SECTION THIRD.

Occasional Prayers and Chanksgivings.

TO BE USED EITHER IN THE MORNING OR AFTER

NOON SERVICES.

For a Person or Persons to be Ordained.

GOD! who hast established a visible church

upon earth, and hast ordained a holy ministry and sacraments therein; we pray to thee, at this time especially, for light and help to our pastors. May they admit to the sacred charge of preaching the Gospel, such persons only as are blameless in life, and pure, meek and fervent in spirit! May they be deeply sensible how solemn the duty is, to choose wisely and discreetly, those whom they shall receive into that holy ministry. More especially do we pray thee, at this time, to endue with thy Holy Spirit, and with heavenly gifts, our brother who is now to be ordained and dedicated to thy service. Sanctify him, to the end that, in purity of doctrine and holiness of life, he may serve thee faithfully, to

(94)

the glory of thy holy name, and to the edification of thy church. Hear our prayer, O merciful Father! in the name and for the sake of our compassionate High Priest and adorable Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen.

A

For Pastors.

LMIGHTY God! we pray thee for all the pastors of thy church. May they preach thy word with fidelity, firmness and humility. May they labour not in vain, to establish the indispensable obligation of the duties enjoined by our holy religion, and to make manifest their beauty and excellence. Enable them to set forth the motives which bind us to obey thee; the helps which are offered; and the rewards which await us. May they, as well by their example as by their preaching, prepare for thee a peculiar people, zealous of good works. Defend them, O Lord! under the shadow of thy wings; and guard them from the temptations of the world, and the devices of their spiritual enemies. Grant that they shun not to declare all the counsel of God; and that, having testified the Gospel of thy grace, they may finish their course with joy, and the ministry which they have received of the Lord Jesus. Hear us, O God! we beseech thee, for the sake of thy Son, our Saviour. Amen.

For Missionaries.

ALMIGHTY God! who art the Father of all nations, and from whom cometh every good and perfect gift; who, in thy divine providence, hast appointed a ministry for thy church, with the command to teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; we ask thy blessing on all missionaries throughout the world. Fill them, we pray thee, with zeal for thy church; and enable them to gather many lost sheep into the fold of the Redeemer. Endue them with innocence of life, and meekness of spirit. Grant them a strong faith, lively hopes, and above all, godly love. Give them grace to declare the whole counsel of God; to the glory of thy name; to the salvation of many, ready to perish; and to the advancement of thy Holy Church Universal. Hear us, we beseech thee, in the name and for the sake of the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sins of the world. Amen.

For Rain.

GOD! heavenly Father! who, by thy Son, Jesus Christ, hast promised to those who seek thy kingdom and its righteousness, all things necessary for their bodily subsistence; we beseech thee to hear our supplications. Graciously send us rains.

and favourable seasons, that our hearts may be filled with joy, and that the earth may bring forth the fruits which are needful for us. O God! who didst provide for thy people, during forty years, in a barren and thirsty wilderness; command, we pray thee, the clouds to drop fatness through all thy heritage; and banish the drought from our borders. Overwhelm us not, merciful Father, with thy chastisements, but spare us, good Lord! and give us grace to praise and adore thee, through Jesus Christ, our Saviour. Amen.

Or this.

GOD! heavenly Father! who, by thy Son Jesus Christ, hast promised to those who seek thy kingdom all things needful to their temporal comfort; grant, we beseech thee, that our land may be speedily refreshed with rain, to the relief of our necessities, and to thy glory; through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

0

For Fair Weather.

LORD God Almighty! we acknowledge that, through our transgressions, we are justly exposed to thy displeasure. But we beseech thee to restrain thy righteous indignation, and to remember us in mercy. Withdraw from us the unusual rains

wherewith we are visited. Vouchsafe to us favourable times for the growth and ingathering of the fruits of the earth, in their due season. Give us grace so to profit by thy chastisements, that we may love and fear thee more, through all the residue of our sojourn upon earth. Hear us, O merciful Father! for Christ's sake. Amen.

0

In Times of Dearth and Famine.

GOD! heavenly Father! who givest the former and the latter rain; through whom the earth is fertile, the beasts of the field are nourished, and the fishes of the sea are multiplied; who holdest in thy hand the season appointed for harvest; amidst the abundance of all things, which thy loving kindness has provided, we have neglected to serve thee, and thou dost now recall us to repentance and obedience by dearth and famine. We acknowledge, O God! that our sins have drawn upon us thine indignation. We cry unto thee, because the fountains of water fail. O Lord! grant in mercy, that the heavens may answer to the earth. Give unto all things their due increase, that we, receiving at thy bounteous hand the blessings which thou hast withheld, may devote them to the comfort of the destitute, to our own benefit, and to thy glory. These favours we humbly ask, O gracious Father! in the name of our compassionate Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen.