all the Endowments and Faculties which cause me to excel all other visible Species in providing so well for me and defending me in my Infancy from the dangers unto which its infirmities are exposed in bringing me to an age of discretion and supplying all my Wants with fresh and continual Blessings in preserving my Body and Soul from all Evils and Enemies unto this Moment in blessing my Labours and augmenting the Provisions for my subsistence I am not able O Celestial Good ness to reckon up the chief Heads of thy continual Favours O that I may learn to imitate this Heavenly Goodness and to express it in my behaviour and actions to my fellow Creatures Is it for me alone that thou hast given so many and so great Blessings should I not impart and bestow them upon those that want Supplies Must I ingorge and swallow all Must I keep with a tenacious hand what thou sendest to me that I may convey it further with discretion to such as are not so plentifully stored that they also may have cause with me to praise thy Holy Name and liberality Give me not only good things but also as good and distributive a mind and as liberal a hand to send them abroad that other my fellow Servants may likewise feel and have a sense of thy bounty to me and them O! Divine Goodness make me to be like thy self and bring me nearer to thy self that what I now experience at a distance I may find in thee in a nearer approach unto thine Eternal Presence This sweetness that I relish in thy Creatures invites me and promiseth greater and more unspeakable delights when I shall appear before thee my God who art the only Source and inexhaustible Fountain of all sincere pleasure and joy Give me such an heart to manage and behave my self amongst these Earthly Comforts that I may not forfeit my right to the Heavenly but that I may lay up in store for my self such a good Foundation against the time to come that I may lay hold on Eternal Life Amen A Meditation and Prayer upon the Mercy of God in the Redemption of Man by the Lord Jesus Christ O Supernatural Goodness it is in this Action that thou hast discovered to all intelligent Beings the unfathom'd depths of Love Kindness Mercy Liberality and Compassion Here it is that the Divine Bounty appears in its greatest Splendour Is my God come to visit me in my decayed Estate Doth his mercy stretch forth a hand to fetch me out of that Abyss of Misery into which I was with the rest of Mankind falling irrecoverably Has he so much love and humility as to cloath himself with the rags of my mortality that I might be lifted up and one day adorned with the Crown of his Glory O blessed exchange that bespeaks a mercy and love in my Saviour beyond my apprehension What wonderful and surprising Methods appointed by the Divine Wisdom to bring to pass this happy end Give me leave with the Wise Men of the East and the Shepherds of the Fields my merciful Saviour to visit thee in thy Nativity and from thence to view the footsteps and proceedings of this stupendious Mercy as they appear in every part and passage of thy Life and Death of and our Redemption O Merciful God the wonder of thy mercy in thine Incarnation is clearly seen in the greatness of thine abasement in the conformity to such an apostate and offending Nature in submitting to the weakness of our Humanity and ingaging thy self in a Race full of the most grievous Sufferings without the ordinary conveniencies of Life to sweeten the bitterness of thy griefs and mittigate thy sorrows How merciful dost thou shew thy self to such as wanted thine assistance Thy mercy gave eyes to the Blind feet to the Lame health to the Sick soundness to the Distemper'd deliverance to the Possessed pardon to the troubled in mind and life to the dead Never any did seek unto thee for help but thy compassion did as soon grant it as it was desired unto them also whose estate rendred them incapable of thy most signal favours Not only thy Friends but thine Enemies too have felt and experienced the tenderness of thy mercy What tears of compassion didst thou not shed at the sight of Jerusalem's Sins and at the consideration of its approaching Judgments How full of mercy was thy just indignation to behold the hardness of the Jews hearts after so many and such aparent Miracles the Evidences of a Divine power and approbation How full of mercy was this dying Saviour to pray for his Enemies at the very moment of loading him with affronts and contempt O Divine Sacrifice of Mercy to live such a painful Life for our sakes was a great expression of thy love and mercy but to dye for us to pay for the price of our Redemption and suffer such an ignominious and grievous Death was a far greater Mercy O my Saviour leads thee through Death and the Grave to a joyful Resurrection Every step is a step of Divine Mercy relating to us it shines most visibly in releasing our great Surety out of the Grave where our Enemies had shut him up in affording us such an assurance of the accomplishment of our Redemption and in admitting our Nature into the Coelestial Mansions Blessed be this wonderful Mercy in that it hath called us to and made us partakers of the Benefits of our Redeemer's Death and Passion and giveth us such fair hopes and assurances of a Glorious immortality with and by him I beseech thee let me never be unworthy of so much goodness And seeing thy mercy O my God hath look'd upon the greatest of Sinners shall I doubt of or question whether it will be extended to me Seeing it was designed for my benefit and this good Saviour bore my Sins upon his Cross shall I exclude my self by my unbelief shall I lessen that which is infinite and unspeakable and that which I ought to magnifie by my confidence upon it Prepare me for the reception of it forgive and pardon all my Sins admit me into thy favour and into the number of thine Elect. Give me such visible Evidences that I may rejoyce in thy Salvation confirm my faith and strengthen my reliance upon the tenderness of thy Compassions and as thy Mercy is extraordinary to my Soul let me not be cruel to my fellow Servants but courteous compassionate kind and merciful to them that I may be a real imitator of thee my great God and Saviour and copy out in my actions the expressions of thy wonderful mercy to my Soul Amen A Meditation and Prayer upon the Justice and Holiness of God O Dreadful Majesty as we gratefully acknowledge thy mercy and goodness to be infinite and unspeakable to us poor men so we humbly adore thy Divine Justice and know it to be most terrible to such unworthy Creatures as provoke thy Displeasure Thy forbearance may suffer the wicked to Flourish and
we may so pass through things Temporal that we finally lose not the things Eternal for Jesus Christ his sake our Lord. Amen GRant O Lord we beseech thee that the Course of this World may be so peaceably ordered by thy governance that we and thy whole Church may joyfully serve thee in all Godly quietness through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen LOrd of all Power and might who art the Author and giver of all good things Graft in our Hearts the love of thy Name increase in us true Religion nourish us with all goodness and of thy great Mercy keep us in the same through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen O Merciful God bless and preserve we pray thee our Princes defend them from all their Enemies direct them in all their Counsels assist them in all their religious purposes grant them and the Church amongst us peace and prosperity in this Life and everlasting Happiness in the life to come Bless all the Royal Family the Nobility the Magistrates the Gentry and People of this Land Grant us Peaâ—e and Truth and preserve us from Heresie Schism Superstition and Idolatry for Jesus Christ his sake Amen OUR Father which art in Heaven hallowed be thy Name Thy Kingdom come Thy Will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven Give us this day our daily Bread And forgive us our Trespasses as wâ— forgive them that Trespass against us And lead us not into Temptation But deliver us from all Evil. For thine is the Kingdom the Power and the Glory for ever and ever Amen THe Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Love of God and the Fellowship of the Holy Ghost be with us all evermore Amen Another Morning Prayer for a Family when Business is most urgent TUrn thy Face away from our sins O Lord and blot out all our Offences Make us clean Hearts O God and renew right Spirits within us Ps 51. Almighty and Everlasting God mercifullly look upon our Infirmities and in all our dangers and necessities stretch forth thy Right Hand to help and defend us through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen O God whose Blessed Son was manifested that he might destroy the Works of the Devil and make us the Sons of God and Heirs of Eternal Life Grant us we beseech thee that having this Hope we may purifie our selves as he is pure that we may walk in newness of life and follow the Examples of his Patience Piety and Holiness that when he shall appear with Power and Glory we may be made like unto him in his glorious Kingdom Amen O Lord be merciful to us and our Nation bless the King's Majesty and our Queen with Life and happiness their Counsellors with Wisdom their Armies with Victory their Subjects with Peace and Prosperity Bless the Nobility the Clergy and Commonalty in their goings out and comings in Bless us we beseech thee and all our Relations with Spiritual and Temporal Mercies And all these Blessings we beg for Jesus Christ his sake in whose perfect Form of Prayer we sum up all our desires as he hath taught us OUr Father which art in Heaven Hallowed be thy Name Thy Kingdom come Thy will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven Give us this Day our daily Bread And forgive us our Trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us And lead us not into Temptation But deliver us from all Evil. For thine is the Kingdom the Power and the Glory for ever and ever Amen THe Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ the Love of God the Father and the Fellowship of the Holy Ghost be with us all Amen Another Morning PRAYER for a Family O Gracious God the Creator and Protector of Mankind whose continued goodness we have lately experienced in the safety and preservation of the last Night We bless thy Holy Name for this and all other expressions of thy Mercy to us we acknowledge that as thou art the Author of our Beings it is thy good Providence that maintains and defends them from all dangers and Enemies that incompass us about It is thy watchful Eye that sees all their contrivances to destroy us It is thy Wisdom that knows how to defeat their Craftiest purposes It is thy Power alone that can disappoint and oppose their wicked and hellish Plots We are not ignorant O Lord of their malice and our continual dangers dangers that proceed from the contrivances of Spiritual and Temporal Enemies we desire therefore to be heartily thankful for we are really sensible of thy merciful protection hitherto and to ascribe all the Honour and Praise of our preservation and deliverance to thy Wisdom and Providence alone But O merciful Father let this expression of thy goodness the foundation of all thy Blessings be still continued to us we are sensible of our undeservings our sins and wickednesses are multiplied our provocations and ingratitudes have been many our many deficien ies in all our Duties might justly cause thee to leave us to our selves for the future and expose us naked to the subtilties and power of our Enemies who would quickly devour us But we implore thy mercy at this time and intreat thee to forgive us our Trespasses to pardon our Infirmities and to pass by all our Transgressions for the Lord Jesus his sake In his Name and through his Merits we approach with all humility to the throne of thy grace to beg the forgiveness of all our Iniquities and the continuance of thy protection and Mercies Temporal and Spiritual How weak are we of our selves How soon cast into our Graves and what is Man that he should be able to defend us when the least blast deprives him of Life and Being Thou art therefore and thou alone O great God of Heaven thou art only able to defend us in the following course of our Life from visible and invisible perils Let thy Mercy be continued to us shelter us from the malicious designs of all our Enemies frustrate their wicked purposes lead us in all our ways direct us in all our paths bless us in all our undertakings we live in a crooked Generation in a world that overflows with sin and wickedness and our Conversation is amongst evil-doers let therefore thy Wisdom and thy fear so possess our Souls that we may not be drawn away by the Vices of the Age nor intangled in such Labryinths of Sin as might indanger our eternal welfare Suffer us not to be inticed with the allurements of unlawful Pleasure and Profit We trust not to our selves O Lord and our own frail resolutions because we have broken them so often that we have cause to mistrust our selves and to rely chiefly upon thy merciful guidance Let thy Truth direct us and thy Spirit lead us as well as thy Power protect us from the invasion of Error and Vice give us a right understanding of thy Will an unchangeable resolution to practise it suffer us not to be drawn aside neither by fear nor by profit from the
