PRAYERS.

A MORNING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY.

O MOST gracious God and kind Father! we present ourselves before the throne of thy majesty and glory, in all humility of soul and body, acknowledging that we are thy dependent creatures, and that from thy bountiful hand we have received many and exceeding great blessings.

By thee we were wonderfully made; by thy power we have ever since been preserved; and it is owing to thy great mercy and goodness that we have not been cut off in the midst of our sins, but that thou hast been patient and long-suffering toward us, and hast given us this opportunity of coming into thy presence to renew our praises and acknowledgments to thy divine majesty. O Lord, thy compassion fails not: by thee we have been preserved the night past; and to thy goodness we ascribe it, that we are brought in health and safety to the beginning of this day.

Accept, we humbly pray thee, our unfeigned thanks for all the mercies and blessings which thou hast been pleased to bestow upon us; and pardon, we

beseech thee, for the sake of thy Son Christ Jesus, our great unworthiness of what thou hast done for

us.

Give us such a sense of thy infinite love and kindness, as may engage us more and more to love and obey thee, and make us afraid of every thing that may be displeasing in thy sight.

O Lord! vouchsafe us such a measure of thy grace and holy Spirit as may defend us against the snares and temptations of this wicked world, and enable us to overcome all our corrupt and sinful desires. Give us a true sense of the inestimable value of our souls, that we may make it the chief concern of our lives to work out our salvation with the greatest care and diligence, and to secure an interest in thy favour, which is better than life itself.

Withdraw our minds from the love of this world, and place them upon heaven and heavenly things. Give us grace to use the enjoyments, which thou art pleased to bestow upon us, with temperance, sobriety, and moderation; with an entire trust and dependence on thy fatherly care and good providence; and with a perfect submission to thy blessed will in all things.

O Lord! root out of our hearts all pride and envy; all hatred, malice, and ill-will. Purify our hearts from all censoriousness and uncharitableness, from all lying and slandering, and from whatever else is contrary to a truly Christian spirit and endue us, we most humbly pray thee, with that meekness and humility which is in thy sight of so

great value, and with all those holy and Christian dispositions which thou lovest and delightest in.

Instruct us in all the particulars of our duty which we owe to thee, our neighbour, and ourselves. Guide us by thy right hand, and conduct us by thy good Spirit, through all the business and affairs of this life. Teach us to act with faithfulness and honesty in every thing that we undertake; and give us such a dread of thy displeasure, and such a sense of thy continual presence with us, as may guard us, by thy grace, against all the temptations of the world, the flesh, and the devil.

[This is to be omitted on a Sunday morning, and what follows may be used instead thereof.]

Be with us, O Lord, this day, wherever we go, and in whatsoever we do. Preserve us from the dangers of evil company; from the deceitfulness of our own hearts; and more especially from those sins that are most apt to betray and ensnare us. Let thy blessing accompany all our honest labours: and vouchsafe us such a measure of health and other temporal blessings as thou seest best and most fitting for us. We desire, O Lord, to leave ourselves and all our concerns in thy hands, humbly beseeching thee to take us and all that belong to us under the protection of thy good providence; and so to bless, direct, and guide us in this life, that we may at last obtain that greatest of all blessings-the eternal salvation of our immortal souls, through the merits and for the sake of thy dear Son and our alone Saviour Jesus Christ; for whom our souls adore and praise thy glorious name, and in whose

most holy words we sum up all our own, and the wants of all mankind, saying, “Our Father," &c. [This is to be used on a Sunday morning, instead of the foregoing paragraph.]

Dispose our hearts, O Lord, we humbly beseech thee, to a serious attendance upon thee in all holy duties. Make us duly mindful of all thy sacred institutions, and grant that we may never so far forget the interest of our souls as to neglect the religious observance of the Christian Sabbath. And as thou hast brought us to the beginning of this sacred day, so be thou graciously pleased to take us into thy protection, and to assist us in a right discharge of its duties. Withdraw our minds from the care and business and pleasure of this life, which will shortly have an end; that we may more earnestly attend upon the great concern of that far better life, which is to last for ever. Give us awful thoughts of thy great majesty, and a lively sense of our own wants; that our prayers and praises, and all our services, may be offered up in such a serious and devout manner, as may render them acceptable in thy sight. Make us attentive to thy holy word, and to all the good instruction that shall this day be given us: and grant that we may not rest in mere outward performances; but, by a right use of thy holy ordinance, may grow in grace, and become every day better Christians, and be so improved in all virtuous and godly living, that, when this short life shall have an end, we may dwell with thee in life everlasting, through the merits of thy Son and our alone Saviour Jesus Christ; for whom

our souls bless and praise thee, and in whose most holy words we sum up our own, and the wants of all mankind, saying, "Our Father," &c.

AN EVENING PRAYER FOR A FAMILY.

O most merciful and gracious Lord God! the Creator, Preserver, and Governor of the world! thou art infinite in mercy and goodness to all that call upon thee faithfully; and hast promised, that when two or three are gathered together in thy name, thou wilt be in the midst of them. Look down, we humbly beseech thee, upon us, thy unworthy creatures, who are here assembled before thee, acknowledging that thou art a God greatly to be feared for thy power and justice, greatly to be beloved for thy infinite perfections and goodness, and greatly to be praised for thy bounty and merciful kindness. But as for ourselves, we confess, O Lord, that we are vile and sinful creatures; that we have, in many things, acted contrary to thy most holy will, and have neither loved thee, feared thee, nor obeyed thee, as we ought. O Lord! if thou shouldest deal with us as we have deserved, we could expect nothing from thee but the severities of thy just wrath and displeasure.

But, O gracious Father, who delightest not in the death of a sinner, look down upon us, we beseech thee, in thy Son Christ Jesus, and, for the sake of his meritorious death and sufferings, pardon our many and great transgressions of thy holy laws; grant that we may amend whatever we have done