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If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Evening Incense - -Author: John Ross Macduff - -Release Date: January 14, 2016 [EBook #50916] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK EVENING INCENSE *** - - - - -Produced by Heiko Evermann, Chris Pinfield, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -book was produced from scanned images of public domain -material from the Google Books project.) - - - - - -Transcriber's Note. - -Apparent typographical errors have been corrected, as have -inconsistencies in the use of hyphens. - -A Table of Contents has been inserted to assist the reader. - -Italics are indicated by _underscores_. Small capitals have been -replaced by full capitals. - - - - - EVENING INCENSE. - - BY THE AUTHOR OF - - "MORNING AND NIGHT WATCHES," - "WORDS OF JESUS," etc., etc. - - PHILADELPHIA: - H. HOOKER, CHESTNUT & EIGHTH STREETS. - 1856. - - - KING & BAIRD, PRINTERS, - 9 Sansom Street. - - - - -"And thou shalt make an ALTAR to burn INCENSE upon: - -"And thou shalt put it ... before the MERCY-SEAT that is over the -testimony, where I will meet with thee. - -"And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at EVEN, he shall burn INCENSE upon -it."--Exod. xxx. 1, 6, 8. - - - - - "The star-lit sky's a temple-arch, - The calm, still, evening air - Is glorious with the spirit-march - Of messengers of prayer. - - "Are gentle moon, or kindling sun, - Or stars unnumbered, given - As shrines to burn earth's incense on-- - The altar-fires of heaven? - - "Nay! pale away must moon and sun, - And star by star decline; - O be, Thou ever living One, - Thy 'GOLDEN ALTAR'--mine!" - - - - -EVENING INCENSE. - - -The writer has endeavored in the following pages to comply with -frequent requests made to him to prepare a small volume of _Evening_ -Prayers, suitable as a companion to the "_Morning_ Watches." - -May He with whom is "the residue of the Spirit," "cause His Angel to -fly swiftly" and touch us in the time of our Evening Oblation; and may -all that is amiss in thought and word be lost in the fragrant -incense-cloud which ascends from the Golden Altar before the Throne! - - -_December, 1855._ - - - - - Table of Contents - - - Evening Page - - I. FOR COMMUNION WITH GOD. 7 - II. FOR PARDONING GRACE. 10 - III. FOR RENEWING GRACE. 13 - IV. FOR SANCTIFYING GRACE. 16 - V. FOR RESTRAINING GRACE. 19 - VI. FOR RESTORING GRACE. 22 - VII. FOR QUICKENING GRACE. 26 - VIII. FOR IMPUTED RIGHTEOUSNESS. 29 - IX. FOR PEACE IN BELIEVING. 32 - X. FOR THE SPIRIT OF ADOPTION. 35 - XI. FOR WEANEDNESS FROM THE WORLD. 38 - XII. FOR GRATITUDE FOR THE PAST. 41 - XIII. FOR TRUST FOR THE FUTURE. 44 - XIV. FOR KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST. 47 - XV. FOR GUIDANCE IN PERPLEXITY. 50 - XVI. FOR VICTORY OVER SIN. 53 - XVII. FOR THE LIFE OF FAITH. 56 - XVIII. FOR THE DAILY DEATH. 60 - XIX. FOR RENUNCIATION OF SELF. 63 - XX. FOR A CHILD-LIKE SPIRIT. 66 - XXI. FOR HEAVENWARD PROGRESS. 69 - XXII. FOR HUMILITY OF HEART. 72 - XXIII. FOR FIRMNESS IN TEMPTATION. 75 - XXIV. FOR COMPOSURE IN TRIAL. 78 - XXV. FOR ACTIVITY IN DUTY. 81 - XXVI. FOR THE SPIRIT'S TEACHING. 85 - XXVII. FOR THE WORLD'S CONVERSION. 88 - XXVIII. FOR THE CHURCH'S REVIVAL. 91 - XXIX. FOR SUPPORT IN DEATH. 94 - XXX. FOR PREPARATION FOR JUDGMENT. 97 - XXXI. FOR MEETING IN HEAVEN. 100 - - - - -FIRST EVENING. - -FOR COMMUNION WITH GOD. - -"Abide with us; for it is towards evening, and the day is far -spent."--Luke xxiv. 29. - - -O God, I desire to approach Thy throne of Grace on the evening of this -day, beseeching Thee to grant me Thy benediction and blessing. The -shadows of night have once more gathered around me; may no shadow of -sin or unbelief darken my soul, or interrupt my communion with Thee. -"It is not night if Thou art near." Let me enter the inner chamber of -Thy presence, and experience conscious fellowship with Thee my Father -in Heaven. - -Do Thou graciously forgive all the sins of the past day, its sins of -omission and of commission, of thought, and word, and deed. Hide me -anew in the clefts of the Smitten Rock. I confidently repose my -everlasting interests on the finished work and righteousness of a -tried Redeemer. May I know more and more of the attractive power of -His Cross--the adaptation of His character and work to all the wants -and weaknesses, the sorrows and infirmities, of my tried and suffering -and tempted nature. May I live more under the sovereign motive of love -to Him, and experience more the happiness of life spent in His service. - -Gracious Lord! may a sense of Thy favor penetrate with its leavening -power every duty in which I engage, lessening every cross and -sweetening every care. Take what Thou wilt away, but take not Thyself; -no earthly good can compensate for the loss of Thy friendship. -Existence would be one vast blank without Thee. Give me to realize the -blessedness of unfaltering dependence on Thy covenant mercy, knowing -that all which befalls me is the pledge and dictate of unerring love, -and that nothing can come wrong that comes from Thy hand. - -Thus while my daily walk is hallowed and brightened by Thy presence -and fellowship, may I be enabled to look calm and undismayed on the -unknown and chequered future, feeling that even over the gloomy -portals of the grave, with Thee as my Portion and Heritage, I can -write, "To die is gain!" Meanwhile do Thou fit me for every duty, -prepare me for every trial. If Thou givest me the "full cup," give me -grace to carry it with a steady hand. If Thou sendest adversity, let -me regard it as Thine own gracious discipline, to wean me from earth -and train me for glory. - -May it be my great ambition, through the help of Thy Blessed Spirit, -to attain a gradual resemblance to the character and conformity to the -will of my adorable Redeemer. May I be clothed with humility. May I be -daily becoming more meek and gentle, more contented and thankful, more -submissive and resigned, watching against anything in my heart or -conduct that I know would be displeasing to Thee, making it my meat -and my drink to do Thy holy will. - -Thou unslumbering Shepherd of Israel, vouchsafe Thy guardian care to -all near and dear to me: shield them from danger: give Thine angels -charge over them; sanctify them body, soul, and spirit; seal them unto -the day of eternal redemption. - -May we all lie down to sleep this night in Thy fear, and awake in Thy -favor, fitted for the duties of a new day. And all I ask is for Jesus' -sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -SECOND EVENING. - -FOR PARDONING GRACE. - -"For Thy name's sake, O Lord, pardon mine iniquity; for it is -great."--Ps. xxv. 11. - - -Gracious God! do Thou look down upon me this night in Thy great mercy. -May I have now the inner sunshine of Thy presence! Ere I retire to -rest, let me pitch my tent near Thyself, and enjoy the tokens of Thy -favor and blessing. Thy loving-kindness has been new to me every -morning, and Thy faithfulness every night. - -I desire to render Thee the thank-offering of a grateful heart. My -life is one wondrous attestation to Thy patience and forbearance. The -kindness of the best earthly friend has been nothing to Thine. Thou -mightest long ere now have left me to reap the fruits of my own guilty -estrangement, withdrawing the grace and Spirit I have so long -resisted, executing against me the awful doom of the cumberer. But I -am still spared, a living monument of mercy. Thy ways are not as man's -ways, nor Thy thoughts as man's thoughts. - -Lord, I would seek anew this night to close with the alone Sovereign -remedy! Jesus! there is no other prop but Thee to support a sinking -soul and a sinking world. There is nothing between me and everlasting -destruction but Thy glorious work and finished righteousness. I -rejoice to think that it is all I need--living or dying, for time or -for eternity. O blot out in Thy precious blood my many, many sins. -Nothing in my own hands I bring; I cling simply to Thy cross. Mercy -and truth have there met together; righteousness and peace have -embraced each other. Reposing in what Thou has done, and in what Thou -art still willing to do, I can rejoicingly say, "Return unto thy rest, -O my soul." - -Bring me to live more habitually under the constraining influence of -redeeming love. Purchased at such a price, may I be willing freely to -consecrate soul and body to Thy service. Let me feel that the -bitterest of all trials is the forfeiture of Thy favor and love, and -the loftiest joy is the assured possession of Thy gracious friendship. -May my spirit be brought into blessed unison with Thine. May I become -more gentle, and resigned, and submissive, and unselfish; more -heavenly-minded; more Saviour-like. May I be led to regard _all_, even -Thy darkest dealings to me here, as needful parts in Thy plan of -stupendous wisdom. May I rest contented in the assurance that what I -know not now I shall know hereafter. - -Unite me to all my dear friends, and them to me, in the bonds of -Christian love. Amid all the fluctuations of this mortal life, may we -ever have grace given us to cleave unto the Lord with full purpose of -heart. Treading the same pilgrim-journey, may we arrive at last at the -same pilgrim-home. - -I would retire to rest this night with my eye on the opened fountain. -O give me that peace of Thine which the world knoweth not of, which -the world cannot give, and, blessed be God, which the world cannot -take away! Abide with me, for it is towards evening, and the day is -far spent. Give thine angels charge over me during the unconscious -hours of sleep, and, when all my evenings and mornings shall be -finished, may it be mine to wake up with Thyself in glory everlasting, -through Jesus Christ my only Lord and Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -THIRD EVENING. - -FOR RENEWING GRACE. - -"Renew a right spirit within me."--Psalm li. 10. - - -Blessed God, I desire anew to end this night with Thee! Do Thou -enkindle my soul as with a live coal from off Thy holy altar! Let all -unhallowed and obtrusive thoughts and cares be set aside, that I may -enjoy a season of fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus -Christ. - -I rejoice to think that I have such a Friend to repair to--such a -never-failing refuge in every season of perplexity and trouble; -vicissitude is written on all around me, but "Thou art the same." -Though often, alas! I have changed towards Thee, Thou hast never -changed towards me. Thou didst love me from the beginning, and that -love remains to this hour, infinite, unalterable! - -Lord, I am mourning over my many and grievous backslidings, my base -and unworthy requital of all Thine unmerited kindness. Bring me in -poverty of Spirit, with deep conscious unworthiness, to say, "God be -merciful to me a sinner." Give me a realizing sense of the evil of -sin, and my own sin in particular. I feel that I have no abiding and -depressing consciousness of my guilt. How little of genuine, heartfelt -contrition do I experience! How often I _appear_ to be humble and -penitent when I am _not_! How do my very prayers condemn me; and my -confessions of sin need themselves to be confessed! - -Oh renew me in the spirit of my mind.--May all old things pass away; -may all things be made new. Transform me by the indwelling power of -Thy quickening Spirit. May affections now alienated from Thee be -reclaimed to Thy service. May I seek to be more animated by the -sovereign motive of love to Him, whose I am, and whom it is alike my -duty and my privilege to obey. Knowing that this is Thy will -concerning me, even my sanctification, may it be my constant ambition -to be growing in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour -Jesus Christ. - -I have in myself no might, no power, no sufficiency, to do any of -these things. My sufficiency is of Thee. Do Thou make Thy grace -sufficient for me, and perfect strength in weakness. Keep me from all -evil that would be likely to grieve me. Wean me from all that is -fleeting and perishable here, and may all Thy dealings towards me -issue in the confirmed habit of a holy life. If Thou sendest -affliction, let me regard it as Thine own way of dispensing spiritual -blessing, and bow with lowly submission to Thy sovereign appointments. - -Bless all my beloved friends. Keep them as the apple of Thine eye. -Hide them under the shadow of Thy everlasting wings. Sanctify trial to -all in sorrow. Let the widow and the fatherless put their trust in -Thee. Succor the poor and him that hath no helper. Support the aged. -Sustain the dying. May we all bear one another's burdens and so fulfil -the law of Christ. - -As the pillar of cloud has been with me by day, so may the pillar of -fire be with me this night. Watch over me during the unconscious hours -of sleep, and when I awake may I be still with Thee. And all I ask is -for the sake of Jesus Christ, my only Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -FOURTH EVENING. - -FOR SANCTIFYING GRACE. - -"Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy word is truth."