Helps for the quiet hour; prayers, collects, verses, collated from many sources

Front matter

Pragers . (loUects . \)cxqcb

COLLATED FROM MANY SOURCES

WITH A PREFATORY ESSAY ON THE

II Begfin with God

Begin the day with God! He is thy sun and day; He is the radiance of thy dawn, to him address thy lay. Sing a new song at morn, join the glad woods and

hills; Join the fresh winds, and seas, and plains; join the

bright flowers and rills.

Awake, cold lips, and sing! Arise, dull knees, and

pray !

Lift up, O man, thy heart and eyes, brush slothfulness

away.

Look up beyond these clouds; thither thy pathway lies. Mount up, away, and linger not; thy goal is yonder skies.

Cast every weight aside! Do battle with each sin; Fight with the faithless world without, the faithless

heart within.

Take thy first meal with God ; he is thy heavenly

food; Feed with and on him; he with thee will feast in

brotherhood.

Take thy first walk with God ! Let him go forth with

thee; By stream, or sea, or mountain path, seek still his

company.

Thy first transaction be with God himself above; So shall thy business prosper well, and all the day be

love. —Horatius Bonar,

III Submission

LoRD^ I will willingly bear for thee whatsoever thou wilt have to come upon me. Without choice I will receive from thy hand good and evil, sweet and bitter, joy and sadness, and will give thee thanks for all things which shall happen unto me. Keep me from all sin, and I will not fear death nor hell. Only cast me not away forever, nor blot me out of the book of life. Then no tribulation which shall come upon me shall do me hurt. Amen. — Imitatio ChrisfL

IV Thanksgiving

May my whole being, O God, be one thanksgiving unto thee ; may all within me praise thee and love thee — for all which thou hast forgiven, and for all which thou hast given ; for thine unknown hidden blessings, and for those which, in my negligence or thoughtlessness, I passed over ; for any and every gift of nature or of grace; for my power of loving ; for all blessings within and without ; and for all which thou hast yet in store for me; for everything whereby thou hast drawn me to thyself, whether joy or sorrow; for all whereby thou wiliest to make me thine own forever. Amen. — Rev, Dr, Edward B, Pusey.

For the Fullness of Love

I KNOW^ O Lord, that thou hast commanded me, and therefore it is my duty to love thee with all my heart, and with all my strength. I know thou art infinitely holy and overflowing in all perfection ; and therefore it is my duty so to love thee.

I know thou hast created me, and that I have neither being nor blessing but what is the effect of thy power and goodness. I know thou art the end for which I was created, and that I can expect no happiness but in thee. I know that in love to me, being lost in sin, thou didst send thy only Son, and that he, being the Lord of glory, did humble himself to the death upon the cross, that I might be raised to glory.

I know thou hast provided me with all necessary helps for carrying me through this life to that eternal glory, and this out of the excess of thy pure mercy to me, unworthy of all mercies. I know thou hast promised to be thyself my "exceeding great reward;" though it is thou alone who thyself "workest in me, both to will and to do of thy good pleasure."

Upon these, and many other titles, I confess it is my duty to love thee, my God, with all my heart. Give thy strength unto thy servant, that thy love may fill my heart, and be the motive of all the use I make of my understanding, my affections, my senses, my health, my time, and whatever other talents I have received from thee. Let this, O God, rule my heart without a rival; let it dispose all my thoughts, words, and works ; and thus only can I fulfill my duty and thy command, of loving thee "with all my heart, and mind, and soul, and strength."

O thou infinite Goodness, confirm thy past mercies to me, by enabling me, for what remains of my life, to be more faithful than I have hitherto been to this thy great command. For the time I have yet to sojourn upon earth, O let me fulfill this great duty. Permit me not to be in any delusion here ; let me not trust in words, or sighs, or tears, but love thee even as thou hast commanded. Let me feel, and then I shall know, what it is to love thee with all my heart. Amen. — John Wesley.

