miserable should I then be! But thanks to the superabounding grace of my divine and compassionate Saviour that I am not thus wretched, but find cause upon cause, at the retrospect of the past year, for thankfulness and praise.

When I think of the extraordinary longsuffering with which he has borne with meof the admirable patience with which he has endured my excessive weakness-of the aid he has afforded in such manifold distress and danger of the invigorating consolation imparted to me from his holy word-of the repeated answers to prayer of the faithfulness with which he assisted me to bear every burden imposed upon me for my good; if I reflect, in short, on the superabounding grace and mercy of my Saviour-Ah, how much cause do I find to bless and praise the Lord, and magnify his name! How am I compelled to exclaim, with heartfelt emotion, "I am unworthy of all the mercy and faithfulness thou hast shown to thy poor servant!" My trials, indeed, have not reached their termination, and the Lord still continues to lead me in the thorny path of this life; but what can injure me if led by the hand of a gracious and reconciled Father in Christ? If God has mercifully brought back my soul from destruction-if he has given me his Holy Spirit as the seal and pledge of my adoption

if he has so highly favoured me in Christ, justified me through his blood, and cleansed me from an evil conscience-if he has enlightened the eyes of my understanding to know the riches of his glorious inheritance in his saintsif he has blessed me with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ, how should he forget me with regard to temporal things? No, he cannot, he will not; I have his word that he will not!

O ye afflicting cares for the support of the body, which have so often assailed and obscured my mind, depart! for the Lord careth for me. I have very richly experienced his care during the past year, and it would be shameful not to trust him for the future, not to hope, with believing confidence, that in the coming year he will also do all things well. It is an easy matter for his omnipotence to remove my distress in a moment, even as he has this year so unexpectedly and wonderfully changed my sorrow on account of my son, into joy. Perhaps at the close of the coming year, if I am still alive, I may have to thank him for wonderfully delivering me out of all my distresses.

Let this year, therefore, be terminated by thanks and praise for all the kindness, faithfulness, and mercy, which thou, Lord! hast manifested towards me and my family. O Lord God, our heavenly Father, have mercy upon us

still further! O Lord God, the Son, the Saviour of the world and me, have mercy upon us! O Lord God, the Holy Spirit, have mercy upon us, be gracious unto us, and grant us thy peace. Amen! and Amen!

CHAPTER VII.

NEW

YEAR-STRIKING ANSWER ΤΟ

PRAYER-VISIT

TO A WORSHIPPER OF THE SPIRIT OF THE TIMES JOURNEY TO

NEW ACQUAINTANCES.

ON New Year's day I preached with much liberty from Psalm cxv. 14-"The Lord bless you more and more, you and your children." These words gave rise to "a pious new-year's wish of an evangelical preacher to his hearers." Lord, let this year be a real year of grace to me and my flock! Let many wandering sheep be brought to thy fold! Let thy kingdom be visibly extended, and the number of thy faithful people increased! Bless especially the labours of those worthy men, who, forsaking every earthly comfort, and at the hazard of their own lives, have undertaken to carry the light of the gospel to those of the human race, who are still sitting in darkness and the shadow of death. protection every

Take under thy gracious

missionary institution, and promote, by their means, the honour of thy name in the remotest parts of the habitable globe. But, O Lord Jesus, take not away thy precious word from us, nor depart from us with thy church! Preserve us from false doctrine and the scorner, and be our defence! Manifest thyself also this year, as the powerful protector of thy church; and let thy foes, with all their hostile undertakings, be put to shame! Bless the whole christian world! Bless all religious schools! Bless our rulers and our native land! Bless us and our children with the choicest of thy blessings! Amen.

STRIKING ANSWER TO PRAYER.

Having had on one occasion to provide several labourers with food for many days, and then pay them their wages, I sent my daughter to the town to purchase meat and other necessaries. For this purpose I gave her the last dollar I possessed, saying, at the same time, "This is my last money, God must now send us further help." I had, in reality, still money to pay to some of my labourers, and knew not how to raise it. I laid my embarrassment in silent prayer before God, and besought him particularly to comfort me in such a manner as that