in tears of blood to ransome me Open the grave of my dull and earthly Soul with thy Almighty power and enliven the dead therein even all my powers and affections that abundance of holy thoughts may rise out of it in thankfulness for thy Passion with multitudes of praises for my Redemption Shake the earth of my Heart with terror at the approach of every sin that I may die rather than commit one known wilful sin against thee more Blessed Lord enclose my Soul now in that Heart of thine which was opened with the Spear for me There I delight to dwell for I have desired it There will I live and suck life and draw Salvation from thee Thy wounded Heart is my Sanctuary my comfort in sorrow my refuge in trouble here let me live and die and be secure for ever I desire nothing but thee I languish after none but thee all satisfaction lies in thee I desire to creep into this hole of the Rock and there to lie close with intimate individual adhaesion to thee with fulness of love and obedience O nourish me in it fill me with that love which made it and I will return it all in thanksgiving and love unto thee Additional Devotions for the Evening O Blessed Jesus by the eye of faith I now behold thee dead upon the Cross for me and see good Joseph of Arimathea thy holy Mother and Saint John coming to take thee down from the same Among whom I also by faith desire to come upon the Ladder of holy Thoughts with the shroud of my Heart to receive thee O give me the myrrh of Mortification The bitter Aloes of sorrow for my sin And the odour of divine Virtues to present and embalm thee with O that I had tears to wash thy sacred body all begored with blood and spittle for me O that I were but gratefully sensible of thine unspeakable love in all thy sufferings As these good men did draw out the Nails all begored with blood be pleased to draw out all the nails of Sin which lie in my body corrupting my poor Soul Fetch out all my corruptions though thou rent and tear me in the cure Thy wounded shoulders and rented hands were ript from the Cross so fast did the bloody nails and thy love above all fix thee thereunto O dear Lord loosen me quite from the World and from every vain affection that would withdraw my Heart from thee O fix the memory of thy Sufferings in my Heart and my Heart fast unto thee As thy Servants took thee down in their Arms vouchsafe to receive me into thine Methinks I see thee laid in thy Mothers lap while they shroud thee Dear Lord I lay down all my affairs in the lap of thy divine Providence desiring to rest sweetly thankfully and most contentedly in all thy dispensations towards me I resign my self my Soul my Estate my Friends and all that I am or have unto thee Thou hast bought and redeemed me to be thine and thine only will I be for ever Make me to spend hours and days in contemplating thee and thy miraculous sweetness to vapor away in acts of Love Adoration and Thankfulness to thee for this thy redeeming love unto me And now dear Lord I see thee taken away to thy burial also and laid in a new Sepulchre O make me a new Heart and take thy repose in the same I see thee buried for me O bury all my sins in the Grave with thee And thou who wert in that night of sorrow before thy death in thine Agony at Prayer for me in the morning condemned the Third hour crucified the Sixth dead and pierced the Ninth hour and taken down from the Cross at Even-song who wast now buried for me have mercy upon me give me grace daily and duly to apply the same unto my Soul as being my only Help Health and Remedy for in thy Merits Death and Passion is my only hope of Salvation Therefore let my life be hid with Christ in God Let me count all things but dung to gain thee For whom have I in Heaven but thee O Lord and there is none upon Earth that I desire in comparison of thee Compline HAving now dearest Lord passed this day in health and safety by thy divine Providence I give thanks unto thee Blessed by thy holy Name for any good I have done or for any evil I have left undone since it was by thy Grace only that I performed any good or did forbear any evil Blessed be thy Name for thy Mercies received for thy Judgments escaped and thy goodness enjoyed this day O let not my days consume in vanity nor my years in trouble but let every day add some knowledg some practice and some virtue to yesterday Holy Father I beseech thee by the Merits of thine only Son to pardon me the sins of this day and take me now and ever into thine Almighty protection O that thou wouldst visit me with the visitation of thy Saints O that thou wouldst shew me the felicity of thy chosen O that thou wouldst open mine eyes in the Visitations of the night O that thou wouldst give me Songs in the night that I might never cease day nor night from praising thee O that while mine Eyes sleep my Heart might always wake unto thee O fill me with love fill me O Lord with the most enflamed love that ever any of thine had unto thee O that I had all the love of all thy Saints and Angels comprised in my Soul to pour it out unto thee Lord thou hast not denied thy blood to redeem my Soul do not O do not deny me thy love to replenish it I desire to empty it of every thing else fill it with thy self for ever That as of thy fulness we have all received of the fulness of my love thou mayst receive such a full obedience and duty that I may be thine and only thine for ever O make me to think upon thee in my Bed and to remember thee when I am waking Let my first and last thoughts yea let all my thoughts be of thee and let thy blessing most blessed God be now and evermore upon me O make me to be early up at my Prayers and Praises unto thee Amen A Prayer for Lent MOst Holy and ever Blessed Lord Jesus who didst fast forty days and fortynights for me and all thine to teach us that Prayer and Fasting were necessary fortifications against the assaults of the Devil and all his Temptations as also to satisfie for all our excesses by Intemperance and for all deficiencies in our Retirements and Prayers I adore thy goodness and humbly implore thy grace and acceptance of my Humiliation before thee these forty days which I now enter into and continue in in memory of and conformity to thee I offer up this holy time in honour and love of thee in imitation of thy Saints in obedience to thy Church in sorrow for my sins as an act of
