3 And while the hours in order flow, Securely fence, O Lord!
Our hearts, beleaguered by the foe That tempts our every road.
4 And grant that to thine honor, Lord, Our rites this day may tend; That we begin them at thy word, And in thy favor end.
1 AWAKE, my soul, and with the sun Thy daily stage of duty run; Shake off dull sloth, and joyful rise To pay thy morning sacrifice.
2 Thy precious time misspent redeem; Each present day thy last esteem; Improve thy talent with due care; For the great day thyself prepare.
3 In conversation be sincere ;
Keep conscience, as the noontide, clear; Think how the all-seeing God, thy ways And all thy secret thoughts surveys.
4 Lord, I my vows to thee renew; Scatter my sins like morning dew; Guard my first springs of thought and will, And with thyself my spirit fill.
5 Direct, control, suggest, this day, All I design, or do, or say;
That all my powers, with all their might, In thy sole glory may unite.
1 O TIMELY happy, timely wise, Hearts that with rising morn arise; Eyes that the beam celestial view, Which evermore makes all things new.
2 New every morning is Thy love! Our wakening and uprising prove; Through sleep and darkness safely brought, Restored to life, and power, and thought.
3 New mercies, each returning day, Hover around us while we pray; New perils past, new sins forgiven, New thoughts of God, new hopes of heaven.
4 If, on our daily course, our mind Be set to hallow all we find,
New treasures still, of countless price, God will provide for sacrifice.
5 Old friends, old scenes, will lovelier be, As more of heaven in each we see; Some softening gleams of love and prayer Shall dawn on every cross and care.
Acknowledging God's Hand.-Morning.
I WHAT Secret hand, at morning light, Softly unseals mine eye,
Draws back the curtain of the night, And opens earth and sky?
2 'T is thine, my God, -the same that kept My resting hours from harm; No ill came nigh me, for I slept Beneath the Almighty's arm.
3 'T is thine, my daily bread that brings, Like manna scattered round, And clothes me, as the lily springs In beauty from the ground.
4 In death's dark valley though I stray, 'T would there my steps attend, Guide with the staff my lonely way, And with the rod defend.
5 May that sure hand uphold me still Through life's uncertain race, To bring me to thy holy hill, And to thy dwelling-place.
Daily Protection. Psalm 5.
1 ON thee, each morning, O my God! My waking thoughts attend; In thee are founded all my hopes, In thee my wishes end.
2 My soul, in pleasing wonder lost, Thy boundless love surveys;
And, fired with grateful zeal, prepares A sacrifice of praise.
3 God leads me through the maze of sleep, And brings me safe to light; And with the same paternal care Conducts my steps till night.
4 When evening slumbers press my eyes, With his protection blest, In peace and safety I commit My weary limbs to rest.
5 My spirit, in his hand secure, Fears no approaching ill; For, whether waking or asleep, Thou, Lord, art with me still.
All from God.-Morning or Evening.
1 FATHER! thy paternal care
Has my guardian been, my guide! Every hallowed wish and prayer Has thy hand of love supplied; Thine is every thought of bliss, Left by hours and days gone by; Every hope thy offspring is, Beaming from futurity.
2 Every sun of splendid ray; Every moon that shines serene; Every morn that welcomes day; Every evening's twilight scene; Every hour which wisdom brings; Every incense at thy shrine;
These and all life's holiest things, And its fairest all are thine.
3 And for all, my hymns shall rise Daily to thy gracious throne: Thither let my asking eyes Turn unwearied, righteous One!
Through life's strange vicissitude, There reposing all my care,
Trusting still, through ill and good,
Fixed and cheered and counselled there.
1 As every day thy mercy spares Will bring its trials or its cares, O Father, till my life shall end, Be thou my counsellor and friend; Teach me thy statutes all divine, And let thy will be always mine.
2 When each day's scenes and labors close, And wearied nature seeks repose, With pardoning mercy richly blest, Guard me, my Father, while I rest: And as each morning sun shall rise, O lead me onward to the skies!
3 And at my life's last setting sun, My conflicts o'er, my labors done, Father, thine heavenly radiance shed, To cheer and bless my dying bed; And from death's gloom my spirit raise, To see thy face, and sing thy praise.
1 DREAD Sovereign! let my evening song Like holy incense rise;
Permit the offerings of my tongue
To reach thee in the skies.
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