Amen A Prayer for Tuesday-Morning relating to the Meditation prescribed for Tuesday Exercise 3. OLord how wonderful are all thy Works in wisdom hast thou made them ill the Earth is full of thy riches What a Monument am I of thy Mercy How kind hast thou been to this miserable Creature How am I bound to magnifie thy goodness How excellent how great how vast how large how diffusive is it not confin'd to a day not restrain'd to a place not limited to an hour From my Cradle unto this moment I have seen and tasted how sweet and how gracious thou art Thou hast carried me on thy Wings as the Eagle doth her young thorough the various stages of my life what Miracles of Providences have mine Eyes beheld How hath thy Providence been at work for me while I have been asleep while I have been thinking and contriving something else even how to derogate from thy honour and glory Truly Lord thy Mercy and Patience ought to be my Song in the house of my Pilgrimage This I have reason to boast of to speak of to meditate of day and night by that I subsist by that I am supported fed maintain'd and preserv'd from the clutches of the Devil O let thy Mercy melt my Heart O let Mercy prevail with me to give up my Heart to thee Let mercy and goodness force me to love thee Give me that ingenuity that generous temper that noble Spirit that thy goodness may do more with me than Threatnings and Hell and everlasting Torments Let thy Love and Charity and constant Murificence oblige me to run in the way of thy Commandments Let these be greater motives with me to do thy Will than all the terrours of the burning Lake O let thy Love be of that force in my Soul that I may not be able to resist its motions but by the strength of that may hope believe endure deny my self love and obey thee to the end of my days through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen A Prayer for Tudsday-Evening GReat Governour and Disposer of the world who hast promised to them that love thee so to order all things that they shall all conspire to their good I am sensible of the good thou hast intended and dost intend me by the various Dispensations mine eyes have seen The various Spiritual and Temporal Blessings that have been conferred upon me what have they been but motives to be enamou'rd with the best of Beings Thou knowest if I depart from thee or love any thing better than thee I run away from mine own happiness and go to undo my self therefore so many various Tokens and Expressions of thy Love are sent to me to unite my Heart to thee to preserve me in thy Fear and to uphold my goings in thy Paths O wise O gracious O bountiful Master kinder to me than I am or have been to my self Let me find the good thou designest for me in thy numberless Blessings even the good of my Soul let that grow stronger under thy Favours warmer in thy Sunshine more fervent under these Beams more flaming with love under these enforcives The very afflictions thou sendest upon me are intended for my good I have found it I have seen it I have known it by experience I have learned Repentance Humility Submission fear of sinning by Afflictions which I should never have learned by Prosperity when I have thought I had great wrong done me by the contempt reproach trouble misery others have thrown upon me thou hast let me see that this was to make me reflect on the affronts and indignities I have put upon thee my best and greatest friend O let me never mistrust thy Providence Whatever befals me let me believe I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living and let me not be disappointed of my hope through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen A Prayer for Wednesday-Morning relating to the Meditation prescribed Exercise 3 for Wednesday O Thou in whose hand is the power of Life and Death who art immortal invisible Blessed for evermore Before the Mountains were brought forth or ever the Earth and the World were made thou art God from Everlasting to Everlasting thou art he I am a frail dying creature and though I carry an immortal Soul about me yet the Vessel in which that glorious guest abides will soon grow leaky and decay and that must turn to dust and how soon I know not I admire thy wisdom in concealing the Day and Hour of my Death from me I am sensible it 's done to hasten my Repentance to keep me from adding sin unto sin to restrain me from the Vanities of this world to make me think of a better and to secure that happy Life which shall be after Death And O that my death might be ever before me How great are the things that depend upon it Two great Eternities whereof one of them will certainly fall to my share O let my death be my daily Meditation that I may prevent my everlasting death What a miserable creature should I be if my Soul should leave this Body to go into a more dismal Prison from whence there is no returning O make me wise O let me understand what preparation