profession of that pure Religion in which we have had the happiness to be instructed Give us all grace to value and prize this thy great Mercy that we are Christians and such Christians as have the benefits of thy sacred Oracles O let us not be so unworthy to forsake that Religion in which only we are to expect Salvation Give us Grace to follow the Blessed Rules of good living that we have learned keep us from sin and of all sins chiefly from the sins against our own Consciences and knowledge Give us peaceable Minds quiet dispositions with a willing resignation of our selves to thy Wise Providence in all things wean our Hearts and Affections from the World let not its Vanities possess any longer our affections Let the knowledge that all things shall work together for our good cause us to submit without murmuring to all the Crosses that we may meet with And as our time here below is but of a short continuance give us grace to mind our latter end to prepare for our dissolution betimes to live always in expectation of another and a more happy life where we shall never see neither Sorrow nor Pain Bless us we beseech thee in our Callings prosper us in all our lawful endeavours to serve our Generation And let us so demean our selves in our bodily and daily Employments as that we may not forget in them to serve and glorifie thee our God which is the great and chief Employment of our lives Suffer us not to mispend our precious Talents but according to our Abilities and thy Mercies let us so dispose of them of what kind soever they be that thy Truth and Holy Name may be glorified thereby and the ends for which thou hast given them answered Bless this Family now prostrate before thee with our years increase all our Graces sanctifie and prepare us for thy Enjoyment purifie and cleanse our Hearts and mercifully continue and augment all thy Blessings upon us Take into thy protection and favour the tender and weaker part of it the Infants and Children provide we beseech thee for the welfare of their Souls as well as for their Bodies imprint thy holy fear in their Hearts that they may glorifie thee in their Lives Bless all our Relations wheresoever they be dispersed let thy Mercy and Truth guide them all the days of their Lives Bless this Nation unto which we belong punish us not according to our just deservings and provocations lay not upon us the guilt of innocent Blood But pardon the extravagancy of our lives and cause a real Reformation to be practised as well as professed amongst us thou givest us Temporal Mercies in abundance continue thy Spiritual to us suffer not our Enemies to deprive us of thy Truth and Gospel watch over us and disappoint all their wicked purposes for our Ruine and give us all Hearts to be truly thankful for the many Favours Blessings Mercies and Deliverances which from time to time in all Ages thou hast heaped upon us and our Forefathers Bless more especially the person of our gracious Prince and thine anointed grant him a long and a prosperous reign guard him from the barbarous purposes of all Murderers save him from all their Plots and Conspiracies direct him in his Councils prosper him in his Designs and give him and us all Grace to lay seriously to heart thy merciful proceedings towards us Bless all his Relations enlighten them with thy Truth sanctifie them with thy Grace and direct them by thy Spirit that they may embrace as well as know thy Sacred Truth and govern themselves according to its Holy Precepts Bless thy Church dispersed throughout the whole World preserve every Member of it from the Malice of the Devil and his Agents increase daily the number of its true Professors Let thy Gospel and thy Salvation be published in all Nations bring back the Jews and accomplish the number of the Gentiles and open the Understandings of all Men that they may see the reasonableness and excellency of that Religion which Christ hath recommended to us and not only see it but embrace and practise it setting aside all prejudice and partiality Turn the Hearts of our greatest Enemies subdue our unruly Affections reconcile our Differences publick and private and give us all Grace that we may truly serve and glorifie thee in our Lives All this we beg for the Merits and by the Mediation of our most Blessed Lord and Saviour in whose Words we sum up all our imperfect Petitions in that most perfect Form which he hath taught us OUR Father which art in Heaven hallowed be thy Name Thy Kingdom come Thy Will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven Give us this day our daily Bread And forgive us our Trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us And lead us not into Temptation But deliver us from all Evil. For thine is the Kingdom the Power and the Glory for ever and ever Amen THe Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ the Love of God the Father and the comfortable Fellowship of the Holy Ghost be with us all evermore Amen Another Morning Prayer for a Family when Business is urgent O Merciful God and Heavenly Father by whose goodness we are yet alive Thy Holy Name be praised for the safety and quiet repose of our Bodies the last Night and for our preservation until this moment which we acknowledge to be a Mercy proceeding from thy Power and Providence We are sensible O Lord of our own weakness and frailty unable of our selves to withstand the assaults of our Spiritual and Corporal Enemies from thy Mercy therefore we humbly Beg this and all other Blessings needful for our Souls and Bodies that thou wouldest be pleased to be gracious to us and forgive us our Sins and protect us from all dangers in the following course of our lives defend our Souls from all assaults of Sin and Satan keep us in the Profession and Practice of thy Holy Religion without wavering strengthen our Mindes with a Divine Knowledge and our Wills with thy Celestial Grace that neither Error nor Vice may be able to prevail upon us Defend also our Bodies from all the Snares that are laid for us Let our lives be precious in thy sight sanctifie all thy Mercies to us and the more we are loaden with thy Temporal Blessings let us be so much the more thankful and ready to obey thy Holy Laws send down thy Blessing upon all our actions and endeavours in the Callings in which thy Providence hath placed us As our chief aim is the Promotion of thy Glory be pleased to assist us in the advancing of it Preserve our Minds from all inward troubles murmurings and disturbances and arm us we beseech thee with that unchangeable Spirit as may contemn the Losses and Crosses of the World for that purpose captivate our affections to thee and thy Service take possession of our Hearts and suffer them not to dote too much
bounds to the rage of our Enemies and let all thy proceedings towards us make a sincere Reformation in the Land Deprive us not for every of the Comfort of thy Word and Ordinances but protect this thy Church from the incroachings of Schism and Idolatry Be merciful O Lord to our King defend his Person from all his Enemies and let not their wicked Designs prosper against him but give Wisdom to his Counsellors Success to his Undertakings Victory to his Armies Grace and Fidelity to his Officers Truth and Loyalty to all his Subjects and Health and long Life to his Majesty Be gracious to all his Relations make them Examples of Piety and Godliness discoverr to them the truth of thy Gospel and give them all Grace to employ their Credit and Authority in promoting thy Glory and incouraging thy true Religion against Error and Vice amongst us Give us a Learned and Religious Clergy a Wise and Pious Nobility a sound and Vertuous Gentry and let all such as are in any Offices of Trust remember their Duty to thee O God their Obligations to their Prince and his Subjects and act with that Faithfulness and Integrity that they may discharge a good Conscience and approve themselves before thee as well as before Man Be gracious to all Nations send them the light of thy Gospel banish from them all Mists of Error and Heresie pacifie the Tumults of the World and give them grace to acknowledge thee the true God and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent to be the Universal Saviour These and all other Mercies for them and thy whole Church I humbly beg for his sake and Merits who is dead risen again and sits at thy Right hand to make intercession for us OUR Father which art in Heaven Hallowed be thy Name Thy Kingdom come Thy Will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven Give us this Day our daily Bread and forgive us our Trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us And lead us not into Temptation But deliver us from all Evil. For thine is the Kingdom the Power and the Glory for ever and ever Amen Let thy Grace thy Power and thy Truth preserve and accompany me all the days of my Life A Morning Prayer for a young Person O Heavenly Father my great Creator and Protector thy Holy Name be praised for all thy Mercies chiefly for the quiet rest of the last Night At every moment I feel the expressions of thy goodness thou ceasest not to shew me some tokens of thy Liberality since thou hast given me this Being O merciful God how great and many are thy Mercies to me in these few Minutes that I have spent in the World I perceive that thou art the inexhaustible Fountain of all good and the boundless Ocean of all perfections To thy Divine Majesty therefore I make my Address to supply the daily necessities of this weak Body and sinful Soul which proceed from thee Forgive I beseech thee O my God the mistakes and frailties of my youth As I am sensible of my frequent miscarriages cause me also to be sensible of thy Mercy and Pardon I am entered into the World in a state of imperfection I carry about me strong Inclinations to Sin and the breach of thy Sacred Laws which I cannot shake off in a moment but gracious God blot out all mine Iniquities and assist with thy Divine Spirit the pious Resolutions and Religious temper of my Soul Thou hast promised not to quench the Smoaking Flax nor break the bruised Reed not to cast away a Creature for some imperfections but to encourage the hopeful beginnings of Piety in Man Perform this thy Promise O my God in my sinful Soul increase what is good rectifie what is amiss sanctifie and purifie this inner part of my self from all the fleshly Pollutions that I may be guilty of enlighten my Understanding with a right knowledge of thy Will and Word give me thy heavenly Wisdom and a clear apprehension of those things thou requirest from my Faith and Practice Suffer me not to be carried away by the inticements of Heresie and Error but as thou hast caused me to be born and initiated by Baptism into the profession of thy true Religion give me grace to resist all the Temptations that may endeavour to draw me from it and to continue in it to the last moment of my days Sanctifie my Will and Affections more and more keep me from the Infectious air of wicked Company and vitious Conversation suffer me not to be carried away with the Vices of the Age but strengthen my Resolutions in thy Faith and Fear grant me that discretion and prudence that I may perceive the Snares laid for me and know how to shun and avoid them that I may lead an innocent harmless and righteous Life keep me out of the Labyrinths of sin and wickedness in which many are insensibly intangled and as my great Task in the World is to serve thee inable and assist me in the Prosecution of that design make me to see the Vanity of the World and all Worldly advantages that my inexperienced Soul may not be bewitched with any deceitful enjoyments but that I may settle my affections upon thee my God and live continually in expectation of my approaching Change and of the immortal Possessions where true Joys are to be found I beseech thee also Merciful Father to send and continue to me all things needful for my weak Body grant me Life and Health that I may glorifie thee on this side the Grave as thou wilt glorifie me on the other side Enable me to serve my Generation and to do good in the World that I may not be said to live in vain Increase my Gifts and Talents and thy Temporal Blessings and give me a Heart to dispose of them according to thy Will Preserve me from all dangers and Enemies suffer them not to prevail upon me but limit their malice and rage I trust upon thy Power and Protection let me have the experience of it at every step that I shall make and accompany all my endeavours and actions with success and blessing Strengthen my Soul with a reliance upon thee and a submission to thy Will in all things prepare me to bear the Crosses that thou wilt lay upon me and assist me through the troubles of the World by thy divine Spirit imprint thy fear in my tender Soul give me a sense of thy all-seeing Eye and infinite Presence that I may dread thy justice and Power as well as I love thy Mercy and goodness and be kept from any extravagancies of Life that I may walk continually as in thy presence and in expectation either of Rewards or Punishments according to my actions Grant me I beseech thee O overflowing Goodness all the conveniencies of this Life sanctifie what thou hast already given and make me useful and a Comfort to all my Relations Be merciful to them also I pray thee protect preserve and
the Times make me truly constant and faithful in the Professionof that Holy Religion unto which I am called Give me a right Understanding of its divine Precepts and grace to practise them in my Life Let thy Word be my Rule thy Truth my guide thy Spirit my Comforter and thy Glory my Reward Preserve me I beseech thee my good God from the Evils unto which I am subject and let my Soul and Body be precious in thy Sight especially this Night into which I am entring let the Merciful Eye of thy Providence preserve me during its mournful shadows from all Spiritual and Temporal Enemies Let thy Holy Angels guard and protect me and bring me safe to the next day to behold and admire the Wonders of thy Creation and Providence in the World Make me useful in my Generation bless all my undertakings and endeavours in my Calling that I may by it advance thy Glory and do good both to my self and others And because our natural Poverty is such that without thee and a continual supply from thy Bounty we cannot possibly subsist gracious God send me all things needful for my Soul and Body let me not depend too much upon the plentiful Provision of these earthly things already made for me but as thou art the Life and Soul of all thy Creatures and without thy Blessing our greatest plenty of good things is altogether unprofitable let the expectation of this Blessing incourage me to depend wholly upon thy favour and stir up my industry in the duties of my Calling and in the service of my Country Bless all my Relations and Parents more especially here name such as are in Affliction grant them long life health and happiness preserve the King's Majesty all my Governours and Teachers inable them all in their places to glorifie thee their God and do good to this Nation and People Defend us all from our Enemies at home and abroad and suffer them not to triumph over us but continue in our days Peace Truth Justice Plenty and Prosperity These and all other Mercies I humbly Beg for Christ Jesus his sake my only Saviour and Mediator who taught us thus to pray OUR Father which art in Heaven hallowed be thy Name Thy Kingdome come Thy Will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven Give us this day our daily Bread And forgive us our Trespasses as we forgive them that Trespass against us And lead us not into Temptation But deliver us from all Evil For thine is the Kingdom the Power and the Glory for ever and ever Amen LEt thy grace thy Truth and Goodness be with me preserve and keep me now and for evermore Amen Prayers before Meal SEnd down thy Blessing good God upon these thy Creatures that we are now to be partakers of inable them to feed our Bodies and recruit our weakness and strengthen us to serve and glorifie thee on Earth that we may receive from thee the Rewards of thy Servants in Heaven This we beg for Jesus Christ his sake Amen Another Prayer before meat GRacious God we see by these fresh Expressions of thy Bounty that thou art never weary to load us with thy good things Sanctifie them unto us at this present time and us to thy Service through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen A Profitable Meditation at the sight of a Table spread or covered with Food for our Bodies HOw often have I tasted and felt the goodness of my God! He is that full Ocean of Mercy and Sweetness from whence these Streams proceed by various dispensations and Methods He is that bottomless Fountain that never will be exhausted Here here are tokens of his Love to us and care of our preservation before our Eyes These Creatures are sent to mend the daily breaches of this outward Tabernacle to recruit our Mortal Weaknesses with a fresh supply to corroborate the decaying strength of Nature with new Spirits We see by experience that these Bodies that God hath made he is careful to maintain and by the Influence of the Heavens and the Fruitfulness of the Earth to furnish with all their Wants O wonderful Providence How full and plentiful are thy Stores that