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our repentance and return to him. For he excepts against no time, no age, or season, but whenever the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall fave his foul alive. * Neither is there any fin, tho' never so vile and heinous in its own nature, but fhall be remitted and forgiven, unless it be that against the holy Ghoft. Therefore,

6. I am refolved, that my frequent failings fhall not discourage me from attempting again and again, till I have gained my point. I am fully convinced that there is nothing else to do, and that it is abfolutely neceffary 1 should resolve again and again, until my refolutions have taken effect, that I may reap good fruit unto falvation. +

The Hymn, for Thursday Morning.

The penitent's refolution to amend his future life. Lord, grant thy ftatutes ev'ry bour

May dwell upon my mind;

Thence I derive a quick'ning power,
And daily peace I find.

To meditate thy precepts, Lord,

Shall be my fweet employ;

My foul fball ne'er forget thy word,

Thy word is all my joy.

How

Ezek. xviii. 27. + John vi. 36. Rom. vi. zz. Jam. iii. 18.

How would I run in thy commands,
If thou my heart discharge
From fin and Satan's hateful chains,
And fet my feet at large!

My lips with courage ball declare
Thy ftatutes and thy name;

I'll speak thy word, tho' kings fhould hear,
Nor yield to finfu fhame.

Let bands of perfecutors rife,
To rob me of my right;

Let pride and malice forge their lyes,
Thy law is my delight.t

Depart from me ye wicked race,

Whofe hands and hearts are ill I love my God, I love his ways, And muft obey his will.

The Prayer, on Thursday Morning. For God's bleffing on the amendment of our lives. Lord, who hast made and doft govern and

preferve all things, I proftrate myfelfbefore thee in an humble adoration ofthy incomprehenfible majesty, and acknowledge that I depend entirely on thee, and render unto thee my moft hearty thanks for all the favours and benefits which thou haft fo freely and undefervedly conferred upon me.

Pfalm cxix, 77,ɔ174•

All

All thy works praise thee, O Lord, and we the children of men, who have received fingular marks and tokens of thy favour, ought more particularly to praise and glorify thy ho ly name, being made after thy own image, and endued with reasonable and immortal fpirits, that we may reflect on thee, the author of our being, and imitate thy wisdom, holinefs, goodness and truth. But above all,

I defire to remember that great demonftration of thy love in giving thy dear fon to live amongst us, to die for us, and thereby to give us, upon the condition of faith and fincere obedience, an affured hope of immortal life, which I fo lately commemorated in the facrament of the Lord's fupper; in which I fealed my love to thee, and renewed the oblation which I have often made of my foul and body to thee.

I wait upon thee ftill for what thou feeft good for them both; which I hope in thy everlasting mercy to obtain; humbly befeeching thee to pardon all my forgetfulness of, and ungratefulness to thee; and I most earnestly implore the grace of thy holy fpirit, to preferve in my mind and body a powerful fenfe of thee, an ardent love to thee, an holy care to please and obey thee in all things; and to this end I befeech thee give me the fame mind and spirit, which

was

was in Christ Jefus our Lord; the spirit of wisdom and understanding, and the fear of thee; the fpirit of meekness, humility, purity and charity. And,

Grant that I may do thy will with the like chearfulness, zeal, conftancy, patience and perfeverance as he did; that fo I may for ever blefs thy name, O Lord! for all the helps and affistances of thy good spirit, which thou haft already bleffed me with.

I acknowledge thee in all my ways; do thou direct my paths, and teach me to manage all my affairs with prudence and difcretion for thou art my hope and confidence, my fatisfaction, and my peace; my glory and my joy. O be thou pleased to conduct me by thy good spirit, thro' all the business and employments, thro' all the temptations and troubles of this mortal life, to that bleffed place where our Lord Jefus Chrift is gone before, who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the same spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.

The

The Meditation for Thurfday Evening.

Upon a lively faith in God's mercy thro' Chrift, and a quiet confcience.

Examine yourselves whether you be in the faith-For the fruit of the fpirit, is love, joy, peace, faith, without which it is impoffible to please God. 2 Cor. xiii. 4. Gal. v. 22. Heb. xi. 6.

1.

Remember, O my foul! that the church

exhorts us, and tells us in exprefs words, that it is requifite that no man fhould come to the holy communion, but with a full trust in God's mercy, and with a quiet confcience; whence we learn that the benefits of our faviour's death and paffion in this facrament are indeed freely offered unto ALL, but only effectually to BELIEVERS, as we read in St. John, as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the fons of God, even to them that believe in his name.

2. All that Chrift hath done and suffered for us men and our falvation can never profit us, unless we have faith to believe it: that which muft render the benefits and bleffings of the gofpel effectual to our falvation, is our faith in Chrift, who himself declares, that whoever 'heareth his words, and believeth on him that fent him, hath everlafting life, and shall not PART II.

F

See the exhortation in the communion fervice.

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