Accept my thanks for all the privileges I have enjoyed, and benefits, intellectual, moral, and spiritual, which I have received while attending school, and when under the direction and care of earthly instructors. May my future life show that, by thy blessing, some improvement has been made, and that the instructions which have been poured into my ear do not resemble the water spilled upon the ground, that cannot be gathered up again.

In thy gracious providence I am about to enter on active life, to acquire that knowledge which is necessary for my temporal pursuit, and for my temporal support. Lord, give me wisdom, that, like Joseph, I may manage all my affairs with discretion. Give me grace to show diligence in business and fervour in spirit, that thus I may ever serve and honour thee, the Lord my God. Make me meek, affable, and kind, and thus resemble the gentle, the meek, and the lowly Jesus. Make me patient to bear, with Christian humility, whatever may be trying to my feelings or opposed to my wishes. Make me faithful to those under whom I may be placed, and called upon to serve, in thy gracious providence. May I serve them with singleness of heart, as unto Christ; not with eye-service as men-pleasers, but as the servant of Christ doing the will of God from the heart; with goodwill doing service as to the Lord, and not to men: knowing that "whatsoever good thing any man doeth, he shall receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free." In all my temporal pursuits may I never forget the one thing needful. Suffer me not to be less diligent in spiritual exercises than in my temporal employments. May godliness, which is profitable for the life that now is, and for the life which is to come, mingle with all I do. Oh teach me to seek first the kingdom of heaven, and its righteousness, in preference to earthly pleasures, riches, and honours. Lord, I look to thee for help, who am weak, and for wisdom, seeing I am young, inexperienced, and foolish. I cast myself upon the care and into the arms of thee, the God of my salvation, that I may "be steadfast and immoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord."

Mercifully hear my prayer, and forgive my sins, for my dear

XIV. BEFORE GOING A JOURNEY.

MY Lord, and my God, I desire now, in the exercise of faith,

humility, and dependance, to approach thy throne of grace in Jesus' name. Before leaving home, and entering upon a journey, I commit myself to thy gracious, providential, and paternal care. Thou art everywhere present. Teach me to rejoice in thine omnipresence. When separated, and at a distance from my parents and earthly friends, may the conviction that thou art ever near, ever ready to help in the hour of weakness, and to defend in the hour of danger, fill my heart with joy and thankfulness. Blessed Jesus, fulfil in my experience that promise with which thou didst comfort the hearts of thy disciples: "Lo, I am with you alway." Give me grace now to embrace, receive, and trust in thee as my Saviour. Then I shall be for ever safe, encircled with thy kind arms, and leaning on the bosom of thy love. In the house, and by the way, do thou, Divine Redeemer, spread over me the shield of thy protection. Suffer me not to fall into any temptation, or to bring a reproach upon the Christian name. In my journey, wherever I am, or with whomsoever I may have intercourse, may I set thee, my God and Saviour, always before me.

Fulfil in me thy gracious promises: "He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber. The Lord is thy keeper; the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in, from this time forth, and

even for evermore."

Grant that I may return in safety and in peace. And when the journey of human life comes to a close, may I, and my beloved parents, brothers, sisters, relatives, and friends, meet in the house, not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. Blessed Jesus, make me a heaven-bound pilgrim. Teach me to look on this world as a wilderness, in which I can have no continuing city or place of abode. Enable me by faith to look on heaven as my home. Like Abraham may I, and all I love, "look for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God."

God of my salvation, graciously hear my prayer, and forgive my

MY

Y God, and my Father in Christ, I am encouraged by thy great mercy to approach thy throne of grace, and to cast myself upon thy care when about to leave my home and enter upon a voyage to a distant land. Thou art the Almighty Creator of the heavens and the earth. "In thy hands are the deep places of the earth, the strength of the hills is thine also. The sea is thine, for thou didst make it, and thy hands formed the dry land. Thou hast set a compass upon the face of the deep. Thou hast established the clouds above, and thou hast strengthened the fountains of the deep. Thou didst give to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass thy commandments."

May thy Holy Spirit deeply impress upon my heart those expressions of adoration which have fallen from my lips. Now I desire, before entering into the ship to commence my voyage through the great deep, to commit my soul into the hands of Jesus, who laid down his life for my salvation. Most merciful Redeemer, I now make to thyself a personal application, and say, in the words of the penitent publican, "Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner." Blessed Jesus, answer this my prayer, and graciously say to me by thy Spirit, "I have heard thy prayer, and I will save thee."

