forsaketh them shall find mercie Some pray for remission but care not for repentance they desire a blessing but yet absteuie not from that which pâ—â—ureth cursing These pray in vaine because their practise is vaine For God heareth Saints not Sinners and granted his pardon to the penitent onely and not to such as perseuere impenitent He therfore that would obtaine pardon let him abstaine from ssnne which might deteine his pardon He that would not that sinne should damne him must not indure sinne to dominere with in him Though this be true that no man is pardoned because he is penitent yet this is true that No man is pardoned but he that is penitent If thou wilt not mortifie sin sinne shall mortifie thée if thou wilt not dye to it thou shalt dye for it If thou wilt not that it should dye in thee thou shalt dye in it Some seeme to couet nothing more then a ioyfull resurrection after death yet shall they not attaine to a ioyfull resurrection of their bodies after death because they labour not the resurrection of the soul before death There are two resurrections the first of the ssoule from the sléepe of sinne in this life the second of the body from the sleepe of death in the life to come Woe be vnto him that riseth not tâ—ise for if he rise but once he shal rise but from death to death from sleepe to sorrow his body shall rise from the earth and fall into hell But hee that riseth from the death of sinne in this world shall bee raised vp to the life of happinesse in the world to come I will therefore pray for a ioyfull resurrection of my body to glorie and will not forget whiles I liue the resurrection of my soule to grace as knowing that if I will not study to be gracious I shall not attain to be glorious I haue heard some desire to dye and some desire to liue neither durst I condemne the desires of either I will desire to lâ—ue till I haue learn'd to dye I will desire to die when I haue learn'd to liue For a bad death cannot follow a good life and hee hath learn'd to dye that hath learned well to liue If I can gain Christ in my life Christ will not loose mee at my death If the loue of Christ liue in mee whiles I liue I cannot but liue in the loue of Christ when I dye There are many that often pray they were in heaued which yet I dare not say they shall go to heauen For he y â— praies for heaueÌ„ and goes in the way to hel shall not ascend whether he wisheth but descend whether he walketh hee shall gee whether his féet doth lead him not whether his fooilsh fancie slatters him There are some pray for death yet cannot dye others dye and would not And God by crossing both doth punish both For to the one nothing seemes swéeter then death and to the other nothing seemes swéeter then life to the one it séemeth death to liue to the other the very thought of death is a verie death accounting it the only heauen to liue alwaies vpon the earth Some pray they may dye and may dye to their cost if they pray without care and liue without conscience If the heauinesse of crosses and not the hope of a crowne if the losse of libertie and not the lothing of lust if the sustaining of sorrowes and not the wearisomenesse of sin if the feeling of paines and not the fellowship of Christ doth make a man desire to dye his desire is naught and his death not good For those onely desire well and dye well that are mooued more with sinne then sickenesse with heauenly comforts then earthly crosses with Christ then with all calamities Before thou pray to dye first pray for the death of sinne which is the sting of death and when thou dost desire to die let it be rather to be disâ—nedeâ—ed of thy sinnes then of thy sorrowes and to liue with Christ rather then to be deliuered of thy crosses I sée much hardnesse of hart amongst men and but a little mercy I suppose such persons implâ—re not pray not much for Gods mercy For it cannot bée that any man should bée without mercie to his neighbour who doth truly pray for Gods mercy to himselfe There are in the world which pray God to pardon them yet will they not forgiue their neighbours These are not men but monsters which would receiue mercie of God but wil shew no mercie to men for God which would haue God forgiue them but will not forgiue others Such cannot say the Lords Praier but they pray to the Lord against themselues make their truest friend their greatest for For wrath without pardon belongs to them that wil not pardon I will forgiue and I will pray to be forgiuen I would not that any man should néede my pardon but if he doe desire it God grant I may not denie it The rich and the poore pray together and both do obtain the rich being poore in spirit and the poore being rich in faith Thus would I bée poore that I way be rich thus would I be rich least I should bée poore The rich the