so great a share is appointed for me How rich is that Bounty that when all my Fellow Creatures so many Millions in Number are provided vouchsafes me so great a Lot and large Portion He can never want that entertains a good Correspondency with the great Purveyor of Mankind whilst the Avenues and Conveyances are open O shut not up thy mercy from us for let my Estate be never so great and the Provision for my Body be never so large alas these poor senseless Creatures cannot benefit me without thy Blessing accompanies them these morsels may as soon choak as feed me without that invisible Vertue which thou alone canst send along with them I humbly crave it at thy good hands my good God let not my Sins sower or poison these thy Mercies let me not trust too much upon these outward assistances of Life and Health but as by thy daily proceedings thou hast taught me to depend chiefly upon thy Liberality let me look up to and expect from thee daily food and nourishment grant me a thankful Heart never to forget so great a goodness But the sweetness that I am going to relish minds me of the sweetness of that Bounty from whence it proceeds and of the greatness of thy Divine Wisdom that hath baited all necessary actions of our Life with a natural delight and pleasure How ravishing must the Fountain of Goodness be seeing these drops conveyed unto us at such a distance are so pleasing to our Palats God that now entertains my Being so far from his immediate presence intends one day to draw me nearer to himself to live with him for ever then the Divine Goodness shall refresh and comfort me without the cold assistance of inferior things then the smiles of God's Countenance shall be conveyed to us not by Reflections and at second hands but more immediately we shall then see as we are seen and solace our selves during the numberless Ages of an Eternity in the presence of this good God where we shall want neither Food nor Raiment but these corrupt Bodies shall be freed from all the slavery of the Elements and dependency upon them for we shall depend upon our God alone and him only shall we serve For this Corruption must put on Incorruption and this Mortal must put on Immortality O that I might have always in mind that final end of Mankind and use these thy Comforts but not abuse them by excess and gluttony These Bodies which thou hast so wonderfully made and preserves with such care are of that Excellency and designed for those Noble and Divine purposes that they must not be disgrac'd nor polluted with Vice These Creatures thou hast appointed for our Refreshment not for the dishonour or ruine of our Bodies If our Tables overflow how many of our poor
Triumph in impiety but certainly as thou art a wise God thou hast appointed a time for a retaliation and to render unto every one according to their deeds Shall men live and act in defiance of thine Almighty Power Shall they violate thy Sacred Laws and tread under foot thy Divine Authority and shall not thine All-seeing Eye take notice and thine affronted Majesty be sensible of such hainous Crimes I appeal to the Consciences of the most obdurate Wretch and vilest Contemner of a Deity whether the fears and disquietness of their inward Being which we call the Soul the Spirit or the Mind do not suffiently witness and tell them there is a Superior Justice to which they are answerable for their offences In Nature this Divine Wisdom and Justice shine together in the great Fabrick of the World in that excellent order of the several pieces in the disposition and tendencies of the Created Beings in the Laws Rules and Orders that preserve them from decay And thine Almighty Power O my God is seen in the preservation and support of all these things in the midst of so much and such violent Commotions as well as in their Creation and shall thy Divine Justice be wanting in this in suffering the Rational Beings to break thy Laws to contemn thy Power and spurn at thy Majesty without a check shall they disorder the humane World and overthrow thy Sacred Constitutions unpunished for ever Look back O my Soul into former Ages and see whether thou canst find in the Records of Antiquity any former footsteps of this Justice I see it appear visible in the overwhelming the first World and commanding the waters of the Seas and the Heavens to wash away the first Generations of Men. How terrible and impartial in drowning so many millions of all sorts of Creatures for the Sins of mankind How hot and dreadful was thy Justice when that delicions Paradise of Sodom and Gomorrha was by fire and brimstone from above turned into a stinking and noisom Lake that yet to the World's end shews the Signs and Tokens of a Divine Displeasure How grievous was thy Justice in punishing the Nation of the Jews and that rebellious City Jerusalem for the Crimes of its Inhabitants when hundreds of thousands were destroyed their Glory levelled in the dust and the rest scattered among all Nations But what need we search so far for the declarations of thy Justice Are not those Scourges of War Famine and Pestilence that sweep away thousands in a moment into their Graves without any regard of Crowns and Dignities sufficient and visible expressions of thy Divine Justice O my God! I see it in the punishment of many vile wretches in the destruction of States and Empires in the overthrowing of Towns and Cities in the Earthquakes and Hurricanes in the wonderful Alterations and Revolutions of the World I hear it denounce Death and Destruction to wickedness and iniquity in thy Holy word The light of the wicked shall be put out terror shall make him afraid on every side and shall drive him to his feet his strength shall be hunger-bitten and destruction shall be ready at his side his confidence shall be rooted out and it shall bring him to the King of terrors his remembrance shall perish from the Earth and he shall have no name in the street Job 18. The wicked man shall be turned into Hell and all the Nations that forget God Ps 9.17 The Lord preserveth all them that love him but all the wicked will be destroyed Though hand joyn in hand the wicked shall not be unpunished Prov. 11.21 Hath thy Truth O my God pronounced these dreadful Threatnings and many more and shall not thy Power and Justice execute them All the World is at thy devotion thou can'st command the Heavens the Earth and all the Elements to accomplish thy Will O Divine Justice thou art a Consuming Fire and no respecter of Persons the Prince and the Subject the Rich and the Poor shall be treated all alike and thou art not to be deceived with the paint of Hypocrisie and Dissimulation nor to be cozened with the impudent pretences of deceitful men Thou seest O my God into the very heart and soul and canst not be imposed upon or deceived in the examination of our actions When therefore I consider the excellency of thy Sacred Laws and the aversion that thou hast declared against Sin and the severity of thy Justice O Holy and Dreadful Majesty I cannot but tremble to think upon my guilt and the number of mine offences to think that I must appear before thy last Tribunal before a Glorious and Impartial Judge when so many Creatures that I have abused shall all witness against me when my Conscience shall lay before me all my Crimes and the most secret Contrivances shall be disclosed with all the aggravations of thy mercies forbearance and goodnesses What shall I answer how shall I escape when the Executioner shall be there ready to drag me away into endless Torments from whence there can be no Reprieve How grievous will it be to lye under the heavy strokes of thy severe Vengeance for ever O my God that I may be now so sensible of thy Justice that I may never experience it Make me an eternal monument of thy mercy that I may never feel the severity of thy wrath and Justice Grant me that exemption which thou hast provided and promised to thy chosen an interest in my great Saviour in his Death and Passion for his sake spare me and forgive all my Crimes Accept of his Sacrifice I flye from the Terrors of thy Justice to thine unspeakable Mercy in Christ at his Death and at his Resurrection Thou hast proclaimed Pardon to all believing Sinners Lord I believe help thou mine unbelief I lay hold on thy favourable Promises and though I have deserved thy wrath provoked thine indignation stirred up thy vengeance I expect through the merits and mediation of my merciful Saviour who hath been a sufficient Propitiation for all our Sins to obtain forgiveness and thine Eternal favour with an admittance into thy Coelestial Paradise Amen A Meditation and Prayer upon Plenty and Riches O Heavenly Father how great is thy goodness to me in bestowing upon me these Possessions and Blessings of this Life in granting to me this Plenty and these Conveniencies my Lott and mine Inheritance declares what regard thou hast to me above all other thy Servants and Creatures this comes not to me by chance neither is it my Labour and Industry that have procured it but thy Divine Appointment and thy Liberal hand to thy holy Name be ascribed the praise and the glory of all these things I hold them with a relation to thee my great Lord unto whom they do really belong and to whom I must pay my Tribute as the acknowledgement of thy Propriety I look upon my self only as thy Steward bound to mannage and dispose of these Blessings according to thine Orders
my great Saviour mine Emanuel who humbled himself to the form of a Servant my God who was contented to lead a Life on Earth without having any place to lay his head a man of grief and acquainted with sorrow despised and rejected of men It is an honour for me to be made conformable in some respects to my Redeemer and a sign that thou wilt not give me all my good things in this Life but in another The more thy Bounty is sparing of thy mercies to me the more I expect it will be liberal when I shall depart hence into another estate They wisdom will mannage thy liberalities to me because thou seest that I have not yet discretion to mannage them my self and because perhaps I should not be able to encounter with and resist the strong temptations unto which a greater plenty would infallibly expose me I submit in all humility O my gracious God to the Wisdom of thy Providence give me an heart and mind answerable to this Estates sanctifie all thy dispensations to me that knowing that I have no other friend but my God I may put my whole trust and confidence in him that having nothing of Worldly wealth to intangle and incumber me I may march the more ready and speedier to my Heavenly Country now I see that I have no Earthly Pleasures and Delights to embrace I may lift up my Soul to thee and embrace thy promise of a better Estate hereafter Keep me from craving too eagerly more than is thine allowance or from murmuring at mine hard Condition in this Life or complaining of my Sufferings Keep me from seeking by indirect means to remedy my wants from invading other mens Rights from Thievery and Stealing Let me as my whole dependance is upon thee wait thy leisure O my good God and stay till it shall please thee to increase my Provisions and let my Estate be never so low and mean and my necessities be never so pressing and urgent let me know how to want and how to abound let me never be deprived of thy favour and heavenly mercies let me never lose the sight of thy gracious Countenance let me enjoy and have well secured to me an interest in my Christ and Saviour and in thy Celestial Paradise whither he is gone to provide and prepare a place for me There is riches enough for me and true honours not subject to Worldly Casualties there are pleasures at thy right hand that will make me quickly forget all the toil and labours of this earthly Estate Bring me in thy good and due time out of this troublesom Life and receive my Spirit into thine heavenly Sanctuary Amen A Meditation and Prayer at the enjoyment of Prosperity O Divine Wisdom and Almighty Creator and Preserver of my Soul and Body I bless thy Holy Name for all these Prosperous Successes for answering my Prayers and Expectations with plentiful and gracious Returns I acknowledge them to proceed from thee my good God and to be expressions of thy great and unwearied mercy Not unto us not unto us but to thy holy Name be ascribed all the honour and glory What could my industry labour or care do if thou didst not accompany them with thy continual Blessings Thy hand hath been visible in acting for me in delivering me from dangers and giving me such a prosperous Career to run in thou my God art my Rock my Fortress and my Saviour unto whom I am indebted for all these Temporal Favours I am not worthy of the least of thy Mercies the more therefore thy Goodness is expressed to me so much the more let my Soul be humbled before thee that I may not soon forfeit nor misconster these gracious proceedings of thy wise Providence to me What little dependance is there upon this Sun-shine How soon may the Clouds of adversity deprive me of all this Comfort What a folly is it for me to presume too much upon inconstancy There is a continual revolution in all worldly Affairs and nothing is settled upon a sure Basis but seeing the greatest Empires and Kingdoms have had a succession of Adversities that have follow'd their greatest Prosperities close at the heels what reason have I to build upon that which is not secured to me but may vanish in a night or disappear in a moment O my God I acknowledge that there is nothing assured to me but thy Grace and Mercy which will never leave nor forsake me either in Prosperity or Adversity Let me not therefore betoo fond and enamoured with my present glorious condition but as I am bound receive it with thankfulness and humility and acknowledge thy undeserved Bounty to me I must be always ready to embrace willingly the changes and alterations that thy Wisdom shall send to this flourishing Estate Let me not be surprised at a bitter Cup that thy Providence may give me to drink It is impossible and contrary to our daily experience that every thing should continue to us sweet and pleasant for ever As the most fragrant Roses have their Prickles and Thorns and the most serene Air is subject to be darkned with Clouds as the clearese Sun to be covered over with an Ecclipse and the perfectest Health to be interrupted with Distempers and Aches so the greatest worldly Successes and Prosperities have their Interruptions their Thorns of Cares and Disturbances their Clouds and Eclipses to darken them I am therefore sensible that all these Favours are but for a little time while it shall please thee to continue them O let me not lose them by Pride and Insolency or by a wanton abuse of thy temporal Blessings Let not these thy Mercies corrupt my Mind and aggravate or encrease my Sins or cause any disorder in my Behaviour but rather let this Earthly Prosperity make me truly sensible of the many and great Obligations that I owe to thee my good God and cause me to be more ready and more resolved to serve thee in my Generation and advance the Honour and Interest of my Lord Jesus Christ But in this flourishing Estate let me not forget the Tears and Afflictions of Sion in this Peace and Plenty let me be mindful of my distressed and persecuted Brethren that if I am able to relieve and comfort them others of thy Members and Servants may be the better for thy Mercies to me that these temporal Blessings may make way for and prepare me for the reception of the Eternal and that when it shall please thee to remove me by Death I may not be degraded but rather promoted in thine Eternal Kingdom according to thy gracious Promises Amen A Comfortable Meditation and Prayer for such as are in Adversity and afflicted with Losses and Crosses in the World O Eternal God and Admirable Majesty whose wise Dispensations and Orders of Providence are various it is thy will that I should be encompassed about with Evils and Troubles Hast thou appointed to try my Patience and Obedience by these Afflictions Wilt thou
