to guide us by his perfect example, and to fill us with the joyful hope of eternal life.

We acknowledge before thee, O God, who rulest the children of men with wisdom and goodness, that we have not duly improved thy manifold mercies. Though thou hast nourished and brought us up as children, we have sinned against thee. We desire to forsake all our evil ways, and to return unto thee with our whole hearts; and we humbly beseech thee, who art slow to anger and ready to forgive, that thou wouldst pardon all our transgressions. O Lord, show thy mercy upon us, and grant us thy salvation.

Lead us by thy gracious hand in the path of our duty; and, in the time of temptation, let thy good Spirit be with us, to keep us from falling. May our minds be purified from all sinful affections; may falsehood and deceit have no place in our words; and, in all our ways, may we obey thy commandments; that, being holy in thy sight, we may obtain thy favor, and may finally be received into thine everlasting kingdom.

We pray unto thee, O gracious God, in behalf of all our friends. Supply their wants out of the stores of thy bounty; let thy watchful providence evermore defend them from evil; and let thy goodness and mercy follow them all the days of their lives.

We address our united devotions unto thee, the Giver of all good things, in the name and as the disciples of Jesus Christ. Amen.

FRIDAY MORNING.

ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, in whom we live, and move, and have our being, we, thy needy creatures, render thee our humble praises for thy pres

ervation of us from the beginning of our lives to this day. We thank thee for refreshing us with the slumbers, and guarding us from the dangers, of the past night. For all thy mercies we bless and magnify thy glorious name; humbly beseeching thee to accept this our morning sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving.

And since it is by thy mercy, O gracious Father, that another day is added to our lives, we here dedicate both our souls and our bodies to thee and thy service in a sober, righteous, and godly life; in which resolution do thou, O merciful God, confirm and strengthen us; that as we grow in age we may grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

But, O God, who knowest the weakness of our nature, and the manifold temptations which we daily meet with, we humbly beseech thee to have compassion on our infirmities, and to give us the constant assistance of thy Holy Spirit, that we may be effectually restrained from sin and excited to our duty. Imprint upon our hearts such a dread of thy judgments, and such a grateful sense of thy goodness to us, as may make us both afraid and ashamed to offend thee; and keep in our minds a lively remembrance of that great day in which we must give an account of our thoughts, words, and actions, and, according to the works done in the body, be rewarded or punished by Him, whom thou hast appointed the Judge of the quick and dead, thy Son Jesus Christ.

In particular, we implore thy grace and protection for the ensuing day. Keep us temperate in our meats and drinks, and diligent in our several callings. Grant us patience under any afflictions thou shalt see fit to lay on us, and minds always contented

with our present condition. Give us grace to be

just and upright in all our dealings; quiet and peaceable; full of compassion; and ready to do good unto all men, according to our abilities and opportunities. Direct us in all our ways, and prosper the works of our hands in the business of our several stations. Defend us from all dangers and adversities; and be graciously pleased to take us, and all things belonging to us, under thy fatherly care and protection. These things, and whatever else thou shalt see necessary and convenient to us, we humbly beg in the name and as the disciples of Jesus Christ, our blessed Lord and Redeemer. Amen.

FRIDAY EVENING.

MOST merciful God, who art of purer eyes than to behold iniquity, and hast promised forgiveness to all those who confess and forsake their sins, we come before thee in an humble sense of our unworthiness, acknowledging our transgressions of thy righteous laws. But, O gracious Father, who desirest not the death of a sinner, look upon us, we beseech thee, in mercy, and forgive us all our sins. Make us deeply sensible of the evil of them; and work in us a hearty contrition, that we may obtain forgiveness at thy hands, who art ever ready to receive the humble and penitent.

And lest, through our own frailty, or the temptations which encompass us, we be drawn into further sin, grant us the direction and assistance of thy Holy Spirit. Reform whatever is amiss in the temper and disposition of our souls; that no unclean thoughts, unlawful designs, or inordinate desires may rest there. Purge our hearts from envy, hatred, and malice; that we may never suffer the sun to go down upon our wrath; but may always

retire to our rest, in peace, charity, and good will, with a conscience void of offence towards thee and towards man.

And accept, O Lord, our intercessions for all mankind. Let the light of thy gospel shine upon all nations; and may as many as have received it live as becomes it. Be gracious unto thy church; and grant that every member of the same, in his vocation and ministry, may serve thee faithfully. Bless all in authority over us; and so rule their hearts and strengthen their hands, that they may punish wickedness and vice, and maintain thy true religion and virtue. Send down thy blessings, temporal and spiritual, upon all our relations, friends, and neighbors. Reward all who have done us good, and pardon all those who have done or wish us evil, and give them repentance and better minds. Be merciful to all who are in any trouble; and of thine abundant goodness minister unto them according to their several necessities.

To our prayers, O Lord, we join our unfeigned thanks for all thy mercies; for our being, our reason, and all other endowments and faculties of soul and body; for our health, friends, food, and raiment, and all the other comforts and conveniences of life. Above all, we adore thy mercy in sending thy Son into the world to redeem us from sin and death, and to show us the Father. We bless thee for thy patience with us; for the assistances of thy Holy Spirit; for thy continual care and watchful providence over us through the whole course of our lives. We pray thee to continue thy blessings to us, and to give us grace to show our thankfulness in a sincere obedience to thy laws.

We beseech thee to protect us this night. Defend us from all dangers, and give us such refreshing sleep as may fit us for the duties of the following

day. Make us ever mindful of the time when we shall lie down in the dust; and grant us grace always to live in such a state, that we may never be afraid to die; so that, living and dying, we may be thine, and thine forevermore, We ask all in the name of thy Son Jesus Christ. Amen.

SATURDAY MORNING.

O GOD, our Creator and heavenly Father, the Giver of all good, upon whom we depend now and forever, we, thy creatures and thy servants, do humbly thank thee for thine undeserved goodness to us at all times, and particularly for the watchful care of thy providence, by which we have been preserved during the defenceless hours of the night, and brought in health and safety to the light of another day.

Thy mercies, O God, are renewed to us every morning. May our gratitude and dutiful obedience bear some proportion to thy favors, that we may be a family fearing thee, and glorifying thy name among men. We desire to set thee, our God, before us in all our ways, that thy blessing may constantly go along with us, and that we may never undertake any thing which we dare not ask of thee to prosper ; but may always pursue what thou, the righteous Judge, approvest, and wilt finally reward and honor.

Assist us, gracious God, in the discharge of all our duties. May it be our prevailing aim to bear a nearer resemblance unto thee, the Original of all perfection, and to proceed, after the example of Jesus Christ thy Son, in the practice of all goodness. By the expectation of a happy immortality, may our virtue be supported and our peace secured; that we may live in a state of continual improvement,