poore both pray and neither are heard the rich because he is poore in humilitie the poore because he is rich in pride the rich because he hath no pity the poore because he hath no patience the rich because hée contemnes the poore the poore because he enuies the rich I will labor therefore to be rich in humilitie and poore in hautinesse I wold be pitifull and patient courteous and contented There are many that cry Lord help whom the Lord wil not help Hée that would haue help of God let him not deny his helpe to Man hée that would haue God help him let him not forget to help himselfe For God helpes the helpefull such as are ready to helpe themselues and others to T is pitty but that thou shouldest lie and die in the ditch that saiest Lord help but will vse no meanes if thou maiest to helpe thy selfe I will therefore pray for helpe and yet vse the meanes of helpe and pray that God would help me in those meanes of helpe and blesse them to mée There are many which desire Christ might bée their Sauiour which yet shall not be saued because they would bée saued but will not serue their Sauiour they like his saluation but they loue not his seruice he may suffer or do what he will for them but they will neither suffer nor doe ought for him His merits they pray for but his lawes they care not for Now hée will not bée their Sauiour because they will not be his seruants for hée will saue none but such as will serue him I will therefore suffer him to be my Lord as I doe desire him to be my Sauiour Two graces I desire of him grace to serue him grace to be saued by him Some
grace in the world without the grace of God Some pray for an almes which yet will giue no almes they would receiue good but they will doe no good they would not be denyed in their own desires but they will not sticke to crosse the desires and good déeds of others but doubtlesse hée that will giue no almes to man is vnworthy to receiue an almes of God he that can without pitty sée the wants of christians deserues that his owne wants should be vnpittied of Christ â—ee that crosseth the good desires and good déedes of others deserues a crosse to his owne and a curse to himselfe I will therefore doe good that I may find good I will heare the cry of others that I may be heard my selfe I will not denie my good will to man least God should deny his good will to me I will not crosse men in their lawfull desires least that God should deny me mine Euery man wil pray for his friendes but few for their enemies yet he that will not heartily pray for his enemies as our Lord did and Saint Sâ—euen hee shall not be partaker of the prayer of our Sauiour nor the praise of his Saintes For Christ prayed onely for those that should haue his Spirit and those onely haue the spirit of Christ which doe resemble Christ And indéed it is iust that he that will not pray for his enemies should be debarr'd of Christ who out of his loue did pray for his foes doth make theÌ„ his friends The Psalmist saith Iâ— I incline vnto wickednes with my heart the Lord will not heare me For in déed Gods eare inclineth to vs as our hart inclineth to him and if we decline from him and with our hearts incline to wickednes we mooue him to decline from vs and to incline to wrath If we regard not him in our harts why should hée lend vs his eares If we wil listen vn to that which hee would haue vs loath why should not he loath that to which we would haue him listen I will therefore expell my sinnes least God should repell my suites I wil wash mine hands in innocencie O Lord and so will I goe to thine altar Not to pray or to contemne prayer is a certain signe of a wicked man I will therefore prouoke my selfe to pray that I may be assured that the Spirit of God is in me and that the miscrie of the wicked belongs not to me assuring my selfe that they that wil not pray to God make themselues a prey vnto the Diuell It is a rule of wisedome To serue the season and wisely to bee followed of them that delight in prayer For there is a time in which God is neere and ready to bee found Let vs therefore séeke him whiles he may bee found and call vpoÌ„ him whiles he is near or otherwise we may call and not be heard wee may séeke him and yet not find him There is also a time in which a man may be better disposed to pray then at an other let vs therefore beware we loose it not lest if we will not pray when we may we shall not be able when we would I haue heard some complaine of their dulnes and bewaile their in disposition to pray Let them but lengthen their complaint and lamentation strike their rockie hearts with a serious remembring of their owne miseries and Gods mercies to them and by the grace of God prayers shall gush out of their harts as waters did out of the Rock Neither despair though thou feelst