MOST

XVIII. AFTER THE DEATH OF A MOTHER.

OST merciful Father, I draw near to thy throne of grace in the name of my Saviour and Surety. In the depths of my sorrow I lift up mine eyes to thee, whence cometh my help. Thou hast, in thy sovereignty, placed in my hand, and in the hand of my beloved and bereaved father, a bitter cup. Thou hast taken from my dear father the beloved partner of his days, with whom he long enjoyed sweet fellowship; and thou hast taken from my dear brothers, and sisters, and myself, by the hand of death, a kind and tender-hearted mother. Father of mercies, and God of all comfort, let not this afflicting event be a dispensation of judgment, but a dispensation of mercy. As a family, thou hast spread over us a dark, a gloomy cloud. Grant, in thy great goodness, that we may see on the bosom of this cloud the rainbow of thy pity, thy love, and thy mercy.

Lord, sanctify to me, to my mourning father, and to his sorrowful children, this bereaving event of thy sovereign, wise, and adorable providence. May gracious showers of blessings descend from this dark cloud. Mercifully grant that, by the eye of faith, we may see behind this dark providence the smiles of thy love, compassion, and grace. May we find that this heavy affliction is among the "all things" that shall work together for our good. I trust that, through the merit and atonement of Jesus, thou hast taken the soul of my dear departed mother to the paradise of the blessed, to the palace of the great King, to the New Jerusalem, to the house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. May my mother's death be so blessed as to lead me and all our family to the feet of Jesus, to seek salvation through his blood. Oh may this event be sanctified to impress our hearts with a deep and solemn sense of our own mortality, and to say in the language of the Psalmist, "Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is, that I may know how frail I am. Our life is even a vapour, that appeareth for a very little time, and then vanisheth away." Oh grant that each one of our bereaved and mourning family may be enabled to say with the heart, "Lord Jesus, I receive thee as my Saviour and God, to prepare me for my departure, to deliver me from the sting of death, and to give me a title to glorious mansions

in the sky. As a family, may we all meet at last before the throne of glory, to glorify and enjoy the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, for ever and ever. God of my salvation, mercifully hear, and accept, and answer my supplications, for my dear Redeemer's sake. Amen.

XIX. AFTER THE DEATH OF A SISTER.

LORD, in thy sovereignty and wisdom, thou hast brought us as a family into the house of mourning. Thou hast a right to do what seemeth good in thy sight. As the God of my salvation, teach me, even in the midst of my anguish and sorrow, to rejoice, that thou dost afflict in love, and that thou wilt most assuredly overrule every affliction, and every bereavement, for thy glory and for the spiritual improvement of thy children. Lord, sanctify the death, the early death, of my beloved sister, whose soul I desire to trust is now in the heaven of heavens, before the throne of glory, arrayed in robes of holiness and perfection, whiter than the snow, and more glorious than the sun. Make me thankful that thou didst enable my beloved sister to place her confidence in Jesus, to look to him for mercy and salvation, and to express upon her dying bed the humble hope of a blessed entrance into her heavenly Father's house. I thank thee for that faith, and submission, and patience which the divine Spirit enabled her to exercise. Praise to thy name, most blessed Saviour, that in the valley and shadow of death thou didst comfort my dearly beloved sister with thy presence and fellowship, and that she was upheld in the trying hour with the rod of thy power, and the staff of thy truth. Most merciful Father, mingle the bitter cup, which thou hast given us as a family to drink, with thy richest blessing. Oh suffer not this affliction to pass over our heads without producing the most blessed effects. Oh that it may be followed by a rich harvest of the fruits of righteousness. May the event issue in the salvation of all our household, and, at last, may we meet in heaven. As I trust my dear sister has reached the heavenly mansions, may I, and all our family, meet with her before the throne of God and the Lamb, beyond the Jordan of death. Hear my humble, feeble, earnest prayer, for my Redeemer's sake. Amen.

FAT

XX.

AFTER THE DEATH OF A BROTHER.

ATHER of mercies, and God of all comfort, in the name of Christ I come to thee, in the hour of my sorrow, to pour forth the desires of my heart. Thou hast said, "Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me." Adorable Jehovah, this is the day of my trouble. Thou hast taken from me my dearly beloved brother by the hand of death. In early, youthful days thou hast removed him from our sight. Thou hast taken him from the land of the living. Thou hast cut down the hopeful plant. We hoped, wished, and prayed, that he might have lived many days on earth, to adorn the Christian name, to exercise the Christian graces, to be a blessing to my beloved parents, to be their comfort and stay in the evening of their days, and that he would have been distinguished for much usefulness to a good old age. Now, in the day of our sorrow and bereavement, we have reason to say, in the language of Job, and I would say it with humble submission to thy will, "Man cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not. For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease. But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he ?"

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Thou art a wise, and thou art a gracious Sovereign. Thou dost all things well. While this dispensation is surrounded with the dark cloud of mystery to us who are bereaved, there is no mystery with thee. Teach all of us, as a family, to say," Good is the will of the Lord." When we prayed for the recovery of our beloved, departed brother, we cried for the salvation of his precious soul. Lord, I desire to trust that, though in thy sovereignty and wisdom the prayer for his recovery has not been answered, thou hast in thy great and tender mercy answered the second. Thou hast saved his soul; thou hast arrayed him in the robe of our Redeemer's righteousness; thou hast taken him to thy glorious heaven, where there is fulness of joy; thou hast placed him at thy right hand, where there are pleasures for evermore. There I hope to meet him, to praise and glorify thy name, for ever and ever. Mercifully hear the voice of my supplication, for

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