lying before me in their Tombs and have I not often felt Death knocking at my doors sending its usual Summons before hand to warn me for a preparation by frequent Aches and Weaknesses that have seized upon me O Lord as thou hast vouchsafed me health give me grace to preserve it by avoiding all those Vices that are apt to ruine it Let me never depend too much upon it but upon thy Sacred Will sanctifie all the means for my preservation keep me from falling into mischiefs and dangers O that I may employ this Body and Health in thy Service and to thy Glory Thou hast admitted this Body of mine to be a Member of the Mystical Body of thy Son the Lord Jesus Christ and it is now to be the Temple of the Holy Ghost Let me not therefore prophane what thou hast Consecrated to such an excellent purpose and design'd for a Glorious end to be a Vessel of Honour in thy Celestial Sanctuary O my God let me have always before mine Eyes my departure hence and the sinal Resurrection of my Body when thou shalt grant unto me a Health that shall never be interrupted a Strength that shall never decay a Life that shall continue for ever and these dark and infirm Bodies shall rise Immortal Splendid Spiritual Vigorous Transparent Incorruptible and Glorious Amen A Medittaion and Prayer useful in time of Sickness O My Merciful God and Preserver of my Being I acknowledge this Sickness to come from thy divine Appointment these Pains and Aches have their Commission from thee to torment my weak Body and render my present abode in this Life so uneasie I have justly deserved a severer treatment from thy Justice I acknowledge my Transgressions and my Sins are ever before me my provocations are many and great I have now time to look back upon the sinful Extravagancies of my former Conversation I perceive how vainly and foolishly I have spent my days how wickedly I have acted in the World without any regard to thy Divine and Sacred Laws These Torments of Body inflicted upon these Members mind me sufficiently how I have employed them formerly to dishonour thy Glorious Majesty I see that thou hast taken notice of my Actions and dost punish me in that very part that hath offended most O ungrateful Creature that didst receive from thy God these entire and perfect Members and from his unwearied Liberality their Growth Support and Maintenance and wert thou so vile as to make them instrumental in serving the Devil and thy base Lusts against thy God in sinning against his Authority Well may thy Justice O my Creator take me to task and cast me into greater Tortures than these that I now suffer I have experienced thy Mercy and Forbearance in every moment of my days When I added one Transgression to another and multiplied my Crimes without number How many gracious Calls and Invitations had I from thy Goodness to repent and amend How mercifully hast thou always treated me And now this disorder of my Body proceeding from the irregularities of my life past might draw upon me an heavier Burden and more unsufferable Torments were it not for thy gracious forbearance I understand O my God this language of thy Mercy Thou art not willing to cast me into the bitter and everlasting Torments of that Lake that burns with Fire and Brimston therefore these gentle Flames are kindled in my Body to make me sensible of thy Justice that I may prevent it by a seasonable Repentance This Fever and these Aches admonish and speak to me in that manner that thou O my Heavenly Father usest to speak to thy dearest Children in that manner that is most proper for me and suitable to thy Grace and Wisdom Thou art willing to correct and not to destroy me Thou dost punish my Body that my Soul may be spared and live with thee for ever that the Sickness of the one may be the Health of the other I am content to bear all these strokes of thy Mercy O my God I submit with all humility to thy sacred Will Thou art my good and most skilful Physician Thou knowest what Corrosives and Remedies are best to be applied to my Soul and Body Vain is the help of Man without thy blessing and operation And though I seek for ease and for my recovery from these Pills Potions Cordials Recipe's and Medicines and from the skill of the Learned I must first look up to thee my God before I can find any benefit in these outward means I crave thine assistance to influence and sanctifie these methods appointed in thy Providence to restore me to Health again for I know that my Life depends wholly upon thy Will and Word and thou canst raise me again from the lowest Estate from the Gates of Death and when all other skill and means forsake me thou art my God my best Friend and most experienced Physician who hast in thy hands and power the issues of Life and Death able to relive heal and remedy all my Wants To thy Power and Mercy I flee in this time of my distress I have little other comfort but in thine unspeakable Goodness which I beseech thee not to deny to thy poor afflicted Creature and Servant Lay not upon me a greater burden than I can well bear and with these griefs of Body administer inward Comforts to my precious Soul Pardon and forgive all my Sins reveal to me some assurances of thy Favour discover to me some tokens of thy Love in these my bodily Sufferings Give me a real interest in my Redeemer who hath suffered much more for me Increase my Faith in his Merits and Promises However it shall please thee to dispose of this decaying Tabernacle of my Body have compassion upon my poor Soul which thou hast created after thine own image and purchased to thy self with the invaluable Blood of thy dear Son After so great an expression of thy tender Love for me let me not be disappointed in the future expectations that in Reason and Justice I ought therefore to entertain and have of thy divine Mercy O my God restore me to my former Health that I may yet live in my Generation to praise and serve thee Bless all the means used for my recovery direct my Physicians in prescrcibing Remedies and give power to the Physick to operate and do me good if thou art willing that I should continue any longer in this troublesom life But why should I be desirous to abide in this World of misery in this painful and sinful Estate seeing thou hast given me so clear a prospect of an immortal Life of a far better and a more glorious Estate provided for me with thee where none of these Distempers and Torments shall come to disturb my quiet and happiness O prepare me for this blessed Rest wean my heart and affections from this vain and troublesom World give me an entire resignation of my will and desires to thy good pleasure If
thou designest yet to continue me some time longer in this Earthly Tabernacle grant me a resolution to live with more circumspection that I may be more careful of my behaviour a more religious observer of thy Holy Laws more zealous and mindful to work out my Salvation with fear and Trembling That I may emprove the few moments that I have yet to live to prepare for a long Eternity and not waste my precious time in vanity as I have formerly done mitigate I beseech thee my great pains take away thine heavy hand from me and give me ease or a sufficiency of Patience to endure what thou shalt think convenient to lay upon me let me receive these admonitions from thee in that dutiful manner as becomes me thy poor diseased Servant that I may never depend too much upon my present being but always think upon and look for my departure that I may be always prepared for a removal out of this incommodious Inn into that House that is not made with hands out of this life checker'd with so many Sufferings into an uniform and blessed Estate where all these Sorrows shall be swallowed up in everlasting Joy and Pleasure O my God let not thy grace and goodness forsake me or leave me to my self suffer me not through impatience to hasten my death or to desire it before it be thy will to take me hence Let me never be guilty of so great a Crime to dispose of my own Life which thou hast reserved to thy self alone but strengthen my resolution and courage to bear without murmuring or complaining with a quiet and contented Spirit what thy wisdom shall judge convenient for me and to wait with a Christian temper for my appointed time when thou O my God shalt put an end to all my pains release my Soul out of this crasie and polluted Prison and take this immortal Being out of this decaying House whereof the Pillars and Foundations have been so terribly shaken by my present Disâ—ase that I have justly thought it would before this time fall into ruine Prepare me for thy self O my God and when thou shalt call me away receive me into thy Holy and Heavenly Sanctuary where my ever blessed Saviour sits at thy Right hand to intercede for me Amen A Meditation and Prayer when the Symptoms of Death appear O Almighty God and Heavenly Father I perceive it is thy will to remove me out of this Earthly Tabernacle to call me from my present station out of thy Vineyard where I have been employed in thy Service Lord I confess my negligence and carelesness that I have not been so diligent as in Justice and Reason I ought The Task that thou hast given me to end I have but begun the World and its Vanities have stole away my Cares and employed too much of my precious time and the pleasures of Sin have bewitched my Soul so that I have been to my great grief an unprofitable Servant But O my God there is mercy with thee and a sufficiency of mercy to pardon my greatest and most hainous Offences Declare I beseech thee the Infiniteness of thy Mercy in the forgiveness of my notorious Transgressions thou art able to save to the uttermost all that come unto thee through my Redeemer the Lord Jesus Christ Hast thou been merciful to a Thief upon the Cross to a David and a Peter to a Mary Magdalen and the greatest of Sinners and wilt thou deny me a share in this Divine Mercy O strengthen my Faith in thy Gracious Promises I Believe help thou mine Unbelief I seek not unto thee with any confidence upon any merits or vertues in my self or actions but as the Prodigal Son or poor Publican with an assurance upon thy pure and disinteressed Love and the Blood of my Saviour that speaks better things than that of Abel Cast me not away from thy presence now in the time of my distress look upon my groans my tears and sufferings The pangs of death have already seized upon me I am departing out of this miserable World my Soul is weary of this loathsome Tabernacle of my Body I feel my strength decaying more and more I see the Grave is ready to receive my Carcass and the Worms to devour and feed upon it let mine immortal Soul be precious in thy sight wash and cleanse it in the blood of the immaculate Lamb slain and buried for my Sins and risen again for my Justification Farewell vain World that I have too much adored and served thou art not able to assist me with any comfort or advice in my need but my dependance is upon my God to his mercy alone I seek for shelter and relief I now perceive the emptiness of all those things that worldly minds so highly esteem what advantage can I receive from my former Riches from my Attendants and Friends The Preferments Grandure and Titles of Honour cannot benefit me in my present Estate Death is going to strip me naked and deprive me of all present Comforts I see the folly of my past Labours and extraordinary earnestness after these Vanities Had I but any longer time to continue on Earth I would flight these deceitful shadows of happiness I see another and more lasting happiness beyond the Grave O my God an Eternal happiness in another Estate not subject to any casualty or change secured to the owners by thine Almighty Power grant me that I may attain unto it that I may be admitted into thy Holy and Heavenly Sanctuary that with the rest of thy chosen I may be an Eternal Monument of thy Goodness and Mercy Remove from me all disorderly affections compleat the good work that thou hast begun in me and accept of the groans and prayers that I shall breath out unto thee my Heavenly Father at my last gasp send thine Angels to Comfort and secure my Soul and receive this precious Being into thy Custody and Protection Defend and preserve me from the malice and temptation of all Evil Spirits at this Critical and last moment Look in mercy upon all my Relations that I leave behind me supply the want of my Presence with the continual favours of thy good Providence be thou a Father to the Fatherless and a Husband to the Widows a true Friend to such as are forsaken moderate their grief for my departure with the assurance of a sinal Resurrection Keep them all in thy fear and favour from the Corruptions of the Age and bring them to thine Eternal Kingdom O my merciful God I am weary of this wicked World and painful Life release me at thy good and due time and though I see a mournful Spectacle in the dissolution of my Body into loathsom dust I can see further beyond my Grave to the great and joyful Morning of the Resurrection when thou shalt awaken this sleeping dust of my Body when thou shalt find out every Grain and Particle of this Earthly Tabernacle to joyn it again together to live with
