which thou knowest we are continually exposed to in it. O make our passage safe and sure, through all the changes, troubles, temptations, and various conditions of this mortal life, to the unchangeable glories and felicities of life everlasting.

Be merciful to us, good Lord, and bless us, and keep us this day, in all our ways, and in all our lawful designs and undertakings; and may we take nothing in hand, but what is warranted in thy word. O let us be in the fear of the Lord all the day long; let thy fear be ever before our eyes to restrain us from the things provoking to our God, and destructive to our souls. And let thy love abound in our hearts, and sweetly and powerfully constrain us to all faithful and cheerful obedience, acceptable in thy sight, through him that has loved and redeemed us; even the Lord our righteousness; in whose blessed name, and the words of prayer which himself has taught us, we continue praying our Father, &c.

The blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Ghost, be with us, and with all that belong to us, this day, and for evermore. Amen.

TUESDAY EVENING. Jenks.

O Lord, thou art our gracious God, and our most merciful Father in Jesus Christ; in whose great name, and prevailing mediation, alone it is that we, who have multiplied our offences against thee, are encouraged still to present our persons, and our prayers here before thee. It is a privilege which we acknowledge ourselves utterly unworthy to enjoy, that thou shouldst admit us into thy service; yea, into fellowship with thy blessed self. We dare not appear in the presence of such a holy glorious Majesty, in our own names, or trusting in any merits or righteousness in ourselves. But we come in the name-and mediation of thy dear Son, whom thou dost infinitely love above all; who has fully satisfied thy justice for our sins, and does continually intercede at thy right hand for our souls; whom thou delightest to honour in sparing, accepting, and saving poor unworthy sinners upon his account. O deliver us, most gracious Lord, for his sake, from all our transgressions; and from all, of which thou, that art greater than our hearts, knowest us to be guilty. And seal to us a pardon, in his most precious blood, which speaks better things in our behalf than we are able to do ourselves, in all our prayers.

And may the time past of our lives suffice to have lived to ourselves, and to have served our own lusts and pleasures. Grant us new and clean, humble and contrite hearts, to tremble at thy word and presence, and to hate and abandon all our foolish and sinful misdoings.

Hear us, O Lord, for ourselves, and let our supplications also ascend before thee in the behalf of all men living. Send thy word, and the means of grace to such as are yet destitute of them; and make them efficacious, and the savour of life in those that do enjoy them.

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Convert the unconverted, and perfect thy good work .where thou hast begun it. Give a check to all profaneness, vice, and ungodliness, that presumptuous sinners may be ashamed, and the wickedness of the wicked may come to an end. O make thy church to increase and flourish, and thy servants to prevail and rejoice. Be gracious and favourable to this land, and to the head and governors thereof, and to all inferior and particular members of it. O do thou rule all our rulers, counsel all our counsellors, teach all our teachers, and turn and order all our public affairs, to the glory of thy name, to the welfare of thy church, and to the happiness of this nation. Avert from us, we beseech thee, the judgments which we feel or fear, and continue to us the blessings and comforts for our bodies, and especially the helps and advantages for our souls, which through thy favour we do enjoy. And notwithstanding all the devices of the enemies of our peace, and all the great and crying provocations of our sins, O be thou still our God, and let us be thy people.

Think thoughts of pity and compassion to all the sons and daughters of affliction. O sanctify thy fatherly corrections to them, support them under their several burdens, and in thy good time deliver them from all the pressures that are upon them. Be good to all our friends and neighbours, reward our benefactors, bless our relations with the best of thy blessings, making them near to thyself by grace, as they are to us by alliance. Preserve us from our enemies, and reconcile them both to us and to thyself. O that all the habitations of Christians may be houses of prayer, and be thou especially kind to the several families where thy blessed name is called upon. Let thy heavenly blessings, and thy saving grace descend and rest upon us here in this family. O guide us, and keep us; make us wise and faithful in our duty, and prosperous and blessed in the issue. Fit us all for whatsoever thou shalt be pleased to call us to. O teach us how to want and how to abound; and both in a prosperous and suffering condition, secure our hearts to thyself, and make us ever to approve ourselves sincere and faithful in thy service. And now, O Lord, be pleased to accept our evening sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving, to thee the Father of mercies, and fountain of all goodness, for the mercies of the day past, and for thy great mercy and goodness, that has hitherto followed us all the days of our life.—For our lives have been filled with thy mercies, and thou hast abounded towards us in loving kindness, and variety of thy sweet and comfortable blessings, pertaining to this world, and a better; passing by our innumerable sins, as if thou sawest them not, thou goest on still to oblige us with new favours. O Lord, imprint and preserve upon our hearts a lively and grateful sense and remembrance of all thy kindness unto us, that our souls may bless thee, and all that is within us may praise thy holy name.