is necessary for that hour teach me to undervalue the World and to mind the things which are above that when I come to die I may die with joy and cheerfully resigne my Soul into the hands of my Creator Let Lust and Pride and Envy and Anger die in me before I die that they may not endanger my Soul after death Let me converse with Death more that I may die to sin more and live more to him that died for me Let the thoughts of death mortifie in me whatever is offensive to thy Holiness In all my actions let me remember my latter end that my death may be my gain and my departure out of the world an entrance into a better through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen A Prayer for Wednesday Evening O My God to whom belong the issues of Life and Death naked came I from my mothers Womb naked shall I return thither What is my life but a Vapour which appears for a while and then vanishes away O Lord thou hast made this life transitory dangerous short full of misery subject to vanity and as it were a span long and all to make me desire to be dissolv'd and to be with Christ yet how dreadful is death to me How do I tremble at the thoughts of it What should make me so deeply enamour'd with this Life At the best it is a Warfare within are Tumults without are Fightings I am in a continual state of War here with Covetousness with Passion with Pride with Ambition with carnal Lusts with Allurements of the world with suggestions of the Devil when one sin is beaten away another rises when I think I have mortified one Corruption another starts up The Discontents and Vexations the Troubles and the
Disappointments I meet withal are innumerable and can I delight to dwell in such a Valley of Tears surrounded with so many Snares encompassed with so many Dangers Should not this make me desirous to be gone O my God make me willing to leave this world Take away from me the fear of death Why should I fear when my Great Master hath overcome this King of Terrours I will follow my Redeemer I will conform to his Example I will tread in his steps this is my resolution this the firm purpose of my Soul And why should I doubt of his assisting me Why should not I be confident that my death will be a passage from Mortality to Immortality from Corruption to Incorruption from Trouble and Misery to Rest and Tranquillity Death is the way to the Kingdom of Heaven I cannot inherit it except I die Do I long for that Kingdom and shall I be afraid of the way that leads to it I must die O sweet Jesu let me die contentedly Let Death be my choice Let me embrace it before this miserable life that after death I may live with thee for ever Amen A Prayer for Thursday-Morning relating to the Meditation prescribed for Thursday Exercise 3. O God whose Judgements are unsearchable and thy ways past finding out Who art just as well merciful and hast ordained a Dungeon for Rebels as well as a Paradise for the Innocent Horrour is ready to overwhelm me when I reflect on the eternal miseries of the Damned when I think on the unquenchable fire and on the Worm that dies not how should I tremble at the sins that lead men to those torments As eye hath not seen and ear hath not heard and the heart of man cannot conceive the joys of Heaven so I must judge of these future miseries too O dreadful day when God shall take vengeance of his Enemies when not onely all the Pain and Anguish that mankind endures here shall there be poured out on sinners but far greater too How unable am I to endure here the aking of a Tooth the torments of the Gout the misery of the Stone the fire of a Fever the raging of the Cholick the exquisite pain of the Strangury O then what must those miseries be which know no respit no interval no rest no quiet no ease no abatement Where Vengeance will come with a Deluge and not onely the pain of a single Disease will be inflicted but all pains together will meet in the miserable Sufferer Where all things will combine to make him wretched and all his former pleasures turn into Gall and Wormwood And yet how regardless of these miseries does Mankind live How little are they frighted with this Fire How little are they disturbed with this approaching Woe O my gracious Lord suffer me not to fall asleep with the foolish Virgins while the day doth last while I have time to work while I am on this side Eternity let me dread these terrours and the causes of it Whenever I am tempted to offend thee O let these Torments check mine inordinate desires O let me consider how short the pleasure is and how long the bitterness it ends in Surely thou wilt let the disobedient know one day how odious sin is in thy sight and how dangerous it was to abuse thy patience O give my Soul no rest till I firmly believe all this and believing it may escape the wrath to come through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen A Prayer for Thursday-Evening GReat God whose excellency