Kingdom when ever it shall please thee to call them out of these Tabernacles of misery and affliction Good God we resign our selves into thy hands dispose of us as it shall seem good in thy Divine Wisdom O Blessed Jesus unto whom all Power is committed in Heaven and in Earth receive us into thy Protection and Mercy we pray thee and intercede for us to thy Heavenly Father Amen A Prayer for a Ship 's Company before an Engagement at Sea O Merciful and Great God whose Power Wisdom and Providence is so visibly seen upon this unconstant Element we humble our selves before thee at this time of danger to implore thine Assistance Protection and Blessings to our necessary Endeavours for the Preservation of the Rights of the Nation unto which we belong We acknowledge our selves to be miserable Sinners and guilty of many provocations against thy Divine Laws but it belongs to thee O Heavenly Father to have mercy upon thy poor Creatures and Servants Lay not to our charge our hainous Offences but pardon we beseech thee all our former Sins and give us true Repentance that if thou shalt yet spare our Lives we may amend Let not our Guilt and Crimes hinder the Blessings of Victory and Success which we beseech thee to grant to our present Fleet and Arms. For that purpose command the Seas and the Winds to yield unto us all needful assistance and let thy Holy Angels protect our Persons and our Ships from the fury of the Enemies shot and all Casualties Good God we depend not upon our selves our Skill or Provisions or humane strength but upon thy Power upon thy Mercy O Holy Saviour upon thy protection and favour grant unto us we beseech thee Safety and Victory that we may live to admire thy goodness in our deliverance and learn by these instances of mercy to honour and praise thy Holy Name when we shall be escaped out of so great dangers Save us we intreat thee O merciful God save us our Bodies and our Souls that they may be employed again in thy Service but let our immortal Souls be dear in thy sight whenever or however thou shalt be pleased to call them out of these Earthly Vessels receive them we pray thee into thine Heavenly Sanctuary This we beg and all other things which thou knowest needful for us through the mediation of our Divine Saviour who sits at thy Right hand and whose intercession we humbly implore in the words that he hath taught us saying Our Father c. Seasonable Ejaculations and short Prayers in the midst of a Fight either by Sea or Land LOrd have Mercy upon us Save and Deliver us Good God abate the Pride and Fury of our Enemies Merciful Saviour Protect us by thine Almighty Power Lord Jesus Strengthen and Defend us O Blessed Saviour receive our Bodies and Souls into thy Favour and Mercy Good God Deliver us O Holy Jesus our Dependance is upon thee O Lord of Hosts we trust upon thy goodness and Protection and not upon our selves Save us Good Lord Save us that we may live to praise thee in our Generation Have mercy upon our Souls We recommend our present and future Beings into thy Hands O Merciful Creator Give us Victory we pray thee for Christ his sake that we may Glorifie thee and thy Mercy Amen A Prayer for Mariners in a furious Tempest at Sea O Almighty and Eternal God at whose disposal are all the parts of this great World and these violent Waves upon which we are tossed Look down in mercy upon us and give a check to the fury of these Seas We see before us nothing but Death the Deep is open to swallow us up our only help is in thy Providence and Protection Save and Preserve us we humbly beseech thee lay not to our charge our former Sins let not this heavy load and burthen sink us now into Eternal destruction but deliver us for thy mercies sake still the rage of the Sea stop these boisterous Winds and calm this mighty Tempest As thou hast manifested thy great Power to us in this occasion let us be likewise sensible of thine extraordinary mercy in our Deliverance Thou hast promised that not a hair of our heads shall fall without thy Heavenly permission O suffer us not to perish but rescue us we pray thee in this our great necessity and let us live yet longer to glorifie thy Holy Name Send us such favourable Gales as may bring us to our desired Havens and give us all grace to learn by this and other instances of thy Power and Providence that our whole dependance is upon thee our God and that thou canst quickly deprive us of Life and Being if we offer to forget our selves and thy former Mercies if we extravagantly abuse either in word or deed thy dreadful Name and holy Profession Spare us good Lord spare us at this time and we vow unto thee all submission and obedience and a sincere reformation of our Lives for the time to come To this purpose assist our good resolutions with thy heavenly Grace that all these accidents and dangers may turn to our Eternal benefit to the safety and security of our immortal Souls And all this we beg for Jesus Christ his sake our only Mediator whose intercession we humbly implore and conclude these our imperfect Prayers with his most perfect Form Our Father c. A Thanksgiving after a Victory by Sea or Land NOT unto us O Lord not unto us but to thy holy Name be ascribed O blessed God the honour of this Victory and Success We Praise thee for having spared our Lives and suffered us yet to enjoy the light of the Living We acknowledge thy Power and Providence in this great preservation of our Persons from the fury of our Enemies whom we see lying before our eyes breathless and senceless whereas thou hast been gracious to us our good God and sheltred us in the midst of those dangers that have swallowed up so many of our fellow Creatures O let us never forget this great deliverance but let these Bodies which thou hast made and preserved at this time be employed for the time to come in thy service and for thine honour Let these Members which have been secured by thy Providence from wounds and maiming be consecrated to Holiness and Piety and to advance thy Gospel Religion O Let us all make a right improvement of this great Mercy and Salvation Let it not become an aggravation of our Crimes and ungratitude Give us with all thy Mercies thankful hearts humble and dutiful Souls that in the midst of all this Worldly Prosperity and Successes we may behave our selves as becomes true Christians Sanctifie therefore this great Blessing to us all let us not demean our selves too insolently over our fellow Creatures but treat them with compassion as thy Subjects and Servants as well as we O Let this Deliverance and Safety be so recorded in our hearts and minds that we may ever glorifie thee our God for it and oblige thee to a continuance of thy favours to grant to us and our Endeavours such Success and Prosperity that we may be a Safeguard and Security to our King and Kingdom to preserve them from the violent attempts of all their Enemies and ours 'till it shall please thee out of thine infinite goodness to put a stop to this raging War and grant us a lasting and honourable Peace These and all other Mercies which thou knowest needful for us our King and Kingdom we humbly beg through the Mediation of the Lord Jesus Christ our only Saviour to whom with the Father and Holy Spirit Three Persons and One God be ascribed from this time forth and for evermore all Honour Glory Dominion and Praise Amen A Prayer for the Preservation of the King's Person O Gracious God King of Kings and Supream Monarch of this inferiour World we humbly beseech thee to take into thy merciful Protection the Sacred Person of our King Save him from the Power and Designs of all his Enemies frustrate all their Plots and Conspiracies Preserve Him in the midst of the greatest Dangers that He may always prove an happy Instrument to promote thy Glory and true Religion amongst us For that purpose assist His Fleets and Armies bless us that Fight for Him and the Publick Interest Crown all His Endeavours with Victory and Success here and with everlasting felicity hereafter and all we beg for Jesus Christ his sake Amen A Prayer for the Church Militant GOod God look down from Heaven upon all thy Servants dispersed all over the Dominions of Antichrist and elsewhere deliver them from their grievous Oppression give a check to the unmerciful Enemy preserve them from Sin and Apostacy assist them with the Directions of thy Holy Spirit Sanctifie all their Afflictions and Crosses to them and in thy due time rescue them out of the Cruelties and Barbarous usage of their implacable Enemies For that intent bless all those Worthies that design to do them good and open the eyes of all men to understand and give them Grace to profess thy true Religion call the Jews Turks and Infidels into thy Sacred Fold compleat the number of thine Elect and bring us all to that Eternal Kingdom which thou hast provided and promised to thy chosen People Amen A Short Prayer for such as are desperately Wounded HAve Pity and Compassion upon me O Merciful God! I submit to thy Will if my Body be destroyed save mine immortal Soul Pardon all my Sins for Christ his sake Receive me into thy favour support my Spirit under all my torments Give me an assurance in thy love by a reliance upon thy gracious Promises and deliver me out of this World of Sorrow and Suffering and admit my Soul into thy Kingdom of Peace Lord Jesus receive my Spirit Amen FINIS
two extreams it is not possible to pass from the one to the other in a moment or without some mediums that are appointed to rid us of the indisposition of the one and prepare us for the acceptance of the other It is for that good purpose that his Wisdom condescends to send us the assistance of his divine Graces by which our Souls are not only cleansed from the filthiness of our sinful habits but also enabled to this blessed Correspondency with God in Prayer the Fountain of all spiritual Joy and Comfort Let not therefore any Perswasion or discouragement hinder thee O Christian from visiting often thy God in Prayer Let not the sinfulness of thy Actions the vitiousness of thy Disposition the multiplicity of worldly business the Cares and Troubles of the World nor any mistake of God or of thy self cause thee to omit this beneficial Duty What if thou art sinful or naturally indisposed to so holy a Performance Remember Christ in Heaven sits at God's Right Hand to intercede for thee to render thy Prayers effectual to sanctifie thy Groans and offer them up to thy God What if thou makest thy Addresses to a glorious Being of an infinite Power and Majesty If thy disposition be suitable to the Duty thou mayest draw near with confidence to the Throne of his Grace for he is thine Heavenly Father he desires nothing more than to render thee happy and to bestow upon thee his Mercies Consider his gratious invitations and many encouragements in his holy Word Come unto me all ye that travel and are heavy laden and I will refresh you Matth. 11.28 Call upon me in the day of trouble and I will hear thee and thou shalt glorifie me Psal 50.15 The Lord is good and ready to forgive and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon him Psal 36.5 Before we call he will answer and while we are yet speaking he will hear Isaiah 65.24 To all that turn to him the Lord is gracious and merciful slow to anger and of great kindness Joel 2.13 He will not break the bruised Reed nor quench the smoaking Flax Matth. 12.20 Shall his mercy be so ready to receive thee and wilt thou be so unworthy to draw back Shall his goodness long to bestow upon thee what thou wantest and wilt thou be so unreasonable to contemn it Shall his Love desire to be acquainted with thee by thy frequent Addresses and wilt thou be so ungrateful to slight his offered kindness Take notice of the just punishment of those ungracious Souls whom his Wisdom invites in vain to her self Because I have called and ye refused I have stretched out my hand and no man regarded but ye have set at naught all my Counsel and would none of my Reproof I also will laugh at your Calamity I will mock when your fear cometh Then shall they call upon me but I will not answer they shall seek me early but they shall not find me c. Prov. 1.25 26.28 Adversity may have that Power to awaken many who in prosperity from one year to another scarce think of praying to their God But what can such expect in reason from his Bounty which they in their flourishing Estate despise or neglect Those Services can never be thought real and sincere unto which necessity drives Men and those persons that make a mock of this Duty at any time cannot probably receive from it in their greatest urgencies the benefits they expect It is therefore Wisdom constantly to practice that which may stand us in good stead and without which we shall assuredly be at a loss Prayer may help and comfort thee O Man when all other helps and comforts forsake thee when thy Riches and thy Guards thy Treasure and thy Friends thy Power and thy Glory shall leave thee to be Tormented with the Pangs of a Disease or suffer thee to pass alone and naked through the dark and mournful Vale of Death In a word when all the World can yield thee no assistance Prayer alone may assist and relieve thee I cannot prescribe to any persons the times and moments for every one to make his Addresses to his God There is no hour of the day nor night but the divine goodness is ready to receive the humble Application of a dutiful Supplicant No wonder therefore that St. Paul adviseth us to pray without ceasing Which words we must not so understand as to spend all our time in this Duty leaving all other necessary Employments of Life as the antient lasie Hereticks sirnamed by the Fathers Euthicks taught by their Doctrine and Practice But this Command may admit of a threefold interpretation equally necessary for the observance of a Christian First We may go far to the compleating of the Apostles Counsel by sending up unto God without intermission our hearty desires our sighs and groans when we are busie in our daily works to implore his needful assistance and protection The constant business of this Life should not hinder thee from this preparation for the next nor the incumbrances of the World clog thy Soul from this elevation to its God with whom an uninterrupted correspondence will wonderfully advance our present affairs as well as dispose thee O Man for a more blessed Estate Secondly in imitation of David of Daniel and of other Religious Men mentioned in holy Writ we may pray always by a constant performance of Prayer at those times that chiefly require a divine assistance and an acknowledgment of Gods continual Mercies Evening Morning and at Noon will I pray and cry aloud and he shall hear my Voice saith David Psal 55.17 And Daniel could not be frighted with the sear of the Lions fury from praying three times a day to his God In the Morning when our Eyes are open again to behold the wonderful works of God's Power and Wisdom in the Creation and Preservation of the World it concerns us to praise his divine Attributes that shine as bright as the Sun over our Heads When we receive a fresh expression of God's goodness in keeping us safe from the dangers of the preceding Night in adding another day to our Lives and a continuance of all his Temporal Favours doth not Justice and Reason call upon us to be as mindful of God's Bounty as he is of our necessities and to be as liberal of our thanks as he is of his Riches When in the Morning thou art going about thine Employments and considerest that all thy labours will be to little purpose without God's Blessings that thou art going through a world of dangers Spiritual and Temporal a World of Enemies subtle malicious and powerful that besiege thee on all sides â—s it not thine Interest to beg the favour and Protection of that good Creator that thy Soul and thy Body may be preserved in the midst of all their envious attempts that thy designs and undertakings may be successful thy labours fruitful and all thy proceedings prosperous At Noon when thou