Yea, let us give thee thanks from the heart, and praise our God, whilst we have our being. And for all thy patience with us, thy care over us, and thy continual mercy to us, blessed be thy name, O Lord God, our heavenly Father: and unto thee be all thanks, and praise, and love, and obedience, and honour, and glory, offered by us and all thine, every where, now and evermore. Amen.

WEDNESDAY MORNING. Jenks.

O Lord, the blessed God of our salvation! thou art the hope of all the ends of the earth, upon whom the eyes of all do wait: for thou givest unto all life, and breath, and all things. In thee we ever live, and move, and are? and upon thee we continually do depend for all the good that ever we have, or hope for. Still thou takest care of us, and watchest for good over us; even in our rest and sleep, when we have not so much as any thoughts of caring for ourselves; and daily thou renewest to us our lives, and thy mercies; every morning giving us new occasions still for thy praise, and our thankfulness. And thou hast given us the assurance of thy word, that if we commit our affairs to thee, and acknowledge thee in all our ways, thou wilt establish our thoughts, and direct our path. And therefore we desire, O Lord, still to put ourselves under thy gracious conduct, and thy fatherly protection; and to beg thy

heavenly guidance and blessing, and assistance of thy good Spirit, to choose our inheritance for us; and to dispose of us and of all that concern us, to the glory of thy name.

O Lord, withdraw not thy tender mercies from us, nor the comforts of thy presence, nor the assistance of thy Spirit; for our great contempt and manifold abuses of all such grace and goodness. Never punish our past sins, by giving us over to the love and power of our sins; but give us true penitent hearts for all the evils committed by us; and thy merciful discharge from all the guilt that lies upon us. And grant us, O God, the comfortable sense and apprehension of thy gracious acceptance of us, and thy merciful intentions towards us in the Son of thy love, the lover of our souls: that our souls may bless thee, and all that is within us may praise thy holy name.

And O that we may find the joy of the Lord to be our strength, to enable us to contend against our sins; especially the sins to which we are most addicted, and whereof we are in greatest danger; and to make us also more ready to every good work, and better disposed for all the duties of piety, justice, charity, and sobriety, which we owe to thee our God, to our neighbour and ourselves: that herein we may experience ourselves to have always a conscience void of offence towards God, and towards men. O help us to walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise; carefully redeeming the time that we have lost, and conscientiously improving all those seasons, and means of grace which thou art pleased to put into our hands, for the best profit and advantage of our souls. And while we are upon earth, O give us all things needful and convenient for our present pilgrimage; and sanctify to us all our enjoyments, and all events that now befall us; till, through the merits of thy Son, and the multitude of thy mercies, we are conducted safe to be ever with the Lord. Amidst all our other affairs in this world, O let us never forget or neglect the one thing needful; but be in greatest care so to demean ourselves everyday, as may forward our comfortable accounts in the great day of thy appearing and glory.

O gracious Father! keep us, we beseech thee, this

day in thy fear and favour; and help us to live to thy honour and glory. If thou guide us not, we shall run into errors; if thou preserve us not, we shall fall into dangers; O let thy good providence be our defence and security; and let thy Holy Spirit be our guide and counsellor in all our ways. And grant that we may take the ways and courses agreeable to thy will, and acceptable in thy sight, through Jesus Christ; in whose sacred name and words we close up these our imperfect requests to thee, Our Father, &c.

Let thy grace, O Lord Jesus Christ, thy love, O heavenly Father, thy comfortable fellowship, O holy blessed Spirit, be with us, and with all whom we ought to beg thy mercy for in our prayers, this day, and for evermore. Amen.

WEDNESDAY EVENING. Jenks.

O Lord, our God, thou art most high and mighty, most wise, and holy, and good! Thou art, and for ever wast, and for ever shall continue, unspeakably blessed and glorious, above all that we are able to express or to conceive. Thou dost not need the services of men or angels to make the least addition to thy glory and bliss. Men cannot be profitable unto God; our goodness will not extend to the Lord. But in kindness and love to our souls it is, that thou art pleased to lay thy commands upon us, to wait upon thee in these duties of thy immediate service. Thou humblest thyself even to behold the things that are in heaven, to take notice of the worship of those blessed creatures above. O how wonderful is thy condescension then, to look down upon us, poor sinful worms, that dwell here in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust! Lord, what is man that thou takest knowledge of him, and the son of man that thou makest account of him! Thou canst not at all need us, nor any thing of ours, O blessed God; but we all stand in great and continual need of thee, our only sovereign good; in need of thy mercy and forgiveness, thy grace and guidance, thy blessing and assistance; without which we could never hope to escape the curses and miseries which are the due wages of our sins; nor ever to attain to that glory and blessedness, which are the free gifts of God in Jesus Christ.

