evermore let no appalements disturb me keep me from Fire Storms Tempests Thieves sudden Death and Danger cause thine Angels to pitch their Tents round about me my House and Habitation and preserve all that is near and dear unto me Here name your particular Friends REMEMBER thy Church and every Member of it have pity on the poor afflicted Protestants in all parts beyond the Seas who suffer for the Testimony of their Faith and a good Conscience send them help from thy Holy place and evermore mightily defend them be unto them a Sun and a Shield a Sun to Comfort and a Shield to defend them to all Dangers and Tribulations put a period unto all their afflictions and in â—hy good time vouchsafe them a happy Deliverance Lord receive them and me and all that appertain unto me this Night and for ever into thy Gracious protection through the Mediation of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen Meditations for Saturday THE great Creator this day rested from all his Work which he had made and blessed it O Lord grant that after this painful life is ended I may enjoy a comfortable rest with thee in Heaven where I may keep an eternal Sabbath and hold a perpetual Feast there will be rest without Labour tranquillity without Molestation and joys without End There my Soul wilt thou behold a Glorious City the Streets of Gold the Gates of Pearl and the Foundations garnished with all sorts of precious Stones I SHALL behold thee the Father in thy Majesty Christ thy Son in his Glory the Spirit in his Sanctity the Arch-Angels and Angels in their Exceilency and the Saints in their Felicity then shall I no more hunger labour nor travel I shall no more fear grieve nor desire I shall want no more an earthly House for the Heaven of Heavens shall be my Habitation God will be my Temple and the Lamb that shineth for ever shall enlighten me LORD let the hope and expectation of this eternal rest and felicity sweeten all my labours and ease my torments let it mitigate my afflictions and comfort my spirits that I faint not in my Journey nor be depressed under my burden but hold on cheerfully and valiantly till I arrive at the Land of Promise and there receive the Lot of mine Inheritance with the Saints in light for evermore Amen A Prayer for Saturday Morning MOST Gracious God sanctifie I humbly beseech thee this day unto me and my self now and ever unto thy service thy Mercies O Lord they are new every Morning and therefore my Thanks ought every day to be a new repeated I praise thy holy Name for keeping me this Night past unto this present hour and moment and hast now brought me unto the last day of the Week grant that I may spend the same soberly righteously and holily BRING me to the knowledge of thy Blessed Will in all things that I may endeavour to perform the same to thy Glory the peace of my Conscience and the preservation of my own Soul purge and cleanse my Heart and Conscience from all dead Works that I may serve thee the living God for evermore Be thou my Guide in all my ways my stay and support in all my necessities put an end to the motions of the Flesh enlarge my Heart for all pious Duties and habitual Graces of thy Spirit that I may bring forth the Fruits of them in my Life and Conversation BLESS the Kingdom wherein I inhabit and thy holy Catholick Church whereof I am an unworthy Member bless thy Servants and our dear Lord and Lady King William and Queen Mary as thou hast Crowned them with a Temporal Crown here so in thy due time give them a Crown of Glory hereafter Bless Katherine the Queen Dowager her Royal Highness the Princess Ann of Denmark with the rest of the Royal Family Bless all persons whether dignified or distinguished from the swayer of the Scepter to the drawer of Water have mercy upon all sick persons Women travelling with Child and those who are troubled in Body Mind or Estate O Lord speak peace unto their Consciences and as thou hast laid laid them down with the one hand so raise them up with the other if not to this life to life eternal for the Merits and Mediation of Jesus Christ our Lord Amen A Prayer for Saturday Evening O GOD the maker and preserver of all things look down with thy eye of pity and compassion upon me a miserable sinner I here prostrate my self Soul and Body before thy Divine Majesty beseeching thee in much mercy to pardon my sins to Sanctifie me with thy grace and to bring me to thy glory That so my Soul may be refreshed with such things as Eye hath not seen Ear hath not heard nor hath it entered into the heart of Man to conceive ENTER not into Judgment with thy Servant O Lord for in thy sight shall no Flesh living be justified Examine not my wayes this Week past by the strickt rule of thy Law neither reward me in the severity of thy Justice But have Mercy upon me a miserable offender that have deserved the sharpest of thy Judgments but as the Heavens are higher than the Earth so is thy Mert cy over all thy Works of and great exten to poor Sinners SATISFIE my Soul with thy Mercy and that right soon so shall I rejoyce and be-glad in thee and learn to praise thee Evermore And now O Lord as this Week is ended so let my Sins be ended and never be repeated