SCRIPTURE LESSON. OT every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.—Matt. vii: 21. Giving all diligence, add to your faith, virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; and to knowledge, temperance; and to temperance, patience; and to patience, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, charity.-II. Pet. i: 5-7. Let us not be weary in well-doing, for in due season we shall reap if we faint not.-Gal. vi: 9. PRAYER. E praise Thee, O Father; we acknowledge Thee to be the Lord. All the earth doth worship Thee, the Father everlasting. To Thee all angels cry aloud; the heavens, and all the powers therein. To Thee, cherubim and seraphim continually do cry, Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Sab-aoth! Heaven and earth are full of the majesty of Thy glory. The glorious company of the Apostles praise Thee. The noble army of Martyrs praise Thee. The holy Church throughout all the world doth acknowledge Thee, the Father of an infinite majesty: Also Thine anointed and honorable son, and the Holy Spirit the Comforter. O God, the King of Glory! help us, Thy servants, whom Thou hast redeemed by the hand of Thy mighty power: make us to be numbered with Thy saints in glory everlasting. Day by day we magnify Thee; and we wor ship Thy name ever, world without end. Amen. SCRIPTURE LESSON. FFER unto God thanksgiving, and pay thy vows unto the most high.-Ps. 1: 14. I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, that unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear. Surely shall one say, in the Lord have I righteousness and strength.-Isa. xlv: 23,24. It shall not return unto me void; but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.-Isa. lv : 11. Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations. The Lord upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down. The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season. Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.-Ps. cxlv: 13-16. My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord: and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.-Ps. cxlv: 21. PRAYER. AKER of all worlds, Thou only art our God, Thou only art oar Father. May we, Thy children, love and serve Thee; may our hearts be full of joy, hallowed by Thy presence. When we turn from the vision of Thy works to commune in solitude, be Thou with us still; may the spirit of Thy works breathe upon our hearts, transforming us into Thy likeness, from grace to grace, and from glory to glory. Amen. SCRIPTURE LESSON. RAISE ye the Lord: for it is good to sing praise unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely. Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite. The Lord lifteth up the meek: he casteth the wicked down to the ground. Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving; sing praise upon the harp unto our God: who covereth the heaven with clouds, who prepareth rain for the earth, who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains. He maketh peace in thy borders, and filleth thee with the finest of the wheat. He sendeth forth his commandment upon earth: his word runneth very swiftly. hoar frost like ashes. stand before his cold? He giveth snow like wool: he scattereth the He casteth forth his ice like morsels: who can He sendeth out his word, and melteth them: he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow. He hath not dealt so with any nation: and as for his judgments, they have not known them. Praise ye the Lord.-Ps. cxlvii: 1; 5-8; 14-18; 20. PRAYER. ATHER of all souls, Thy goodness covers and blesses all Thy creatures. We have no gifts for Thee, but Thy hand is ever full of gifts for us, enriching us with Thy love and bounty when we come to Thee. When Thou sayest, Seek ye my face, may our hearts reply, Thy face will we seek. Teach us how to seek Thee aright, with pure hearts and sincere desires, striving to love and obey Thee. And Thine shall be the praise and the glory forever. Amen. SCRIPTURE LESSON. ET no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: but every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin; and sin,when it is finished, bringeth forth death. Do not err, my beloved brethren. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and keep himself unspotted from the world. James i: 13-17; 27. Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver them who, through fear of death, were, all their life-time, subject to bondage.-Heb. ii: 14, 15. For this purpose the son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. I. John iii: 8. PRAYER. THOU Infinite One, whose throne is the heavens, and whose footstool is the earth, may we commune with Thee face to face; and amidst all the noises of earth, may we hear Thy still, small voice, calling us to a better, nobler life. May we rest under the shadow of Thy wings, and be warmed by Thy love. We adore and worship Thee, but Thou dost transcend our best thought of Thee, and Thy thoughts, ever dear to us, cannot be numbered. All Thy works praise Thee, O God, and all Thy children shall worship Thee, the Father Almighty. Amen. SCRIPTURE LESSON. ORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbor, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbor. In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoreth them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not. He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. doeth these things shall never be moved.-Ps. xv: 1–5. PRAYER. He that ATHER of mercies and God of all grace, we would praise Thee, day by day, for Thy manifold blessings. Thy love hath strewed our pathway with flowers, and kindled emotions of joy and gladness in our hearts. Wilt Thou, by the continued exhibitions of Thy goodness, lead us to repent of every sin, and humbly implore Thy pardon. Give us the meek and humble mind of Jesus, and make his life our model, and his truth our guide. Give us a just sense of our indebtedness to Thee, for the unparalleled exhibitions of righteousness furnished us in the example of him who was the "brightness of the Father's glory, and the express image of his person." Make us to love him as our Redeemer, and honor him as the author of our salvation. May the Gospel of truth, which he established, the good tidings of good unto all people, be blessed of Thee, until it shall have triumphed over error and sin, and banished them from the universe; and man shall love his neighbor as himself. Amen. |