The desire of our souls, therefore, is to thy name, O Lord, and to the remembrance of thee. Our eyes are towards thee, and all our expectation is from thee: and still we wait, and call, and depend upon thee, till thou have mercy upon us, according to our several necessities; and according to the riches of thy grace, and the multitude of thy mercies. O remember not against us our former iniquities; enter not into judgment with us, according to the desert of our sins; but according to thy mercy remember thou us. For thy goodness' sake, O Lord, blot out our transgressions as a cloud; and justify us freely by thy grace, through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ. And bless us, holy God of our salvation, in turning us from all our iniquities, and giving us grace, to repent and amend our lives according to thy holy word.

And to this end, be thou pleased to enlighten our darkened minds with the beams of thy saving truth, that we may not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is—And 'reform our depraved wills, inclining them to a cheerful and ready compliance with all the motions of thy good Spirit. Regulate our unruly passions; purify our corrupt affections; and convert all the faculties of our souls, to be instruments of thy glory, as they have been of thy dishonour; and make our bodies fit temples for thy Holy Spirit to dwell in. Yea, sanctify us wholly, that we may, as we ought, sanctify thy blessed name.

And quicken us, O Lord, to hear thy voice while it is called to-day; that we may make haste, and not delay to keep thy commandments. O keep us frequently and affectionately mindful of the shortness of our time, the frailty of our lives, and the uncertainty of our being here in this mutable world, that so soon passeth away, and where we have no continuing city; but are strangers and sojourners with thee, as all our fathers before us were. O let the remembrance and consideration of this have such a prevailing influence upon us, as to crucify the world to us, and make us more concerned for our everlasting welfare, and more careful to improve every present enjoyment to our souls' eternal advantage; and to grow holier still as we grow older; that the days which pass over us may not leave us, without any amendment wrought upon us; but that the work of thy grace may go on successfully upon our hearts, till it has made us ripe and ready for the joys and glories of thy kingdom.

The same things also we beg in behalf of all that ought to share in our prayers. O forgive the sins, and relieve the miseries of thy poor creatures every where. Enlarge the borders of thy church, and make additions to it daily of such as shall be saved. O that all who are called Christians, may be truly Christians, both in their right believing and their holy living. Advance the interest, and extend the limits of thy Son's kingdom, and may all nations flow into it, as to their rest. Bless our land, and endue our rulers, and those who direct our public affairs, with wisdom from on high. Give our judges the spirit of discernment, and aid and countenance our magistrates in the faithful execution of their office. Make them all men fearing God, and eschewing evil.—And O that all who are called to serve at thy altar, may be blessed with skilful understandings, and compassionate hearts, and exemplary lives. Make them wise to win souls, and faithful, industrious and successful in their sacred office, as workmen that need not be ashamed. Bless and prosper all the places of learning and education; and make all this people the Lord's people; that they may all know thee from the greatest to the least; and so order their conversation aright, that they may see the salvation of God. Remember them all for good, who have been any way instruments of our good; and all that have, or would hurt us, O Lord forgive them. Give unto all that mourn in Zion, beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and the garments of praise for the spirit of heaviness. O Lord! continue thy gracious favour to us, and thy fatherly care over us this night. As we go to rest after the labours of the day, so help us to do thy work that we may enter into that rest which remains for thy people in the close of this life. And so discharge us from our sins, and supply us still with thy grace, that we may finish our course with joy, and in the end of our lives find the greatest of all mercy, to be received into thy glory: which we beg for the all-sufficient merits of our only Redeemers for whom, and to whom, with thee, O everlasting Father, and the Holy Ghost the Comforter, in the unity of the ever glorious Trinity, be all praise, and honour and glory ascribed of us, and of all the Israel of God, now and for evermore. Amen.

THURSDAY MORNING. Jenks.

O Lord God, that hearest prayer, and art nigh to all that call upon thee in truth, have thine ears open to a world of creatures, that continually depend upon thee! As we are moved by our own necessities, so are we encouraged by the daily experience of thy mercies still to shelter ourselves under the shadow of thy wings, and to continue our suits and supplications at the throne of thy grace. And we beg of thee, who fashioneth all the hearts of the sons of men, that thou wilt prepare our hearts to come into thy holy presence and to call upon thy blessed name, in due and acceptable manner! O pour upon us the spirit of grace and of supplications; and let thy good Spirit help our infirmities, and teach us to pray so as shall be most agreeable to thy will, and most advantageous to our souls.