thy selfe as dead for it is a true tokeÌ„n of the life of the spirit to séel and lament the deadnesse of spirit Some imagine if God heare them not as soone as they desire that he will not heare them at all and that they are of no reckoning with him in which they are iniurious to theÌ„selues and to God to themselues because this fansie doth quench their feruencie and hinder their perseuerance and to God who doth not alwaies hate when hée makes as though he heares not For by séeming to neglect vs and by denying our suites at the first heâ— wold rouze vp our spirits he would try our patience and exercise our saith hee would shewe vs that not our merits but his owne mercy moues him to heare vs and finally he would instruct vs to make more account of his benefits when they come For commonly things lightly obtained are lightly estéemed Many men pray for things that are hurtfull to them I will therefore beg temporal blessings as they may be blessings to mee and whatsoeuer I pray for I will submit my selfe to his wisedome and desire him to heare me not to my prayer but to my profit not as I thinke but in what hee knowes to bee fitting for me There are certaine men deuoted to their wicked lusts that stick not sometimes to say that they care not so they may haue halfe an houre before their death to repent them of their sinnes and to pray to God for mercie These men by their presuming of mercy are in great danger to féele the seueritie of iustice They speake as if they had repentance in a string as if they could pray when they listed and as if they could haue God to heare them when they would themselues But I will repent and pray for mercy in my youth least I should be reiected in mine age I wil cry now that I may bée heard now I will not refuse to séeke him now least I should not find him anon I will sue vnto him for his grace whiles I am like to liue that I may not be refused when I am like to die I will die whiles I liue that I may liue when I am dead and I wil pray whiles I may least I cannot when I would I will liue whiles I liue that I may not die when I die I will sue for grace now whiles it is offered least for contemning grace now I should bée denied grace hereafter Because God hath set downe all things in an vnchangeable and eternall decrée and hath determined from eternitie what gifts hee will giue vnto the sonnes of men therefore some imagine that it is to little or no purpose for a man to pray This is a profane and foolish fansie profane because it drawes a side the heart from dutie For the rule of our obedience is not the secret decrées of God but his reuealed pleasure Now his will which he hath disclosed to vs is that wée ought to pray vnto him and that continually I say again it is a foolish fansie for as God hath ordained the end so hée hath appointed meanes vnto it as hée hath ordained to giue men these and these gifts so hée hath ordained commanded that men should aske them And if hée giue temporall things to any man that is not deuout pious and vnderstanding know that such things which should haue béene for his good doe make for his destruction
holy Ghost and that there is a Catholick church a Communion of Saints the forgiuenes of sins and the resurrection of the body and life euerlasting that so I may be truely perswaded of thy fatherly prouidence ouer me what Christ hath done that is for my deliuerance the holy ghost to be my comfort assistance being a member of the church and making me effectually partaker of all the priuileges thereof to my endlesse ioy happines which O father giue vnto me I beséech thée for Christs sake Amen A Prayer vpon the ten Commandements O Eternal Lord God I thy humble seruant that do owe all dutifuâ—l obedience to thée and am made partaker of manifold benefits both for body soule which then by the bloud of Christ thy only son hast deliuered from that euerlasting bondage which by corruption of nature I was held in from euerlasting death which I was subiect vnto by daily breaking of thy coÌ„mandements I beséech thée giue me grace now and euer hereafter to haue none other Gods but thée neither to make to my selfe any grauen Image nor the likenes of any thing in heauen aboue or in the earth beneath nor in y â— waters vnder the earth to bow down to them to worship them Nor that I take the name of thée my Lord God in vaine Remembring to kéep holy the Sabath day and to labour six daies doing all that I haue to do but in the seuenth day which is the Sabath of thée O Lord my God giue me grace to do no maner of work And that I may honour my father and mother Neuer to commit any murther neither Adulterie Nor to steale Nor to beare false witnesse against my neighbor Nor to couet my neighbours house nor his wife nor his seruant nor his maide nor his Oxe nor his Asse