again any more Be pleased to be my merciful protector and preserver from all perils and dangers this Night Refresh my Body with quiet rest that my mind may be chearful and be fit to serve thee in Sanctifying thy Sabbath and keeping it as a glorious day unto thee through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen Meditations on the Lords Supper HOW can I approach so divine a banquet and not by an humble confession wash my hands in innocency holy things must not be given to Dogs nor Pearls cast before Swine What is so holy as the Body and blood of Christ and what Pearl so precious as this Sacrament There is no Dog so filthy or Sow so unclean as I am by Nature but with great detestation of my Rebellious Corruptions I confess that never Dog so often returned to his Vomit nor Sow to her wallowing in the mire as I have to the sink of Sin and mire of sensual filthiness O WASH my hands in purity cleanse my Mouth and purge my Heart that I may take with a pure Hand eat with an undefileth mouth and keep in a faithfull heart this bread of life and food of Angels give me grace throughly and sincerely to examine my self and grant that after Examination I may find my desire fervent my knowledge Competent my Sorrow for Sin unfeigned my purpose of amendment sled fait my love sincere and my Faith lively AND finding my self thus apparelled in a wedding garment let me be found of thee
Creditors to a free compliance and enable me I beseech thee to make them restitution that when Ever I shall be released I may walk more Circumspectly and redeem that time I have so vainly lost Bless all those whose Charity have extended to my relief or have sought to procure my Liberty and bring us all at last to thy Heavenly Kingdom Amen A Prayer of a Malefactor in Prison O MOST merciful God thou art Holy in all thy ways and righteous in all thy Works vouchsafe thy Grace O Lord to a vile wretch and incorrigible sinner I implore O Lord that Mercy which formerly I have abused I sigh and groan now under the Weight of my sins and they are become a burden too heavy for me to bear my presumptuous and wicked proceedings stick like so many arrows within me and when with an awakened Conscience I remember them I am ready to sink down into the Pit of perdition and utterly despair of any Mercy or Compassion HOW brutish have I been in hating instruction and all manner of reproof I have not obeyed the voice of my Teachers neither did I incline my Ear to them that admonished me but like the Dâ—af adder I stopped my Ears and adhered not to wise Councel thy most holy Laws I have broken thy Sabbath I have prophaned by excess of drunkenness and all manner of riot and debauchery which have been as forerunners of this crime for which I stand now committed and the hand of justice hath overtaken me But O Lord I beseech thee have Mercy upon me even for his sake who redeemed me and all Mankind accept of his atonement for my sins and save my Soul for thy Mercies sake wash away all my sins in his most precious Blood and blot out all my offences out of thy remembrance O shew me some taste of thy tender Mercy whereby the fear of death may be abated give me some assurance of a hope in thee that when my day of dissolution comes my unworthy Soul may be received into thy Heavenly Kingdom Amen A Submission to the sentence of Death O ETERNAL God in all humility of Soul and Body I cast my self at the Feet of thy Divine Majesty thou art the Soveraign Judge of the all the World and hast fully pronounced against me and all sinners that dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return in obedience to thy Divine Justice I wholly resign all the faculties of my Soul and Body to thy sentence pronounced against me acknowledging it most just and due to me for those infinite Sins I have committed against thee O Let it never slip from my Memory that bloody and shameful Death of thy Son Jesus Christ who after he had suffered in his Soul unspeakable sorrows and in his Agony and bloody Sweat offered up himself a Sacrifice for mine and the sins of the whole World Never let me never repine at what the hand of Justice hath decreed to my Body but let me by a sincere repentance seek thy face to preserve my Soul the Death I am to suffer is painful and even a shamefull death but thou O my God canst make my passage Easie. THOU O my God didst remember the Thief upon the Cross O remember me I beseech thee in my last Hour and say unto my Soul this day shalt thou be with me in Paradise keep my heart and mouth from pronouncing words which may be offensive to Christian Ears but let me never be ashamed to confess thy holy Name and to continue thy Soldier and Servant manfully fighting under thy Banner unto my lives end Strengthen me O Lord in this great conflict and shew me the light of thy Countenance for evermore Amen A Preparation for Death MOST gracious God the Fountain of all goodness I bless and magnifie thy holy Name for all thy mercies extended to me and all Mankind I bless thee for my being and well-being from the hour of my Conception to the day of my Nativity from my Minority to my riper Years and age of full strength and even to this present moment