For we, who are but poor worms, and sinful dust and ashes; that have too much cause to be afraid, lest our great and manifold sins have provoked thee to hide thy face from us, and to shut up thy loving kindness in displeasure against us, have taken upon us to speak unto thee, the Sovereign Majesty of heaven and earth. For we have done foolishly and wickedly, in not hearkening to the calls of thy word, nor yielding to the monitions of thy Spirit, to walk in the ways which thou hast set before us. Our iniquities are increased over our heads, aur trespasses are grown even up to heaven, and our sins are a sore burden, too grievous and heavy for us to bear. They are infinite debts, and sad accounts; for which if thou, O Lord, shouldst enter into judgment with us, we could not answer thee one of a thousand; but must lay our hands upon our mouths, and plead nothing but guilty, having our whole dependence upon thy mercy.

O God, be merciful to us miserable sinners, for his sake, whom thou hast exalted to be a Prince and a Saviour, to give repentance to thy people, and forgiveness of their sins: be merciful to us, we pray thee, and heal our souls, that have greatly sinned against thee. O heal our backslidings, renew us to true repentance, establish our hearts in thy true fear and love, and establish our goings in thy holy ways; that we may not be so wavering and bent to backslidings, nor revolt from thee to turn to folly, after thou in mercy hast spoken peace to our souls; but may go on conquering and to conquer all the enemies of our souls, and all the hinderances of our salvation, till satan be bruised under our feet.

O.thou God of all grace! bring such thoughts to our minds, and lay such considerations home powerfully upon our hearts, as thou knowest most effectual to prevail with us, to work in us thy will, and to keep us from our iniquity within the bounds of our duty, till thou receive us into the blessed kingdom of thy glory. And, in the mean time, sanctify to us all thy dealings with us; and bless us in all our undertakings, and in all our conditions and relations. Make us humble, contented, and duly careful of our souls; following after the things now which will bring us true peace and comfort at the last.

Dispose of us, we beseech thee, our God, and of all that concerns us this day, to the glory of thy name. O keep us at all times, and in all places and companies, from the evil of sin, and from all other evils, to which the greatness of our sins does make us liable. And take thou, O heavenly Father, the gracious charge, and guidance, and government of us; and so lead us here in all our ways, with thy counsel, that hereafter thou mayest receive us into thy glory; through thy tender mercies, and our Saviour's abundant merits; in whose own words, we beg all things needful for ourselves and others, at thy hands.

Our Father, &c.

THURSDAY EVENING. Jenkg.

O Lord, the great and glorious God, infinite in power, wisdom and goodness; the wonderful maker and preserver, ruler and disposer, of us and of all the world! thou hast created all things by thy Almighty hand; sustainest and orderest all that thou hast made by thy wise and righteous providence; and thy mercy is everlasting, and over all thy works. O who is able to express or conceive the exceeding riches of that grace and goodness of the Lord, which in such a plentiful measure is still descending and overflowing upon poor sinful creatures, who deserve nothing from thee but to be forsaken and abhorred by thee! This day, and every day of our lives, O Lord, have we tasted largely of thy mercy, and lived altogether still upon thy fatherly care and bounty.

But notwithstanding all thy patience and gracious dealings with us, and all the repeated pledges of thy favour and kindness to us; O how ill we have requited thy love! And what unsuitable returns have we made for all thy great and continued goodness that we have found! Beside the guilt of our inbred corruption, which hangs heavy upon us; we are amazed at the greatness and multitude of all our other sins that we have committed against the light and teachings of thy gospel, against the dictates and strivings of thy Spirit, and the love and sufferings of thy Son: against all the patience and long forbearance which thou hast exercised towards us; and against the many mercies and methods of our conversion and sanctification, wherewith from time to time, thou hast sought to make us such as thy word requires we should be. O Lord, we have given thee so great provocation, that we are afraid lest thou shouldst forsake us utterly, and cause the day of thy patience to be at an end with us, and grant us no more of thy grace which we have so greatly abused, no more of thy Holy Spirit, which we have so frequently refused. And what have we now but judgment to expect from thee, O Lord, but that thy mercy rejoices over judgment! And thy word assures us that thou delightest not in the death of sinners, but rather that should turn to thee and live. Therefore still thou leavest us these opportunities to appear before thee, to plead with our God, for the life of souls that have sinned against thee. And what have we to plead, O blessed Lord, but thy own gracious nature, and merciful inclinations, and the many promises and declarations, of thyself which thou hast made to returning sinners in Jesus Christ! Thou hast sent thine only Son to be our only Saviour; and he that did no sin was manifested to take away our sins. O for his sake be thou pleased to pity us, and spare us, and forgive us. Turn away thy wrath from us; receive us to thy blessed favour; and comfort us with the sure persuasion, that our great and many sins are remitted.