not any thing that is his that so I may do alwaies my duty to thee O God al the daies of my life beléeuing fearing worshipping giuing thankes louing thée with all my heart with all my mind with all my soul with al my streÌ„gth and louing my neighbour friend or foe euen as my selfe to doe to all men euen as I would they should doe to me to loue honour succour my father mother to honour and obey the King Quéene Prince their ministers to submit my selfe to all my gouernors spirituall temporall to order my selfe to all my betters lowly reuerently to hurt no body by word nor déede to be true and â—ust in all my dealings to beare no malice in my heart to behaue my selfe in the whole course of my life as thou maist be glorified my duty discharged my conscience comforted my brethren woone or confirmed and thye mouths of all the wicked stopped which O father vouchsafe to grant me for thy great goodnes sake thy beloued sonnes â—ake Iesus Christ our Lord to whom with thée and the holy spirit bee all praise and honour giuen by me all thy Saints this time for euermore Amen A Prayer containing the doctrine of the sacraments O Most merciful father thou hast giuen met not onely thy holy word to teach me faith obedience but also two Sacraments outward signes and seales of inward graces Christ all his benefites Giue mee wiledome O Lord to acknowledge the benefite and thankfully vse the same beséeching thée that as by baptisme I am receiued into the church by water outwardly am washed so let it scale the assurance of the purging of my soule from sin by Christs bloud and appeare outwardly by thy holy spirit killing in mee corruption and stirring me vp to holines of life reioysing in my new-birth and growing more more therin dayly that so I may prepare my self in knowledge in true repentance hartie loue and a sound faith to come bee partaker of the Lords supper which is the other sacrament to nourish me vp in the same where by the signes of bread broken and wine poured out taken and giuen Christ my sauiour with his benefits is offered that gaue his body shed his blood for me Now O Lord as by my hand I take the bread wine and with eating and digestion receiue also the strength to nourish my body so I pray thee giue me faith to apply Christ with his merites that I may féele the vertue therof to nourish my soule that I may not come vnprepared least I eate drinke 〈◊〉 owne damnation in â—andling such holy mysteries neither let mee conteiâ—â—e or neglect to be partaker when by the Church thou doest call me but obediently thankefully communicat with my breathren to strengthen my faith encrease mutuall loue shewing obedience Gods mercy in Christs death till hee come to iudge vs all at that great day that for Christs sake our Lord and onely Sauiour Amen Prayer before meate MOst gracious God and mercifull father from whom all good gifts procéed we poore wretches beséech thée to sanctifie to our vses these thy good creatures which we shal receiue now of thy mercy giue vs grace wee pray thee to vse them soberly purely according to thy will grant y â— by these blessings which thou so largely bestowest vpon vs wee may see thy loue towards vs seeking likewise for that spirituall bread of thy word which is the foode of our soules that by the same we may be nourished to eternal life throgh Iesus Christ our Lord. Amen Thanksgiuing after meat VVE confesse O Lord it is of thy only goodnes mercy that wee liue moue and haue our beeing in this life and all things whereby our life is preserued comes from thy maiestie good Lord wee beséech thée make vs thankefull for these al other thy mercies both spirituall temporall and as thou hast now fed our bodies with corporall foode so good Lord we pray thée nourish our souls with that heauenly Manna the food of eternall life through Iesus Christ our Lord Amen Another before meate ALinightie God which hast created meates drinkes for mans sustenance sanctifie them to the vse of thy children without difference that they may vse them for their health hast giuen strength to nourish our bodies to thy pleasure make vs sober and thankfull partakers of theÌ„ graunt that the end of our eating drinking may tend to enable vs to serue thée in our seuerall places through Iesus Christ our Lord. Amen Another after meate VVE humbly pray thée most gracious God and mercifull to sanctifie these thy good creatures which now of thy mercy we haue receiued at thy hands that they may turne to the nourishment of our bodies where unto thou hast appointed them and teach vs to remember that it is thou which to vs and to all thy creatures giuest food in due season and therfore that we abuse not thy mercies but in some good measure endeuour to walke worthie of them in the course of our liues through Iesus Christ our Lord. Amen