We trust, O Lord, we do not wish great things for ourselves as to the present world. Our heart is not haughty, neither are our eyes lofty. Feed us with food convenient for us. Give us neither poverty nor riches, and guide our feet into the way of peace. May we have our conversation in the world in simplicity and godly sincerity. Uphold us in our integrity, and set us before thy face for ever. Whatever may have been wrong in us to-day, in thought, or word, or deed, mercifully forgive. Accept what has been right, and designed to glorify thee. Help us to learn wisdom from the things we have experienced, and may we call upon thee as long as we live; till we die may we never remove our integrity away from us.

Make us to know our end. Each closing day brings it nearer. O Lord, may we be mindful of it, so as to be always ready for the joy of our Lord. May goodness and mercy follow us all the days of our life, and let us dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

May mercy and truth be with our relations; and encompass and satisfy every member of our household. Be gracious to the afflicted, and help them to hope in thee. Extend the dominion of Christ in the world, and may he ever reign in our hearts. Lord, help us always to adore the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things; and may all who profess to love the truth, so let their light shine that men may see their good works and glorify thee, our Father who art in heaven.

To thy care we commit ourselves for the night. Watch over us, and give us quiet rest. And to thee, O Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, one God, we would ascribe glory and everlasting dominion. Amen.

MATTHEW XXII.

MORNING HYMN.

"Watch and pray.”

WHEN joy's full cup is sparkling,
And pleasure's tide runs high,
And, buoyant on life's freshening wave,
Thou seest no danger nigh;

Keep to the helm, and steer with care;
God be thy guide; thy refuge, prayer.

When sorrow's tide o'erwhelms thee,
And deep in grief's full stream,
And e'en the radiant bow of hope
Withholds her cheering beam,
"God is our refuge," send the cry
Out from the darkness to the sky.

And when o'er Jordan's waters
Thy spirit spreads her wings,
Unearthly darkness gathering round,
Yet showing fearful things,
"God is our refuge" 'mid the gloom
Which shrouds the precincts of the tomb.

And when, life's fever over,

In heaven's bright courts you stand, And pluck ripe fruits of happiness

In all that glorious land,

"God is our refuge," swells our song, And heaven's bright arch the notes prolong

MATTHEW XXIV.

EVENING HYMN.

"Amen."

ERE we utter "It is finished,"
And the last Amen repeat,
Many steep and toilsome wanderings,
'Mid alternate cold and heat,
Through life's journey,

Still await our wandering feet!

Lessons, hard to be adopted,

We must learn before we die,

And Amen be oft repeated,

With the tear and with the sigh,

To prepare us

For the glorious world on high!

If the hopes our hearts have cherish'd, Brighter than the summer's day,

God, in his unerring wisdom,

God as wise, should take away,

Could our spirits

Then Amen devoutly say?

And when death at length approaches,

(Whose precursors pass'd before,)

Are we then prepared to utter

The Amen! and God adore,

Ever willing,

When he wills, and nothing more?

KIND and indulgent God and Father, with glad and grateful hearts would we bow before thy footstool. Once more thou hast preserved us while we slumbered and slept. Let not the abundance of thy favours induce in us a forgetfulness of our obligation, but rather as thy kindness is thus renewed time after time, so may our gratitude be renewed also.

We present this our morning sacrifice in the name of Jesus Christ, thy dear Son, through whom alone we sinners can find acceptance in thy sight; and as our persons, so may our praises and our prayers be approved for his sake.

We bless and praise thee for this new and living way of access to thy mercy-seat. It meets all our necessities as guilty sinners, and brings glory to thee in the highest, whilst it proclaims, Peace on earth and good will towards man. Give us that grace whereby we shall trust in Christ as our Saviour, love him as our Friend, serve him as our Master, and rejoice in him as our best treasure. According to our opportunities and abilities, would we seek to promote his cause and interest in the world; and especially would we be careful that in our worldly transactions we act as becometh the gospel of Christ.

May thy mercies to us as a family be sanctified. May thy judgments be sanctified too; and so far as it can be safely and wisely done, may these judgments be removed. What bitter cup we have to drink, if it

be possible let it pass away; nevertheless, not our will but thine be done. Prepare us for whatever thou hast prepared for us this day. To us it is all darkness, but to thee all its events are clearly known. We acknowledge thy prerogative, and thy goodness too, in thus keeping the times and seasons in thine own power; and we rejoice, having this confidence, that all things shall work together for good to them that love thee. Be it our care to love thee, and to abound in love more and more. We pray for all that are dear to our hearts by earthly ties; may all needed temporal good be graciously vouchsafed to them, and, above all, bestow upon them the better blessings of thy grace; that when we are taken from them, or they from us, this shall be for our comfort, that at last we all shall meet in glory, where nothing shall ever again grieve our hearts, or divide us from each other. We pray for the whole human family. Send forth thy light and thy truth. Hasten that time when the gospel shall be preached to all nations, when it shall come to men not in word only, but in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance. Bless all evangelical efforts which thy servants make to diffuse the light of life in this land, and in distant lands. Purify the motives of thy servants; increase their zeal, their exertions, and their success. Now, Lord, we go forth to the duties of another day. Let not sin have dominion over us. Keep each from his own iniquity. Give all grace, that we may lay aside the sin that doth so easily beset us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil; for thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever and ever.

Amen.