Week 3 Sunday Morning Prayer

O ALMIGHTY God, the God of the Spirits of all flesh, in whom we live, and move, and have our being ; who hast preserved us all our life long, and brought us to the beginning of this day in safety : we come into Thy presence, trusting to the multitude of Thy mercies, through the merits and mediation of Jesus, Thy beloved Son.

O our God ! we acknowledge that we are unworthy even to speak unto Thee. We have provoked Thee to anger by our sins. We have grievously departed from Thee. We have neglected Thy word, rejected the Gospel of Thy Son, and profaned Thy holy Sabbaths. Yet now, O Lord, for the sake of Jesus, look upon us with compassion ; and as Thou hast granted us the privilege of another Sabbath, grant us Thy Holy Spirit, that we may worship Thee, this day, in Spirit and in truth.

We grieve to think how often we have offered to Thee the sacrifice of fools, and drawn near to Thee with our lips, while our hearts were far from Thee. Teach us how to pray, we beseech Thee. O our Father, fulfil Thy promise, and give to us Thy Holy Spirit. Put life and energy into all the services of this day ; that we may enjoy Thy presence, in all we do, or hear, or say. Manifest Thyself to our souls. Meet us in Thy house of prayer ; and so bless us, and sanctify to us every means of grace, that this day may be to us an earnest of the rest that remaineth for the people of God.

Accept our grateful thanks, O Lord, for unnumbered mercies which we have received — for health, while many are suffering from sickness — for food and raiment, while others are in need of both. But above all, would we bless and praise Thee, for the gift of Thy beloved Son, Jesus. Oh, that we may this day learn to love Him more. May the preaching of His Gospel be accompanied by the power of the Holy Ghost to our hearts, revealing Him to us, and showing us more of His loveliness and beauty, than we ever discovered before. Lord, we would see Jesus ; we would feed on Jesus ; we would enjoy the blessedness of spiritual union with Him, our risen Head.

We plead with Thee, O Lord, for those to whom Thou hast committed the ministry of Thy word, and who shall stand up in thy name this day, to preach the Gospel of Thy grace. Do Thou break the bread of life, and bless it, and give it in their hands, that they may deal it out to those precious souls over whom Thou hast placed them. Enable them to trust more to the teaching of Thy Spirit, than to the words of man's wisdom. Especially bless him to whom we this day look for instruction ; and grant that a word in season may be conveyed to our souls, to quicken us to increased devotedness, and to higher enjoyment of the things of God. Open the treasury of Thy grace, O Lord, and satisfy us with Thy fulness. So remove every cloud of ignorance and unbelief, that we may see Thee in the fulness of Thy glory ; and so delight ourselves in Thee, that every thing on earth may lose its glory, by reason of the glory that excelleth. So shall this Sabbath be to us a blessed foretaste of the joys to come.

In the name of Jesus we ask these blessings. For His sake give more than we desire or deserve. And to Him, with Thyself, and the eternal Spirit, be all honor and glory, for ever. Amen.