And because such is the infirmity of our nature, that without thy grace we have not the least power to keep ourselves even from the greatest sins; O grant us the increase of thy grace, and such help of thy good Spirit, as may fortify us against all temptation, and make us willing and faithful, and diligent in thy service. And be pleased, O Lord, yet further to discover and manifest thyself to our souls, that we may know aright thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. And give us power from on high, to enable us so to live and practise, according to that light and knowledge of our duty which thou art pleased to impart unto us, that we may not hold the truth in unrighteousness, knowing the better, and doing the worse, but may walk in the light, as children of light, while we have it; that we may never in judgment be deprived of it. O let us not only be almost, but altogether Christians; sincere converts, true penitents, and sound believers. And wilt thou, O God, that workest all in all, do that work of thy grace thoroughly upon all our hearts; for which we may have cause to give thee praise and glory to all eternity.

Which things we beg not only for ourselves, but for all the partakers of our nature, whom thou hast made to share in our hopes and capacities of eternal happiness; especially for thy whole church, wheresoever or howsoever disposed of over all the earth; for all in authority, from the highest even to the lowest; for our ministers and teachers; for our relations and neighbours; our friends and benefactors; and for all thy afflicted, whatsoever be their trials and troubles. O supply all their wants, and fulfil all their desires, so as thy wisdom sees best, for thy own mercy's sake in Jesus Christ.

Thou, Lord, art the great preserver of men, who hast kept and blessed us to-day, and all our days. Praised be thy name for all thy goodness, which we so long and largely have experienced. O make us sensible and thankful, as we are obliged to be. Take care of us, O Lord, and be good to us this night. Give us bodily rest in our beds, and rest for our souls in thyself. And be thou our God and guide, our hope and help, our joy and comfort, and all in all to us this night, and for evermore. Amen.

FRIDAY MORNING. Jenks.

O Lord our God! thy name is most excellent in all the earth: thou hast set thy glory above the heavens, and thou art worthy to be celebrated with everlasting praises of men and angels; for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. Thy hands, O Lord, have made us and fashioned us, and thou hast breathed into our nostrils the breath of life; yea, still thou holdest our souls in life, and givest us every good thing that makes our lives a blessing and a comfort to us. Thou hast formed us for thyself, that we should show forth thy praise, and live to thy glory, as we do continually live upon thy bounty.

But, O Lord our God! we have not brought thee the glory thou hast made us capable of, and so many ways obliged us to; instead of that, O how greatly have we dishonoured thee, our God, in the whole course and conduct of our lives! time after time, forgetting the gracious Giver of all our good things, who art never unmindful of us. And O how soon have we been weary to do thee service, who art never weary to do us good! Yea, we have not only neglected thy work, but have been disobedient against thy word, and have gone after our own foolish and hurtful lusts, in such ways of living as thy laws and our own hearts disallow and condemn us for.

And for these things we desire to pour out our hearts, and to humble ourselves here before thee; entreating thy gracious favour, for the sake of thy mercy in Christ Jesus, that thou wilt be pleased to give us repentance and pardon for all that is past, wherein we have offended thee; whether in omitting of our duty, or failing in it, or doing contrary to it. However we have transgressed, O humble us duly under the sense of it; and for thy dear Son's sake, absolve us thoroughly from the guilt of it.

And strengthen us, good Lord, with might, by the spirit of the inner man, to make us more watchful against, and more victorious over, the corruption of our nature, the temptations of the devil, and the distractions and allurements of this sinful world, wherein we live. O destroy in us every vicious inclination, every evil habit, and rebellious notion, that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and against the obedience of our Lord Jesus Christ. And increase and confirm in us still more and more, thy true knowledge, and faith, and fear, and love; and every grace of thy Holy Spirit, which thou knowest to be most wanting in us, and necessary for us; such as may make our lives still more comfortable to ourselves, more profitable to others, and more to the glory of thy name. And however it goes with us, as to the concerns of this present time, O that we may still be found in the way of our duty, fearing God, and working righteousness; that we may.secure our interest in the great Saviour of the world, so that when all here shall fail us, thou mayest take us up, and be the strength of our hearts, and our' portion for evermore.