is over Israel whose strength is in the Clouds who art terrible out of thy holy places who hast a mighty Voice a Voice that will one day shake the world and summon all Mankind to come out of their Graves and to appear before thy Judgement seat What confusion will the wicked and careless world be in when thou shalt with indignation send them away into the fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels where they must be for ever deprived of thy Favour and want thy gracious Influences where their fancy will be eternally affrighted with hideous and monstrous shapes where their Passions will be in a perpetual uproar where the remembrance of their former Mercies will continually sting them where their Reason will be their Tormentor their Conscience their Executioner and yet unable to make an end of them where their Souls will be everlastingly torn with grief and discontent where God will be the object of their Hatred and their minds will not be able to entertain one kind thought of their Judge where their Souls will be like the troubled Sea when it cannot rest and eternal darkness and gloominess make their estate most uncomfortable where no creature pities them and no man no Angel no Devil affords them any consolation O God! can I love my self and not endeavour to prevent this miserable condition O call to me bid me think of it convince me of it Cure my blindness Let Hell be the greatest object of my fear Let me not fear Poverty Contempt Sickness Exile or the unkindness of men so much as this horrible Tempest O let me not grow careless of it because I see it not and I have not as yet felt it Let me therefore dread it that I may never feel it Let not the world drown my thoughts of it Let not my Lusts put it out of my mind Let not the Devil perswade me that I am in no danger I am in danger O let me see it and run away Lord here cut burn torture and afflict me so thou wilt but make me happy for ever O let the King of Heaven hear me when I call through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen A Prayer for Friday-Morning relating to the Meditation prescribed for Friday Exercise 3. GReat Saviour of the world who wast wounded for my Transgressions and bruised for my sins Thou art that innocent and immaculate Lamb which for sinners Enemies and condemned creatures gavest thy back to the Smiter and sufferedst thy self to be beaten crown'd with Thorns mocked derided and inhumanely abused A love fitter to be admired in silence than praised with imperfect expressions How freely didst thou part with thy bloud to save my life and to procure my safety Never was Bloud spilt upon such an account or if there were never was such precious Bloud spilt as thine was bloud which drives away Devils invites Angels cleanses Souls purifies the Tabernacle washes the whole world and opens the Gate of Heaven Who can be so irreligiour as not to be pricked at the heart with the thoughts of thy Passion Who can be so arrogant or proud as not to be humbled with the sight who so cholerick as not to be melted into meekness with the contemplation Who so luxurious as not to be tempted to self-denial with this spectacle O let thy Cross have that effect upon me that I may crucifie my Flesh with all its Lusts and Passions Let thy Charity to thine Enemies prevail with me to do good
that persecute me O shew me thy Salvation My sensual Desires plead for tenderness and because they would not be displeased they suggest Motives and Reasons why I should spare my self They regard not what becomes of my Soul hereafter and so they can but enjoy present rest they think not of the Torments that will follow But my Soul sees how the Scene will change when God shall come to Judgment O my God I am in danger let me spare no cost no pains to be free from it Where gentler means will not free me from the Corruptions which do so easily beset me O let me not be afraid of using more violent remedies O that I were but more concerned about the Life to come O that I had more lively aprehensions of it O that I had that view of the Terrours of the Lord that my Soul might be convinced of the necessity of taking the Kingdom of Heaven by violence I am sensible of the hurt my Lusts and Passions have done me Fill my Soul O God with a holy rage against them that I may drive them out by force when softer Perswasions will do no good Had not I better endure some inconvenience here than be forced at last to make Tears my meat day and night to all Eternity O perswade me to lose all rather than the Joys set before me Shall I see thy Saints who had the clearest apprehensions of thy Will run and sweat and toil for a future Bliss and shall I imagine that laziness will procure that Kingdom O Lord leave me not Bid me rise and strive to apprehend that for which I am also apprehended of Christ Jesus I fight under the Banner of the best of Princes O let me so run that I may obtain and hear