Oh! never let me shrink from a faithful allegiance unto our blessed Saviour. Hath he not promised all needful help to those who seek it in faith? Shall I not be enabled to bear and do all things in his spirit? And have I not the blessed assurance that nothing shall ever separate us from Thy love to us in Christ Jesus? May I feel that this world is not my portion; that it must not have my heart. May all I possess, my time, my thoughts, my energies, my worldly means, be consecrated entirely unto Thee, our God; and may I, with Thy gracious help, go on from strength to strength, from glory to glory, till mortality is swallowed up of life; through him that died, and rose again, and that sitteth at Thy right hand for evermore. Amen. THURSDAY EVENING. Isaiah xxx., 15.- In quietness and in confidence shall be your strength. શિ MY soul! may not these words be addressed to thee? Not only my active endeavours to do my duty, but even my secret efforts and aspirings are wanting in that repose of spirit, that calm waiting upon God, which is so characteristic of the peace of the Gospel. The strong emotions of the soul, the striving with tears, the earnestly pressing forward, may all be found necessary in the Christian warfare, to reveal the depths of the heart; to excito a longing desire for heavenly things; to prepare and nerve the Christian for the combat; -but when he has called up all his powers, and kindled the holy flame, let everything subside into that calm which dwells in the fulness of the spirit;—"in quietness shall be your strength." And it shall be in confidence. In confidence, not merely that all things are ordered by an all-wise and holy Being; but that His watchful eye has an individual care for every one of His creatures, and appoints for each that mode of discipline which He knows to be most conducive to his well-being; in confidence that He heareth prayer, and will grant aid where it is truly sought; in confidence in His love to us, which is unbounded as His own infinite nature. Where can we gain strength but in such confidence as this? Quietness precedes confidence. When, in the midst of the stormy whirlwind of action and passion, we are apt to trust to our own frail barks,—to impute all we effect to our own efforts,-to cry, "Behold this great Babylon that I have built ;" and we hear not the voice of God until after the storm, in the still small whisper in our souls. When the heart is calmed, we can feel the power and behold the brightness of our Father's love; we can yield ourselves to Him, and desire to be led by Him wherever He chooseth. Thus we can have confidence that we are treading in the right path; and we shall feel a strength which will carry us through the troubles and temptations of life. How long, O my soul, wilt thou be restless and agitated by unreasonable activity,-by over-excited feelings,—by an engrossing imagination,-in fine, by all those things which are not quietness? 0 my Father! do Thou grant me Thine aid to come to Thee with confidence,-to find in Thee my strength. LORD! it is not life to live, If Thy presence Thou deny; PRAYER. LORD and Father! In Thee only is the fountain of life. In Thy presence alone trouble passes away, and afflictions become sweet. I would not desire to find joy apart from Thee, nor peace in following my own ways. Thou hast declared that the wages of sin is death, and I feel that it is so. When we repine and are fretful, we know that our hearts love not Thee in Thy dealings. Father! give me life in Thy light and love. May eternal life abide within me; so that sorrow and discontent and evil desires, and all perishable things, shall be swallowed up in the intensity of the spiritual affections, and shall give place to heavenly purposes and hopes. And in the times of deep affliction, when the flesh is weak through manifold trials, and the heavy hand of suffering is laid upon me, and the burden of past remembrance adds bitterness to gloom, then, O Father, be Thou especially near to deliver me through the mighty power of Thy spiritual strength. Thus be Thou my support, so long as Thou hast work of active or patient service for me, in this imperfect being, and when Thou hast done with me here, and callest me to the unseen world, may I not feel that I am losing that which has hitherto been life, but finding that which before I had enjoyed in part only,—even Thy perfect love, O Father, in the eternal kingdom of Thy blessed Son, our Redeemer. Amen. FRIDAY MORNING. 2 Eor. v., 7.—For we walk by faith, not by sight. PE walk by faith," says the apostle, and "not by sight." We are guided by the things eternal, rather than by the things temporal. We pursue the realities, rather than the shadows. We fasten our hold on that which is permanent, rather than on that which our sight itself may tell us is passing away. In the concerns of our souls, we regard the Author of our souls, and not the enemies of our souls. We strive to conform our conduct to the commandments of God, rather than to the custom of the time. We keep our hearts fixed on the world which is to come, and the glories which will be revealed, rather than on the present world, which soon will be no more, and its objects, which will soon vanish from our eyes. This is the declaration of St. Paul; and the way which he adopts and announces is the only true, and rational, and living way. The Christian has far more reason, more evidence, and better authority for walking by faith, in the path of conduct, and the regulation of life, than they who question or wonder at him can have for walking by sight. In his turn he may |