VI In Perfect Peace

O GoD^ help us to listen for thy voice amid the din of earthly things. Help us in our busiest hours to see thy hand in everything that shall befall us or be done around us. Help us to read great lessons in even the commonest things. Nothing is too insignificant for thy use in teaching and perfecting us. May our hearts and tempers bear the test of little things ; let no eagerness of business beguile us into forgetfulness of thee ; let no fret, or worry, or provocation irritate or make us impatient. May our souls be kept in perfect peace, stayed upon thee. May we offer to thee as service and sacrifice everything we do, even the least and most commonplace. Amen. — The British Weekly.

VII On Sabbath Evening

O wonderful and adorable Saviour! Thy heart is a fountain from which heaHng streams never cease to flow! Thy voice has not lost its ancient power! Thy hand still thrills with the might of omnipotence! And thou art not wearied with all that thou hast done amid the great, sorrowful family of man. Myriads have pressed and crowded thee, thousands have touched thee ; many have drawn heavily upon thy patience, pity, and help. But thou art unworn, unspent. As on the morning of thy resurrection, so now, as the night settles down, thou art going forward to new ministries of love. The angels bless thee; thy saints adore thee; the hearts whom thou hast redeemed love thee! Glory be to thee, O Lamb of God, Son of God, Light of light. Very God of very God! Amen. — From F. B. Meyer's Morning and Evening Devotions.

VIII Lotd, Teach Me

Fix my thoughts, my hopes, and my desires upon heaven and heavenly things; teach me to despise the world, to repent me deeply for my sins; give me holy purposes of amendment, and spiritual strength and assistance to perform faithfully whatsoever I shall intend piously. Enrich my understanding with an eternal treasure of divine truths, that I may know thy will ; and thou, who workest in us to will and to do of thy good pleasure, teach me to obey all thy commandments, to believe all thy revelations, and make me partaker of all thy gracious promises. Teach me to watch over all my ways, that I may never be surprised by sudden temptations or a careless spirit, nor ever return to folly and vanity. Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth, and keep the door of my lips, that I offend not in my tongue, neither against piety nor charity. Teach me to do nothing but what becomes thy servant, whom thy infinite mercy, by the graces of the Holy Spirit, hath sealed unto the day of redemption. Amen. — Jeremy Taylor.

IX At Eventide

Almighty and everlasting God, the sovereign Lord of all creatures in heaven and earth, we acknowledge that our beings, and all the comforts of them, depend on thee, the Fountain of all good. We have nothing but what is owing entirely to thy free and bounteous love, O most blessed Creator, and to the riches of thy grace, O most blessed Redeemer.

To thee, therefore, be given, by us and by all creatures whom thou hast made to know how great and good thou art, all honor and praise, all love and obedience, as long as we have any being. "It is but meet, right, and our bounden duty, that we should, at all times and in all places, give thanks unto thee, O Lord,'' and devoutly resign both soul and body to thee, to be absolutely governed and ruled according to thy holy will.

Father, we pray thee, increase every good desire which we feel already in our hearts; let us always live as becomes thy creatures, as becomes the disciples of Jesus Christ. Incline us to be more and more in love with thy laws, till they are written upon our hearts. Stir up our wills to love them exceedingly, and to cleave unto them as our very life. Amen. — John Wesley.

X The Lord^s Appointment

I SAY it over and over, and yet again to-day- It rests my heart as surely as it did yesterday: It is the Lord's appointment; Whatever my work may be, I am sure in my heart of hearts He has ordered it for me. 28

I must say it over and over, and again to-day — For my work is different from that of yesterday: It is the Lord's appointment;

It quiets my restless will Like the voice of tender mother, And my heart and will are still.

I will say it over and over, this, and every day: Whatsoever the Master orders, come what may, It is the Lord's appointment;

For only his love can see What is wisest, best, and right, What is truly good for me.

— Abby C, Labaree.

XI Under His Wingfs

O Lord our God, under the shadow of thy v^ings let us hope. Thou wilt support us, both when little, and even to gray hairs. When our strength is of thee, it is strength; but when our own, it is feebleness. We return unto thee, O Lord, that from their weariness our souls may rise toward thee, leaning on the things which thou hast created, and passing on to thyself, who. hast wonderfully made them; for with thee is refreshment and true strength. Amen. — St. Augustine (A. D. 354-430).