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WOW excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures. For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light. O continue thy lovingkindness unto them that know thee; and thy righteousness to the upright in heart. -Ps. 36:7-10.

WE HAVE thought of thy lovingkindness, O God, in the midst of thy temple. According to thy name, O God, so is thy praise unto the ends of the earth: thy right hand is full of righteousness. Let mount Zion rejoice, let the daughters of Judah be glad, because of thy judgments. Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof. Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her palaces; that ye may tell it to the generation following. For this God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death. -Ps. 48:9-14.

O God, Creator of heaven and earth, the earth is Thine and Thou madest it. It is full of Thy riches. The silver and the gold are Thine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. Thy vaults, stored full of precious metals, are locked securely in depths of earth; Thou holdest the keys thereof in Thine own hands. The pastures are clothed with flocks; the valleys also are covered over with corn. Thy granaries are full to overflowing. Thy vats burst forth with new wine. Thou openest Thy hand and suppliest the wants of all Thy family. Not only dost Thou break the loaves for the multitudes of men, but countless beasts, also, even the wild beasts of the forest, are fed of Thee continually. All things come of Thee. Therefore, would we continually acknowledge Thy goodness and give thanks unto Thy Name. Continue to bless us with Thy bounty. Made more mindful of Thine abounding goodness, may we abound more and more in blessing others. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

-DAVID MCCONAUGHY.

AND he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as

crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servant shall serve him: and they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever. And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done. Behold, I come quickly blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.

—Rev. 22:1-7.

O gracious Holy Spirit, as we now gather in prayer, we invoke Thy presence and Thy blessing. As we strive to shut out the world for a moment, wilt Thou not help us by coming into our hearts and taking complete possession of us, purifying us from all the sins which have tainted our lives, subduing all our worldly thoughts and ambitions unto Christ, and making us conscious of Thy helpful and inspiring presence. We would see Jesus in this morning hour. The influences of the world are so many and so strong that our thoughts and affections have been too much occupied with those things which are but temporal. Now in this quiet hour let the loving spirit of Christ dwell in us; may we taste those spiritual joys which Christ has promised to all who love Him; show us a glimpse, we pray Thee, of the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. In His Name we ask this. Amen.

-From "GUIDANCE IN PRAYER."

THOU art my portion, O Lord: I have said that I would

keep thy words. I intreated thy favour with my whole heart: be merciful unto me according to thy word. I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies.

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--Ps. 119:57-59.

THY word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judgments. I am afflicted very much : quicken me, O Lord, according unto thy word. Accept, I beseech thee, the freewill offerings of my mouth, O Lord, and teach me thy judgments. My soul is continually in my hand: yet do I not forget thy law. The wicked have laid a snare for me: yet I erred not from thy precepts. Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage for ever: for they are the rejoicing of my heart. I have inclined mine heart to perform thy statutes alway, even unto the end. --Ps. 119:105-112.

Our Father which art in heaven, we ask that Thy blessing may rest upon us at this time; help us to be more and more grateful for all the blessings Thou art sending us day by day. Make us to know Thee, and give us strength to do Thy will in all things. May we acknowledge Thee as our Father, and know that Thou wilt watch over us, and guide and direct our paths, even unto the end, if we put our trust in Thee. Help us, we beseech Thee, to live as in Thy sight. In times of prosperity, make us humble; in times of adversity, be Thou, O Lord, our Strength, our Fortress, and our Refuge. May we always remember that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever; that His infinite love and compassion will sustain us in all the sorrows of life, and bring us at last into perfect peace. Help us to be Christlike in thought, in word, and in deed. Make our faith stronger, and keep us in the path of truth. We ask it for Thy Name's sake. Amen.

66 -From GUIDANCE IN PRAYER."

AND Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was

moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things. And when the day was now far spent, his disciples came unto him, and said, This is a desert place, and now the time is far passed: send them away, that they may go into the country round about, and into the villages, and buy themselves bread: for they have nothing to eat. He answered and said unto them, Give ye them to eat. And they say unto him, Shall we go and buy two hundred pennyworth of bread, and give them to eat? He saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? go and see. And when they knew, they say, Five, and two fishes. And he commanded them to make all sit down by companies upon the green grass. And they sat down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties. And when he had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before them; and the two fishes divided he among them all. And they did all eat, and were filled. And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes. And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men. -MARK 6:34-44.

Father of all goodness, we pray Thee to keep us this day from all narrow-mindedness, from all prejudice and dislike of individuals, from envy of the rich and contempt of the poor. Help us to cultivate whatever gifts and talents Thou hast given us, to cherish friendships, and to recognize in all the blessings of life the personal expressions of Thy eternal love, and a foretaste of what Thou hast in store for us. May we never merit through unbelief the withdrawal of Thy confidence in us to do work that would nourish our own souls and bring a blessing to others. Keep us close to Thee lest we be lost amid the unmeasured sands of sin. Help us to set our affections on things above and at last to be translated into the Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, to whom with Thee, the Father, and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory forever. Amen. -DANIEL HOFFMAN MARTIN, D. D.

THE law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the

testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward. Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults. Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer. -Ps. 19:7-14.

God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we praise Thee for all Thy goodness unto us through Thine only Son, our divine Saviour; we rejoice that He is true man as well as very God. We thank Thee that He is able to save unto the uttermost all who come to Thee by Him; we bless Thee that being made like unto us, His brethren, He is a merciful and faithful High Priest to make reconciliation for our sins. For His sake forgive unto us all sin, bestow upon us the uplifting influences of the Holy Spirit, and help us to live day by day as becometh the children of God. Add to spiritual blessing natural mercies, our Father, as Thou seest the need, preserve our health and strength that we may serve Thee effectively in all things, and draw us closer in every hour to Him who is our great Elder Brother, whose promise is our glorious heritage: "Lo, I am with you always even unto the end." Amen.

-WILLIAM H. ROBERTS, D. D.

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