FAMILY PRAYERS
BY John MacDuff, 1885
Communion Evening
Most gracious God, who has in Your good providence
brought us to the close of another Sabbath, we entreat You to accept of our
sincere thanks for all the loving-kindness and tender mercy You have made
this day to pass before us. We bless You for all that our eyes have seen,
and our ears have heard, and our hands have handled—of the Word of life. Do
wash us after supper. May the benediction and blessing of the Master of the
feast rest upon us. May we descend the holy mount rejoicing in the presence
of Him who brought us into His own banqueting house, and caused His banner
over us to be love. Give us grace to pay the vows which our lips have this
day uttered; fulfill in us all the good pleasure of Your goodness, and the
work of faith with power, that the name of the Lord Jesus Christ may be
magnified. As we have named His precious name anew, may we henceforth depart
from all iniquity.
Send us help out of Your sanctuary, and strengthen us out
of Zion. May the Lord grant us the desires of our hearts, and fulfill all
our petitions. May this Communion service diffuse a hallowed glow over all
the duties and engagements of the week. May we show to the world that we
have been with Jesus, and that it has been no vain thing for us to draw near
unto God. Lord, our own strength is weakness; we cannot carry out one single
resolution, depending on ourselves. We will go in the strength of the Lord
God. May we be kept by Your mighty power. May we exercise a holy jealousy
over our hearts. Let us hear Your monitory voice ever saying to us, "When
you think you stand, take heed lest you fall." Keep us from the beginnings
of sin; preserve us from venturing on debatable ground; may we ever be where
we should wish to be found by our Lord when He comes.
Our cry would be "More grace! more grace!" Our trust
would be in that God who, as the God of all grace, can impart an
all-sufficiency in all things. Sanctify our hearts by the indwelling of Your
blessed Spirit. May they become temples dedicated to Your glory. May this be
their motto and superscription, "Holiness to the Lord."
We pray for those who may have joined with us this day in
the same solemn and sacred ordinance. We commend each and all to the great
Shepherd of the sheep, who, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
will make them perfect to do His will. Regard, in Your great mercy, any who
may have been prevented from waiting upon You in Your house and in Your
ordinances. May those who tarry at home divide the spoil. Compensate, by an
increased supply of Your own promised grace—for the lack of public services.
Transform every sick-chamber, and every death-bed, into the house of God and
the gate of heaven. May valuable lives be prolonged. May the bereaved be
comforted; may they repose on Him who bore their sins—and who knows their
sorrows.
Take the charge of us this night; watch over us during
the unconscious hours of sleep; may we all come at last to the eternal
blessedness of an uninterrupted Communion Sabbath in glory, around which no
shadows shall fall. For "there shall be no night there, and they need no
candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God gives them light, and
they shall reign forever and ever!" Amen.