Almighty God, whose continued providence ordereth all things both in
Heaven and Earth; Who never slumberest nor sleepest; but hast divided the
light from the darkness, and made the day for employment and the night
for rest to Thy creatures the inhabitants of the earth: we acknowledge
with all thankfulness Thy merciful preservation of us this day, by which
we are brought in safety to the evening of it. We implore Thy
forgiveness of all the offences which we have been guilty of in it,
whether in thought, word, or deed; and desire to have a due sense of Thy
goodness in keeping us out of the way of those temptations by which we
might have fallen into greater sins, and in preserving us from those
misfortunes and sad accidents, common to every day, and which must have
befallen many others. We humbly commit ourselves to the same good
providence this night, that we may sleep in quiet under Thy protection,
and wake, if it be Thy will, in the morning in renewed life and strength.
And we beg the assistance of Thy grace to live in such a manner, that
when the few days and nights which thou shalt allot us in this world be
passed away, we may die in peace, and finally obtain the resurrection
unto eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
* * * * *
Almighty God, Whose tender mercies are over all Thy works, who feedest
the fowls of the air and the beasts of the field, and hast given unto us
all things that pertain unto life and godliness, we desire to have our
souls possessed with a due sense of Thy blessings, and to show forth our
thankfulness by moderation and temperance in the use of them, by being
kind and compassionate to those who are in distress, and by all those
good works which Thou hast appointed us to walk in. And we humbly hope
we shall at last experience all Thy goodness to us consummate in that
future state, which Thou hast prepared for them that love and fear Thee
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.