the voice of the Bridegroom Enter into thy Masters Joy This will recompence all If I arrive to this I shall be no loser by thy Service I have followed the World too long and have got nothing but vanity and vexation of Spirit It promised me much but my Soul is empty still If once I ascend into that City where all tears shall be wiped away where I shall not need the light of the Sun and Moon and Stars where God himself is the everlasting Light Whatever Troubles whatever Miseries I went through here they will all be forgotten they will all be swallowed up they will all be lost in that vast Ocean of Light and Glory O make me weary of this Wilderness I have wandred too long in this desert Heaven is my home Let that engross my Desires my Hopes my Expectations my Joy my Love my Affections I am a stranger upon Earth let me live like a stranger here Draw me draw me thou everlasting Magnet that I may cling to thee and neither Death nor Life neither Prosperity nor Adversity neither the Smiles nor the Frowns of the World may separate me from that Love which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen Additional Prayers FOR Every Day of the WEEK Suited to the Exercise of Meditating Exercise Ordinary 3. A Prayer for Sunday-Morning relating to the Meditation on Sunday Exercise 3. O God! thou most sweet thou most lovely Object How little do those glorified Saints that enjoy thee in the other world regard our little pleasures and satisfactions here O that my Soul were with those Spirits of men made perfect I see nothing in this valley of Tears that 's worth desiring or breathing after The Beatitude to come is that I long for What are the glories of this World to that glory which e'erlong shall be revealed in us The magnificence of Triumphs the pomp of Princes the curiosity of Palaces the beauty of the Sun the brightness of the Moon the glistering of the Stars the variety of Flowers the fragrancy of Herbs what are all these to the Joys Glories at thy right hand for evermore One day in thy Courts above is sweeter than a thousand here There I shall behold the perfection of thy Essence the infinity of thy Nature the immensity of thy Grandeur the eternity of thy Duration the greatness of thy Majesty the stability of thy Throne the vast extent of thy Wisdom the abyss of thy Judgements the sweetness of thy Bounty the tenderness of thy Mercy the severity of thy Justice the latitude of thy Power the charms of thy Beauty and the lustre of thy Glory O what a ravishing sight will this be And shall I be afraid of encountring with Enemies that would keep me from seeing these wonderful objects These Enemies are already conquered The Lion of the Tribe of Judah hath already weakn'd their strength and power which makes my Victory more easie Therefore I will not despair O thou who hast promised that when the poor and needy want water thou the God of Israel wilt hear them Hear me from thy holy Heaven and encourage my Soul to force her way through all difficulties Give me lively apprehensions of that state For want of those lively apprehensions I work not I move not I press not forward I act not like a person in good earnest my endeavours are dull and my attempts feeble O write that bliss upon my mind engrave it on my Soul Let the beams of it warm my Spirit that no labour for Heaven may seem hard no Commandment grievous no exercise troublesome no industry tedious no pains too great no journey too long that I may not murmur that I may not complain of difficulties that I may not be weary that I may not faint in my mind It is not onely a glorious Garment not onely a magnificent House not onely a stately Palace that 's promised me but Glory it self and Magnificence it self and Splendor it self What if I must curb my Passions and break through my sinful Inclinations What if I must withdraw mine affections from the Creature and mortifie my Body What if I must submit my will to thy will and pardon the greatest injuries What if I must get habits of vertue give Law to my Tongue prescribe limits to my Thoughts put a restraint upon my foolish Desires in order to this Glory is not the promised Recompence encouragement enough O my God! thou art my Shield and exceeding great reward and shall I be afraid to serve thee Shall I tremble at the work thou settest me will not thy Wages be infinitely beyond my Labour How short will be my Task and how long my Rest How few will be the days I am to work in and how durable my Repose Shall I think Heaven too dear at the price thou hold'st it at O undeceive me pull down the vain conceits I have harboured shine powerfully upon my Soul that I may be insatiable in my desires after it and long to see thee who art Light it self and in thy Light may see light through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen A Prayer for Sunday-Evening O Most happy most blessed and most glorious God! How can I reflect on the rest of this