I praise thy holy Name for all the means of Grace and for the hope of Glory for my Creation Redemption Preservation and all the blessings of this life I MAGNIFIE thee for all thy mercies in forgiving my infinite Transgressions for all thy patience and long-suffering towards me I have like the Prodigal Son absented my self from thee and at my return thou hast received me graciously Lord I humbly beseech thee raise me up from the death of Sin unto the life of Righteousness that being made a partaker of the death of Christ and a follower of his holy life I may be made a partaker of his Spirit and of his Promises O LET me never charge thee O my God foolishly nor offend thee by my impatience and uneasie Spirit nor weaken the hands and hearts of those that charitably minister to my Necessities but let me pass through this vale of tears and the valley of the shadow of death with peace and safety with a meek spirit and a sense of thy divine mercies grant this eternal God for the merits of thy only Son my ever blessed Lord and Saviour Amen A Prayer for Pardon of Sin O MOST merciful God who wouldest not the death of a Sinner but rather that he should turn from his wickedness and live have mercy upon me and heal my Soul for I have sinned against thee I have committed Iniquity with greediness and have added unto sin daily and hourly I have made resolutions and purposes of amendment but in a moment I have started aside like a broken Bow and have returned to my former custom like the Dog to his vomit and the Swine to her wallowing in the mire BUT thou art a God gracious and merciful pardoning Iniquity Transgression and Sin and there is forgiveness with thee that thou maist be feared therefore to thee O God I come like an ungracious Child but to a gracious Father I come in all humility of Soul and Body and appeal from thy Throne of Justice unto thy Mercy-seat Mercy good Lord I beg at thy fatherly hands for I acknowledge with grief of heart and sorrow of spirit that I have infinitely sinned against Heaven and against thee and am no more worthy to be called thy Son GIVE unto me O Lord a new heart and a right understanding that I may perceive the evil of my ways and repent of all my transgressions Lord where Iniquity did abound there let thy Grace much more abound hide thy face from my sins and blot out all mine Iniquities and receive me graciously and that for his sake who died for Sin and knew no Sin even that Immaculate Lamb thy dear Son Jesus Christ the Righteous my only Saviour and Redeemer Amen ADDITIONAL DEVOTIONS FOR Several Occasions ORDINARY AND EXTRAORDINARY Phil. iv vi Be careful for nothing but in every thing by Prayer and Supplication with Thanksgiving let your requests be made
sight and do unto others as I would they should do unto me Let no Sin inordinate Lust or unruly Passion have dominion over me but help me to lead Captivity Captive to kill and crucifie my Lusts and sinful Affections and wage War with my Corruptions until through Christ which strengthens me I shall prove more than Conqueror Grant this unto me for Jesus Christ his sake Amen A Prayer for Monday Night O GOD the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ I do in all humility prostrate my self before thy Divine Majesty to offer up unto thee this my Evening Sacrifice of Prayer and Thanksgiving who didst offer up thy Son upon the Cross to be a Propitiation and meritorious Sacrifice for the Sins of the World Lord hear me and help me and be merciful unto me my Sins are great but thy Mercies are greater my Trespasses Finite but thy Compassions Infinite and never fail LORD hear my Prayers and let my Praises be acceptable in thy sight for unto thee O Lord upon the Altar of my Heart do I offer up all possible Praise and Thanksgiving for all thy Blessings both Spiritual and Temporal which thou hast in a great measure bestowed upon me but above all for Jesus Christ the Fountain of them all by whom I have Redemption through his Blood and Access through his Life I also thank thee for thy Sacred Word and for the Confirmation and Strengthning of my Faith by those Sacred Signs and Pledges of thy Love which thou Exhibitest to me and unto every Believing Soul in the Sacraments I RENDER all thanks unto thee for my Life Liberty Food and Raiment Health Wealth Peace and Plenty which thou in much mercy hast afforded unto me from time to time and I beseech thee to continue this thy providence over me and as thou hast hitherto been a Sun to comfort me so be thou now a shield to protect me Keep me in Soul and Body goods and good name Vouchsafe me this Night Peace unto my Soul and rest and quietness to my Body that so being refreshed I may Praise thy name for evermore Amen Tuesdays Meditations O LORD who on this day madest dry Land and firm ground to appear dry up my Tears with the beams of thy Mercy and give me firm ground of Comfort in thy Word Thou who on this day Createdst all kind of Seeds Sow in my heart the incorruptible Seed of thy Sacred writ that I may thereby be regenerated to a lively hope And as on this day Createdst all kind of fruitful Trees make me like a good Tree bring forth good Fruit here that I may hereafter