A New Years Eve Prayer

An Evening Prayer

WE THANK THEE, O Lord, for the work of each year, and for the rest of each night. We will lay us down both in peace and sleep, for Thou, Lord, only, make us to dwell in safety. Keep watch around us throughout this coming year, to protect us against the assaults of the evil one, to suggest to us holy thoughts, to defend us from all dangers, to lead us in the perfect way of peace, and to prepare us for the happy service of a new year. For Jesus' sake.

Amen.

I am very thankful for each and every person who has visited Hiraeth in the past year. So many of you have extending kindness and friendship and encouragement to me. I have made some dear friends in the past year, both here on the blog and in real life. God has truly blessed me in so many ways. I truly pray that He would, as the prayer says, "

Keep watch around us throughout this coming year, to protect us against the assaults of the evil one, to suggest to us holy thoughts, to defend us from all dangers, to lead us in the perfect way of peace, and to prepare us for the happy service of a new year." And I pray that, more and more, God would teach me, and you!, to desire Him above all things and learn, more and more, to honor Him and bring Him glory.

Happy New Year!
Kim

God's Minute

December 31
New Year's Eve

And another said: I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them; I pray thee have me excused.--Luke 14:19

FATHER in Heaven, let not our material blessings confound our mind and fill us with a false sense of security, nor suffer us to be enamored by the dazzling prospects of temporal gain and carnal joy. Let us be mindful that the world's chalice of sweet wine is inevitably converted into a cup of bitterness, and that the joy of today becomes the remorse of tomorrow. Thou canst not be denied, O God! All things are Thine, and man is accountable to Thee. Grant that we may be faithful stewards of Thy possessions, and that the things of this world may never take precedence in our life over the glorious riches which Thou hast prepared for Thine own from the foundations of the world. If there is any hardness of heart among us, we beseech Thee for the touch of Thy Spirit, that our hearts may yield to Thee in obedience, reverence, and confidence. Thou, whose grace is sufficient unto Thine own, suffer none of Thy children for any cause to depart from the faith this day, but strengthen them, that their faith in Thy goodness and the merits of Christ's redemptive love may remain beautiful and strong. Make us strong according to the inward man, strong in our Christian convictions, strong in faith, strong in our advocacy of righteousness and truth, and strong in our loyalty to Thee. Above all, keep us from dishonoring Thee by any secret or open sin. Through Christ, our Redeemer.

Amen.

Rev. J.P. Meyer,
St. Louis, Missouri

God's Minute

December 30

The Lord is good to all: and His tender mercies are over all His works.--Psalm 145:9

O GOD, our Father, we are about to enter upon a new day. To meet well all duties and responsibilities that come to us; to resist firmly every distraction and temptation that seeks to draw us from our path; to be utterly prepared for any danger or any crisis that may this day befall us; to be found, when the evening is come, pure and holy--this is our desire.

And we would be friendly with all men; strength to the weak, hope to the despondent, joy to the sorrowing, power to the tempted.

We wait, therefore, our Father, for the coming of Thy Spirit upon us ere we venture into all that this day holds for us. In the quiet of this early morning hour, bowed before Thee, our souls wait. Touch us with that hand which has been laid in blessing upon others before us; speak to us with that still, small voice of power; fill us with Thine own righteousness.

Give us of Thyself, that we may this day so live for ourselves and before men that through us Thy Kingdom may in part come, and Thy will more fully be done among men. For Jesus' sake.

Amen.

Rev. Seeley K. Tompkins,
Cincinnati, Ohio

God's Minute

December 29

For the love of Christ constraineth us.--2 Corinthians 5:14

OUR Father in Heaven, we are Thy children, redeemed by Christ our Saviour and Elder Brother, and we come to Thee in His name. Forgive our sins. Deliver us from all the guilt and power of sin, and from its consequences. Take the love of it out of our hearts. Make our love of Thee to glow. Let it burn out all the dross of evil, and impel us constantly to gracious acts of kindly ministry done to others in the Master's name and for His sake. Give us a clear vision of our ever-present Saviour as an abiding Friend. Grant that we may be trasformed by thus beholding Him, growing daily more and more like Him in the desires of our hearts, the words of our lips, and the things we do and refrain from doing.

Bless with us all others, supplying their every need, and giving them grace and guidance. Make the Gospel light shine out brightly in all lands, bringing peace and spiritual prosperity, and drawing all men to Christ, and together in the bonds of Christian unity and brotherliness. We ask all this, as we pray for grateful hearts, in the name of Him Who died on Calvary.

Amen.

J.H. Bomberger, D.D.,
Cleveland, Ohio

God's Minute

December 28

Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father, in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ.--Ephesians 5:20

But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord, Jesus Christ.--1 Corinthians 15:57

OUR Heavenly Father, for all Thou hast given and all Thou hast forgiven, we thank Thee. For every gift of nature, and Thy favoring providences, and Thy great salvation through Christ, we thank Thee.

For blessings within us and around us; for everything by which Thou hast brought good and drawn us to Thyself through all our lives and the lives of our kin; for our power of understanding, of loving, of homemaking, of sharing friendships; for the good hope concerning loved ones who have gone from the ways of earth, and for our own expectation of sharing heaven's joy with them through Christ's saving merit--we thank Thee.

Help us, O Father, to live and work with the cheer of a grateful spirit, overcoming all trouble by the patience of hope and the wisdom of love. So may we share the fellowship of all who follow Christ, both near about us and in all the world.

Amen.

Rev. William Allen Knight, LL.D.
Boston, Massachusetts