Grant, O Lord, in thy great goodness, that the voyage may be prosperous and safe. Preserve me from the perils of the raging tempest. Suffer not the waves of the sea to be my grave. May the vessel and all which it contains reach the desired haven in safety and in peace. May these thy gracious promises be literally fulfilled in our experience, "He shall cover thee with his feathers, under his wings shalt thou trust; his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil, he shall preserve thy soul."

May I, in thy great mercy, return in peace to my native land, and enjoy the fellowship of my beloved relatives and friends. And, when the voyage of life is finished, may we all meet on Canaan's happy shores, to be ever with the Lord.

Mercifully hear my supplications, for Jesus' sake. Amen.

HOLY

XVI. AFTER RETURNING HOME FROM A VOYAGE.

[OLY and Divine Spirit, breathe upon me thy gracious influences, while I approach the throne of grace, to present my sacrifice of thanksgiving and of praise for the mercy of my God in preserving me, and in watching over me, during my late voyage, and for bringing me back in safety to my native shores, and to my father's house. Before my departure, I committed my soul and body to thy care, and thou hast heard and answered the voice of my supplications. What shall I render unto thee for thine abundant and unmerited goodness? Amid the raging of the sea, and exposed to the dangers of the storm, thou didst preserve me as in a pavilion of safety. Unworthy as I am, thou didst hide me in the secret place of the Most High. I saw thy wonders in the deep; and thou didst say to the raging tempest, by the voice of thine omnipotence, "Peace! be still," and there was a calm. Oh let me never forget thy loving-kindness, and the interposition of thy mercy! While others have perished in the great deep, and never returned to a father's house, to receive the fond embrace of tender-hearted parents and loving friends, thou hast preserved my life, and permitted me in comfort and peace to see once more my beloved parents, and to unite with them in expressions of praise and thankfulness. Thou hast permitted us to have a joyful meeting on earth—may we have, at last, a glorious meeting in heaven.

Now, on my return, enable me, by thy Spirit, to say with the heart, "Lord Jesus, I give myself to thee, to be thine, to be thine only, to be thine wholly, and thine for ever. Blessed Saviour, accept the dedication. Divine Redeemer, I now receive thee as my Prophet, to instruct me: oh give me wisdom. I receive thee as my great High Priest oh clothe me with thy righteousness, and intercede for me before heaven's throne. I receive thee as my King: oh subdue me to thyself; reign in me, and reign over me. Defend me from every enerny, temptation, and sin; and, at last, bring me to thy heavenly kingdom, when this voyage of mortal life comes to a close, to dwell with thyself, to praise and enjoy thee for ever and ever. Lord, graciously hear my prayers, and accept my thanksgivings, for Jesus, my dear Redeemer's

XVII. AFTER THE DEATH OF A FATHER.

MY Y merciful and my heavenly Father, thou art a Sovereign wise, and just, and merciful. As a family, thou hast visited us with a great and a heavy affliction. Thou hast taken from us our beloved, earthly father. Oh teach me, and every member of our family, and especially my sorrowful, and now widowed mother, to bow without a murmuring thought before thy sovereign will. Teach all of us, under this afflicting dispensation, to say in the language of Job, when suddenly deprived of all his children by the hand of death, "The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away: blessed be the name of the Lord!" May the words of Jeremiah express the feelings of my heart, "For the Lord will not cast off forever; for though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies. For he doth not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men.”

Merciful Father, comfort my dear mother's heart, and say unto her, Thy Maker is thine husband; the Lord of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: the God of the whole earth shall he be called."

Lord, have mercy on us who are now fatherless children. May we hear thy kind compassionate voice saying to us, "I am the Father of the fatherless, and I will be your God and your Father. Your earthly father has left you; but I will never leave thee, I will never forsake thee."

Lord, graciously sanctify this heavy affliction.

Make it the means

of leading us all to Jesus. Give us grace to receive Jesus as the resurrection and the life. May the death of our beloved earthly father thus prove the life of our never-dying souls. May my widowed mother, and all of us, enjoy the sympathy of Jesus. May thy gracious promises be fulfilled in our experience: "By this shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged, and this is all the fruit, to take away his sin. Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction. Blessed is the man that endureth affliction: for when he is tried he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. I will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters." Lord, hear these the supplications of my heart, for