--John xvii. 17. - - -Blessed Lord, do Thou bend Thy pitying eye of love and mercy upon me -this evening. Draw Thou near to me as I venture once more on praying -and on pleading ground. I desire to feel that I am one night nearer -glory. Oh, enable me to feel, as night after night is silently -stealing over my head, that my seasons and opportunities of grace are -fleeting fast away, and that soon the night cometh, wherein I can work -no more. - -Alas! O God, how little have I improved the time that is past! I am a -wonder to myself, that with all my deep ingratitude and utter vileness -I am yet permitted to approach Thy footstool: I have sinned against -light and love--warning and mercy--grace and privilege. The retrospect -of life is a retrospect of guilt. I mourn over my manifold -shortcomings--the alienation of my heart from Thee--the fitfulness of -my spiritual frames--the ebbings and flowings in the tide of my love. -When tried by the lofty and unerring standard of Thy law, how are my -best actions and duties marred with defilement! How much self-seeking -and self-glorying--how little animated by the predominating motive of -love to Thee, and singleness of eye to Thy service! - -Blessed Jesus! I flee anew to the pavilion of Thy love. I have no -other hope, no other refuge, but in Thy finished work--Thy matchless -atonement--Thy spotless righteousness. There is in Thee an -all-sufficiency for every want. Finite necessities cannot exhaust -Infinite fullness. Let me hear Thy voice saying, "Thy sins, which are -many, are all forgiven thee!" O sprinkle me with Thy blood; sanctify -me, body, soul, and spirit. Transform me more and more into Thine own -image. May I know more and more the happiness of true holiness--that I -am really blessed in seeking to walk so as to please God. May the -power of grace wax stronger and stronger, and the power of sin wax -weaker and weaker. May trials and crosses become light and easy to me -when borne in a spirit of meek, unrepining submission to the Divine -will. May this quiet every doubt and misgiving, "Your heavenly Father -knoweth that ye have need of all these things." Lord, may every -providential dealing prove a heart-searcher, testing the reality of my -love to Thee, and my meetness and preparedness for Thy heavenly -kingdom. - -Extend, Lord, Thy cause and Gospel everywhere. Strengthen Thy -missionary and ministering servants. May they ever hear the sound of -their Master's footsteps behind them. May thy churches walk in the -fear of God and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost. - -Bless all my beloved friends wherever they are; do Thou be their -Almighty Protector and Guide. Let the angel come at this the time of -evening incense, touching all our hearts, and granting us an answer to -our several petitions. Let us rise to-morrow refreshed for Thy -service; and fitted for whatsoever in Thy good providence we may be -called either to do or to suffer. Hear me, gracious God, for the sake -of Him whom Thou hearest always. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -FIFTH EVENING. - -FOR RESTRAINING GRACE. - -"Keep back Thy servant also from presumptuous sins."--Psalm xix. 13. - - -Blessed God, Thou hast in Thy mercy permitted me to see the close of -another day. With what unwearying watchfulness has Thou been -compassing my path!--defending me from danger, guarding me from -temptation, hedging up my way with thorns, "preventing me with the -blessings of Thy goodness!" There is no friend in the world I have -like Thee; none so able, none so willing to be my friend. If I have -been successful in resisting sin, it is all Thy blessed grace which -has enabled me. From how many slippery places has Thou rescued me! -When often on the brink of the precipice, ready to fall, Thy -interposing hand has saved me from inevitable destruction. When -through my own weakness and unwatchfulness I must now have been -wandering in hopeless alienation from Thee, Thou hast mercifully not -suffered the bruised reed to be broken, nor the smoking flax to be -quenched. - -Lord, my earnest prayer is that Thy grace may still be made sufficient -for me. May no spiritual foe be allowed to invade my peace or endanger -my safety. Let Thy love be restored to its rightful ascendancy in my -affections. May no rival be allowed to usurp its place. May I ever -exercise a holy jealousy over this truant, wandering, deceitful heart; -seeking day by day to subdue unmortified sin. - -May all Thy dispensations issue in my sanctification. Let me seek no -unruffled path; may the cross be willingly carried. Thou lovest me too -well to give me my own way. Whatever Thy will and Thy dealings may be, -be it mine cheerfully and rejoicingly to acquiesce in them, knowing -them to be the dictate of infinite wisdom and unchanging love. May all -my worldly business and engagements be interfused and hallowed with -the blessed sense and assurance of Thy favor! Walking all the day in -the light of Thy countenance, I must be safe! - -God of Bethel--God of all the families of the earth, vouchsafe Thy -richest benediction on all near and dear to me. Give thine angels -charge over them; let their names be written among the living in -Jerusalem; and oh, may we all seek in our several spheres to glorify -Thee on earth, either by active duty or by patient endurance; -exemplifying in our daily walk the meek and lowly, the unselfish and -self-denying, spirit of Him, who hath left us an example that we -should follow His steps. - -Hasten the coming of Thy Son's kingdom. Arise, O God, and plead Thine -own cause. "Save Thy people, bless Thine inheritance, feed them also -and lift them up for ever." - -The curtain of night is again drawn around me. If it be Thy will, -spare me to see the light and enjoy the comforts of a new day; may I -seek anew to enjoy them in Thee; may every blessing be doubly sweet to -me, bearing the impress of Thy love in Jesus. Guide me _in_ life, -_through_ death, _into_ glory, for the sake of Him in whom is all my -hope, and to whom, with Thee the Father, and Thee, ever-blessed -Spirit, one God, be ascribed all blessing and honor and glory and -praise, world without end. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -SIXTH EVENING. - -FOR RESTORING GRACE. - -"Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation."--Ps. li. 12. - - -Blessed God, I rejoice to know that the gates of prayer are ever -open;--that for the sake of Jesus Christ, my adorable Redeemer, Thou -art waiting to be gracious, not willing that any should perish. - -Come in the plenitude of Thy love this evening, that I may feel it to -be good for me to draw near to God! Scatter my darkness, Thou better -Sun, with the brightness of Thy rising. Give me filial confidence in -approaching the mercy-seat, rejoicing in the mightiest of all Beings -as my Father and Friend. - -Blessed Jesus! I would exercise a simple confidence and trust in Thy -finished work, I would seek to wash anew in the opened fountain of Thy -blood, to repose anew in the faithful saying which never can cease, to -the sin-stricken, sin-burdened soul, to be worthy of all acceptation, -that Thou didst come into the world to save the chief of sinners. - -I have to mourn, O Lord, my constant proneness to depart from -Thee--the instability of my best purposes of obedience. Unsupported by -Thy grace I must fall. There is nothing, O Thou great Intercessor -within the veil, but Thine omnipotent pleadings between me and -irretrievable ruin. But Thou hast prayed, and art even now praying, -for me that my faith fail not. Oh if I am still prone to start aside, -like a deceitful bow, do Thou bring me back again! Reclaim my truant -heart from its wanderings. I would cast myself with simple dependence -on Thy grace for the future. This is sufficient for all wants and -equal to all exigencies. Thine everlasting arms are lower than my -deepest necessities. Adorable Saviour, I may well cast my every care -on Thee, for these cares Thou makest Thine own. Thou hast a heart to -feel for those who have often no heart to feel for themselves. Oh let -me ever seek to hear Thy directing voice and to hear no other. - -Do Thou carry on within me Thine own work in thine own way. Thou, -Great Shepherd of Israel, canst not lead me wrong. I delight to trace -Thy guiding love in the past, and I may well trust Thee still; going -up through the wilderness may I lean on Thine arm; when I come to die -may the gloom of the dark valley be lighted with the rays of Thy love, -and may I hear Thy voice whispering in gentle accents, "Fear not, for -I am with thee." Be gracious to all my beloved friends. Train them -also, by Thy good Spirit, for eternity. Fit them for every duty. Arm -them against every temptation. Dispose them to fear Thy glorious name, -and to live from day to day under the powers and influences of a world -to come. Compassionate the afflicted; comfort the bereaved; support -the dying. - -Lord, take the charge of me during the silent watches of another -night. May I rise on the morrow to renew my work and warfare on earth, -looking forward to the time when the twilight of this world shall melt -into everlasting day, and when nothing shall evermore mar or interrupt -the blessedness of endless communion with Thee: through Jesus Christ, -my only Lord and Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -SEVENTH EVENING. - -FOR QUICKENING GRACE. - -"Quicken me after Thy loving kindness, so shall I keep the testimony -of Thy mouth."--Psalm cxix. 88. - - -O God, on this the close of another day, I desire to approach the -footstool of Thy throne. Glory be to Thy holy name that I can enjoy -freedom of access into Thy presence, and with the confidence of a -child unburden and unbosom to Thee all my wants and sins, my sorrows -and infirmities, my perplexities and cares. - -Lord, how unworthy I am of the least of all Thy mercies! What -righteous cause hast Thou to cut me down as a cumberer of the ground. -How cold my love, how unfrequent my prayers! How full my heart of -pride and vain-glory, self and sin! How little have I habitually -realized Thy nearness and sought Thy favor as my chief good! There is -enough of coldness and formality in my best approaches to Thy -footstool to lead Thee in Thy wrath to spurn me forever away, and to -mingle my blood with my sacrifices! - -I cast myself as a worthless unworthy sinner at the feet of Jesus. I -need daily, hourly washing at that fountain which He has opened for -sin and for uncleanness. Wash me, gracious Lord, fully, freely, and -forever. Let me know the blessedness of "no condemnation." Deepen my -contrition on account of my sin. I am apt to palliate its enormity, to -invent vain excuses for its commission, to hide its heinousness from -myself, and to hide it from Thee. Let me see all sin, and my own sin -in particular, in the light of Calvary's cross. May I hate it with a -perfect hatred, and resolve in Thy grace that it henceforth have no -dominion over me. Oh quicken me by the indwelling of Thy blessed -Spirit. May I seek to be progressing in the divine life. May my -pathway heavenward be brightened by a lively sense of reconciliation -through the blood of the everlasting covenant. - -Let me lean on Thy heavenly arm, seeking Thy glory with singleness of -eye. May it be my greatest grief to give Thee pain, my greatest joy -and happiness to do Thy will. Keep me from all hard thoughts and -unrighteous surmises regarding Thy dealings. May I see them all as -designed to quicken my steps in the heavenly way, to bring me nearer -Thyself, and to impart an increasing meetness for glory. Let Thy -kingdom come, let Thy blessed Gospel triumph over the pride and -superstition and will-worship of man. Put an end to war and discord, -and may all the ends of the earth see Thy salvation. Bless Thy -ministering servants; may they be valiant for the truth, and have no -fear but the fear of God. - -Be the Guide and Guardian of all whom I love. Preserve their bodies -from danger and their souls from sin. Watch over them and me this -night; be about our bed as Thou hast been about our path. Night after -night as I retire to rest may I think of the deeper darkness of the -night of death, which must, sooner or later encompass me. Reposing in -the merits of my gracious Redeemer, may I be enabled to look _beyond_ -death and the grave, to that morning without clouds, when I shall -awake in His likeness, and be ushered into the full vision and -fruition of Thee my God; and all that I ask or hope for is for His -sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -EIGHTH EVENING. - -FOR IMPUTED RIGHTEOUSNESS. - -"Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto -all and upon all them that believe."