Prayer LXXI
O Lord, we thank Thee that Thou hast taught us to call Thee the Father of Lights, and to think that every good and perfect gift is from Thee, and that nothing that is not good and perfect does come from Thee. We bless TJiee for all that sure confidence which we have that with Thee is no variableness, that Thou art ever mindful of Thy covenant, mindful of Thine own past dealings, mindful of the claims that Thy poor creatures have upon Thee; and that Thou dost so abundantly shower down upon us all things richly to enjoy, and all things requisite and necessary as well for the body as for the soul. Help us then, we pray Thee, to draw near to Thee now with grateful hearts, recognising how full of blessing Thy dealings with each of us has been, and how behind all the daily mercies there lies the unspeakable gift which does not perish with the using, but becomes the greater and more blessed to each of us the more we possess and enjoy it. We thank Thee for life, we thank Thee more for the life of God in Jesus Christ Who died — nay, rather, Who is risen again. And we beseech Thee that the blood which shed avails for the cleansing away of our guilt, may, poured into our veins, avail for the hallowing and sanctifying of our whole nature; and may we be partakers of His holiness, and know the power of His Resurrection, because we know and are conformed to the fellowship of the servants.
We have come this evening from very different circumstances. The day’s work has called for different qualities from us. We have left behind us homes in divers conditions, but we thank Thee that whatever variety there may be in our necessities the deepest needs of us all are one, and the great Supply for all our needs is One. We would come then to Thee, Lord, and pray, because we have learnt that Thou art the God that givest unto all men liberally and upbraideth not. We bless Thee that though there is much for which we might be upbraided in the misuse that we have made of Thy mercies, in our neglect to take the thijjgs that are freely given to us of God, in the slow progress that we have made in the Christian life when its powers were so abundantly waiting to enter into our lives, yet we draw near to Thee, blending with our visions of unworthiness and shortcomings the prayer that Thou wouldst come to us now, and help us that we may indeed open our hearts for the entrance of Thy mercy, and may have that unwavering faith which shall receive everything of the Lord. We would keep steadfast hearts that Thou mayest pour Thy grace into them. We beseech Thee to make our desires after the best things more continual and more operative in our lives, and we pray that Thou wouldst help us to subdue our wishes for lesser good, and our false estimates of what we need most, and wouldst help us day by day to realise that it is God that is the Portion of our hearts and our Strength for ever.
We beseech Thee to bless us as we are gathered here this evening, and to give to each of us Thy Holy Spirit in our hearts, that our desires may be drawn out to Thee, and the eyes of our understandings being opened we may behold wondrous things out of Thy law and of Thy grace in Jesus Christ our Saviour. May none of us be forgetful hearers and not doers of Thy word. May none of us go away from its mirror ‘forgetting what manner of man we are,’ but may we all treasure in our hearts the truths which Thou hast continued to reveal to us in Thine Incarnate Word, and in the written Word which bears record of Him; and may we manifest these truths in our lives, and find how true it is that such a man is blessed, not only for, and after, but in his deeds.
Be Thou near us as we try to meditate on Thy truth. May it be the guide of our hearts and thoughts. We pray Thee to pour the light of Thy grace into our spirits, that we may behold what Thou dost mean us to see, the glory of Thy love in the words of Thy Revelation. We pray for each in Thy Presence according to all our diverse circumstances. Especially we would commend to Thee any present with us, or belonging to us, though absent from us now, that may be in any kind of sorrow or trouble. We pray Thee to draw near to such now, and to speak Thy gracious, gentle whispers of consolation and of peace to such troubled souls. We thank Thee, O Lord, that Thy children have free access to Thee, and that Thou art ever wont to come near to them who are in any sorrow. We pray that none of us may ever shut Thee out from our sad moments, and try to find comfort elsewhere than in saying, ‘The will of the Lord be done.’
And now, Lord, be with all Thy servants of every communion and name. Be with all such in our city. Grant that the manifestation of Christ’s grace may be more powerfully made by all professing Christian communities, and that this great city may be more and more penetrated by the message of God’s love in Jesus Christ, and the evils that abound among us may be subdued. And lay the responsibilities of their position and the obligations of their possessions upon Thy servants’ hearts; and help all Christian men and women in this and every part of our land to be faithful to their Master, and to do the work for which God has put them here. We pray that Thy blessing may rest upon us. We thank Thee for all Thy great mercies to us. We humbly acknowledge our many unworthinesses and sins, and we lay our hands upon the head of that Sacrifice, and know that our guilt is there.
Hear, answer, and bless us, Lord, through Jesus our Saviour.