and fears; repress the waywardness of our wills, and control all our affec tions. Strengthen us to bear all our trials patiently, and to glorify thee in our daily life. We pray thee to bless and sustain the old, to give strength unto such as are bearing the heat and burden of the day, and to lead all children in ways of goodness. Have compassion on all those who are in sorrow or sickness; relieve the sufferer, comfort the afflicted, and show thy mercy to the weak and erring. Take us, O Lord, entirely unto thy hands, and let nothing henceforward, either in life or death, come between us and thee. Amen. O God, who art, and wast, and art to come, before whose face the generations rise and pass away: age after age the living seek thee, and find that of thy faithfulness there is no end. Our fathers in their pilgrimage walked by thy guidance, and rested on thy compassion: still to their children be thou the cloud by day, the fire by night. Where but in thee have we a covert from the storm, or shadow from the heat of life? In our manifold temptations, thou alone knowest and art ever nigh; in sorrow, thy pity revives the fainting soul; in our prosperity and ease, it is thy spirit only that can wean us from our pride and keep us lowly. O thou sole Source of peace and righteousness, take now the veil from every heart, and join us in one communion with thy prophets and saints who have trusted in thee, and were not ashamed. Amen. Ο Thy kingdom The Lord's Prayer: to be said by the minister and the people. UR Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil: for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen. O Lord open thou our lips: And our mouths shall show forth thy praise. Now unto him that is able to keep us from falling and present us faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, Be glory and majesty, dominion and power, for ever and ever. Amen. TH Third Service. Opening sentences: one or more to be said by the minister. HE Lord is gracious and full of compassion, long suffering and of great mercy. The Lord is good to all and his tender mercies are over all his works. Trust ye in the Lord for ever, for in the Lord our God is everlasting strength. Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him, and he shall give thee the desires of thy heart. Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, should be called the children of God. that we Search me, O God, and know my heart, try me and know my thoughts, and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. G Then shall the minister say: OD, in whom we live and move and have our being, never leaves us day or night. But the very nearness and custom of his presence hide him from our heedless hearts, and under the cover of the darkness our inner discernment becomes dim, temptations gain a shameful power, and the good that is in us droops and fades. To clear such blindness away, and recover the pure wisdom of a Christian mind, we are called to this day of remembrance and the house of prayer. Entering here, therefore, let us cross the threshold of eternal things, and commune with the Father who seeth in secret. Let us pray. A Then shall the following prayers be said: LMIGHTY and most merciful God, toward whose everlasting blessedness we ascend by the strong desire of the soul, and by patient continuance in well-doing; lead us by thine inspiration to seek our true life with thee, and earnestly to strive to enter into thy heavenly kingdom. Send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead us. Set us free from the bondage of self-will, and passion, and ungodly desire, that sin may not have dominion over us; but that with a willing mind we may serve thee, the Lord of heaven and earth. Sanctify and renew us in the spirit of our minds. From unrighteous anger and an impatient temper; from an uncharitable judgment and readiness to believe evil; from inordinate cares and needless anxieties; from complaints against thee and from rebellion against thy holy will: O Lord, deliver us. Give us a wise and understanding heart, a fervent and faithful spirit, a love of holy things, and a longing for whatsoever is good and true. Lord, fix our hearts on thee. O God, the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness nor shadow of turning, from whom cometh down every good and perfect gift: we ask of thee that wisdom which is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. Help us to walk with all holiness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; endeavoring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. Help us, we pray thee, to live and walk in the spirit; so may we fulfil the perfect law of love. Amen. O merciful Father, as we have received the benefits of thy great goodness, so we beseech thee to grant us always thy holy spirit; that we may continually grow in thankfulness to thee, and be led into all truth. O Lord, strengthen our faith; kindle in us a fervent love towards thee and our neighbor. Suffer us not, most gracious Father, to receive in vain the rich and precious treasure of thy word. May it purify us from evil, and increase in us those heavenly virtues which were manifest in Jesus. Hold thou us, that we may be delivered from all temptations, and may walk according to thy holy will unto our lives' end. Amen. O The Lord's Prayer to be said by the minister and the people. UR Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil: for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen. O Lord, open thou our lips, And our mouths shall show forth thy praise. Now unto the King eternal, immortal, and invisible, the only wise God, Be honor and glory, for ever and ever. Praise ye the Lord. The Lord's name shall be praised. I Fourth Service. Opening sentences: one or more to be said by the minister. HEARD a great voice out of heaven saying: Behold the tabernacle of God is with men; and he shall dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and he himself shall be with them and be their God. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new; I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. Thus saith the high and holy One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is holy I dwell in the high and holy place; with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. FOR Then shall the minister say: ORASMUCH as we are here assembled to unite in prayer and praise to Almighty God, it is meet that we engage in this service with humble minds and reverent hearts. We come to hold communion with him and with one another, to cast all our care upon him who careth for us, and to seek new strength in our battle with sin. Our Father is faithful, and we therefore trust him; he is wise, and it is our desire to obey him; he scatters his gifts with a bounteous hand, and we would receive them with thankful hearts; he is merciful and gracious, patient and longsuffering; and so, like children, we turn to him, and seek his strength and blessing. Let us pray. O Then shall the following prayers be said: GOD, our heavenly Father, from whom cometh every good and perfect gift: we lift up to thee the voice of our thanksgiving; we praise thee for the life which thou hast given us, and the service to which thou hast appointed us, for the knowledge of thy will, and the inspirations of thy love: We praise thee, our Father in heaven. For the work we have strength to do, for the truth we are permitted to learn; for whatever good there has been in our past lives, and for the hopes that lead us on toward better things: We praise thee, O our God. For the revealing of thy presence in nature, and the tokens of thy wisdom and power, in the least as in the greatest; for every moment of nearer communion with thy Spirit in all that is fair and glorious in the universe: We praise thee, O our God. For thy holy word of righteousness and truth, spoken by the wise and good in every age, made manifest in noble and saintly lives: We praise thee, O our God. For home and friends, for all the comfort and gladness of our lives, for encouragements to duty, for succor in temptation, for sympathy in sorrow, for the peace that is gained through strife, and the rest that comes after toil: We praise thee, O Lord, our Father in heaven. Make us less unworthy of all thy mercies, and give us grace to know and do thy holy will. Help us thus to praise thee, O our God, and to bless thy holy name for ever and ever. Amen. Eternal God, who dost commit to us the swift and solemn trust of life, lay to rest by the persuasion of thy spirit the resistance of our passion, indolence, and fear. Consecrate with thy presence the way our feet must go, and the humblest work will shine and the roughest places be made plain. Lift us above unrighteous anger and mistrust into faith, and hope, and charity, by a simple and steadfast reliance on thy sure will, that so we may be modest in our time of wealth, patient under disappointment, ready for danger, serene in death, and confident of everlasting life. Amen. O The Lord's Prayer: to be said by the minister and the people. UR Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil: for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory for ever and ever. Amen. To the Only Holy, the First and the Last, be thanksgiving and praise: From all kindreds and tongues on earth, and the voices of saints in heaven. Amen. |