--Rom. iii. 22. - - -Almighty God, Father of all mercies, I desire to draw near into Thy -sacred presence on this the evening of another day, under a deep sense -of my own great unworthiness. What am I, guilty, sinful, polluted, -that I should be permitted to take Thy name into my lips, or so much -as lift up my eyes to the place where Thou in glory dwellest! - -I desire to renounce all dependence on myself. I come with all the -great burden of my great guilt to a great Saviour. I seek to bring the -unrighteousness of an unworthy creature to the infinite righteousness -and everlasting faithfulness of a tried Redeemer. Where would I have -been, Blessed Jesus! this night, _but for Thee_! All I am, and all I -have, I owe to Thy free, sovereign, unmerited grace. All my temporal -mercies are sweetened to me as flowing from Thy cross, and bearing on -them the image and superscription of Thy love. And for every spiritual -blessing I enjoy, and every spiritual hope I entertain, I desire -doubly to adore thee, Thou Great Author and Finisher of my faith! Whom -have I in heaven but Thee, and there is none in all the earth I desire -besides Thee. Thou alone canst fill up the aching voids of my heart. -In vain can I look to a transient world, or to the perishable -creature, for solid peace and permanent enjoyment. All my well-springs -are in Thyself; with Thee for my portion I am independent of every -other. - -I desire this night to obtain a lively and humbling view of my own -spiritual poverty and deep creature destitution, that I may rejoice in -the fullness and all-sufficiency of that righteousness which is unto -all and upon all them that believe. In that righteousness I would seek -to live, and in that righteousness I would seek to die. There is -nothing else between me and everlasting ruin. But for Thee, Thou great -Covenant-Angel standing in the breach, the fire of God would break -forth and mingle my blood with this my evening sacrifice! But I "will -greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God, for He -hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, He hath covered me -with a robe of righteousness." I take Thee, O adorable Saviour, as -mine only, mine wholly; mine for all wants and all exigencies. I -rejoice in the inexhaustible riches treasured up in Thee--that Thy -fullness is adequate to supply all my present necessities; and out of -that fullness I may still continue receiving, and that for ever and -ever! - -Lord, look in great kindness on all whom I love. Pity a perishing -world. Arrest the careless; reclaim the wandering; strengthen the -feeble. Hasten Thy Son's coming and kingdom. How long shall the -wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph? Save Thy people; bless -Thine inheritance; feed them also, and lift them up for ever. - -Let the curtain of Thy protecting providence be drawn around me this -night. Let me fall asleep at peace with Thee, ready, if need be, to -awake up in glory. And all I ask is for Jesus' sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -NINTH EVENING. - -FOR PEACE IN BELIEVING. - -"Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our -Lord Jesus Christ."--Rom. v. 1. - - -Gracious God, I would seek to end another day with Thee; I would -desire to look up to Thee through Jesus Christ, Thy well-beloved Son, -and to be made partaker of that peace which passeth all understanding. -There is no other refuge for the sin-stricken, woe-worn spirit. In -vain amid other portions and meaner joys can I say to my soul "peace, -peace." There is no peace! But reposing, blessed Saviour, on Thy -finished work and everlasting righteousness, I have a peace which the -world knows not of, and which enables me to rise superior to all the -vicissitudes and changes of this changing life. - -I desire to remember with a grateful heart that this peace has been -purchased for me by the blood of the cross--that it is made as sure as -everlasting power and wisdom and faithfulness can make it. O Thou -great Prince, who hast power with God and dost prevail, I would lift -the undivided eye of faith to Thy bleeding sacrifice! Do Thou dispel -every disquieting fear with the thought that Thou hast done all, and -suffered all, and procured all for me. Being justified by faith, I -have peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ. I rejoice in the -plenitude of Thy promises, that they are all yea and amen to them that -believe. Man's word may fail, man's faithfulness may falter, but "the -word of the Lord is tried," Thy faithfulness is unto all generations! - -O God, enable me to rejoice more and more in Thee as my everlasting -portion. May I know nothing to compare with the enjoyment of Thy -favor. Other props may be removed, other refuges may prove refuges of -lies, but Thou art the strength of my heart and my portion for ever. - -Give me grace to be active in Thy service while it is called to-day. -Opportunities are fleeting. The night cometh wherein none of us can -work. May simple believing be followed by the earnest cultivation of -every Christian virtue, and by progressive advancement in the heavenly -life. May I faithfully employ the talents Thou hast intrusted to me, -and seek never to be weary in well doing. Preserve me from every -unholy temper and unchristian deed. May I be gentle and meek, patient -and forgiving, kind and benevolent, living in charity towards all men. - -On all my beloved friends I supplicate Thy richest blessing. Protect -them with Thy favor as with a shield. Sanctify them, body, soul, and -spirit. Seal them unto the day of eternal redemption. - -Bless all poor afflicted ones. Let them receive largely out of the -wells of Thine own everlasting consolation. Let them see Thy sovereign -hand alone in their trials, and say with unrepining submission, "The -Lord's will be done!" - -Lord, take the charge of me through the silent watches of the night. -May I fall asleep listening to the gracious benediction, "Peace be -unto you." And when the gates of the morning are opened, may it be to -hear anew Thy voice saying, "My presence will go with you." Hear, -accept, and answer me, for the Redeemer's sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TENTH EVENING. - -FOR THE SPIRIT OF ADOPTION. - -"Ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, -Father."--Rom. viii. 15. - - -Blessed Lord! I desire to draw near this night with holy boldness to -the footstool of Thy throne, rejoicing that I can look up to Thee as -my Father in heaven. "Behold what manner of love is this the Father -hath bestowed on me, that I should be called a child of God." Thou -mightest have righteously left me orphaned, friendless, portionless -for ever. But in the midst of wrath Thou hast remembered mercy: the -kindness of no earthly parent, O God, could equal thine. Thou hast -borne with all my obstinacy, all my perverseness, and waywardness, and -ingratitude. I am at this hour the monument of a love as wondrous as -it is undeserved. - -Oh teach me to cultivate more and more a spirit of child-like -obedience to Thee; to cherish a holy fear of offending so kind and -forgiving and beneficent a Father. Whilst Thou art strewing my -wilderness path with unmerited blessings, may I be enabled to rise -above every earthly gift and mercy to the better inheritance I have in -Thee, the bountiful Bestower of all! Let me feel every created -blessing to be doubly sweet, as emanating from a Father's hand, and -being a proof and pledge of a Father's love. Let the hour of prayer be -doubly hallowed by the thought that I am permitted to haunt a Father's -presence, and pour my wants into a Father's ear. Let the season of -sorrow be sweetened by the thought that the rod is in a Father's hand, -and that the voice, though apparently rough, is the tender whispering -of parental love. - -Blessed Jesus! I desire to remember that it is Thou and Thou only who -hast not left me "comfortless." It is Thou who hast devised and -completed a way by which "Thy banished" may not be "expelled" from a -Father's presence. Thou hast opened a door of welcome to the chief of -sinners. It is Thy blessed voice and Thy glorious work which utter the -gracious declaration, "In my Father's house there are many mansions." -Oh let me lean with a more simple and entire dependence on Thee; let -me live from day to day with an unfaltering trust in Thy mercy. May -every new evening, as it finds me laying the incense-offering of -gratitude and love on Thine altar, find me also a stage nearer my -Father's house, nearer _home_, and nearer _Thee_. - -Take all my beloved friends under Thy shadowing wings this night. The -darkness can not screen them from Thee; the curtains of night can not -exclude Thy kind and watchful eye. Guide, guard, protect them, and -bring them all at last to Thy heavenly kingdom. - -Bless Thy Church everywhere; lengthen her cords and strengthen her -stakes. Be a wall of fire around Thy Zion and the glory in the midst -thereof. Clothe her priests with salvation, let her saints and people -shout aloud for joy. - -Bless those on whom Thou hast laid Thine afflicting hand. May they -take refuge in the arms that are chastising them, and be enabled to -say in unmurmuring submission, "The Lord's will be done." Hear me, -gracious Father, for the sake of Jesus Christ, my blessed Lord and -Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -ELEVENTH EVENING. - -FOR WEANEDNESS FROM THE WORLD. - -"They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world."--John -xvii. 16. - - -O God, I desire to come into Thy gracious presence this night, -beseeching Thee to bless me. Let my prayer come before Thee as -incense. May the incense-offering of gratitude and thanksgiving ascend -from a grateful heart. How manifold are the proofs I have to recount -of kindness on thy part! how deep the ingratitude I have to mourn on -my own! My sins have reached unto the clouds; they are more in number -than the sand of the sea. - -Thou art of purer eyes than to behold iniquity. I cannot evade Thy -righteous scrutiny; all things are naked and open unto the eyes of Him -with whom I have to do! Lord, I have to lament the proneness of this -evil heart of unbelief ever to depart away from Thee, the living God. -I mourn the debasing influence of earthly things; the fascinating -power of a present evil world. How inclined to conform to its evil -maxims and unholy practices! How often am I found ranged among those -who "mind earthly things;" my soul cleaving to the dust, instead of -soaring upwards to Thyself, my alone satisfying portion! - -Lord, it is my earnest prayer that Thou wouldst wean me from the -world. Keep me from over-anxiety about the things that are seen--from -being over-careful and troubled about earth's "many things," to the -exclusion of the one thing needful! Break every alluring worldly -spell; disenchant things temporal of their false and delusive charm; -disengage me by all the salutary discipline of Thy providence from -what is fleeting, uncertain, transient, perishable; and unite me to -the things which cannot be shaken, but which remain forever! May my -citizenship be more in heaven; imbibing more of the pilgrim spirit, -may I declare plainly that I seek a better country. - -May the sins of the past day be forgiven; may the blood of sprinkling -wash their guilt away. May I be driven nearer and closer to Him who is -the true refuge and portion, and Saviour of His people. I rejoice to -think that He has a balm for every wound, a comfort for every bosom, a -solace for every tear. May it be mine to go up through the wilderness -leaning on His arm. May Thy Holy Spirit carry on His own work of -sanctification within me. May He enlighten, quicken, comfort, -strengthen me; and mould me in gradual conformity to Thy divine will. - -Bless all connected with me, by whatever tie. When earth's separations -are at an end, do Thou take me and all dear to me to the enjoyment of -Thy presence and love in Thine own everlasting kingdom. Let the pillar -of Thy presence be over us this night. Guard me during sleep's -unconscious hours. Let no unquiet dreams disturb my repose; may I -compose myself to rest under the sweet assurance that Thou the Lord -sustainest me; and when I awake, may I be still with Thee, through -Jesus Christ, my only Lord and Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TWELFTH EVENING. - -FOR GRATITUDE FOR THE PAST. - -"Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits."