con

profitably may the candidate in after days dwell on the words with which the great apostle exhorts the young church at Colossæ to tinue in the faith, grounded and settled and not moved away from the hope of the gospel, but to continue in prayer and watch in the same with thanksgiving"-or the words in which, when reminding the youthful Timothy that from a child he has known the Holy Scriptures which are able to make him wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus, he encourages and counsels him to "continue in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of." The assembled congregation and the bishop, whilst thankfully rejoicing in the youthful devotion of those now kneeling as they tender their allegiance, cannot but look forward into the future with all its unknown temptations and trials, spiritual desertion and coldness of heart, and therefore they earnestly plead for that heavenly grace which can alone enable them to continue faithful to the end.

3. "And daily increase in Thy Holy Spirit more and more." Most essential is this daily increase. In the natural life we are told the cessation of growth is the commencement of decay. In the world there are some poor children who never increase. Sick, puny, weakly, they do not grow, and thus never become strong. Happily the cases are rare now, when so much care is taken that the poor should have pure air, good water,

abundant light, and wholesome food. Spiritually, alas, the complaint is of very frequent occurrence, and on every side there are children in God's family who are puny and weak, and who never attain to "the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ." This development can only be effected by the use of the means which God has Himself provided. Spiritually, we must have air, and light, and food, and water, and exercise, and in the use of all these we must have the Holy Spirit's presence so that they may all be made more and more effectual for our daily increase.

4. "Until he come unto Thine everlasting kingdom." This continuance and daily increase are to be vouchsafed until we pass out of God's kingdom of grace into God's kingdom of glory; that kingdom which is already prepared, and which shall hereafter be manifested, and when once set up, shall have no end, and which was brought before us at our baptism when prayer was made on our behalf, that having been "made partakers of Christ's death, they may also be partakers of His resurrection, so that finally with the residue of the Holy Church they may be inheritors of thine everlasting kingdom, through Christ our Lord."

From what has thus been said the candidates will perceive how essential it is that they should have chiefly in mind not the manual act, but the spiritual gift, and that they should not confound

the simple sign with the right administration of
the ordinance. To those who come with trust-
ing faith and earnest prayer, the laying on of
hands will be a real help, as the pledge, so far
as the Church can give a pledge by her chief
minister, that Christ Himself will truly accept and
effectually bless those who there and then thus
tender Him their hearts and lives. Rightly used,
'it is impossible to expect too much from such a
service. True it is that God does bless His
children at every moment; but this is a time
which can never recur. It is a time when our
hearts are tender, when good resolutions are
being made, and when spiritual aspirations
ascend to Him who hears and answers prayer.
If Christ do thus hear and answer prayer, He
hears them then whilst the candidates are on
their knees; for our petitions have not to travel,
as too often we unconsciously fall into the habit
of thinking, like our letters to absent friends
which travel far, and for whose answers we have
to wait long. He hears them then, and as He
waits to be gracious then, though not as at
Pentecost by fiery signs, He sends gently down
the dews of His Holy Spirit to abide with us, to
quicken the seed of His love, and to refresh the
dry and thirsty ground in years to come.

Thine, Thine, for ever,' blessed bond
That knits us, Lord, to Thee;
May heart and voice and soul respond
IAmen, so let it be.'

When this world strikes its dulcet harp,
And earth our heaven appears,
Be Thine for ever,' clear and sharp,
God's trumpet in our ears.

WW

CHAPTER XIII.

CLOSING PRAYERS.

E have now come to the closing part of the services, which consists of Prayers and the Blessing. In the "Order for Morning and Evening Prayer"

it will be remembered that immediately after the saying of the Apostles' Creed, and just before the prayers following, the minister is directed to pronounce with a loud voice, "The Lord be with you," to which the congregation are directed to reply, "And with Thy Spirit." The words are a form of mutual kindly salutation, and are probably suggested by the greetings which passed between Boaz and his servants at the beginning of the day. They form a spiritual salutation which seems in all ages to have been used at different parts of the services. At one time they were used when the bishop entered the church, at another time when the congregation were to be dismissed. Now they are employed to indicate a change in the services, when from the recitation of the Creed standing the people are about to pray