eat of the Tree of Life in the midst of the Paradise of God LORD let me enter into a serious Contemplation of the vanity of the World and the deceitfulness of Riches the shame of Pleasures and folly of sports the in constancy of honours and danger of greatness with the strickt account which one day must be given for all perswade me by thy Spirit that I have here no abiding City but ought to seek for one hereafter and that I am but a stranger and Pilgrim on this side Heaven LET me desire Temporal blessings only for Spiritual ends Wealth that I may be Rich in good works preferment to advance the honour of the Gospel Health and Strength the better to enable me to do thee service and length of dayes that I may Praise thee in the Land of the Living O Lord this day thy Life was sought to be destroyed seek thou mine I beseech thee to save it This day thou wast anointed to thy death and burial anoint me with thy Spirit to eternal Life Save me from the hands of all mine Enemies that I may serve thee without fear in holiness and Righteousness all the dayes of my Life Amen A Prayer for Tuesday Morning O LORD what am I but Dust and Ashes and confess I am utterly lost having walked after the vanity of my mind and lived in all manner of Wickedness but O if thou shouldst be extream to mark what is done amiss O Lord who were able to abide it Enter not therefore into Judgment with thy Servant for in thy sight shall no Flesh living be justified Though my Sins have magnified themselves in infinite length breadth depth and height yet let thy Mercy which passeth all understanding far exceed them AND howsoever by reason of my Sins I have justly deserved to be not only deprived of thy blessings but for ever deserted and forsaken yet for his sake in whom thou art well pleased cast me not away from thy presence of Grace here or glory hereafter but by the one lead me to the other by Holiness bring me to Happiness Behold O Lord how I am thy Servant and the Son of thy Hand-maid O grant me Grace that I may live with thee for ever THOU hast redeemed me O let me not fall into Captivity and Bondage unto Sin and Satan but so confirm and strengthen me that both in life and death I may continue thine and never draw back unto Perdition or forsake thee the ever-living God or renounce my Saviour who hath the Words of Eternal Life and who is the Way the Truth and the Life but that both in Prosperity and Adversity I may live in thy Fear die in thy Favour rest in thy Peace and reign with thee in thy Glory Amen A Prayer for Tuesday Night O LORD how often mightest thou cut me off in the midst of my Sins but thine Eye hath spared me thou hast given me space of amendment and Grace to return unto thee to seek thee whilst thou maist be found and call upon thee whilst thou art near O Lord be not far from me but draw near unto my Soul make haste to deliver me and help me Thou hast promised to such as call upon thee to be a present help in Trouble to be their Shield and Buckler their Castle and Fortress and the Horn also of their Salvation AND now seeing thou hast brought the Night upon me wherein thou hast ordained Man to take his rest keep me O Lord as the Apple of thine Eye save and defend me from Delusions cause thine Angels to pitch their Tents round about me and watch over my Soul and Body that I may not commit any Sin either in Word or Deed but persevere in Grace until the appearing of my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ unto Judgment DELIVER me I beseech thee from sudden Death Fears and Affrightments Casualties by Fire Water or Tempestuous Weather Disturbance by Thieves or any other DÃ nger whatsoever vouchsafe me peace of Conscience and joy in the Holy Ghost guide me here by thy Councel and after that receive me to Glory let my lying down in the Bed put me in mind of my resting in the Grave and my rising from thence of my Resurrection that both in Life and Death I may continue thine through Jesus Christ. Amen Meditations for Wednesday WOnderful are thy Works O Lord to
and Lightning Storms and Tempestuous Weather or any other danger that may dismay me To thee O Lord I commend my Body and Spirit to dispose of me according to thy holy Will and Pleasure if thou art pleased to call for my life upon the surface of the Waters I know thy Almighty Word can command the Sea to give up her Dead at the last and great audit BUT if thou hast determined to bring me safe to my desired Haven give me thy Grace which is sufficient for me to walk according to thy holy Will in all things make me to lay hold of eternal Life which as the Anchor of Hope is both sure and stedfast keep me from all temptations Ghostly and Bodily and from sudden Death and in thy good time bring me to the Land of the Living there to reign with thee for evermore Amen A Thanksgiving after a Voyage O IMMORTAL God I have seen thy Works O Lord and thy Wonders in the Deep thou spakest the Word and the stormy Wind arose which lifted up the Waves thereof but when we cried unto thee thou madest the Storm to cease so that the Waves thereof were still then did we rejoyce because we were at rest and thou broughtest us safe to that Haven where we would be O