--Psalm -ciii. 2. - - -O God Almighty, do Thou draw near to me at this time in Thy great -mercy, and accept of this my Evening Sacrifice! I bless Thee for all -that gladdens my earthly lot, for food and raiment, for friends and -home, for health of body and soundness of mind. Lord, I delight to -trace the wondrous way by which Thou hast hitherto led me! Thou hast -compassed my path and my lying down. Thou hast supplied my -ever-recurring necessities. My wants have been infinite, but infinite -too has been the gracious supply. With a grateful heart I would set up -my Ebenezer, saying, "Hitherto hath the Lord helped me." And -remembering Thy faithfulness in the past, I would confidently trust -Thee for the future. - -May I thankfully employ the manifold gifts of Thy bounty. Impress upon -me the feeling that I am but a steward, responsible to Thee for all I -possess. Let me not selfishly appropriate the varied means of -usefulness thou hast put within my power, but willingly employ these -in Thy service for the good of others. When Thou comest to demand a -reckoning, may I be able to give a faithful account of my stewardship, -paying Thee Thine own with usury. - -Lord, while I bless Thee for the other proofs and tokens of Thy love, -far above all would I bless Thee for _Jesus_. Where would I have been -this night but for _Him_? How dreary would have been the past! How -dismal and hopeless the future! Thanks, eternal Thanks be unto God for -His unspeakable gift! Let me feel, more than I _have_ done, the -exceeding riches of Thy grace in Thy kindness toward me through Christ -Jesus. Let all Thy dealings only serve to confirm my love to Him, and -to lead me to cleave to Him with fuller purpose of heart. May he have -my undivided homage. Let no earthly gift or blessing supplant the -Giver, but may every rill of creative bliss be doubly sweet to me as -flowing from His atoning sacrifice. - -I rejoice in the midst of trial and perplexity to think of Thee, Thou -tried and suffering _One_. I rejoice that amid my sorrows I can -remember _Thine_, that amid my very tears, I can remember _Jesus -wept_. Thou canst enter into all the peculiarities of Thy people's -case, for Thou wert in "_all_ points tempted." Let me feel, even amid -the changes of life, that what I am apt to call vicissitudes, are the -sovereign decrees and allotments of Thine infinite wisdom; and what I -cannot comprehend now, be it mine to wait the disclosures of that -blessed morning when, standing at the luminous portals of Heaven, I -shall joyfully acknowledge that the Lord hath done all things well. - -Bless my beloved friends; may they be growing in thy fear and favor; -may they all at last, as sheaves in thy heavenly garner, be found unto -praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. - -I commend myself, gracious God, to Thy care; let me retire to rest -this night in the blessed consciousness of Thy favor; and if spared to -see the light of a new day, fit me for whatsoever Thou hast in store -for me. And all I ask is for Jesus' sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -THIRTEENTH EVENING. - -FOR TRUST FOR THE FUTURE. - -"I will trust, and be not afraid."--Isaiah xii. 2. - - -O God, Thou makest the outgoings of the evening and the morning to -rejoice over me. I thank Thee for Thy sparing mercy during the past -day. While multitudes of my fellow-men have been called away into an -eternal world, I am still preserved in the land of the living, and in -the place of hope. It is of Thy compassions alone that I am not -consumed. - -My way Zionward may well be studded with Ebenezers, testifying "the -Lord hath helped me." I may well set to my seal that God is true. The -pillar of Thy presence has guided me through many a perplexing path. -Thy love has smiled through many a threatening cloud. Thy restraining -grace has arrested me in many a slippery way; when "my soul was among -lions," how often has the Lord "sent his angel" to rescue me and shut -the lions' mouths. I am this night a marvel and miracle of Thy -patience, and forbearance, and mercy. - -Lord, I joyfully take all these past kindnesses as tokens for the -future. To Thee I would confidingly commit the unknown morrow, and -cleave to Thy guiding arm with full purpose of heart. The lot is -thrown into the lap, but the whole disposing of it is of the Lord; O, -be it my joy and privilege, thus reposing in Thy covenant -faithfulness, to say, "Undertake Thou for me." Looking forward to that -time when all Thy inscrutable dealings will be unfolded, when inner -meanings and purposes now undiscerned by the eye of sense will be -brought to light, and all discovered to be full of infinite love. - -Keep me from dishonoring Thee by the workings of unbelief; I am prone -to trust my own wisdom, O give me teachableness of spirit and -simplicity of faith, waiting patiently on Thee; leaving all that -concerns me and mine to Thy better direction. - -Blessed Jesus! I would seek to cleave closer and closer to Thy cross. -I have no trust but in Thy finished work. Other refuges may fail, but -I am as secure in Thee as everlasting love and wisdom and power can -make me. O cleanse every guilty stain away in thy most precious blood. -Let me live day by day at the opened fountain, and feel that I _only_ -"live" while _there_. Thus simply relying on Thy justifying grace, may -I seek to walk in Thy footsteps and to imbibe Thy spirit. May I follow -Thee, O Lamb of God, whithersoever Thou seest meet to lead me. May I -never feel as if I would wish one jot or tittle regarding me altered, -when the reins of empire are in Thy hands. - -Take my beloved friends under Thy special care. Watch over them, -provide for them, decide for them. In all their ways may they -acknowledge Thee, and in all things seek Thy honor and glory. - -Pity the afflicted. Stay Thy rough wind in the day of Thy east wind. -Let them rejoice that every bitter drop in the cup of life is -appointed by Thee. May they submissively drink it, saying, "Thy will -be done!" - -Hear, Lord, the voice of my supplications, when Thou hearest, forgive, -and grant me an answer in peace, seeing all that I ask is in the name -and for the sake of Jesus Christ, my only Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -FOURTEENTH EVENING. - -FOR KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST. - -"That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the -fellowship of His sufferings."--Phil. iii. 10. - - -Almighty God, do Thou draw near to me this night in Thy great mercy. -What am I, that infinite unworthiness and nothingness should be -permitted to stand in the presence of infinite purity, majesty, and -glory? Lord, I dare not have ventured to bow at thy footstool in my -own merits. I am poor and wretched, and miserable, and blind, and -naked. Enter not in judgment with Thy servant, for in Thy sight no -flesh living can be justified. - -But, adored be Thy name, I have an all-sufficient ground of confidence -wherewith to approach Thee. I bless Thee, that by the doing and dying -of Jesus, Thou hast opened up a way of reconciliation to the chief of -sinners. Oh, enable me to know more fully the adaptation of His person -and work to all the necessities and exigencies of my character and -circumstances. Let me know him in His infinite Godhead, as "mighty to -save;" in His spotless humanity, as mighty to compassionate. Let me -know Him in all His offices, as my Prophet, my Priest, my King; my -Kinsman-Redeemer within the veil, my Refuge in trouble, my Guide in -perplexity, my Support in death, my Portion through eternity. I -rejoice, blessed Jesus, at the hidden springs of life resident in -Thee! Thou art suited to all the varied wants and circumstances, and -trials of Thy people--for every moment of need, for every diversity of -situation. I can mourn no real blank, if I have Thy presence and -blessing. - -O Thou, better than the best of earthly friends, who, though enthroned -amid the hosannas of angels, hast still Thy human sympathy unaltered -and unchanged, draw near to me this night, and breathe upon me, and -say, "Peace be unto thee." Let me know the melting energy of Thy love, -and the attractive power of Thy cross. May I keep the unwavering eye -of faith steadily directed to Thy all-glorious sacrifice. Be Thou the -habitual object of my contemplation, the source of holiest joy, the -animating principle of obedience. May all creature love be -subordinated to Thine. May my temper, my walk, my conversation, be -regulated in accordance with Thy blessed will and holy example. May -this be the lofty aim and ambition of life, to act so as to please -Jesus. - -Bless my dear friends, may they too be led to count all but loss for -the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus their Lord, whom to -know is life eternal. Pity the careless; reclaim the backsliding; -comfort the sorrowful; sustain the dying. May the Lord arise and have -mercy on Zion; may He show that the time to favor her, yea, the set -time, is come! - -Ere I lay my head on my nightly pillow, I would lay anew my guilt on -the head of the Divine Surety; may I fall asleep under the blessed -sense of sin forgiven, and look forward to that blessed day when -earth's night-shadows shall have vanished forever, and when I shall be -enabled more fully "to know the love of Christ which passeth -knowledge." And all I ask or hope for is for His sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -FIFTEENTH EVENING. - -FOR GUIDANCE IN PERPLEXITY. - -"Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul -unto Thee."--Psalm cxliii. 8. - - -O God, Thy favor is life, Thy loving-kindness is better than life. Thy -mercies have been new to me every morning, and Thy faithfulness every -night. Thou hast watched over me from the earliest years of infancy -with more than a Father's care. The kindness of the kindest on earth -has been coldness itself when compared with Thine. I rejoice that I -can thus trace in a wondrous past the visible footsteps of Thy love, -and fearlessly trust and repose in Thee for the future. - -Thou art a rich provider. None so able, none so willing to guide me in -every perplexity, to extricate me from every difficulty, and to -befriend me amid the fitful changes of life. What a safe anchorage is -this amid the world's restless surges of vicissitude, "The Lord -reigneth!" Do Thou enable me wholly to follow the Lord my God; to -follow Thee not only in smooth places, but even when the path is rough -and the way thorny. May I confide in the wisdom of all Thine -allotments. I rejoice that all the changes Thou orderest for Thy -covenant people are changes for the _better_, and not for the _worse_. - -O blessed Jesus! Thou who art the true pillar of cloud by day, and of -fire by night, do Thou precede me ever in all my wilderness -wanderings. May I encamp only where Thou leadest me. May I strike my -tent only when Thou speakest that I "go forward." Let me experience -the conscious happiness of knowing no will but Thine, and of being -solicitous in all things to follow the guiding voice and footsteps of -the Great Shepherd of the flock. If there be aught in Thy providence -perplexing me now, I would say in child-like simplicity, "I am -oppressed, undertake Thou for me!" "My heart is overwhelmed, lead me -to the Rock that is higher than I." Hide me in the crevices of that -smitten Rock; let me know the safety and joy of being shielded -_there_, until earth's calamities be overpast. - -Graciously forgive all the sins of this past day--the sins of thought, -word and deed; all my selfishness and uncharitableness; all my pride -and vain-glory; all my censoriousness and inconsideration of the -wishes and feelings of others. Blessed Jesus! let me follow more -closely Thy holy footsteps, and drink more deeply of Thy heavenly -spirit. - -Bless all in sorrow, sanctify to them their trials, may they see and -own a "need be" in them all. Prepare the dying for death, and spare -useful lives. - -Take all belonging to me this night under the shield of Thy protecting -providence, let them ever commit their way onto Thee, and do Thou -bring it to pass. Hold up their goings in Thy word, that their -footsteps may not stumble. - -Watch over me during the unconscious hours of sleep; and when all my -days and nights on earth are finished, may it be mine to enjoy Thy -presence in a cloudless, nightless Heaven; through Jesus Christ, my -blessed Lord and Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -SIXTEENTH EVENING. - -FOR VICTORY OVER SIN. - -"Sin shall not have dominion over you."--Rom. vi. 14. - - -O God, Thou art of purer eyes than to behold iniquity. Evil cannot -dwell with Thee, fools cannot stand in Thy presence. Thou hast -solemnly declared, "Thou canst by no means clear the guilty," and that -"though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not escape unpunished." - -Lord, I rejoice that I can draw near to Thee in the name of Him by -whom the guilty _have_ been cleared; and through whom it is that a -holy and righteous and sin-hating God can yet be holy and just, in the -very act of justifying the ungodly. - -I desire to adore Thee for all Thy creative and providential goodness. -Thou hast loaded me with Thy benefits. The past is paved with love. I -see in the retrospect of life nothing but amazing, unmerited kindness, -mercy upon mercy! Amid manifold changes there has been no change in -_Thee_, no altered looks, no fainting or weariness or estrangement. -Amid the wanderings of my own fitful spirit I can write over every -remembrance of the past, _But_ "_Thou_ art the same!" - -I desire with penitence of soul to mourn my own ingratitude and sin, -the desperate wickedness and deceitfulness of my own evil heart, the -power of corruption, the mastery of self, the alienation of my -affections from Thee their rightful Sovereign and Lord. What an easy -prey have I often fallen in the hour of temptation--by thought and -word and deed dishonoring Thy name and basely requiting Thy love! -Father, I have sinned against heaven and before Thee, and am no more -worthy to be called Thy child! - -Give me genuine contrition for the past, inspire me with new purposes -of obedience for the future. Without Thy favor and reconciliation, in -peace I cannot live, in peace I dare not die! My cry would be, "More -grace, more grace!" Let me be gaining every day fresh victories over -sin; may my soul be daily nurtured by the influence of heaven-born -principles. May I know the expulsive power of the new implanted -affection of love to Thee. Dethrone the world. Subjugate the power of -sin. Give me greater tenderness of conscience; may I jealously guard -every avenue to temptation, and be ready ever with the reply to the -seductions of the tempter, "How can I do this great wickedness and sin -against God?" - -Let me be willing to forego anything rather than forsake Thy ways. Be -it my habitual purpose and desire to cleave unto Thee the Lord with -full purpose of heart. Let me hallow all life's duties and engagements -with Thy favor, looking forward to that time when _my_ will and -_Thine_, blessed God! shall be one, and when there shall be no more -sin to interrupt the interchange of love and devotedness. - -Bless all my dear friends; may the blessing of Jacob's God, the God of -all the families of the earth, rest upon them. Give them all needful -temporal blessings. Fill their souls with peace and joy in believing. -May they and I look forward with joyful anticipation to that "morning -without clouds," which knows no change nor vicissitude, when there -shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, because there will -be no more sin; and all I ask is for Jesus' sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -SEVENTEENTH EVENING. - -FOR THE LIFE OF FAITH. - -"The life which I live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of -God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me."