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on Him, at every step, for their fulfilment; and many a fitting thought and word suggested to the mind testify the presence of the Holy One. May that Spirit enable us all to do this-may our hearts often say, my God, I ask now the fulfilment of thy promises-1 feel my spirit low-I feel my want of the Holy Ghost'-" ask and you shall receive, that your joy may be full." When the heart swells with praise to God, it breaks forth in ready intercourse with Him-that intercourse keeps up the spiritual tone of the mind; and when we are thus gifted, and have thus tasted of the sweets of companionship with God, we cannot bear to be absent from our Lord. When we happen to be detained from his converse for an hour on this occasion, or for half-an-hour on that when any occupation separates us ever so short a period from this realizing of our Lord as very nigh unto us-soon we find the loss of enjoyment; and a timid sense of danger in the heart sets us at once, to "feel after him" again. Thus the blessed breathing of His continual presence, is that by which we gather in and store up our sufficiency, and love to know that it is of God." Thus we realize that as a fact, which before we only knew as a doctrine. [To be continued.]

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GENERAL UNION FOR PRIVATE PRAYER.

The following has been widely circulated in the form of a small Tract; and there is reason to believe, that a considerable number of persons habitually join in the proposed Arrangement, since no less than twenty-four thousand copies have been called for by the public. It is suggested for consideration, whether a blessing might not be expected in those congregations where the Arrangement should be adopted under the recommendation of the clergyman.

WHILE it is a plain and acknowledged duty to be earnest and frequent in prayer for the great general blessings promised to the Church of Christ, it is to be feared that the infirmity of sincere Christians too often concurs with the engrossing nature of their personal necessities to produce much omission in this respect. This omission is equally confessed and regretted by a great number of persons, who, though they really desire to exercise the privilege of prayer for the wide-spreading mercies promised in the word of God, frequently find that much time passes without their acting out this desire in a manner which satisfies the conscience. It is obvious that vast results might be expected from a real and persevering combination amongst the whole body of spiritual Christians, for the purpose of pleading (individually and privately but unitedly in one spirit) the promises of Christ to His Church, in earnest supplication for their fulfilment; and it has

VOL. I.-NO. I.

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been thought, that by the help of some systematic arrangement, much may be done towards the attainment of this object. When the mind is awakened to the conviction that a certain neglected duty ought to be done, arrangement should be made, to render the general duty more specially definite, and ensure its performance.

It is this view of the subject which has produced the formation of "THE GENERAL UNION FOR PRIVATE PRAYER;" which is a voluntary combination of Christians, for the purpose of appointing to each a definite distinct occasion to engage, once in each week, in private prayer, for those objects which must be interesting to the whole Church of Christ, under the special encouragement which may legitimately be drawn from the assurance, that a considerable number of other Christians are also privately engaged in the same way, at the same time. To this end, the essential point which unites the members is an understanding, that on a given day each will, as far as in him lies, devote some portion of time (more or less, as circumstances may permit), to private prayer upon appointed subjects, concerning which there is a general agreement amongst Christians. As a distinct promise of this kind has sometimes been found to burden the conscience, when its fulfilment may have been prevented, the professed intention is not stated in the form of a promise certainly to perform a future act; but the formation of u present serious intention to join in the prayers of the Union is all that is required; and this has been found in practice to answer the purpose of exciting to punctual conformity, without ensnaring the conscience into an uneasy and difficult bondage. The subjects for prayer are arranged under short heads, concerning each of which every member may enlarge privately, as much or as little as he may feel enabled and disposed; while unity of object on the main points being thus obtained, each may consider himself warranted in pleading that promise of our Lord, "if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven." Matt. xviii. 19.

REGULATIONS FOR THE MEMBERS.

1.-Each member of the Union forms a serious intention, by the help of God, to occupy some portion of time during the course of Saturday, in every week, in private prayer upon the subjects, the heads of which are arranged at the end of these Regulations, his circumstances and frame of mind permitting.

N.B. The hour from seven to eight in the morning is suggested; but any Member may adopt another, according to his circumstances.

2.-If any Member be hindered from fulfilling this intention

on the day appointed, the first proper opportunity afterwards may be taken for the purpose, in order that the object be obtained some time in the course of the week; that is, before the return of the next Union Prayer-day.

HEADS FOR PRAYER

Agreed to be used by the Members of the General Union for Private

Prayer.

I. For an abundant gift of the Holy Spirit, and of His gracious influences.

II. For the purity and unity of the Church of Christ.

III. For Her Majesty the Queen, and all in authority under her and for a blessing upon our Country.

IV. That God would raise up in great numbers fit persons to serve in the sacred ministry of His Church.

V. That a blessing may accompany the ministrations of the word of God, in order that it may have free course, and be glorified. VI. For the propagation of the Gospel amongst the heathen. VII. For the fulfilment of God's promises to his ancient people. VIII. For a special blessing upon all the members of the Union.

THE PASTOR'S POCKET-BOOK.

