Comforts

Giver of all good,

Streams upon streams of love overflow my way.
You have made me out of nothing,
   have brought me back from foreign land
   have transformed me from ignorance to knowledge,
      from darkness to light,
      from death to life,
      from misery to peace,
      from foolishness to wisdom,
      from error to truth,
      from sin to victory.
Thanks be to your for my high and holy calling.
I bless you for ministering angels,
   for the comfort of your Word,
   for the helpful functions of your church,
   for the teaching of your Spirit,
   for your holy sacraments,
   for the communion of saints,
   for Christian fellowship,
   for the recorded chronicles of holy lives,
   for godly examples that make me want more of you
   for the people whose life-lights it would be a sad to ignore.
Your will in all your provide is
   to enable me to grow in grace,
   and to be prepared for your eternal presence.
My heaven-born faith gives promise of eternal sight,
   my new birth is a pledge of never-ending life.
I draw near to you, knowing you will draw near to me.
I ask of you, believing you have already given.
I entrust myself to you, for you have redeemed me.
I bless and adore you, the eternal God,
   for the comforts of these thoughts,
      the joy of these hopes.

Sleep

Blessed Creator,

You have promised your loved ones sleep;
Please give me the restoring rest that's needed for tomorrow's toil;
If dreams be mine,
   let them not be tinged with evil.
Let your Spirit make my time of repose
   a blessed temple of his holy presence.

May my frequent lying down make me familiar with death,
   the bed I approach remind me of the grave,
   the eyes I now close picture to me their final closing
Keep me always ready and waiting for admittance to your presence.
Weaken my attachment to earthly things.
May I hold life loosely in my hand,
   knowing that I receive it on condition of its surrender;
As pain and suffering reveal my changing health,
   may I not shrink from a death that introduces me to the freshness of eternal youth.
I retire this night in full assurance of one day
   awaking with you.
All glory for this precious hope,
   for the gospel of grace,
   for your unspeakable gift of Jesus,
   for the fellowship of the Trinity.
Please do not withhold your mercies in the night season;
   your hand never wearies,
   your power needs no repose,
   your eye never sleeps.

Help me when I helpless lie,
   when my conscience accuses me of sin,
   when my mind is harassed by foreboding thoughts,
   when my eyes are held awake by personal anxieties.

Show yourself to me as the God of all grace, love and power;
   you have a balm for every wound,
      a solace for all anguish,
      a remedy for every pain,
      a peace for all trouble.
Permit me to commit myself to you
   awake or asleep.

Rest

Heavenly Father,

My faith is in you,
My expectation is from you,
My love goes out toward you,
   I believe you,
      accept your Word,
      submit to your will,
      rely on your promises,
      trust your providence.
I bless you that the court of my conscience
   proves me to be yours.
I do not need signs and wonders to believe,
   for your Word is sure truth.
I have cast my anchor in the port of peace,
   knowing that present and future
      are in nail-pierced hands.
You are so good, wise, just and holy,
   that no mistake is possible to you.
You are the fountain and source of all law;
   what you command is mine to obey.
I yield to your sovereignty all that I am and have;
   do with me as you will.
You have given me silence in my heart
   in place of murmurings and complaints.
Keep my wishes from growing into willings,
   my willings from becoming fault-finding
      with your providences
   and have mercy on me.
If I sin and am rebellious, help me to repent;
   then take away my mourning and give me music;
   remove my sackcloth and adorn me with beauty;
   take away my sighs and fill my mouth with songs;
   and when I am restored and rest in you
   give me summer weather in my heart.