that men would therefore praise thee O Lord for thy Goodness and declare the Wonders thou dost continually for them I BLESS thy holy Name for conducting me through those many dangers which encompassed me and praise thy Mercy that the Deep hath not swalloyed me up and that I am not gone down into the place of Silence I also praise thy holy Name and admire thy loving Kindness towards me that thou hast not delivered up my Body and Goods as a prey into the hands of unreasonable Men but hast brought me to my desired Haven and at last hath returned me back in safety to my Habitation O LET me never forget to pay those vows I made to thee when I was in trouble but give me an awful sense and apprehension of thy great power and possess my Soul with a true reverence of thy Divine Majesâ—y that I may evermore serve thee in holiness and Righteousness all the dayes of my Life Endue me with thy holy Spirit that I may become acceptable in thy sight and may be fitted at lenght for future Glories this I beg for thy Son Jesus Christ sake my only Saviour Amen A Prayer in a Storm O LORD our God thou hast commanded us in the day of Calamity to call upon thy Name and thou hast promised to hear us Lord I fly unto thee who art a sure refuge thy Flood-gates are opened and the Floods lift up their lofty waves But thou O Lord most high art mightier than the noise of many Waters yea than the mighty Waves of the Sea Thou canst in a moment if it stand with thy Divine will and pleasure rebuke the Winds and the Sea and this Storm into a Calm I KNOW I justly deserve to be cast away and utterly to be rejected by thee but Lord save us or else we perish accept of my unfeigned Sorrow for all my sins and trangressions and endue me with a stedfast resolution to forsake them be merciful unto us O God be merciful unto us and save us from perishing in these deep Waters O refresh us with thy Mercy and that soon lest we go down into the place of silence O comfort us in this great distress that though the Sea rage and swell our hearts may be quiet and still in this time of our disconsolation AND as I earnestly desire to be protected from this great Peril and danger which now terrifies us so I earnestly beseech thee that thou wilt for ever fill my heart with such an awful dread of thy Majesty that I may fear thy Name and praise thy power in the great Congregation awake my dull and drousie Soul from the sloth of Sin and renew a right Spirit within me fill me with the gifts and Graces of thy holy Spirit that I may live the life of the Righteous and never forget thy loving kindness save us now from death I beseech thee from the merciless Waves who are now ready to swallow us up and bring us home in safety for thy Son Jesus Christ his sake our only Lord and Saviour Amen A Thanksgiving after a Storm I PRAISE and glorifie thy holy Name O Lord for all thy mercies and blessings vouchsafed unto me especially for this thy last great Deliverance wherein I was encompassed in that wide Ocean whom thou hast set bounds and limits to if thou O Lord hadst not been on my side the Sea had swallowed me up quick and I had gone down into the deep of silence but thou hast been my God and my deliverer and hast put a new Song into my Mouth even a Song of Praise and Thanksgiving unto my God I ACKNOWLEDG O Lord that thou art the God of all the Earth and of them that remain in the broad Sea Blessed for ever and magnified be thy Name that thou hast not cast me out of thy sight nor turned thy Mercy from me I have escaped thy raging Sea and the noise of the proud Waves have done me no harm if thy Almighty providence had not protected me the Streams had gone over my Soul But the stormy wind and Tempest I have narrowly escaped the storm is ceased and I am safely delivered AND now what shall I render to thee O Lord for this and all other thy great benefits I will offer up unto thee the Sacrifice of thanksgiving and will pay those vows I so solemnly made unto thee when I was in trouble I will evermore remember that my help is in the Lord who made Heaven and Earth and that thou art that God that can and will deliver me let this thy mercy and loving-kindness never depart my memory but let me praise thy goodness and sing of thy power unto my lives end Amen A Prayer in time of Thunder and lightning O MOST mighty and terrible Lord God before whom the Earth shakes and the Heavens drop at thy presence thou overturnest the mountains by the roots and removest them in thy anger thou dost great things and thy wayes are past finding out yea thou dost wonders without number Thy voice O Lord is very powerful full of Majesty that it rends the Air and casts forth flames of Fire Thou canst O Lord at this time tear us in pieces and none can be able to deliver us for there is none but thee alone that delivers after this sort O WHO would not dread thy All-glorious Name O Lord Who would not stand in awe of thy Majesty Who would not fear thy Judgments when thou shoots forth thy Arrows of Thunder and Lightning It is of thy meer Mercy O Lord that we are not at this time consumed but that thy tender compassions fail not toward us poor but miserable Sinners the blast of the breath of thy