XXXIV. THANKSGIVINGS.

M. I will praise Thee, O Lord, my God.
P. O Lord, my Redeemer, I will extol Thee;
C. And I will magnify thy name,

O Lord, my Shepherd.

All. In concert, let us bless Him

That made, rules, and saves us.

M. O Lord, ineffable in power and glory,
Thou who didst create me and all things,
Thou art worthy of everlasting celebration.
P. O Saviour of men, kind as mighty,

Compassionate as wise, whose love never fails,
Thou art worthy of universal and eternal praise.
C. Thou that in the days of thy flesh
Didst encourage and bless little children-
Thou who hast bid the under-shepherds

Care for, feed, and protect the lambs of the flock,
Thou art worthy of the heart's instinctive homage,
Of the soul's first and purest offerings,

And of the love of the innocents on high.

All. Thou mighty Creator, Thou everlasting Redeemer, Thou! Thou art worthy of all.seraphic praise,

Of the inspired chorus of the universal church,
And of the mute hymnings of the God-made cosmos.
C. This body hast Thou given me, O Lord,
With eyes to see, and ears to hear,

And mouth to speak, and feet to move,
A wondrous frame, erect, divine.

P. My mind, O Lord, the reflex of thine own,

Hast Thou made quick of thought,
Subtle in reason, vivid in imagination,
Full of ideas, imitative, creative.

M. This soul, image of the invisible and infinite,
Satisfied with nought but God, immortal,
And susceptible of living union with Thee,
O blessed and adorable God, hast Thou made.
All. O God, the Creator of body, mind, and soul,
Thou who sustainest us day by day, and hour by hour,
To whom we owe every power and faculty
Whether of body or mind-Thou who impartest

Thy blessed Self unto us, unto Thee

Be praise-everlasting praise.

Our very powers are too feeble to express

Thy worthy praise.

C. O Lord, Thou who sustainest me day by day,

And givest me food to eat, and raiment to wear,
Kind friends, and kinder parents,

Thee do I bless.

P. Thou all-wise One, I bless Thee

For the pure and good of social influence,

For the resources, facilities, and blessings of civilization, For the instructive and improving, whether of art,

Science, or literature.

M. Thou holy and happy One, I bless Thee

For the light of life, the word of truth,

The hope of immortality, and the home of the blessed. All. How great thy goodness, O our God! How much, how much we owe to Thee! Oh, for more than mortal strength And mortal voice, thy praise to speak!

M. Thou, Lord, givest unto us thy Word;

P. Wherein Thou speakest of the forgiveness of sins;
C. Wherein Thou sayest that Thou lovest us.

All. For the Word of thy grace, the Book Divine,
Writ of old by men inspired of Thee,

Amidst vicissitudes unparalleled preserved to us,
Our inheritance, the inheritance of our children,

And of the world-for this thy Book,
And all its teachings, merciful Father,
We praise Thee.

M. According to that Word, O Lord, Thou didst send
Thy Son into the world,

P. Who suffered for us and for our sins,

C. That we might have life, and have it more abundantly.
All. Thee, O blessed Saviour, the crucified One,

Who didst lay down thy life on our behalf—
Thee we praise and extol.

M. Thou, Lord, forgivest our sins;

P. Thou rememberest them no more for ever;
C. Thou washest us from all impurity.
All. For mercy undeserved and unexpected—
For mercy beyond all estimate and price-
For mercy boundless as thy nature,

Thee do we celebrate, O God of our salvation.
M. Thou grantest, Lord, thy Spirit;

The Spirit of grace, truth, and righteousness.
P. Who teaches, sanctifies, and consoles us.
C. He maketh us thy sons and daughters;
We cry-Abba, Father.

All. Thou blessed Spirit, the great Revealer,
The everlasting Inspirer, the abiding Solace,
Of our hearts in Christ Jesus, accept

The faint and struggling echo of thy mighty work
Within us.

M. O Jesus, Thou instillest thy love into our hearts-
P. A love divine, warm, sincere, perpetual.

C. Oh, to love as Thou lovest

As Thou teachest us to love!

All. For thy love, thy vanquishing love,

O blessed Jesus, that leads captive our souls,—
For this divine source of enjoyment and power,
Would that we could in adequate measure

Praise, extol, and bless Thee.

M. Thou sanctifiest us by thy love,

That Thou mayest dwell for ever with us. P. Thou makest our spirits thy temple.

C. Thou dwellest with us, and delightest to dwell.

All. For thine indwelling, for the consecration of our hearts

To peace and Thee, for thy condescension do we adore Thee.

M. Thou teachest us to imitate Thee,

Thou Sum of human excellence.

P. Thou teachest us to do as Thou once didst,
C. That we may think, feel, and sympathize

As Thou didst once think, feel, and sympathize.
All. O sinless One, our Pattern and our Guide,
For thy blessed life and all its deep inspirings,
For all in us of thought or character like thine,
We do most cheerfully glorify Thee.

M. Saviour, Thou camest to seek the lost.
P. Thou fillest our hearts with sympathy for such.
C. They that are like Thee

Seek the destitute, the blind, the ignorant,
The widow, the orphan, the sick, the dying.
All. For aught of human tenderness,

Of fellow-feeling and sympathy with woe-
For aught of care, and thought, and effort
To enlighten, cheer, and bless-for aught
Of deep-felt prayer and gushing love,

To save the sinful outcast-we adore Thee,
Great Saviour, Thou eternal friend of sinners.
It is thy work; to thee, O Lord, and not to us,
Be praise both now and ever.

Amen.

XXXV. SIN.

M. We have sinned, O Lord, we have sinned!
P. Every one of us, O God, every one of us!
C. Though young, innocence is gone,

And sinlessness is, alas, unknown.
All. Our transgressions are before us.

We acknowledge, O Lord, all our sins.

M. It is a bitter and an evil thing to sin against God.
P. That my soul knoweth.

It is the misery of miseries, the curse of curses.
C. How is my heart pained!

How is my soul bowed down and striken!
All. Happiness is fled; there is no peace.
M. Wormwood and gall are my portion.
P. There is no rest-no enjoyment.

My conscience is smitten-my soul is in terror.
C. Hell is within me, and its lurid flames about me,
How shall I escape?

All. We have deserved all this.

Thou art righteous, O Thou Condemner of men. M. Thou, O Lord, art of purer eyes

Than to behold sin with complacency.

P. Thou Holy One, Thou must condemn it in me, in all. C. The sentence of condemnation is within me.

How fearful it is to fall into the hands of the living God! All. Thou, Lord, condemnest our iniquity,

And reprovest us for our transgressions.
M. If Thou art strict to mark iniquities,
Who shall stand in thy sight?

P. If there be no mercy, we perish.
C. If thine anger burn for ever,

We are lost.