ACTS XI.

MORNING HYMN.

"Mercies new every morning."

NEW every morning is the love
Our wakening and uprising prove,

Through sleep and darkness safely brought,
Restored to life, and power, and thought.

New mercies each returning day

Hover around us as we pray;

New perils past, new sins forgiven,

New thoughts of God, new hopes of heaven.

If, on our daily course, our mind

Be set to hallow all we find;

New treasures still of countless price
God will provide for sacrifice.

Old friends, old scenes will lovelier be,
As more of heaven in each we see;
Some softening gleam of love and prayer
Shall dawn on every cross and care.

Oh teach us, Lord, to see thy love,
And joy in hope of rest above;
And help us this, and every day,
To live more nearly as we pray.

ACTS XII.

EVENING HYMN.

"Search the Scriptures."

DOES the Lord of glory speak
To his creatures here below?
And may souls so frail and weak

All thy gracious dealings know?
Does the blessed Bible bring
Tidings from our heavenly King?

Oh with what intense desire

Should we search that sacred book!
Here our zeal should never tire;
Here we should delight to look

For the rules by mercy given,
To conduct our souls to heaven.

Shall not he that humbly seeks,

All the light of truth discern? Do we not, when Jesus speaks, Feel our hearts within us burn?

For his soul-reviving voice

Bids the mourner to rejoice.

Lord, thy teaching aid impart,

That we may not read in vain ; Write thy precepts on our heart, Make thy truths and doctrines plain.

Let the message of thy love

Guide us to thy rest above.

GOD of the morning, thou didst at first say, Let there be light, and there was light, and ever since, the darkness and the light, the day and the night, have succeeded each other; for thou art faithful to thy promise, and mindful of the wants of thy children, and thy tender mercies are over all thy works.

Thou art the author of a purer and holier light. We thank thee for the natural sun, but we thank thee more for the Sun of righteousness. We thank thee for the pleasure with which we behold the light of day, but we thank thee more for thy word which reveals the light of life. And oh how much we owe for that thou hast enlightened the eyes of our understanding, and made us unto salvation!

We have sinned. Our nature is depraved, our heart is corrupt; but thy word shows us how thou canst forgive sin, and its precious invitations and promises bring us to sue for mercy. We do so with humility, ashamed and confounded; yet believing that we cannot sue in vain. Lord, we believe! help thou our unbelief. Wash us throughly from our iniquity, and cleanse us from our sin. We plead for acceptance through the righteousness of Jesus Christ our Lord. Create in us a clean heart, O God, and renew a fixed spirit within us. Enlighten our understandings. Help us to walk in thy light.

May it be our aim to honour thee in the world. Oh for hearts habitually right in thy sight! Oh for affec

tions set on things in heaven. Oh for grace to help us in all our need. We pray for the teaching by which we shall understand thy truth, and for wisdom to hide it in our hearts that we may not sin against thee!

O Lord, we look up to thee on behalf of thy cause in the world. Fearful is the darkness all around us. Thick is the night which hangs over the nations; but thou canst disperse the gloom. O thou who hast shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of thyself in Jesus Christ, shine into the hearts of thousands and millions who yet know thee not. Let darkness pass away and the true light shine in every land. Thou hast promised that the knowledge of the Lord shall cover the earth. God of mercy, we plead thy promise. Let the dark lands which are the habitations of cruelty be radiant with the light of life, and grant us, O Lord, the honour of bearing some humble part in diffusing the knowledge of thy salvation!

May our proceedings to-day be under thy guidance. Wherever we may be in any part of this day let thy presence be with us. On whatever we do let thy blessing so rest that it may be done in thy fear, and crowned, if it please thee, with success. For all that may befall us, may we be mercifully prepared, and may all the events and circumstances of the day contribute to our advancement in holiness. All resources are with thee, and thou canst do for us exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think. Hear in heaven thy dwelling-place, and do whatever may be needful for our welfare, and for thine own glory in and by us, and we will ascribe the praise to thee through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

ALMIGHTY and most merciful God, we bless thee for the privilege of prayer; we thank thee for the way of access to thy throne which Christ has opened to us. We come to thee now by his blood. May it be with

Teach us how

true hearts, in full assurance of faith. to pray, and what to pray for, and let thy Spirit make intercession within us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

We confess our guilt as children of a fallen father; and we ourselves have departed from thee in unnumbered instances; even this day has seen our shortcomings and our sins. Make us sensible, O Lord, of the evil that is within us. Teach us how undeserving we are that thou shouldest look favourably upon us. We depend upon thy grace alone. Oh for pardoning mercy through Jesus Christ our Lord. Oh for a heart to hate sin and resist it evermore, till it shall be entirely destroyed. May we experience every day the grace which is given to us in Christ Jesus, teaching us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world. Thou art the strength of all them that put their trust in thee; mercifully accept our prayers; and because, through the weakness of our mortal nature, we can do nothing good without thee, grant us the help of thy grace, that in keeping thy commandments we may please thee both in will and deed, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Keep us, we beseech thee, under the pro