--Gal. ii. 20. - - -O God, I desire to draw near unto Thy blessed presence on this the -evening of another day, adoring Thee for all the loving-kindness Thou -art continually making to pass before me. May I ever be enabled to -look up to Thee as the Author and Bestower of all my mercies. May no -created good ever be suffered to dispossess Thee of my affections. May -all that I enjoy, alike temporal and spiritual, be traced to Thee, the -Fountain of all happiness. May prosperity be hallowed by receiving it -as a pledge of Thy favor, and may trial lose its bitterness by the -consciousness that every thorn in my path is permitted by Thee, and -every bitter drop in the cup appointed by Thee. - -May I thus seek, O God, from day to day, to live a life of simple -faith and dependence on Thy grace; with confiding love may I commit my -every care and want and perplexity to Thy better direction, feeling -sweetly assured that Thou wilt guide me by a _right_ way to the city -of habitation. - -Above all would I seek a renewed interest in those covenant blessings -which Christ died to purchase and which He is exalted to bestow. All -my hope is in Him; weak, helpless, perishing, I flee to Him, as the -help and hope and portion of all who seek Him. Hide me, O blessed -Jesus, in Thy wounded side. I would overcome alone through the blood -of the Lamb. Wash me thoroughly in Thy precious blood. May I hear -Thine own voice of pardoning love saying, "Your sins which are many -are all forgiven." - -After all Thou hast done for me, let me harbor no guilty and unworthy -suspicions of Thy faithfulness. Let me feel assured that tender love -regulates all Thy allotments. Thou art pledged to use the dealing and -discipline best suited for Thy people's case, and what will best -effect Thine own will concerning them, even their sanctification. -Carry on within me Thine own work in Thine own way. Fortify me against -temptation; let me not surrender myself to the base compliances of a -world lying in wickedness. But, strong in the Lord and in the power of -His might, may I know that He who is with me is greater far than all -that can be against me. Oh enkindle afresh my expiring, languishing -love; let me live more under the influence of "things not seen," -having the eye of faith more upwards and homewards, looking for that -blessed hope, even the glorious appearing of the great God my Saviour. - -Let Thy kingdom come! Arise, O God, and plead Thine own cause. May all -the ends of the earth soon be gladdened with the Gospel's joyful -sound! - -Bless all in sorrow, all bereaved of near and dear friends; may they -see no hand in their trials but Thine. Thou givest us our blessings; -and when Thou seest meet Thou revokest the grant. Let us see love in -every threatening wave, all rolling at _Thy_ bidding. - -Lord, take the charge of me this night. Abide with me, blessed -Saviour, for it is toward evening and the day is far spent. Oh, may it -be mine to feel that each successive evening as it brings me nearer -eternity, is ripening me for its never-ending joys. And all I ask is -for Jesus' sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -EIGHTEENTH EVENING. - -FOR THE DAILY DEATH. - -"I die daily."--1 Cor. xv. 31. - - -O God Almighty, Father of all mercies, God of all grace, I beseech -Thee to look down upon me at this time in Thy great kindness; let me -feel it to be good for me to draw near unto God. - -I desire to come acknowledging my great unworthiness. Forgive, -gracious Lord, my many, many sins of thought, word, and deed; wash out -all the defilements of the day. If I were to be tried by the doings of -any single hour, how would I stand condemned! I am a miracle of mercy; -kept, sustained, upheld, moment by moment, by the power of God. - -Blessed Saviour! where could I have been this night _but_ for _Thee_? -Thou art praying for me, as for Thy faltering disciple of old, that my -faith fail not. I _do_ rejoice to think that the same hand that was -once outstretched for me on _the_ cross is now lifted up in pleading -love before the Throne, and that He who is _for_ me is greater far -than all that can be _against_ me! Oh strengthen me with all might by -Thy Spirit in the inner man. Subdue my corruptions, crucify all -remaining sin. Let me die to the world; let me not imbibe its false -maxims, conform to its sinful tastes, or accord with its evil -practices. Let self in all its manifold forms be crucified, and God -exalted. Come, Lord! search me, try me, prove me, and see if there be -any wicked way in me. Let me maintain a constant and habitual hatred -of those sins that do more easily beset me; may I exercise a holy -jealousy over my own heart. Let no prosperity be strengthening my ties -earthward, and weakening my ties heavenward. If Thou givest me much of -worldly good, may I write upon it all, "the things which are seen are -temporal." May it be my exalted ambition to use it for Thy glory. If -Thou sendest trial, let it issue in the peaceable fruits of -righteousness, producing a child-like acquiescence in Thy present -dealings. Let me never forget my pilgrim attitude. Let me be ever -looking forward to that joyous time when, "clean escaped" from the -corruptions that are in the world, I shall stand "faultless before the -Throne." Meanwhile, make me more heavenly-minded, copying the example -of Him who was meek and lowly in heart. - -Let me be gentle and forgiving, let me not harbor unkind suspicions of -others, but consider myself, lest I also be tempted. O give me the -_character_ of Heaven on this side of death, that when I come to pass -through the swellings of Jordan I may be prepared for the joyous -welcome awaiting me on the shores of glory, "Enter thou into the joy -of thy Lord!" - -Have mercy on a world lying in wickedness! Pity the careless; arouse -the slumbering; support the weak; succour the poor and those that have -no helper. Bless Thy Church everywhere. May Thy ministering servants -hide _themselves_, that their Lord may be exalted. - -Take the charge of me and of all near and dear to me this night. Keep -me, O keep me, King of kings, beneath Thine own Almighty wings. Lying -down in Thy fear may I awake in Thy favor, fitted for all the duties -of a new day; and all I ask is for Jesus' sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -NINETEENTH EVENING. - -FOR RENUNCIATION OF SELF. - -"Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of -ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God."--2 Cor. iii. 5. - - -O God! do Thou bend Thy pitying eye upon me this night, as I venture -once more into Thy sacred presence. What mercy it is that, with all my -great unworthiness, a throne of grace is still open, and a God of -grace is still waiting to be gracious! - -I come to Thee in deep creature-destitution, bringing nothing in my -hands, but simply cleaving, blessed Jesus, to Thy cross; looking away -from my guilty self and my guilty doings to Thee, who hast done all -and suffered all for me, I rejoice to think that Thou hast broken -every chain of condemnation--that Thou hast satisfied the requirements -of a broken law; and having overcome the sharpness of death, Thou hast -opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers. - -Oh let me not continue in sin because all this wondrous grace abounds. -Let me not think lightly of the accursed thing which was the cause of -all Thine untold and unutterable anguish. I know, Lord, that I am apt -at times to plead vain excuses for my sins. I am unwilling to think -them, and to think myself, so vile as I really am, in Thy pure and -holy eye. - -My heart is deceitful; but "Thou art greater than my heart." Oh bring -me in self-renouncing lowliness to cry out, "God be merciful to me a -sinner." Let me cling to no remnants of my own self-righteousness. Let -me see that my best actions are marred with defilement and mingled -with impure and unworthy motives. - -Enable me to aim more and more at the conquest of self. Show me the -plague of my own heart. Keep me from all that is unamiable and -selfish, from all that is unkind and uncharitable, and that would -exalt myself at the expense of others. Keep me holy. Keep me -lowly.--Lead me through the valley of humiliation. May life become -more one grand effort to crucify sin and to please God. Take, gracious -Saviour, my whole heart, and make it Thine; occupy it without a rival. -May there be no competing affection. Keep me from alienating existence -from its great end, by living to myself. May this be the -superscription on all my thoughts, and duties, and engagements--"I am -not my own, I am bought with a price." - -May whatever be Thy time be mine. May I not murmur at deferred -blessings or disappointed hopes. May my own will be resolved into the -will of Him who knows best what to give and what to withhold. - -May the Lord have mercy upon Zion. May showers of blessing descend on -Thy holy hill. Hasten the glories of the latter day, when Jesus shall -take to Himself His great power and reign! - -Bless all my dear friends; may those ties which may be so soon severed -here be rendered indissoluble by grace. Guard their couch and mine -this night; give us refreshing sleep, lying down in Thy fear, and -awaking in Thy favor, fitted for all the duties of a new day. And all -we ask or hope for is for the Redeemer's sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TWENTIETH EVENING. - -FOR A CHILD-LIKE SPIRIT. - -"My soul is even as a weaned child."--Psalm cxxxi. 2. - - -O Lord, I rejoice that I am permitted with filial confidence to -approach Thy blessed presence. What a privilege it is to have such -liberty of access to the Mercy-seat--to look upwards to Thee, the -Infinite One, whom the Heaven of Heavens cannot contain, and call Thee -my Father and my God! Earthly love may grow cold or changeable, or -perish; but "Thou art the same." The mercy of God is from everlasting -to everlasting. Like as a father pitieth his children, so doth the -Lord pity them that fear Him. - -Alas! I have to mourn too often an unthankful spirit amid all Thy -manifold mercies. I have been rebellious and wayward, ungrateful and -selfish. Thou mightest righteously have surrendered me to my own -perverse will; left me to the fruit of my own ways, and to be filled -with my own devices. It is of the Lord's mercies that I am not -consumed! Infinite is my want, but infinite too is my help. I would -seek to stand before Thee, O God, in the nothingness of the creature, -and to know the boundless resources treasured up for me in the great -Redeemer. Unite me to Him by a living faith, as Thine own child by -adoption; may it be my great desire to glorify Thee, my Father in -Heaven; cherishing towards Thee a spirit of filial love and -devotedness, seeking to do only what will please Thee, and having a -salutary fear of offending so kind and forbearing a Parent. - -Oh keep me from any sullen fretfulness, or unbelieving misgivings, -under the strokes of Thy chastening hand. Let there be no hard -construction of Thy dealings. May I see all Thy chastisements tempered -with gracious love--_all_ to be needful discipline. Give me an -unwavering trust and confidence in Thy faithfulness. Nothing befalls -me but by Thy direction; nothing is appointed but what is for my good. - -Let Thy varied dealings conform me to the image of my adorable Lord. -Let me be willing to suffer patiently for _Him_ who so willingly and -so patiently suffered for _me_. Let me not so much seek to have my -afflictions removed as to have grace given me to glorify Thee in them, -and in the spirit of a weaned child to say, "Even so, Father!" O may -my heart become a living temple, my life a living sacrifice, breathing -the incense of gratitude and love. Let me give myself no rest until in -this soul of mine I find a place for the Lord, an habitation for the -mighty God of Jacob. - -Do Thou sanctify trial to all the sons and daughters of sorrow. Draw -near to those bereaved of beloved relatives. Do Thou Thyself -compensate for every earthly loss. May they know that Thou art -faithful who hast promised, "Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the -end of the world." - -Have mercy on Thy whole Church. Heal divisions. Bless Thy preached -word. Strengthen Thy ministering servants, that they may be enabled to -proclaim the whole counsel of God. - -Take the charge of me, and of all near and dear to me, this night. -Give Thine angels charge over us. May no unquiet dreams disturb our -rest, and when we awake may we be still with Thee. And all I ask is -for Jesus' sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TWENTY-FIRST EVENING. - -FOR HEAVENWARD PROGRESS. - -"The path of the just is as the shining light, which shines more and -more onto the perfect day."