World a little before I was by thy Judgments forced to leave it altogether I praise thee for all the Ministry of Angels For my Guardian Angel For all the faithful departed For thy great Graces given to them Their good example given to me For the Suffrages and Prayers of all Saints For my Communion with them and with all those who are at Prayers with me now in this holy hour For the large capacity and extent of my Soul that can be in union with all Ages past present and to come worshipping praising and adoring thee For enabling me so to rejoyce in thy Glories to dilate upon thy Excellencies to delight in thy Service so as if all our affections were united in one holy individual oblation of our Souls and Bodies unto thee As if all Souls were in one and one so in all that we could never more be divided from thee nor cease from the love and service we bear unto thee nor be separated from each other in thee I praise thee for preserving me from all perils and dangers either by day or night For that portion of Health I now enjoy For the contentedness and thankfulness thou givest me in all estates For all the necessaries of this life Healthful dwelling quiet safety plenty of food and raiment For all the retirements and happy opportunities thou givest me of Reading Praying and enjoying thee For assisting me to overcome in any measure any of those great Infirmities I am subject to by nature For all thy gifts of Grace and nature infused or acquired attain'd by study or experience in the world For any good use I make of them For all thy wonderful Mercies to me and mine blessing us in all good things For thy great preservation of us in many dangerous Journeys and deliverances out of very many great troubles which my Soul recounteth unto thee For all these and for all other thy Mercies known or not known manifest or secret willingly or unwillingly received I praise thee I bless thee I give thee thanks and I desire to praise bless and give thee thanks all the days of my life What am I that thou shouldst look upon such a dead dog as I am What reward shall I give unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me especially in that he hath spared and forborn me until now Holy holy holy thou art worthy to receive Honour Worship and Praise now and for evermore Amen A Prayer for Christmas-Day HOly Jesus who being infinitely higher than the Heavens didst condescend to look on the Earth to come down and visit us with the saving Presence of thine Eternal Godhead clothed with our Manhood in the Virgins Womb let this miraculous grace of thine effect another miracle in me Let it raise me by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost and change me by a new Birth and exalt me to a Divine and Heavenly life that I may forsake the world and live unto thee O thou who didst assume thy Body and Soul for me that we might be members of thy Body and of thy flesh and of thy bones unite me unto thee make me sensible of thee my head fill me with the joy of thy Nativity and give thy self unto me who wast born for me that I may be thine and my beloved mine for evermore O Eternal Glory of the Father vail'd over with mortal flesh remove the vail from off my heart clarifie my understanding and draw me near unto thee that I may know the mystery which was hid from Ages and Generations but is now revealed for our Glory Receive me to thy self make me one with thee and be thou more dear unto me than all the world O thou who didst vouchsafe to dwell in the dark Cloysters of a Virgins womb thou who didst vouchsafe to close thine infinity within the confines of Humane shape and advance our Humanity to the Throne of God Prepare the Temple of my Soul make it bright with knowledg and wisdom come and dwell in my understanding take possession of my will reign within my heart let thy Scepter of Righteousness be exalted over me and become the rule of my thoughts and actions O reign over all the World and let the Righteousness and true Holiness wherein thou delightest prevail and prosper in the Earth let the Souls be saved which thou hast redeemed Amen Amen A Prayer for Easter-Day ETernal Son of the eternal Father who wast a man of sorrows and art now the Lord of Joys look down from Heaven thy dwelling place upon me thy Servant who rejoyce in thy glorious and blessed Resurrection Thou hast broken the Bars of Death and Hell for it was impossible that he that was innocent should be holden of them Thou hast broken down the gates of the prison of the Grave because thou hast satisfied thy Fathers Justice He knew thy ability and therefore he trusted thee with so great a debt He knew thy Power and therefore did commit so weighty an employment to thy sacred Hands O cause me to know thee my Saviour to be the Son of God by this glorious Resurrection Let it quicken me and raise me up who am dead in sins and trespasses Our Surety has paid the debt and is come abroad let all the Earth rejoyce and be glad in him Sing O Mountains and break forth into singing all the valleys in the World for our Redeemer and our Saviour hath conquered Death Hell and the Grave Let the light of his Resurrection transform the World into Heaven and turn the Wilderness into Eden let it restore a better Paradise than the old one unto us Let the power of his Resurrection quicken all the dead in sins and convert all the Kingdoms upon Earth and make them the Kingdoms of the Lord and of his Christ wherein Truth and Peace and Righteousness may reign for evermore O my Soul thy lover and thy friend that was killed dead and buried is alive and he is able to save unto the utmost all them that come to God through him seeing he ever liveth to make Intercession for us He by and for whom the Worlds were made loved thee to the death O let his Love enflame thee and turn thee all into Love and let the love of God which passeth all understanding possess thy Soul and Body for ever Let the Love of Christ constrain thee to forsake iniquity and to esteem nothing easie honourable or delightful but that which is so to him Love all that he loveth hate all that he hateth O Jesus the love and life of my Soul be thou my sovereign Lord and Friend my only treasure and possession be thou my Wisdom and my Glory my Kingdom and my Crown my Life and Blessedness be thou all in all to me Let thy will be my will and thy pleasure mine As thou camest to do the Will of thy Father let it be my meat and drink to do thy Will to glorifie thy Name and finish the work which thou hast given me