never expect any gracious returns from a Just and Wise God who would not admit neither the Blind nor the Lame to draw near to his Holy Altar to offer Sacrifice tho' of the Priestly Race Levit. 21.18 If under the Law the want of these Members excluded Men from God's Service how much the rather under the Gospel when the noblest Member is wanting the Heart and its Affections A Gospel Worship must be an hearty Worship that only is sufficient to obtain acceptance It was God's Complaint of Israel that they honoured God with their Lips whilst their heart was far from him They are guilty of the same Formality who frequently attend at Prayers without causing their hearts to be concerned in the Devotion it should be therefore our care to stir up our affections with all the considerations of want necessity future advantage experience duty God's presence and whatever may have the greatest influence upon us Fifthly And that our Affections may be the more inflamed we must kindle them with an Holy Zeal which must burn not so much with the sense of want as with an earnest and unfeigned desire to Glorifie our Maker however both may very well contribute to inflame our Affections in the Divine Worship of our God in Prayer Now this Zeal needful in all our Addresses is that holy violence that strains our Affections in religious Duties and gives that perfection to the Action which otherwise they would want it is accompanied with a dissidence of our selves and a strong resolution to worship God with the utmost of our endeavours it is quickned by the fears and apprehensions of being guilty of that prophane sloathfulness which might displease our gracious God and stop the current of his Mercy it sills the Soul full of Jealousie which awakens all its faculties and powers to the performance of the present Duty And as our great Saviour when he expell'd the Merchants and Money-Changers out of his Temple at Jerusalem was animated by a Divine Zeal for God's Glory so a Christian that is govern'd by the same Spirit and Zealous Affection for his God drives out of his mind all worldly Business and considerations of Profit and Advantage that God may be worshipped in this Spiritual Temple the Soul without the interruption and clamours of our sensual and secular Interests where Sin and the Devil commonly insinuate themselves too much John 2.16 Sixthly As there is a care to be taken of our persons and manner of offering up our Prayers that they may be in some measure answerable to God's glorious Perfections and our own vile and mean Estate we must likewise mind the things that we petition for that they be not contrary to God's revealed or secret Will God's Will must regulate ours in all our actions for Christ our Saviour teacheth us by his Blessed Example to be instrumental in as well as desirous of the performance of God's will on Earth and Reason tells us that God being the supreme Agent the great Maker and Protector of the World the Lord and Redeemer of Mankin'd that all our Inclinations and Wills ought to yield homage to his Pleasure in which submission there is this advantage arising to our selves thereby we compass and attain unto the end of all our desires an infallible happiness for the best self-interest is a submission to that wise Agent who is engaged to promote our Felicity and his Glory together according to his promise Rom. 8.28 If in other actions of our life God's Will should be the Rule of our desires how much the rather in that weighty and religious action of Prayer where the Soul and the Body together are to summon all their Faculties and Members for the worshipping of their great Creator and Benefactor for the chief intent of this performance is the magnifying of God's glorious Attributes which we can never do if we suffer any of our desiers to oppose his Will or contradict his Wisdom or question his Alsufficiency and Goodness The want of his Mercy should cause thee O Man to yield to his Wisdom and Power if thou expectest a favourable return from his Bounty thou must learn to court it by a dutiful submission to his Wisdom and Governance both in the things that thou desirest and in the expectation of the time which he judges most seasonable to grant thee thy requests All impatiency in Prayer is guilty of indiscretion of prophane folly of disrespect and disesteem of God's Wisdom and Mercy In this and in all other acts of Devotion Men must learn to prefer his Glory whose goodness they want to the satiating of their own craving and importunate Appetites and to give a check to the furious desires of our corrupt Nature when we find them proceeding beyond the Bounds limited by God and his Will and our real happiness which commonly are unseparable But there is a difference to be observed according to the difference of the things that we desire from God For Spiritual Mercies for Faith Grace Regeneration Strength against Sin Truth Wisdom Knowledge and other Blessings relating to God's immediate Glory and our own Salvation a Petitioner can never be too earnest zealous and impatient Such advantages are to be wrested if I may so speak from our good God by our continual and fervent Prayers Violence condemned in other things is approved of by Christ himself in such as intend to be partakers of Heaven's Kingdom and an Holy importunity in Prayer never returns without a grant of the Request when we ask the divine Riches of God's Grace unless we have like Esau forfeited before all pretensions to it for God is as willing to bestow them as we to seek them and their excellency is such that Men can never have and desire them too much As David therefore whose Soul was insatiable on Earth for Grace and divine Mercies let us not give our selves any rest until we have obtained these Riches and Ornaments of the Soul and the assurances of God's favour But as Earthly prosperity and Blessings relating to our better conveniency on Earth are not of such a value and importance our Requests for these things must be qualified accordingly and because in some Rules they may be prejudicial to our everlasting Interest we are to beg them always with a condescention to the Will and Wisdom of our great God who knows what is best for us and most conducing to our real good To desire them too passionately or without any such condescention is to Idolize the Creature and to prefer it before the Creator it is to give to those Earthly and mean things that affection which is due to God alone and his divine Mercies Nature I confess will be always craving and the sense of our wants will cause us to cry aloud for a relief and remedy but a good Christian must give a check to those natural motions in imitation of Christ our Saviour whose Humanity was loth to taste of the bitter Cup that was prepared for him
to swallow therefore you may hear him desire that it may pass away and that he may be excused to drink it but immediately after he adds not my will but thy will be done The fulfilling of this will we must prefer to the things that we most passionately desire on Earth As it ought to be our chief aim it should be our most zealous request and most earnest petition to be placed at the close of all our Prayers which we offer up for these pleasant glorious and useful things on Earth that draw away too much of our Affections Likewise when we beg from God for the good things of this Life we must take heed of two other intentions or affections of our corrupt Nature that are able to render our requests most sinful and abominable in God's Presence The first may proceed from an unjust principle of Covetousness when the Soul is possessed with an insatiable spirit that craves more than is needful and forces it to desire what is not really ours to the prejudice of others or from ambition vain-glory and immoderate care of the World that may cause us to petition too passionately for its Vanities as it may proceed from some Lust that governs the Soul All these and other Principles of the like nature as they are irregular the Devotions that proceed from them can never be good for all our requests in such like Cases tend to procure to our selves those good things that we purpose to abuse in the satisfying of our unruly and base affections Such Prayers are Sacrifices of the Devil and not of God His Blessings never so mean are too good to be prostituted to our shameful Lusts We must not think to feed the Devil's Brats with the Milk and Mercies of Heaven It is an ungrateful Conversion indeed to convert that to God's dishonour that proceeds from his Bounty And it is the mark of a great indiscretion and want of Piety to seek from God the means to dishonour his holy Name and to employ the chief part of Religion for such a prophane and unworthy purpose The second Affection is a Spirit of Envy Anger Revenge and Hatred which if we discover in that part of God's Service where we are to implore his Bounty we cannot probably expect any great success or any favourable return we cannot expect that the God of Mercy and Love should be favourable to inhumanity and revenge that he will grant such Petitions as proceed from that affection which is direct contrary to his Divine Nature and Commands God must not nor will not be made the Executioner of our vengeance nor receive the Commissions from us to punish our wrongs Vengeance belongs to God it is a bold presumption to prescribe to his Wisdom either the method time or measure of inflicting iâ— upon the greatest Offendors Therefore let us always cast our selves upon him and his Justice with a disposition ready to forgive the greatest Enemies Let us leave all our wilful Interests entirely to the disposal of his Wisdom and not venture nor suffer our corrupt Nature to give him directions how and where to execute his wrath chiefly in that part of his Service where our Business is to intreat him to suspend the execution of his Justice from us justly due for our Offences committed against his continued goodness If he shews so much favour to us he expects that we should do the like to such as have offended us and deserved our displeasure Our Prayers therefore must not be Imprecations and Curses all Gall and bitterness must be cast away and separated from this Sacrifice to the God of Heaven as the Gaul of the Heathen Victims was when they offered them up to the superior Gods I confess that self preservation God's glory common justice and the safety of our Friends of the Church and Publick may oblige us to petition Heaven for the disappointment of the unjust designs of Wicked Men tho' it be to their utter overthrow David in his Divine Psalms affords us many Examples to this purpose Pour out thy Wrath upon the Ideathen saith he that have not known thee and upon the Kingdoms that have not called upon thy Name Psal 79.6 Let them be blotted out of the Pook of the Living and not be written with the Righteous Psal 69.28 Consume them in thy Wrath consume them that they may not be and let them know that God ruleth in Jacob unto the ends of the Earth Selah Psal 59.13 These and such like Prayers have an intent chiefly to prevent the future Mischiefs which the Malice of God's Enemies and of his Church was likely to draw upon his Servants They are intended to disarm them and take from them the ability or power which they would infallibly abuse oft to God's dishonour and the Prejudice of God's People and innocent Persons They are intended to Petition God that he would be pleased to vindicate his own Cause and declare his Justice in the punishment of vile Contemners of his Power and Authority For such intents as these we may sometimes beseech God to send down his Judgments upon our Enemies as well as his Mercies but out of a meer Principle of Revenge or of an implacable hatred to desire the ruin of any that we disaffect is to concern God too much in our frivolous quarrels and to cause him to withhold the favours which otherwise he might be willing to grant us For with the same measure that we mete it shall be measured to us again Let therefore Men be never so much alienated from us and separated in judgments designs or Interests let them purpose never so much our Ruin if they be Christians or but Men that Christian disposition which Christ our Saviour recommends to us both by his Commands and Example teacheth us to pray for their amendment and the prosperity of their Souls and Bodies so that it may be without any notable prejudice to God his Church the publick or our private happiness The Sacrifices of an implacable Spirit will never find acceptance at the Throne of Grace That good Saviour that prayed for his Murderers teacheth us to suppress the sense of all personal Wrongs and not suffer our displeasures to be vented in our Addresses to God In this particular as well as in the former Nature will speak when it is oppressed and complain for the Evils that burden us it will petition for help and justice when it is grieved and I cannot think but that this natural motion may be allowable if it be kept within the bounds of Christian Charity and be accompanied with a disposition ready to forgive the Injuries received in case of amendment and our Enemies become fit Objects of our Mercy and Forgiveness But in such Cases we must take heed that we suffer not our Resentment of former wrongs to speak too loud in Prayer and that we desire not from God that which neither becomes God's Wisdom to grant nor our modesty and Christian Charity to ask
petition for things with Confidence and Faith which will be prejudicial to our selves and God's glory on Earth I cannot think that it is Christ's intent to encourage us to offer up such Prayers with an assurance of obtaining our irregular and inconsiderate desires therefore for the better directions and comfort of a devout Christian let him know that he may safely be confident and fully perswaded that all Prayers tending to the salvation of his Soul for the obtaining of grace forgiveness of his sins strength against temptation God will in his time grant him his Request if he be sincere and affectionate in his Prayer according to our Saviour's Words Math. 7.11 What Man is there of you whom if his Son ask Bread will he give him a Stone or if he ask a Fish will he give him a Serpent If ye then being Evil know how to give good gifts unto your Children how much more shall your Father which is in Heaven give good things to them that ask him And in the Gospel according to St. Luke how much more shall your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him As God is as willing to bestow such divine Mercies as Men to ask they may be as certain to obtain them as God is free to grant But for other things relating to our present and worldly Interest we may ask with an assurance that God if he sees them fit for our good will doubtless give them but if otherwise he will make us sensible of his Liberality in another way for it is the manner of God's proceeding with his Children and Servants to send such returns to their Prayers as are most for their advantage not always answerable to their desires He keeps back the Blessings which he knows will be hurtful to them or prejudicial to the publick good and instead of them he heaps upon them others which will prove more really for their benefit Men foresee not the danger of God's inferior Mercies good things may become hurtful to us through the Devil's malice the prevalency of Temptations and our Corruption within As many Diseases are fed and increased by that Food which God hath appointed to strengthen the Bodies of the healthful so likewise many inclinations grow worse by those very Blessings which are granted to some as the rewards of their Piety In things therefore that are not always turned to a good use and that are neither for the benefit of Men nor the Glory of God I would not have a Petitioner gratifie his corrupt Humour so much as to be confident of the grant of his Requests nor to flatter himself in a vain expectation of that which agrees not with the Wisdom and Love of God for us As therefore a devout Christian must offer up such Prayers with this clause If it be God's good Pleasure let him not be too confident of obtaining his Petition in that very manner that he desires it and with that improper