Day by day we magnify thee, O Lord, who makest every day of our lives still a further addition to thy mercies. We bless thee for our last night's preservation and protection, and for the rest and refreshment which thou hast given us therein. O cause us to hear thy loving kindness in the morning, for in thee do we trust; cause us to know the way wherein we should go, for we lift up our souls to thee. Cast us not away from thy presence; take not thy Holy Spirit from us; but direct all our ways to please thee, our God, that thou mayest crown us with blessing and good success. Help us to see thy power, to own thy presence, to admire thy wisdom, and to love thy goodness in all thy creatures. And by all the comforts of creatures, O draw our hearts still nearer to thyself the blessed Creator of every comfort; and let our meditations of God be sweet as well as frequent, that delighting ourselves in the Lord, thou mayest give unto us the desires of our hearts. Such thy mercy and grace we beg for ourselves, and all ours, and thine every where, in our great Mediator's form of prayer. Our Father, 8cc.

FRIDAY EVENING. Jenks.

Our ever blessed and most gracious God! thou art the Lord and Giver of our lives and hopes, and of all our enjoyments and comforts. To thee we do owe ourselves, and all that ever we are capable of rendering and ascribing. For by thee, O Lord, we were created and have our being; and through thy good providence it is, that we still have been spared and preserved, and cared and provided for, throughout our whole lives unto this present time. From thee, our God, comes all our help, and in thee is reposed all our hope. Thou art the bountiful Giver of all the good that our souls desire, and the merciful withholder of all the evils that our sins deserve. We acknowledge thy great and daily goodness to us, and our own exceeding unworthiness of the least of all thy mercies. We take shame and confusion to ourselves, that we have so little improved, and so greatly abused, all thy patience with us, and all the various instances of thy bounty to us. For even thy mercies help to inflame the heavy reckoning of our offences, because we have done so much against thee, after all the great things thou hast done for us. We desire, O Lord, to be penitent, and humbled for our sins; and to entreat thy gracious favour in Jesus Christ, for the pardon of them. Forgive us, we pray thee, for his sake, all the sins that ever we have committed against thee, and absolve us from all the evils whereof we now stand guilty before thee. And being justified by faith, grant us peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ

And we pray that thou wilt be to us a Father of mercies and a God of consolation; so that thou wilt make us followers of God, as dear children; ever jealous over our hearts, and watchful over our ways; continuallyfearing to offend, and endeavouring to please thee: and keeping our hearts with all diligence, that they may not be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin* Thou knowest, O Lord, our weakness and danger of temptation; our danger from the cruel, subtle enemy of our souls; and from this present world that is so full of snares; and from our own vile flesh and deceitful hearts, so apt to betray us into the enemies' hands; we pray, therefore, good Lord, that thou wilt arm us with the whole armour of God, and uphold us with thy free Spirit, and watch over us for good evermore. Especially in the times of our sorest trials, let us experience the strongest aids of thy heavenly grace, that we may never fall a prey to those deadly enemies that seek to devour us.

And teach us, our God, to know the day of our grace, and the time of our visitation, and to see the things of our peace, and duly to mind and settle the great eternal affairs of our souls, in this our day, before they be hid from our eyes. And while we have time, O enable us to use and improve it, to those great ends for which thou art pleased to put that precious talent into our hands, that we may make the short and uncertain stay which we have here, an opportunity of securing to ourselves a sure and everlasting well-being, when we shall depart from hence.

And seeing thou art pleased yet to hold our souls in life, and to make us find and feel, by every day's experience, how abundantly gracious and merciful thou art, with much patience and long suffering, enduring us, and with loving-kindness and manifold blessings, still preventing and following us; O give us hearts more sensible of thy love, more affected with thy mercy, and more thankful for those continued favours which thou art pleased to multiply upon us. And help us to show forth thy praise and the truth of our thanks, not only in speaking good of the name of God, but so ordering our conversation as becomes the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

And to thy mercy in him, most merciful Father, we do now humbly commend ourselves, and all that we are, and have, this present night; beseeching thee to preserve and defend, and bless and keep us, both in soul and body, from all evils and dangers, to which the weakness of our frame, and the greatness of our sins, do expose us. And grant us such comfortable repose, whereby our frail nature may be refreshed, and our decayed strength recovered, that we may rise again better fitted and enabled to serve thee according to thy will in all the duties of the following day, if thou shalt be pleased to make addition of another day to our lives. And as thou addest days and mercies, be pleased also to add repentance and amendments to our lives; that, as we come nearer to our end, we may be made still fitter to the enjoyment of thy heavenly kingdom; that every day may bring us still so much nearer to those everlasting joys and glories which thou hast prepared for them that love thee. And for all the good things that ever we have had, and do at present enjoy, and yet hope for from thy bountiful hands, thine, O blessed glorious Lord our God, be the praise, and honour, and glory, offered up with all grateful hearts, by us, and the whole church, now and for evermore, through the merits and intercession of Jesus Christ our Redeemer, to whom be praise and glory for ever. Amen.

SATURDAY MORNING. Jmks.

We do here present ourselves this morning before thy heavenly glorious Majesty, most blessed Lord our God, with the desire of our souls, to pay unto thee that tribute of homage and service, and prayer and praise, which thou hast made us capable of, and every way obliged us to. We desire to perform the same in such a manner, that thou mayest mercifully accept us and our services, at the hands of Christ Jesus. In his great name we come to thee, at thy command, and worship here at thy footstool, to beg thy pardon and peace, the increase of thy grace, and the tokens of thy love. For we are not worthy that thou shouldst in any way of mercy take notice of us, or be entreated by us: but worthy is the Lamb of God, slain to take away the sins of the world, for whose sake do thou, O Lord, mercifully look upon us; for he has fulfilled those holy laws, which we have broken, and perfectly satisfied the justice of heaven for all our breaches of them. And in him thou art a God gracious and merciful, to poor sinners, who deserve nothing from thee, but to be forsaken and abhorred by thee. Unto us belong shame and confusion of face for our sins, and fearful expectation of all the judgments and miseries which thy laws denounce against sinners: if thou, Lord, shouldst be extreme to mark what we have done amiss; if thou shouldst deal with us and proceed against us as in justice thou mightest.

But, O gracious Father, regard not what we have done against thee, but what our blessed Saviour has done for us; not what we have made ourselves, but what he is made of thee, our God, unto us. And O that Christ may be to every one of our souls, what he is to all thy faithful people, wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption; that his precious blood may cleanse us from all our sins; and that the grace of thy Holy Spirit may further renew and sanctify our souls, and subdue our iniquities, and mortify our lusts; and quicken us to, and enable us for, the performance of all the duties of thy holy service. O let not sin reign in our mortal bodies, that we should obey it in the lust thereof. Let there be no sin in us but what is felt and hated, bewailed and resisted by us; and let us approve our very hearts to thee, the Searcher of them; and all our ways be still pleasing in thy sight.

O teach us to know thee, our God, and enable us to do thy will as we ought to do. Give us hearts to fear thee, and love thee; to trust and delight in thee, and to adhere and cleave in faithfulness unto thee. That no temptations may draw us, nor any tribulations drive us from thee; but that all thy dispensations to us, and all thy dealings with us, may be the messengers of thy love to our souls, to bring us still nearer to thy blessed self, and to make us still fitter for thy heavenly kingdom. Quicken us, O Lord, in our dulness; that we may not serve thee in a lifeless and listless manner; but may abound in thy work, and be fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. And make us also faithful In all the offices. of intercourse with our neighbours; that we may be* ready to do good, and bear evil, and forbear feveflge; and be just and kind, merciful and meek, peaceable and patient, sober and temperate, humble and self-denying, inoffensive and useful in the world. That so glorifying thee here upon earth, we may, at our departure hence, enter into the joy of our Lord, and be forever glorified in thy heavenly kingdom.

O Thou that hast kept us alive to this day, and hast been still good and kind to us all our days, renew thy mercy to us, we beseech thee, together with this morning light; and as thou makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice, so lift up the light of thy countenance upon us, and make us glad with the tokens of thy love; and thou that art ever present with us, O make us ever well aware of thy presence, that we duly remember thee in all our ways, and wisely and piously demean ourselves in all our affairs. Be with us, good Lord, at our going out, and our coming in; and let thy grace follow us this day, and all the days of our life. Be thou our guide unto death, in death our comfort, and after death our portion and happiness everlasting. O hear us from heaven, thy dwelling place; and, when thou nearest, have mercy; forgive the sins of our persons, and the sins of our prayers; and do more for us than we are worthy to expect at thy hands, for his sake, who alone is worthy; in whose comprehensive words we sum up all our desires. Our Father, 8cc.

SATURDAY EVENING. Jenks.