Is the mind of a Pastor intent on his great office, and having his heart set upon "seeking for Christ's sheep," there will always be a succession of thoughts connected with his work, ore or less useful---more or less important. As these arise, they will be driven out again by the multiplied occupations of a pastor's life; or one will push out another from the mind: and thus most of these thoughts, however valuable, would pass away and be forgotten, unless they be detained and stored up immediately, by being noted down in a little pocket-book, which every Pastor would do well to keep for that purpose. Extracts from books which have been thus kept will be occasionally given in the Pastor's Assistant, such as the following.

1. In all plans and arrangements for the ministry, when calculating their progress towards the desired end, never forget to make full allowance for the leeway of original sin-the❝ infection of nature" that" doth remain," yea, in them that are regenerate."

2. When I reprove a parishioner, there must be something in my manner which does not need words to convey the impression that it distresses me so to do. To say I am sorry will not do. The feeling that I am pained at the necessity of giving him pain must be imparted irresistibly, and without expression. This is the counteracting influence which prevents the natural resistance of the corrupt heart from bursting forth. It is the water which keeps the heart from igniting under the unusual friction of reproof.

3. A soldier in battle, and a surgeon in a hospital, both wound a man but the action of the one makes the man struggle; and that of the other makes him lie still to have his limb amputated. A Pastor in reproving must never seem like a soldier, with a sword in his hand; but like a surgeon, who hides his knife, while he takes off the diseased limb.

PART SECOND.

SUGGESTIONS FOR THE PASTOR WITH HIS FLOCK.

THE PASTORAL CALENDAR.

EXPLANATION.

THE Pastoral Calendar is intended to consist of a selection of memoranda, affording a convenient reference for a parochial Minister in conducting the Services of the Church, and in arranging his instructions for the various means of grace.

It will be divided into Weeks, and will contain the ordinary information of a Clerical Almanack-the Lessons &c. &c. To this will be added a short summary of the particular subject of the instruction appointed by the Church, for each week, and upon special occasions. These summaries have been found very useful in directing attention to the course of devotional and practical teaching specially pointed out by the Church for her members. The use and application of them will hereafter be explained more at large.

Every Clergyman must have found the difficulty of fixing upon subjects for preaching, and the advantage of being saved the trouble of searching for appropriate Scriptures upon which to ground his instruction. In order to lessen this difficulty in some degree, certain texts will be suggested to the mind as suitable to the season, or the day; or as being otherwise eligible for sermons. In most cases the subsequent portion of this second part of the work will be devoted to such helps as may lessen the labour of composing Sermons on these texts, or some of them, as far as space will permit. These helps are intended to afford assistance in various degrees.

The COMPENDIUMS OF SERMONS will each set forth a more complete statement of the whole arrangement of a sermon, in a condensed form; so that the Clergyman who chooses to make use of it will only have to enlarge the statements, while transferring them into his own words, with such additions as may readily occur to him; thus moulding them into the form of his own mind.

Besides these, TEXT PAPERS will be given; which are nothing more than mere outlines of the course which the thoughts might take in forming a sermon upon a given text; leaving the whole of the detail of argument and instruction to be filled up. To assist in this working out the subject, texts are suggested after each short head, a reference to which will carry the mind through a range of Scripture, from which the course to be taken may be easily chosen. These are neither sufficiently complete in the framework of a discourse to be called "Skeletons;" nor are they large enough to be dignified with the appellation of "Notes." They have, however, been found very useful in overcoming the first difficulty of approaching the subject to be preached upon; in doing which unpractised clergymen often find so much time expended. They may serve to give the first impulse in composing a sermon, and to trace something like a direction through the Scriptures to the desired point.

A course of short applications of PROVERBS will be given, so constructed that they will either serve the same purpose as the Compendium of Sermons; or they may be read by the Pastor in his visiting, as a scriptural ground-work for practical instruction by conversation.

The same may be said of the course of SACRAMENTAL MEDITATONS; one of which will be occasionally given to prepare the Communicants for the Lord's Supper.

Various other helps to the Pastor's mind, in preparing the means of grace and instruction, will hereafter be given; and as these are suggested in the second part of the Pastor's Assistant, or as any plans are suggested in the first part, which may be considered eligible for application in a parish, such references will afterwards be made to them in the Pastoral Calendar, as may help to recall to the mind their regular occurrence on the proper occasions.

At present, the only other point in the Pastoral Calendar, which seems to require explanation, is the insertion of a portion of the Psalms, in a parenthesis, on each day. For some time past, a very considerable number of persons have been in the habit of reading a portion of the Psalms on each day, according to "A Calendar of the Psalms, in which they are arranged in Daily portions; so that the whole may be read between the 1st of January, and the 30th of June, and between the 1st of July and the 31st of December in every year." As the number is so large, it has been considered adviseable to include the mention of each daily portion in this Pastoral Calendar; especially as it may perhaps be the means of increasing the number of those who thus find comfort in occupying their minds at the same time, on the same seriptural subjects, with so many of their fellow Christians.

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