limitation of the over-ruling goodness of our God unless he is moved by some extraordinary impulse of his holy Spirit in his Soul to assure him of the grant and unless he can discover the events of the time to come by some unusual Revelation Some pious Souls often receive an answer to their Prayers before they rise up and God is pleased to comfort their drooping Spirits with a speedy and a gracious return As Hannah who petitioned God for a Son 1 Sam. 1.18 rose up with a joyful Countenance and a full assurance that God the Author of Life would give her a Child She had unburthened her self of her sorrows in Prayer and her heart and Countenance were no more so sad because she had received some assurance of a favourable acceptance of obtaining her Petition Eighthly But there is one thing more that a devout Christian must observe in Prayer to God that is the Duty of Perseverance slack not nor be discouraged for the first repulse or for a delay God grants not his Mercies always as soon as we begin to ask His goodness is to be courted by our zealous endeavours for he grants many times to our perseverance what he denys to our Prayers The Woman of Syrophenicia met with a refusal and had not her patience overcome this Obstacle she had never returned with the glad assurance of her Daughters recovery If Jacob had not contended with the Angel he had never been honoured with a Blessing An holy and devout importunity seldom or never departs empty from God's unwearied Bounty He suffers for several causes best known to himself his Servants to live a while in expectation of those Blessings which he intends at last to bestow upon them that his Mercies might obtain with them a right esteem and be more highly valued That their Faith patience confidence in him and all their Graces might be exercised and tryed the more and that their ability for Prayer might be increased by a constanter exercise and all impediments of a Communion with our God may be removed for that purpose it is to be observed that his Providence casts us into the want of many enjoyments that when we seek them from God by Prayer both the endeavour to obtain them and the receiving of them might turn to the everlasting advantage of our Souls and Bodies Let not therefore the devout Christian be discouraged if God answers not his Request as soon as he expects or desires for besides that it is a bold and indiscreet Act for us ignorant Creatures to limit the Wisdom of our Creator's liberality and to prescribe to him the time and place of opening his bountiful hand unto us it is an act of Cruelty to our selves and of impiety towards God to be so impatient for the enjoying of those things which may and doubtless will prove as prejudicial to us as injurious to his honour Take heed of murmuring for the want of Earthly conveniencies It was the great ruin of the Israelites newly escaped out of Pharaoh's Bondage and drew several Plagues upon their heads As perseverance assisted by the vertues of patience and Faith is a blessed means to obtain and sanctifie God's Mercies both Spiritual and Temporal so there is nothing that turns them sooner into Curses than impatiency despair and insolent Complaints against God's Love or Power Lift up always O Christian thine Eyes and thine hands in expectation of God's time as well as of God's Blessings Be not weary to wait for the expressions of his Bounty who is never weary to do thee good he is not so unmindful as thou thinkest him to be his delays or refusals are more for thine advantage than the enjoyments of those mercies would be which thou desirest with so much disrespect and impatience As the knowledge of his power and goodness requires our confidence and reliance upon him his infinite Wisdom demands from us a resignation of our selves and interests to his disposal without distaste or insolent complaints of our proud nature which
have any regard to God our merciful Creator I think there is no person so simple as to imagine that the Eloquency of the Tongue or unusual expressions can have a greater influence upon him than the Common Prayers of the Church It is not the Tongue but the Heart that God Eyes in all our Services The whisperings and private Complaints of the one are heard when the loud Cries of the other are rejected The Door of Mercy flies open at the beatings of a devout Heart when it remains bolted at the furious assaults of the most eloquent Tongue Therefore as it should be our chief regard in Prayer to examine that which is most pleasing to God not that which gratifies our own Humour We should chuse those Prayers to offer up to him wherein our Hearts may be as well concerned as our Tongues In order thereunto as the Set Forms of Prayer are the greatest helps that we can procure both to the learned and the unlearned to the wise and the ignorant I see no reason wherefore Men should be deprived of them and extemporary Prayers set up Those Forms I mean where things are spoken and not only words where the Conceptions are plainly expressed and the Prayers fitted for the use of the weakest Capacities They can never be too plain nor too easie and the Wise and the Learned ought not to think it a trouble to condescend in their Publick Worship to requests worded in a manner answerable to the meanest abilities for Christianity requires from them an Union with the weakest of their Brethren who is in as great a likelihood of God's mercy and obtaining God's Glory as persons of the greatest Reach and Judgment I know that it is the common use of our Dissenting Brethren to upbraid us in our Devotions with too much Formality in regard of our being so fond of Set Forms with an exclusion of all new composed Prayers I heartily wish that we our selves the Clergy and the People did not give cause for this aspersion but that it may not deceive the ignorant with its first plausible appearance let me tell them that we are not guilty of Formality nor to be condemned for it because that we use set and prescribed Forms but because we use them not right with that Devotion Respect Humility and inward Affection as becomes Christians and Petitioners of the God of Heaven Because in our Publick Service we repeat only the Words and mind not the uttering them with the affections of the Soul because some make it only a trade to go to Prayer others run them over as a Task and too many mind the Form but few mind the Substance of Prayer that is to express and offer them up to God with those inward qualifications and outward humility that I have now recommended to the practice of our Christian Brethren This causeth me to pass to the second particular that I have promised to examine The causes of the Peoples Contempt of our Liturgy and their neglect of the Forms of Prayer enjoined in our Church of England I could name a great many Causes that we our selves give but I shall reduce them all for brevity sake to these six following First I must accuse the Clergy both high and low great and small for having given the greatest cause of the contempt of our Liturgy and Rubrick by their indifferent Practices By their over hasty reading of them and by their omission of that respect which they should outwardly express and that devotion which is due to God they give occasion to many to slight the very Prayers themselves As they are the Peoples mouths to God they should be the Peoples Examples and Patterns to shew them how to beg God's Mercies as well as to endeavour to obtain them for their relief And the greater care they should take to observe all the motions of reverence because their practice hath so great an influence upon the Congregation and is of so great a consequence that they oblige Men to esteem those Prayers that are offered up to God For this reason a person that officiates in the audience of a Congregation should read over the Prayers not as we peruse a Story in a Book but with his Hands and Eyes lifted up to Heaven and upon his knees he ought to pronounce the Prayers as if he were speaking to God's Divine Majesty visibly present and to deliver them with the most apparent signs of sincerity of reverence and earnestness imaginable Endeavour to grace the godly Prayers of the Church with thy graceful and comely delivery with thy decent and respectful postures and gestures and let the Eyes of the Assembly learn from thee my reverend Brother the manner how to pray as well as the words and expressions of Prayer O! let not the negligence and sloathfulness of so many be laid to thy charge but strive to be zealously affected thy self that this disposition may be communicated to thy hearers I speak to you chiefly whose office and happiness it is to sing daily praises to God in Cathedral Churches Think not that you have sufficiently discharged your Duty if you have observed your distances your tunes and pleased the Auditors with your melodious Voices O! Remember my Christian Brother that thou must likewise please thy God with the harmony of the Soul and tune as well his praises with the inward affections as well as with the outward concerts of Musick Take heed lest thy behaviour or thy negligent discharge of thy Duty give scandal to our dissenting Brethren who are too apt to be offended at the least sign of weakness which thou mayest discover at such a time Secondly Another cause of the contempt of our Liturgy given by the Clergy is the negligence of the Superior and wealthiest Clergy who seldom read the Prayers of the Church themselves unless it be some small portion but commonly employ their Deacons or the meanest persons of the Church to offer up those Prayers that are of the greatest concernment to us and the chiefest of the Rubrick As if that Office were too mean for their Promotions and Dignity whereas it is the most glorious Employment that we Men can pretend to It makes us like our divine and great Saviour who intercedes for us in the presence of God and offers up our Requests Is there any that nameth himself a Christian that scorns to imitate the Author of our Salvation and to offer up the Prayers of their Congregations to God No person can be too worthy for so excellent an Employment and because the usual method observed in Cathedrals cannot well be changed I could wish that the Superior Clergy the Bishop the Dean and the Canons would sometimes perform those parts of Devotion which they have totally appropriated to the meanest of their Foundation and Society that thereby they might remove from the minds of Men the disesteem of our Prayers which they are apt to conceive and entertain thereby For as in the Days of Jeroboam
and forgiveness through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen O God from whom all Holy Desires all good Counsels and all just Works do proceed give unto thy Servants that peace which the World cannot give that both our Hearts may be set to obey thy Commandments and also that by thee we being defended from the fear of our Enemies may pass our time in rest and quietness through the merits of Jesus Christ our Saviour Amen LIghten our Darkness we beseech thee O Lord and by thy great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night for the Love of thy only Son our Saviour Jesus Christ Amen ALmighty God who seest that we have no power of our Selves to help our selves keep us both outwardly in our Bodies and inwardly in our Souls that we may be desended from all Adversities which may happen to the Body and from all evil Thoughts which may assault and hurt the Soul through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen O Almighty God who alone canst order the unruly Wills and Affections of sinful Men grant to thy People that they may love the thing which thou commandest and desire that which thou dost promise so that among all the sundry and manifold changes of the World our Hearts may surely there be sixed where true Joys are to be found through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen O Lord who never failest to help and govern them whom thou dost bring up in thy stedfast Fear and Love keep us we beseech thee under the protection of thy good Providence and make us to have a perpetual Fear and Love of thy Holy Name through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen O God whose never failing Providence ordereth all things both in Heaven and Earth we humbly beseech thee to put away from us all hurtful things and to give us those things which be profitable for us through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen BE merciful O Lord to this Church and Nation punish us not accord-to our deservings but let thy Mercy protect and save us from the Evil hands of all our restless Enemies continue thy Word and Gospel amongst us remit our senseless Divisions open the Eyes and Hearts of all our Dissenting and disaffected Brethren that they may embrace thy Truth set aside all Prejudice and joyn with us thy Servants in the sincere Worship of thee the true God All this we beg for Jesus Christ his sake Amen O God for as much as without thee we are not able to please thee mercifully grant that thy Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our Hearts through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen O Almighty God who art a strong Tower of defence unto thy Servants against the face of their Enemies We yield thee Praise and Thanksgiving for our Deliverance from those great and apparent Dangers wherewith we have been compassed We acknowledge it thy goodness that we are not delivered over as a Pray unto them beseeching thee still to continue such thy Mercies towards us to discover all hellish Plots contrived against our King Religion and Country and to disappoint all the black Designs of our Bloody Enemies that all the World may know that thou art our Saviour and mighty Deliverer through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen O Lord our God who upholdest and governest all things in Heaven and Earth Receive our Humble Prayers for our Soveraign Lord and Lady the King and Queen set over us by thy Grace and Providence And so together with them Bless the whole Royal Family with the Dew of thy Heavenly Spirit that they ever trusting in thy goodness protected by thy Power and Crowned with thy gracious and endless Favours may continue before thee in Health Peace Joy and Honour a long and happy life upon Earth and after Death obtain everlasting life and glory in the Kingdom of Heaven by the Merits and Mediation of Jesus Christ our Saviour Amen BLess we beseech thee O Lord our Bishops Priests and Deacons with true Knowledge and understanding of thy Word and that both by their Preaching and living they may set it forth and shew it accordingly enable them all to be faithful in their great trust in the maintetenance of thy true Religion against the Incroachings of Popery Heresie Schism and Prophaneness Bless the Lords of the Council and all the Nobility Magistrates and Gentry with Grace Wisdom and Understanding of thy Will and Word Give to all Nations Quietness and Peace and to this thy People give Unity and Happiness help the weak-hearted raise up them that fall subdue Satan under our Feet Comfort all that are in Tribulation preserve all that are in danger shew thy pity to Prisoners and Captives Provide for the Fatherless the Widows and all that are Oppressed Have mercy upon all Men. Forgive our Enemies and turn their Hearts Preserve for our Use the kindly Fruits of the Earth And endue us with the Grace of thy Holy Spirit and amend our Lives according to thy Holy Word All this we beseech thee to grant us for Jesus Christ his sake Amen From our Enemies defend us O Christ Graciously look upon our Afflictions Pitifully behold the sorrows of our Hearts Mercifully forgive the Sins of thy People Favourably with mercy hear our Prayers O Son of David have mercy upon us Both now and ever vouchsafe to hear us O Christ Graciously hear us O Christ graciously hear us O Lord Christ O Lord let thy mercy be shewed upon us As we do put our Trust in thee WE humbly beseech thee O Father mercifully to look upon our infirmities and for the Glory of thy Name turn from us all those Evils that we most righteously have deserved and grant that in all our Troubles we may put our whole Trust and Confidence in thy mercy and evermore serve thee in Holiness and pureness of Living to thy Honour and Glory through our only Mediator and Advocate Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen PRevent us O Lord in all our doings with thy most gracious Favour and further us with thy continual help that in all our Works begun continued and ended in thee we may glorifie thy holy Name and finally by thy mercy obtain eversasting Life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen ALmighty God who hast given us Grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplications unto thee and dost promise that when two or three are gathered together in thy Name thou wilt grant their Requests Fulfil now O Lord the desires and Petitions of thy Servants as may be most expedient for them granting us in this World knowledge of thy Truth and in the World to come life everlasting Amen THe Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Love of God and the Fellowship of the Holy Ghost be with us all evermore Amen An Evening Prayer for a whole Family sutable to the times O Merciful God here we thine unworthy Servants are prostrate before thee at the close of this day loaden with thy manifold Mercies to acknowledge the Weaknesses