--Proverbs iv. 18. - - -O God, I bless Thee that Thou hast spared me during another day, and -permitted the shadows of another evening to gather around me in peace. -It is Thou, Lord, only who makest me to dwell in safety. Enable me to -live from day to day as the pensioner on Thy bounty; to feel my -dependence; to receive every created blessing and gift direct from Thy -hand, and to seek to have all of them sweetened and hallowed as the -pledges of Thy covenant love in Jesus. - -I bless Thee, gracious God, for the richer tokens of Thy redeeming -grace in Him. I bless Thee that His infinite merit has come in the -place of my infinite demerit, that in Him there is "no condemnation;" -that in His precious blood I have a secure shelter from the terrors of -Thy righteous law and the accusations of a guilty conscience. May I -know more and more the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of -His sufferings. May my every hope of pardon centre in His cross. May I -be living from day to day under the constraining influence of His -love, and experience now a sweet foretaste of that everlasting -communion which awaits me in His presence hereafter. - -Lord, quicken me in my heavenly way; let me not loiter or linger on -the road. Let this be my habitual feeling and watchword, "I am -journeying." May I seek to mark my progressive advancement in the -divine life, my increasing conformity to the image and will of Thee, -my God. Keep me humble, cherishing a constant sense of my dependence -on Thee. Oh in every step Zionward, may I be led to cry, "_Hold Thou_ -me up, and I shall be safe." Let there be no longer any halting between -two opinions, any wavering or indecision. May I regard life as a great -mission to please Thee. Let my animating wish be to be nearer Thee -now, ere I come to be with Thee for ever in glory everlasting. Walking -heavenwards, may I feel I am walking homewards. - -May I spend each day as if possibly it were my last, so that should -the midnight cry break upon my ears, "Prepare to meet Thy God," it -might be to me no unexpected summons, but as an angel whispering, "The -Master is come and calleth for thee." - -Look down in mercy on the dark places of the earth full of the -habitations of horrid cruelty. How long shall the wicked, how long -shall the wicked triumph? Go forth with Thy missionary servants in -heathen lands; may they witness much of Thy power; may Thy word still -be mighty as ever to the pulling down of Satan's strongholds. Give thy -Churches at home grace to be more faithful in the fulfilment of the -great commission of their Great Head--"Go ye into all the world and -preach the Gospel to every creature!" - -Take all my beloved friends this night under Thy guardian care. Shield -them from all danger; and if Thou art pleased to spare us till -to-morrow, may we rise refreshed and invigorated for the duties of a -new day. And all I ask is for Jesus' sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TWENTY-SECOND EVENING. - -FOR HUMILITY OF HEART. - -"He giveth grace unto the humble."--James iv. 6. - - -O God, Thou art great and greatly to be feared. Thy greatness is -unsearchable. Thou art seated on a throne that is high and lifted up; -myriads of blessed spirits cease not day nor night to celebrate Thy -praise in their ever-triumphant hymn, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord -God of hosts." - -But I rejoice to think that though Heaven is Thy dwelling-place Thou -deignest to dwell in the humble and contrite heart; no sacrifice dost -Thou so love as that of the broken spirit; no incense so prized by -Thee as the incense of a grateful, believing soul, which, oppressed -with its own unworthiness and sin, reposes with unwavering trust in -the work and righteousness of the Great Surety. - -Lord, on this ever-living, ever-loving Saviour I desire wholly to -lean. As helpless, hopeless, friendless, portionless, I cast myself on -Him who is Helper of the helpless and Friend of the friendless. There -is nothing but Thy sacrifice and intercession, O Thou Lamb of God, -between me and everlasting destruction. O wash every crimson and -scarlet stain away in Thy precious blood. Let me lie low at the foot -of Thy cross. Give me a lowly estimate of myself, and a lofty view of -Thy all-glorious work and finished righteousness. I have no other hope -of mercy, and, blessed be Thy name, I _need_ no other. - -While I take Thee as my Saviour, may I be enabled to follow Thee also -as my pattern; conscious of the supreme enthronement of Thy love in my -heart, may I feel superior to all the fluctuations and changes of a -changing world. May I live as the chartered heir of a better -inheritance; while in the world, may I seek not to be of it. May I -diffuse around me the noiseless influence of a heavenly life, -subordinating all I do to Thy glory. Lord, enable me to be useful in -the sphere in which Thou hast placed me, to work while it is called -to-day, remembering that there is no work nor device nor labor in the -grave whither I am going. - -Bless all in sorrow. Sanctify their trials. Keep us ever from the -guilty atheism of looking to second causes. May we ever rejoice in the -elevating assurance that "the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth," and that -Thou orderest all things wisely and well. May the Holy Spirit the -Comforter pour his own balm into every bleeding heart. - -Have mercy on a world lying in wickedness. Hasten that glorious period -when creation, now groaning and travailing in sin, shall be delivered -from the bondage of corruption and be translated into the glorious -liberty of the children of God. Let Thy word everywhere have free -course and be glorified. May Jesus, faithfully "lifted up" by the -attractive power of his cross, draw all men unto him. - -Let Thy best benediction rest on my friends. The Lord watch between -them and me when we are absent one from another. May we experience Thy -guardian care this night; and if spared to awake in the morning, may -it be to spend a new day in Thy service, through Jesus Christ, our -blessed Lord and Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TWENTY-THIRD EVENING. - -FOR FIRMNESS IN TEMPTATION. - -"Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."--James iv. 7. - - -O God, Thou art from everlasting to everlasting. Loving me at the -beginning, Thou hast promised to love me even unto the end. -Notwithstanding all the fitful changes of my own changing heart -towards _Thee_, there _has_ been, and _can_ be, no shadow of turning -in Thy covenant faithfulness towards _me_. I am at this hour the -monument of Thy mercy--a living comment on the words, "Thy ways are -not as man's ways, nor Thy thoughts as man's thoughts." - -If I have been enabled in any degree to resist the assaults of -temptation, it is all Thy doing. I am "kept by the power of God." -Unless the Lord had been my help, my soul must long ere now have dwelt -in silence. By the grace of God I am what I am. - -Lord, indulged and cherished sin unfits me for the enjoyment of Thy -service and favor. I have to lament my proneness to evil, the natural -bias of my heart to that which is opposed to Thy pure and holy will. -When I would do good, sin is too often present with me. I feel the -power of my spiritual adversaries. If left to myself and my own -unaided resources, I must often hopelessly resign the conflict. - -But I rejoice to think that there is help and hope and strength at -hand. I would look to Him who is now bending upon me an eye of -unchanging love from the throne. All Thy ascension glories, blessed -Redeemer, have not obliterated the tenderness of Thy humanity. Thou -art "that same Jesus;" Thou, the abiding Friend, art still left -changeless among the changeable; and when Satan often desires to have -me, that he might sift me as wheat, it is Thy intercessory prayer that -saves me from utter ruin. Thou art pleading for me, that my faith fail -not! Oh may I be found invincible in the hour of temptation, being -made more than conqueror through Him that loved me. Sheltered in Thee -the true Refuge, the wicked one will touch me not. - -Let me not trifle with my own soul or with the momentous interests of -eternity. Let me every day be living under the realizing consciousness -that Thy pure eye is upon me. Keep me from all that is at variance -with Thy gracious mind. Keep me from unchristian tempers, from an -unholy or inconsistent or uneven walk. By a Christ-like demeanor may I -exhibit the sanctifying and transforming influence of the Gospel on my -own soul, that others may take knowledge of me that I have been with -Jesus. - -God of Bethel! do Thou take under Thy protecting providence all -related to me by endearing ties. However far we may be separated from -one another, let us never be separated from Thee. Let us often rejoice -in this our common meeting-place; that around Thy mercy-seat in spirit -we can assemble, and lay our evening incense in the one Golden Censer -of our gracious High Priest! - -Take charge of me this night, defend me from all danger; whether I -wake or sleep, may I live together with Thee; and all that I ask or -hope for is in the name and for the sake of Jesus Christ, my only -Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TWENTY-FOURTH EVENING. - -FOR COMPOSURE IN TRIAL. - -"Even so, Father; for so it seemed good in Thy sight."--Matt. xi. 26. - - -O God, I come into Thy presence this night, rejoicing that amid all -earth's vicissitudes, I have in Thee a rock that cannot be shaken. -Thou doest according to Thy will in the armies of Heaven, and among -the inhabitants of the earth! Thou doest all things well, and nothing -but what _is_ well. There is no finite wisdom in Thy dealings. All is -the result of combined faithfulness, power, and love. Let me repose in -the righteous ordinations of Thy will. If Thou withhold from me -earthly blessings, let me feel that the very denial is precious -because it is Thy sovereign pleasure. Covenant love and wisdom cannot -lead or teach me wrong; every burden is imposed by Thee. The lot may -be thrown into the lap, but the whole disposing thereof is of the -Lord. - -O Thou who turnest the shadow of death into the morning, may every -wilderness-storm only drive me nearer Thyself, my true shelter. Thou -takest the sting from every cross, the bitterness from every cup. Let -me recognise in all that befalls me the tokens of a Father's love; and -if sense and sight should at times fail to descry "the bright light in -the cloud," may I see written over every dark trial Thine own -unanswerable challenge, "He that spared not his own Son, but gave Him -up to the death for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give -us all things?" - -Lord! the end of all Thy sovereign dealings is to subjugate my wayward -will, and to unfold more of the preciousness of Jesus. Blessed Spirit -of all grace! do Thou take of the things that are Christ's and show -them unto my soul. Let me not stagger at the promises through -unbelief. Let me see nothing but love in the past, love in the -present, and love looming through the mists of a cloudy future. Thou, -O God, art seated by every furnace; all is meted out, all is provided -for; all has a "need be" in it! Magnify the power of Thy grace in me, -by a sweet spirit of patient submission to Thy righteous ordinations. -May I seek to have no other prayer than this, "Father, glorify Thy -name." Impart Thou that inner sunshine which no outward darkness or -trial can obscure. May the peace of God, which passeth understanding, -keep my heart. - -May Thy Holy Spirit shed abroad His blessed influences over the whole -Church. Revive Thy work, O God, in the midst of the years. In wrath -remember mercy. May Thy ministers be more faithful. May Thy people be -more close and consistent in their walk with Thee. May the young be -growing up in Thy fear and favor; may the aged find in Thee the staff -of their declining years. May the sick and afflicted pillow their head -on Thy promises. May the dying fall asleep in Jesus. - -I commend myself, my friends, and all belonging to me, to Thy paternal -care and keeping; and when earth's long night-watches of trial and -sorrow are ended, may I wake up in the sorrowless morning of glory, to -enjoy uninterrupted fellowship with Thyself. Through Jesus Christ, my -only Lord and Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TWENTY-FIFTH EVENING. - -FOR ACTIVITY IN DUTY. - -"Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the -Lord."