O Lord, we desire to seek thy face, and to wait upon thee in the duties of thy worship; entreating thy gracious favour with our whole hearts, that we may do all as we ought, with good acceptance to our God. And to whom should we make our applications, but unto thee, the Father of mercies and the fountain of all goodness, who art able to do exceeding abundantly for us, even above all that we can ask or think; and who hast declared thy willingness to be solicited by us; and thy readiness to hear, and help, and answer us, in those things which we beg at thy gracious and bountiful hands, in the name and mediation of our great Lord and Saviour: O let our prayer be set before thee as incense, and the lifting up of our hands be as the evening sacrifice. It is in his blessed name alone, that we have the encouragement and boldness to beg of thy infinite goodness all that thou knowest to be needful and expedient for us; seeing there is in ourselves no good thing to recommend us to thy favour and acceptance; but a proneness and inclination to what is displeasing in thy eyes, and destructive to our souls. For besides that we were by nature the children of wrath, a seed of evil doers, the sinful offspring of rebellious parents; we have been daily trespassing upon thee, and still adding to the heavy score of our offences against thee. There is nothing in us, O Lord, but what may provoke thee to reject us: but there is enough in thy beloved Son, of all grace and goodness, to move thee mercifully to accept us. He was made sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him; and that we might be saved through faith in his merits, where we could not be saved by any desert of our own works. As the chastisement of our peace was upon him, so let the merits of his righteousness be upon us; and by his stripes let our souls be healed.

Nor do we only beg for pardon of our sins, but also for power against them, and grace sufficient for us to break them off, and to walk more pleasingly before thee, in all the ways and duties of righteousness and holiness, which thy word prescribes to us. O never suffer us to be tempted above what we are able; but make our temptations less, or thy grace in us, and our spiritual strength, still greater than all our temptations; that no iniquities may prevail against us, nor any presumptuous sin have dominion over us. O make us more conformable to the pattern and the precepts of our Saviour, and more transformed into his holy image and likeness. So that our light may shine before men, to the glory of thee our heavenly Father, and to the edification of those with whom we have our conversation.

And together with our own, we commend to thy mercy, O God of the spirits of all flesh, the necessities and distresses of all our brethren throughout the world. O enlighten the ignorant, quicken the careless, awake the secure, convince the erroneous, reclaim the vicious, establish the unsettled, and comfort the dejected. Bring all to the knowledge and love of thy truth, and to the participation of thy grace, and the obedience of Christ; and so to the blessed hope of thy heavenly glory, and to the eternal salvation of our souls. We pray more particularly for all our magistrates and ministers of the gospel; and all our friends and relations; and all thy servants, and all the afflicted every where; especially those for whose happiness and salvation thou knowest us to be chiefly concerned. O do thou for us, and for them, as thou knowest best, and most needful and expedient, for thy own mercy's sake in Jesus Christ.

*To thee we now render humble and hearty thanks for thy mercy to our family during another week. We thank thee that during its days and nights thou hast watched around our dwelling—hast met our returning wants—hast given us food convenient for us, and the protection of raiment, and a home. We praise thee that so many of our friends have been continued to us; and that thou dost still preserve to us the enjoyments of a Christian land. Thou hast in mercy brought us again near to the day of sacred rest. If it be thy good pleasure to keep us through this night—which we humbly implore—we pray that thou wilt prepare us for the duties of another holy day. Awake us in the morning with a lively sense of thy mercies; with a spirit of prayer; with hearts fitted to be impressed by religious truth; and with a deep conviction of thy goodness in the resurrection of our Lord Jesus from the grave. Go with us, if we may go, to the house of worship; and meet us in the sanctuary and bless us. Aid all thy ministering servants, that they may declare thy truth with simplicity and power. May thy Spirit descend on the churches; on all Sunday schools; and on all who are engaged in designs of benevolence; and may the morrow be a day long to be remembered in Zion, and the time soon come when thy Sabbath shall be observed by all the family of mankind.*

And now that the night is upon us, and we are ready to betake ourselves to our rest, we commit ourselves to thy gracious protection, who never sleepest nor slum

berest, but hast still a watchful eye upon thy people. O watch over us, our God, we pray thee, for good; that none of the evils or harms which our sins have deserved may befall us. Preserve us from the works, and from the powers of darkness, and from all the terrors and dangers of the night. Let all our sins, to day or any time heretofore committed, be removed out of thy sight, and show us the light of thy countenance, O Lord, to refresh us with the sense of thy blessed love and favour, in our dear Redeemer; for whom, and to whom, with thy eternal self, and Holy Spirit, be all thanks, and praise, and honour, and glory, ascribed of us and all thy church, from this time forth, world without end. Amen.