Evening Prayer for a single Person O Being of Beings the great Creator of the World and preserver of Mankind by whose gracious goodness I am now alive and brought safe through the many dangers and inconveniencies of this mortal Life to the close of this day I humbly acknowledge thy Providence and merciful Protection Thou hast fed me with thy Creatures defended me by thy Power instructed me in thy Truth admitted me into thy Church for these and all other Mercies received from thy Bountiful hand I return thee my homage and Thanks and confess my self unworthy of the meanest of thy Favours by reason of the many Provocations that I am guilty of O Lord I have sinned against Heaven and against thee and am no more worthy to be called thy Son my Transgressions are multiplyed every day and mine Iniquities are without number How easily have I yielded to the Power of Temptations how often have I broken thy sacred Laws Gracious God be merciful be merciful to me a Sinner blot out all mine Iniquities and forgive me for the sake of my dear and only Saviour who is dead and intercedes for me Accept his Sacrifice and Mediation for my poor Soul grieved with the sense of Sin Give me true Repentance and that Frame of Spirit and Holy Resolution unto which thou hast promised in thy Holy Word mercy and forgiveness As thou hast begun the Work of Reformation in me perfect it I beseech thee by the continual influences of thy Holy Spirit forsake me not good God nor leave me to my wretched self but let thy Truth and Wisdom direct my Understanding and thy grace govern my Will in the practice of Piety Suffer me not to be overcome by the mistakes and inticements of Sin and Satan defend my Soul from all wicked impressions and infections of the World As thou hast redeemed me for thy self let not Vice nor Error draw me from thee nor the dangerous Allurements of Earthly Vanities but as my dependency is upon thy Power let my expectation of Happiness be from thy Bounty and my delight be in fulfilling thy holy Will Strengthen and increase in me all goodness Let every day bring me nearer to thee and to that Purity and Holiness without which no Man shall see thy Face Time that carries me apace to my cold Tomb minds me of an Eternity of a Resurrection and the last Judgment Prepare me I beseech thee for this last Account and that terrible Day wherein every Man shall give up an account of his Actions before a Righteous and Impartial Judge Grant that I may find Mercy and Favour at the hands of my great Redeemer and be admitted into the Joys of his Paradise And as I am now going to lye me down to refresh my weary Body with rest blessed God be merciful to me this Night protect me from all dangers and Evils Suffer not the Malice of the Devils nor of Wicked Men to hurt this outward Tabernacle nor the precious Soul that is within keep from me all troublesom Dreams and Thoughts and whether sleeping or waking let my Soul be armed with a reliance upon thy Goodness and Power grant me a moderate Rest that I may be better enabled to serve thee in my Generation and proceed on in the Employment unto which thy Providence hath called me In which let my chief aim be to advance thy glory rather than my own fordid Interest and to mind the careful management of all the Talents which thou hast put into my hands that I may as a good Servant and Steward improve and increase them Look in mercy upon all my Relations wheresoever they be let thy Grace thy Truth and Goodness accompany and protect them during their abode here below Crown with the choicest of thy Blessings our Religious King and Queen shield them from the wicked attempts of all their Enemies and give them long Life Health and Prosperity now and at last receive them into everlasting happiness Bless all their Royal Relations give them all Grace to be instrumental in promoting the Interest of thy Truth Godliness and Virtue that they may answer the good ends for which thou hast put much into their Hands Bless all Governours and Magistrates give them Grace to prefer thine Honour and Glory to all other Corrupt purposes whatsoever Defend this Nation from all Plots and Conspiracies defeat the Designs of all our Enemies and disappoint all Combinations against it If thou wilt afflict us good God let it be for a time take not thy Truth and Gospel from us and our Posterity and sanctifie all thy Judgments and Mercies to us that they may effect and produce in us that Reformation and those Graces for which they are intended Spread thy Gospel and Truth all over the World pull down Antichrist let all Nations understand thy Will and readily submit unto it Be merciful unto all Sons and Daughters of Affliction comfort and succour all sick Persons and such as are grieved with the loss of Goods Friends or Relations Be thou their good God and Saviour in thy due time giving them grace to submit to thee to trust upon thee and to expect from thy mercy alone a seasonable and proper Remedy to all their pressures and troubles And now blessed Lord I recommend my self again into thy merciful hands and conclude these my imperfect Prayers with that most perfect Form recommended to us by my good Saviour in whose Name I beg aâ—â— for whose sake I intreat thee O merciful Father grant me these my Requests and all other Mercies which thou knowest needful for my Soul and Body OUR Father which art in Heaven Hallowed be thy Name Thy Kingdom come Thy Will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven Give us this day our daily Bread And forgive us our Tespasses as we forgive them that Trespass against us And lead us not into Temptation But deliver us from Evil For thine is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory for ever and ever Amen An Evening Prayer for young Persons and Children O God who hast received me amongst thy Children instructed me in thy Truth and called me to be a Professor of thy Holy Religion Great and merciful Creator who hast been my Proteor and Defender from all dangers look down in mercy upon me and continue thy Favours to me the remaining part of my Life I see and experience every day the manifold expressions of thy goodness Thy Holy Name be praised for them all Give me more and more a Sense of thy mercifulness and a grateful heart that in these tender Years I may learn my great Duty to serve and glorifie thee on Earth and prepare my self for an Eternity for this purpose increase my knowledge and the graces thou hast been pleased to bestow upon me through a good Education of my Religious Parents Bless all my endeavours and theirs imprint thy holy Fear in my tender Soul preserve me from ill Company from the Vices and Errors of
lead me through these Briars and Thorns Must I suffer all these Losses and Crosses and drink this bitter Cup of thy displeasure I am content to do it seeing it is thy Holy Will and am perswaded that all these things shall turn to mine advantage at last My Griefs indeed are encreased and my Sorrows are multiplied Nature cannot but complain at the sight and sense of so much Misery but I will give a check to my natural Affections and will bring them to yield submission to thy Heavenly Wisdom What Noble Examples have I before me of those Worthies of former Ages who have been as severely treated and tryed as I am or like to be and yet these were thy chosen and thy dearest Children and shall I misinterpret these Corrections from thy Hand and think them to be signs of thy Wrath Shall I murmur to be handled as my great Saviour was and drink in the same Cup of Affliction with him He swallow'd the very dregs of Bitterness and Grief but thy Mercy and Goodness has sweetned my Cup with an infusion of some contentments that are yet left me Thou hast not removed all my Delights thou hast not taken from me all the former Expressions of thy Bounty if thou afflictest me in one part of my self thou dost comfort me in another and thy Corrections are not so grievous as to deprive me of all help and satisfaction O my God I humbly acknowledge that I deserve a severer treatment from thy Justice than I have yet experienced and find that thy Mercy does spare my weakness and alleviate the burden that thou hast laid upon me I trust that thou wilt not send greater Afflictions than I am able well to bear and in due time thy Wisdom will give me ease and deliverance But I see by these proceedings the Sins and Provocations that I am guilty of by these Losses thou dost mind me of that Idolatrous Affection that I gave away to these vanities By these deprivations I perceive I abused these temporal Mercies by this Adversity thou dost render my abode in the World uneasie that I might long and seek for Heaven and prepare my self for thine Eternal Rest Blessed God grant that I may rightly understand these excellent Admonitions of thy Providence but never suffer me to be so weary as to hasten or be any ways instrumental in procuring my departure I will wait thy leisure and time and suffer thy Divine Hand to dispose of my Soul and Body I reverence O my God all thine Orders let them be never so grievous and let them take from me never so many worldly Comforts I received them first from thy Liberality and it is but just I should resign them to thee again when thou requirest Naked I came into the World and naked I must return back again Whatever O Heavenly Father thou dost condemn me to lose let me never lose thy Favour that will make a sufficient amends for all my other Crosses and procure me greater advantages than the World can afford Sanctifie I beseech thee all the Actings of thy Providence to me Cause me to make that improvement that is design'd Wean my Heart and Affections from the World Encrease and strengthen thy Grace in me that my Soul may be supported by Faith and Patience and in the midst of the greatest Calamities enjoy a Divine Contentment O my God I know thou canst remove this Affliction from me and bring a Remedy to my most sensible Griefs I am perswaded that in thy due time I shall see an alteration I shall see my Sorrows turn'd into Joys my Sufferings into Ease my Losses repaired and all these Clouds of Affliction vanish and give way to the Sun-shine of Prosperity However thou art pleased to dispose of me I beseech thee cast me not away from thine Eternal Presence Support me with thy Grace and Goodness in the midst of all my Troubles Lead me in the Paths of Truth and Righteousness Sanctifie my Soul and prepare it for a departure hence and when thou shalt loose it from my weak and infirm Body receive it into thine Heavenly Sanctuary Amen A Meditation and Prayer in time of Health O My Mercisul Creator who hast blessed me with a perfect Body and a healthy Constitution free from the pains and aches that I see other men groan under thy Holy Name be praised for this great Temporal Mercy by which I am enabled to tast and relish a greater sweetness in all my Enjoyments How unworthy should I be if I should misemploy this strength and this health in sinning against thy Divine Majesty if I should cast it away in the service of the Devil and the gratifying of my Lusts What a folly is it for me to run into such Debauchery and Extravagancies of Life as to undermine my Health and willingly to part with this rich Jewel and great Blessing How shall I answer for the loss of this Talent if I take no care to preserve it and what shall I say to my great Lord if I wilfully cast it away and if I abuse the Creatures that he hath given me to strengthen it in ruining my Body and advancing my Death how Criminal shall I appear Thou O my God art my best Physician and the Precepts of good living recommended to me in thy Holy Word the most effectual Cordials to corroborate and confirm my health Thy Goodness hath not only granted it to me but afforded in Nature means in thy Divine Oracles Rules to maintain it Shall I be so indiscreet not to follow thy wholsom Directions shall I slight thy Sacred Advices and Commands Without thy Blessing this strong Body will soon decay and will it not be just for thee to withdraw it from an unworthy Contemner of thy Holy Laws shall I rather listen to the whisperings and pernicious suggestions of my vile Lusts and to the Devil's Temptations than to thee my good and merciful Creator who desirest and hast endeavoured to encourage my real happiness here and hereafter What a madness for a moment of sinful and deceitful pleasure to ruine my health to spoil my souâ—d Body and cast into it the Seeds of Diseases Distempers Pains Aches and Death also Whilst I continue in thy fear and in the practice of thy Commands in the Rules of Sanctity Sobriety and Temperance I have the assurance of thy Blessing to accompany and continue this great advantage but if I run out extravagantly and follow the evil Customs of this wicked World I shall infallibly meet with Plagues Torments and Death My Body is surrounded by many Enemies and I carry about me that which naturally will undermine its strength and vigour besides Old Age will bring me at last to my Grave and cast my health and beauty into the dust How weak is this Earthly Tabernacle made up of Clay how soon is it destroyed by the meanest Things what reason have I to trust upon my natural strength when so many young and lusty Persons are