--Romans xii. 11. - - -Lord, I come to Thee this night rejoicing in the thought that Thou -faintest not, neither are weary: Thou art ever good, and doing me -good. Thine arm is never shortened, Thine ear is never heavy. The -gates of prayer are ever open. The Throne of the Heavenly Grace is -ever accessible, none of Thy children need perish with hunger! - -May the darkness now gathering around me be as the shadow of Thine -infinite presence. I take comfort in the thought that the Shepherd of -Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps; that He is ever bending over me -his watchful, untiring eye, compassing my path and my lying down, and -holding up my doings that my footsteps do not stumble. - -Lord, how sad is the contrast of Thine unwearied and unwearying -watchfulness, with my negligence and inactivity in Thy service. How -little have I sought to promote Thy glory. How little have I felt the -solemnity and responsibility of being a steward in Thy household! Let -me be more zealous for Thy honor in the future. Let me seek more than -I have ever yet done, to ask in the midst of life's duties and -engagements, its perplexities and trials, in simple faith, "Lord! what -wouldst thou have me to do?" Let me feel that duty is a delight when -done for Thee. Keep me from further relaxing my diligence. Let me not -mock Thee any longer with the wrecks of a worn affection. Let there be -no half-surrender of the heart and life to Thee, but may soul and body -be consecrated as living sacrifices, and may I have the growing -experience that active obedience in Thy service is self-rewarding. - -Lord! I have indeed a vast work to do and a brief time to do it in. -May opportunities and talents, while I have them, be cheerfully given -to Thee. May the warning words oft sound in my ear, "Work while it is -called today, for the night cometh wherein no man can work." Oh -prepare me for my Saviour's coming. Forbid that I should be found -among the slothful servants or the faithless stewards who are -squandering their Lord's money, and are living, forgetful that a time -of reckoning is at hand! May I be so waiting and so watching, and so -working, that the cry may never break too soon or too suddenly on my -ears--"Behold, the Judge standeth before the door!" - -Send forth thy gracious Spirit into a world lying in wickedness. -Scatter the darkness that is now brooding over the nations. Bless all -thy ministering servants; may they be valiant for the truth; may the -Lord send His own angel to stand by them, and to shut the mouths of -every adversary. - -Bless all my friends; may they too be working out their own salvation -with fear and trembling, and so be found at last prepared for the -appearing and kingdom of Jesus. - -Take me under Thy protecting care this night; vouchsafe me a season of -refreshing repose; spare me to awake in Thy favor; and may every -returning morning find me better prepared for the glorious noon-day of -immortality; through Jesus Christ, my ever-living Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TWENTY-SIXTH EVENING. - -FOR THE SPIRIT'S TEACHING. - -"As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of -God."--Rom. viii. 14. - - -O Lord, Thou art the God of my life and the length of my days. There -is no real happiness independent of Thee. Thy favor is life. In vain -can I seek for any satisfying portion in an unsatisfying world. If -bereft of Thee I am bereaved indeed. But with Thy countenance shining -upon me, I must be safe, I must be happy. - -Do Thou pour down upon me the gifts and graces of Thy Holy Spirit. May -he "garrison" my heart. May He write on its blood-besprinkled lintels -the superscription, "Holiness to the Lord." Oh may this soul of mine -become a living temple, an "habitation of God through the Spirit." Let -me not trifle with convictions. Let me not grieve by my hardness and -impenitency that gracious Agent, whereby I am sealed unto the day of -redemption; but may all my affections be willingly surrendered to His -service. By His omnipotent energy may every high thought and lofty -imagination be brought into captivity to the obedience of Jesus. May I -be enabled to lean upon Him in the extremity of my weakness. Fill me -with all joy and peace in believing that I may abound in hope through -the power of the Holy Ghost; fitted for Thy service here, and for the -enjoyment of Thee forever hereafter. - -I pray for the outpouring of the same blessed Spirit on the whole -Church. May He descend like rain upon the mown grass, and as showers -that water the earth. Come from the four winds, O Breath, and breathe -upon the slain in the valley! Hasten that glorious period when the -year of Thy redeemed shall come, when the earth shall be full of the -tabernacles of the righteous, in which the voice of joy and melody -will continually be heard! - -Oh that there were more in me of the mind of my gracious Saviour, on -whom the Spirit was poured without measure. May I, like Him, be more -meek and gentle, more amiable and forgiving, overcoming evil with -good.--Transform me into the same image from glory to glory, by the -Lord the Spirit. - -Hide all my friends under the shadow of Thy wings. Put Thy good Spirit -also into their hearts. May He guide them into all the truth, and -reveal to them more and more of the preciousness of Jesus. - -Let all poor afflicted ones rejoice in the presence and consolations -of the promised Comforter; may He pour oil and wine into their wounds; -may He strengthen them in the midst of all their tribulations, and -enable them in lowly resignation to say, "The Lord's will be done." -Teach us all to repose in that will as the best; and to make it day by -day our aim and ambition to attain a greater conformity to it. - -Lord, take the charge of me through the watches of the night. Under -the blessed sense of Thy presence and favor I would compose myself to -rest, and when I awake, may I be still with Thee. And all I ask is for -Jesus' sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TWENTY-SEVENTH EVENING. - -FOR THE WORLD'S CONVERSION. - -"The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters -cover the sea."--Isaiah xi. 9. - - -O God, I desire to draw near into Thy blessed presence, beseeching -Thee to lift upon me the light of Thy countenance and grant me a -Father's blessing. I am utterly unworthy of Thy mercies. And it is -only in Jesus, the Son of Thy love, that I dare venture to cast myself -at Thy footstool. - -I rejoice to think that in Him there is an open door of welcome; that -He has by His doing and dying satisfied the demands of Thy righteous -law, and magnified all Thy glorious attributes. I would bury all my -sins in the ocean-depths of His redeeming love. Oh let me now know the -blessedness of _living_, and at last the blessedness of _dying_, at -peace with Thee, in the sure and certain hope of a resurrection to -eternal life. - -Darkness is still covering the lands, and gross darkness the people. -Lord, do Thou have mercy on a world lying in wickedness. I rejoice to -think of all Thy glorious promises concerning the latter day. That -this creation of ours, now groaning and travailing in bondage under -sin, is yet to be delivered from the yoke of corruption, and to be -translated into the glorious liberty of the sons of God. Glorify Thy -great name in the salvation of sinners! Hasten the period of predicted -glory, when all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of God; -when from the rising of the sun to the going down of the same, the -Lord's name is to be praised. May Thine own omnipotent Spirit brood -over the darkness, as He did over chaos of old, and say, "Let there be -light, and there will be light." May gladsome voices soon be heard -proclaiming, "Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of -the Lord is risen upon thee." - -Oh may I know personally something of that compassionate yearning over -ruined souls and a ruined world that my Saviour had. Let me be -prodigal in devising means for the extension of His kingdom and the -good of my fellow-men. I would pray the Lord of the harvest that He -would send forth laborers to the harvest. Stand by Thy missionary -servants. May they have many souls for their hire. May mountains of -difficulty be levelled before them; may crooked things be made -straight and rough places plain, and may the glory of the Lord be -revealed. Let them exercise simple faith in the power of Thy word and -the efficacy of Thy grace. May they feel that these are mighty as they -ever were to the pulling down of strongholds. - -Arouse Thy churches to greater zeal. May Jesus, faithfully lifted up -by His servants, by the attractive power of His cross draw all men -unto Him. May they be the honored instruments of preparing many gems -for Immanuel's crown, who will be found unto praise and honor and -glory at His second appearing. - -Lord, guard me through the silent watches of the night; be the defence -and protection of my friends and relatives; may they too dwell under -the shadow of Thy wings and experience the sleep of Thy beloved; and -when the night of earth's ignorance shall vanish away, may we all wake -up in glory everlasting, through Jesus Christ, our only Lord and -Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS AS - THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TWENTY-EIGHTH EVENING. - -FOR THE CHURCH'S REVIVAL. - -"Revive Thy work in the midst of the years."--Hab. iii. 2. - - -O God, Thou hast permitted me in Thy great mercy to see another -evening. How many of my fellow-men have this day slept the sleep of -death, and are now beyond the reach of grace and privilege! I am still -spared, all unworthy though I be, a monument of Thy forbearance and -love. - -I desire to make acknowledgment of my many and grievous offences. They -are more in number than the sand of the sea;--sins against light, and -mercy, and warning; sins committed against the kindest of Benefactors, -the most indulgent of Parents. - -I would seek anew to take refuge in the offered shelter of the Gospel, -and to rejoice anew in the faithful saying that Jesus Christ came into -the world to save the chief of sinners. Oh may I be enabled -confidingly to repose in His matchless sacrifice, and with lively -appropriating faith to say, "He loved _me_ and gave Himself for _me_!" - -Lord, carry on Thine own work within me. Quicken my languid and -languishing affections by the omnipotent agency of Thy Holy Spirit. -Let me not live at a guilty distance from Thy favor; but may I covet a -close and habitual walk with Thee, and feel the sustaining power of -Thy grace in my heart. - -Revive Thy work in Thine own Church universal, Thou great High Priest, -who walketh in the midst of the golden candlesticks. Do Thou feed -every lamp with the oil of Thy grace. Let them burn with a clearer, -holier, more steady and consistent flame. As lights set in the world, -may they diffuse Thy glory; and feel the honor of being instrumental -in shedding abroad a Saviour's love. - -Oh may the Lord arise and have mercy upon Zion. May the time to favor -her, yea, the set time, soon come. As there is but one Shepherd, so -may there soon be but one sheep-fold. Let Thy churches no longer -continue apart from one another in unholy estrangement, but live in -the unity of the Spirit and in the bond of peace; holding fast that -which they have, that no man take their crown. Spirit of all grace, -come in all the plenitude of Thy love and mercy. Breathe upon every -portion of Thy visible Church, and say, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost!" -"Awake, O north wind! come, thou south! blow upon our garden, that the -spices thereof may flow out." May Thy gracious influences descend like -rain upon the mown grass, and as showers that water the earth. - -Bless all Thy faithful ministers. May peace be upon them and upon the -whole Israel of God. Direct their hearts and the hearts of all Thy -faithful people into Thy love, and into the patient waiting for -Christ. - -Comfort all in sorrow. May they see a "need be" written on all their -trials. May they look beyond the long night-watch of earth to the -glories of that eternal morning when clouds and darkness shall for -ever flee away. - -Take charge of me while I sleep, and as evening after evening comes -round may I feel that a day has been spent for Thee. Hear me, gracious -Lord, for the Redeemer's sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS AS - THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -TWENTY-NINTH EVENING. - -FOR SUPPORT IN DEATH. - -"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will -fear no evil: for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort -me."--Ps. xxiii. 