Show me, if I tempted be,
Needed strength to find in Thee,
And a perfect triumph win
Over every bosom sin.
Then, when fall the shades of night,
All within shall still be light;
Thou wilt peace around diffuse,
Gently as the evening dews.
THE PARTING DAY.
Maker of all things! God most high!
Great Ruler of the starry sky!
Who, robing day with beauteous light,
Hast clothed in soft repose the night;
That sleep may wearied limbs restore,
And fit for toil and use once more;
May gently soothe the careworn breast,
And lull our anxious griefs to rest;
We thank Thee for the day that 's gone,
We pray Thee, now the night comes on:
To Thee our rapt affections soar,
And Thee our chastened souls adore.
And while the parting beams of day
In evening's shadow fade away,
Let faith no 'wildering darkness know,
But night with Thy effulgence glow.
O sleepless ever keep the mind!
But guilt in lasting slumber bind!
From every evil passion free,
O may our hearts repose in Thee!
EVENING SACRIFICE.
And now, O Lord, my God, or ere
This day in sleep forgotten be,
Its dying breath must rise in prayer,
And bear my latest thoughts to Thee.
And since, perchance, no morrow's light
May greet mine ear with wakening call,
In Thy good care I leave this night
Myself, my life, my heart, mine all!
The loved ones, those I hold so dear,
Be pleased, sweet Lord, to guard and keep ; To all their hearts this night draw near,
And tend and bless them while they sleep.
On eyes that weep, on hearts that bleed,
May all Thy richest blessings fall;
I ask Thy help for all who need,
And asking this, I pray for all.
And if to morn in safety brought,
Grant that sweet breathings, pure and true,
May rest on each awakening thought,
As on fresh flowers the early dew.
When thou hast spent the lingering day
In pleasure and delight,
Or after toil and weary way
Dost seek thy rest at night,
Unto thy pain and pleasure past
Add this one labor yet,
Ere sleep close up thine eye too fast;
Do not thy God forget,
But search within thy secret thought
What deeds did thee befall,
And if thou find amiss in aught,
To God for mercy call.
But if thou find no thing amiss
That thou canst call to mind,
Yet even then remember this:
There is the more behind.
And think how well soe'er it be,
That thou has spent the day-
It came of God and not of thee
So to direct thy way.
Thus, if thou try thy daily deeds
Not shrinking from this pain,
Thy life shall cleanse the corn from weeds
And thine shall be the gain.
"The Lord is my light, my help, the strength of my life." -Psalm xxvii : I.
As darker, darker fall around
The shadows of the night,
We gather here, with hymn and prayer,
To seek the eternal Light.
Father in heaven, to Thee are known
Our many hopes and fears,
Our heavy weight of mortal toil,
Our bitterness of tears.
We pray Thee for our absent ones,
Who have been with us here;
And in our secret heart we name
The distant and the dear.
For weary eyes, and aching hearts,
And feet that from Thee rove,
The sick, the poor, the tried, the fallen,
We pray Thee, God of love.
We bring to Thee our hopes and fears,
And at Thy footstool lay;
And, Father, Thou who lovest all
Wilt hear us as we pray.
Father, now the day is over,
As the sun sinks in the west,
Ere the night creeps slowly round me,
Ere soft slumber be my guest;
Let me bless Thee, that to-day
Thou, my God, hast been my stay.
For the birds and flowers I thank Thee,
For each song and perfume sweet,
For the faith that dare address Thee,
For the love that may Thee greet;
Most that I for every gift
May my soul to Thee uplift.
For the love of friends I bless Thee,
Who to-day my joy have shared,
Whose true hearts, spread out before me,
Have Thy love to me declared;
For each thought of truth and love
They have echoed from above.
For the mystic bond which binds us
Each to each, and all to Thee,
And with all the past entwines us
In the world's long harmony;
For each striving human soul
Which is part of Thy great whole.
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