Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the
Days of my life. (Psalm 23:6)
A devout poet sings,
Lord, when thou puttest in my time a day,
as thou does now,
Unknown in other years, grant, I entreat
Such grace illumines it, that whatever its phase it
add a holiness and lengthen praise.
This day comes but once in four years….Until now goodness and mercy, like two guards, have followed us from day to day, bringing up the rear even as grace leads the van; and as this out-of-the-way day is one of the days of our lives, these two guardian angels will be with us today also; Goodness to supply our needs, and Mercy to blot out our sins.
May these two attend our every step this day and every day until days shall be no more. Therefore, let us serve the Lord on this peculiar day with special consecration of heart and sing His praises with more zest and sweetness than ever.
Could we not today make an unusual offering to the cause of God or to the poor? By inventiveness of love let us make this twenty-ninth of February, a day to be remembered forever.
In the phrase “even as grace leads the van,” the word van (short for vanguard) refers to the forefront or the leading position of a group.
The full meaning of the phrase is that “grace” is in the leading position or is guiding the way for something else. This usage is a formal or older sense of the word, which can refer to:
- The front part of an army or fleet.
- Those who are in the leading position of a movement or a course of progress.
In this context, the phrase is likely a metaphor, suggesting that the quality of “grace” is the guiding principle or the leading element in whatever situation is being described.
- VAN definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary
“Therefore” is an adverb meaning “for that reason,” “as a result,” or “consequently,” used to introduce a logical conclusion or outcome that follows from a previous statement or fact, linking ideas in arguments, math, or everyday speech. It functions as a conjunctive adverb, connecting sentences or clauses to show cause and effect, like “She was sick; therefore, she stayed home.”