4. - - -O God, I come to Thee this night through Jesus Christ, the Son of Thy -love, beseeching Thee to have mercy upon me, and to impart unto me -that Peace of Thine which passeth all understanding. Blessed be Thy -great and glorious name for those hopes full of immortality which have -been opened up to me in the Gospel. I rejoice in Christ as the great -Abolisher of death. I rejoice that the rainbow of covenant -faithfulness spans the entrance to the dark valley; that all that is -terrible in the last enemy is in Him taken away, and that I can regard -these closing hours of existence as the introduction and doorway into -everlasting bliss. - -Give me grace, O God, to be living in constant preparation for death. -Let me not unprofitably squander my present golden moments. Let me -_live_ while I _live_--let me live a dying life. Let me feel that life -is a trust given me by Thee. O Thou Great Proprietor of my being, may -this all important talent of time be more consecrated to Thy glory. -Let it not be mine, when the hour of death arrives, to bewail, when it -is too late, lost and forfeited opportunities. Let me not leave till -then, what best can be done and what only _may_ be done now. May it be -my earnest endeavor while it is called today to secure a saving -interest in the everlasting covenant, and then I need not fear how -soon the silver cord may be loosed and the golden bowl broken. Through -Jesus the darkness has been taken from death, and to His own true -people its shadows will melt and merge into the brightness of eternal -day. - -Thou art ever giving me impressive remembrances that "at such an hour -as I think not," the summons may come, "Prepare to meet Thy God." The -race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong. Verily every -moment there may be but a step between me and death. Let me be so -living a life of habitual faith in the Son of God that this step may -be changed into a step between me and glory. - -Lord, prepare all who may now be laid on dying couches for their great -change. May their eyes be directed to Jesus. Pillowing their heads on -his exceeding great and precious promises, may they fall asleep in the -glorious hope of a joyful resurrection. - -Bless all in sorrow; those who have recently been bereaved of near and -dear friends, who may have been called recently to the brink of the -tomb, consigning their loved ones to the narrow house appointed for -all living. May they be enabled to fix their sorrowing gaze on the -brighter prospects beyond death and the grave, and anticipate that -glorious hour when, reunited to death-divided friends, they will be -able to exult together in the song, "O death, where is thy sting? O -grave, where is thy victory?" - -Take the charge of me this night. Watch over me during the unconscious -hours of sleep, and when I too come to the long night and slumber of -death, may it be the gentle rest of Thy beloved, a falling asleep in -the arms of everlasting love, looking forward to the joyful waking -time of immortality, through Jesus Christ my only Saviour. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -THIRTIETH EVENING. - -FOR PREPARATION FOR JUDGMENT. - -"Prepare to meet thy God."--Amos iv. 12. - - -O God, Thou art daily loading me with Thy benefits. Thou art making -the outgoings of the evening and morning to rejoice over me, giving me -unnumbered causes for gratitude and thankfulness. No earthly friend -could have loved and cared for me like Thee. Oh may the life Thou art -thus preserving by Thine unceasing bounty be unreservedly dedicated to -Thy praise. - -Lord, keep me mindful that I am soon to be done with this world, that -I am fast borne along the stream of time to an endless futurity. "It -is appointed unto all once to die, and after death the judgment." May -I be living in a constant state of preparedness for that solemn hour -when small and great shall stand before God, and the books shall be -opened. Educate me for eternity. Let me not be frittering away these -fleeting but precious moments. Impress on me the solemn conviction -that "as men live so do men die," that as death leaves me so will -judgment find me. Oh let death leave me falling asleep in Jesus, -united to Him by a living faith, that so judgment may find me seated -at His right hand, listening to the joyous welcome, "Come, ye blessed -of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation -of the world." - -Blessed Jesus, all my hope of a glorious resurrection centres in Thee. -I look to Thee as the strong tower which cannot be shaken. I flee anew -to the holy sanctuary of Thy covenant love. Sheltered there, amid a -dissolving earth, and burning worlds, I shall be able joyfully to -utter the challenge, "Who shall separate me from the love of Christ?" -Meanwhile may I seek to "occupy" till my Lord comes. Keep me from all -negligence and unwatchfulness. Trim my flickering lamp. Let me live -with Thy Judgment-throne in view. Whether waking or sleeping, may I -bear about with me the thought that I must soon give an account of -myself to God. May I feel that all the talents and means Thou hast -given me are trusts to be laid out for Thee. When thou comest to -demand a reckoning, may I not be among the number of those who have -hid their talent in the earth, and have the cheerless retrospect of a -misspent time. - -Lord! bless my friends, reward my benefactors, forgive my enemies. -Sanctify sorrow to all the sons and daughters of trial. May the torch -of Thy love light up their gloomy prospects. May every providential -voice sound loud in their ears, "Arise and depart ye, for this is not -your rest!" - -Gracious God, watch over me during the night, and grant that at last, -when all earth's evenings and mornings shall have passed away, I may, -on the great day-break of glory, wake up in Thy likeness, through Him -in whom is all my hope, and to whom, with Thee, O Father, and Thee, -ever blessed Spirit, one God, be everlasting praise, honor, and glory, -world without end. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - - - -THIRTY-FIRST EVENING. - -FOR MEETING IN HEAVEN. - -"Meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in -light."--Col. i. 12. - - -O God, I come into Thy gracious presence on this the close of another -day, beseeching Thee to accept of my evening sacrifice. May this my -unworthy prayer come up before Thee perfumed with the fragrant incense -of the Saviour's adorable merits. It is my comfort to know, O Thou -blessed Intercessor within the veil, that Thou art even now appearing -in the presence of God for me! The names of Thy covenant people are -engraven on Thy breastplate, and, all unworthy in themselves, they are -accepted in the Beloved. - -My special prayer to Thee this night is, that by Thy grace I may be -made meet for Thy blood-bought inheritance in Glory. Transform me by -the indwelling power of the Holy Ghost; may I be dying daily unto sin, -and living daily unto righteousness. Make me more heavenly-minded. -Give me more of a pilgrim attitude and a pilgrim spirit. May I ever -feel that my true home is above, that I am here but a wayfarer and -sojourner, as all my fathers were. May I attain, as I advance nearer -heaven, the blessed habit of a holy life, bearing about with me the -lofty impress of one who is born _from_ above and _for_ above, -declaring plainly that I seek "a better country." - -Let me not arraign the appointments of Infinite wisdom, but patiently -await the disclosures of the great day. Keep me from a hasty spirit -under dark dispensations. I am no judge as to what fancied mercies are -best withholden. Let me look to every trial as an appointed messenger -from the Throne whispering in my ears, "Be ye also ready!" May I -delight often to anticipate that happy time when I shall suffer no -more, and sin no more; when Thou shalt no longer teach me by -mysterious dispensations and a crossed will; when all shall be "a sea -of glass" without one disturbing ripple, and I shall trace with joyous -heart the long line of unbroken love and unchanging faithfulness! Anew -I would wash in the atoning fountain. Anew I would take refuge "in the -faithful saying." O blot out all the sins of the bygone day. Let them -not rise up in the Judgment to condemn me. Let me close my eyes this -night listening to the Saviour's own voice--"Your sins which are many -are all forgiven you." - -May the Lord arise and have mercy upon Zion. May the streams of Thy -grace make glad the city of God. Build up her broken walls; restore -her ruined towers; may her watchmen be men of faith and men of prayer; -making mention of the Lord, and keeping not silence, till He -establish, and till he make Jerusalem again a praise in the earth. - -Lord, bless my friends. Let us exult in those ties which survive the -uncertain ones of earth, and look forward to the hour when we shall -come to stand at last faultless before Thy Throne. Oh, prepare us all -for the breaking of that eternal day--that "morning without clouds," -when in Thy light we shall see light--when the love of Christ shall be -enthroned supremely in every heart, when the glory of Christ will form -the animating motive and principle of life that shall never end: and -all I ask is for His sake. Amen. - - "LET MY PRAYER BE SET FORTH BEFORE THEE AS - INCENSE: AND THE LIFTING UP OF MY HANDS - AS THE EVENING SACRIFICE." - - -THE END. - - - - -BOOKS RECENTLY PUBLISHED - -BY H. HOOKER. - - -A PLAIN COMMENTARY ON THE FOUR HOLY GOSPELS, intended chiefly for -devotional reading. Complete from the London edition. In two volumes, -8vo. Price $4, in muslin, gilt; in half calf, $5 50, two volumes in -one; in two volumes, half calf, $6. - -This is esteemed the best Commentary on the Holy Gospels ever -published for general use. It is a mine of devotional thought and -inspiration; beautiful and simple in style, and bringing to bear on -the elucidation of the sacred text the choicest learning, both ancient -and modern. It should find a welcome in every Christian family. - - -SERMONS BY THE REV. ALEXANDER H. VINTON, D. D. In one volume. 12mo., -$1. - -SERMONS BY THE REV. A. CLEVELAND COXE. In one volume, 12mo., $1. - -SERMONS BY THE RIGHT REV. GEORGE BURGESS, D. D. In one volume, 12mo., -$1. - -SEARCH OF TRUTH; a Manual of Instruction concerning the Way of -Salvation. By Rev. James Craik. 12mo., 75 cents. - -THE BOY TRAINED TO BE A CLERGYMAN. By Rev. John N. Norton. 18mo., 37 -cents. - -DR. WORDSWORTH ON THE INSPIRATION AND CANON OF HOLY SCRIPTURE. 18mo., -$1 50. - -DR. WORDSWORTH ON THE APOCALYPSE. 8vo., $2. - -THE EPISCOPATE; ITS HISTORY, DUTIES, &c., &c. By Hugh Davey Evans, -LL.D. 12mo., 62 cents. - -Two very desirable editions of THE BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER. Just -completed. - -THE BOOK OF THE HOMILIES OF THE CHURCH. In one volume, 8vo., $2 25. - - -TWENTY-EIGHT LECTURES ON THE MORNING PRAYER: by Rev. Robert A. Hallam, -D. D., Rector of St. James' Church, New London, Conn. - -"The Rev. Dr. Hallam's Lectures on the Morning Prayer are a valuable -addition to the working material for ordinary parish instruction. He -goes carefully, judiciously, moderately, through all the parts of the -Morning Prayer, including the Litany, and draws out with great -richness and fulness the admirable order, the wonderful connection of -spirit and beauty, the deep inner life, of that inestimable Office. -There is also a sufficient infusion of liturgical learning to make the -volume very instructive to the great bulk of all our congregations. - -With all its wise moderation of statement, there is a warm glow in the -language of Dr. Hallam's book, a fervor in the feeling, and even an -eloquence of expression in many places, which cannot but produce in -all its readers a more full and harmonious appreciation of our -incomparable Liturgy. It will make the worship of our congregations a -wonderfully more _reasonable, holy and living_ sacrifice unto God, -inspiring it with a deeper and truer life wherever its healthful -influence extends."--_Church Journal._ - -"A work of great merit, remarkable in its adaptations to defend and -commend the Church. Let it be read for information about the Church -and the improvement of devotional spirit in her members."--_Banner of -the Cross._ - -"The book of Dr. Hallam is the best book we have seen to put into the -hands of persons desiring to understand the Church." - -"The mode of treating the subject gives it full right to a place among -works on _practical religion_. The leading object of the Lectures is -to show that this was the design and intent of the Service, and that -none who enter into its spirit can fail of being improved by its use. -There is also something in the manner in which our author treats his -subject--so much of his own agreeable peculiarities of thought and -style characterizing it, as to throw an air of freshness over the -subject itself, rendering the perusal as pleasant as it is profitable. -In doctrine and usage, Dr. H. follows the golden mean, the _via media_ -which has ever marked the course of the Church."--_The Calendar._ - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Evening Incense, by John Ross Macduff - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK EVENING INCENSE *** - -***** This file should be named 50916-8.txt or 50916-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/0/9/1/50916/ - -Produced by Heiko Evermann, Chris Pinfield, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -book was produced from scanned images of public domain -material from the Google Books project.) - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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