of the Righteous for all holy and humble men of heart Those Incarnate Cherubims Inflamed Seraphims Strong Powers against Devils Principalities in the midst of contumelies Dominions reigning over all enticements Those Virtues in a miraculous life Those Angels of the Churches and Arch-Angels who by close Communion with thee illuminate and encourage us to serve thee For Ananias Azarias and Misael their courage and miraculous deliverance I praise bless and magnifie thy Name for ever Saying Glory be to the Father c. Thanksgivings for all Persons and Times BLessed art thou O Lord God who sustainest all things by the word of thy Power For by thine Ordinance all things are and do continue Thou givest us Rain and fruitful Seasons and fillest our Hearts with food and gladness With admirable Wisdom didst thou create and dost still govern all things But above all I admire thy Wisdom Power and Goodness shewed unto Man Thou madest him of the mould of the Earth and didst breath into his Nostrils the breath of Life Thou didst honour him and create him after thine own Image giving him a capacious Soul sound Judgment clear Understanding ready Apprehension useful Memory clear Reason a ready and obedient Will so that with these faculties we can by thy Divine aid walk at large in the liberty of our thoughts into all the Regions of Heaven and Earth see thee in all times and before all time in that Eternity wherein thou didst live before Time began to be and in that Eternity also which shall be when Time shall be no more By these powers and faculties of our immortal Souls we can see thee also by thy divine Illumination In all thy works of Grace In thy Government of all Ages And in that most stupendious work of Redemption promised in the beginning and performed in the fulness of time for our Salvation O Lord our God how excellent is thy name in all the World It is thou who givest us well order'd Passions sound Sences Health of Body strength of Limbs and useful Members Thou givest us peace of Mind and tranquillity of Spirit by which only we can happily enjoy thee and all things in thee It is thou alone who givest thine Angels charge over us to keep us from falls fractures of Bones Dislocations Epidemical and noisome Diseases from the hands of the violent and wicked man Having placed Man in Paradise when he fell from thee even then thou didst not despise him but didst open the gate of Life in the promised seed unto him Thou didst write thy Laws in his Heart and instruct him in the service of Sacrifices Strengthen our faith by the Oracles of the Prophets Enliven our Hearts with the Melody of the Psalms Teach us by the Wisdom of the Proverbs Evidently point out the coming of thy Son by Types and Figures And at last recompence all their long waitings and expectations by sending him unto us Who took our nature upon him and sanctified it in his Incarnation Birth and Life Redeemed us by his Death and Passion Quickened us by his Resurrection Exalted us by his Ascension Intercedeth for us in his Session at the right hand of the Father Sent down his holy Spirit for our Illumination Sanctification and hope of Glory O blessed be thy Name for giving this Lord of Life and this Son of thy Love unto us For thy glorious Gospel Evangelizing him For the prospect and benefit of his Life and Death It is thou most holy Father who with thine only Son freely givest us all things By thee Kings reign and Princes decree Justice Thou instructest all our Rulers and teachest our Senators wisdom Thou givest us Pastors after thine own heart to fill us with the knowledg of thee and feed us with true faith and obedience unto thee Thou bringest down our hearts for sin so that we sometimes fall before our enemies and there is none to help us Again upon our Repentance thou raisest us up and breakest our bonds in sunder For it is thou who castest our cords from us Thou dost not leave us in the hardness of our hearts but givest us preventing grace with which if we co-operate O how sweet and heavenly are the glorious effects thereof Then we feel compunction for our sins shame of them hearty indignation against them and our selves for them then the sense of thy Love of thy Mercies and of our moâ—t base and vile ingrateful abuse of thy mercies throws down all the strong holds of sin in us and fortifies us against them Nay sometimes thou dost send thy grace so forcibly upon us that thou dost even compell us to come in unto thee Though thou delightest O thou lover of men to see thy Voluntary goodness shine in our Souls O would we draw nigh unto thee with what infinite joy dost thou draw nigh unto us But thou wilt not always force us because thou desirest a free obedience and lovest to save us in the best of all possible manners The glory of a sinner voluntarily returning being greater than that of Adams Innocence and causing greater joy in Heaven then there is over ninety and nine just persons that need no repentance Blessed magnified highly exalted and honoured be thy Name for putting such a power into our hands of turning unto thee such desires into our Hearts such powerful workings in our Souls that every true penitent is always turning more and more unto thee ever moving to thee and aspiring after thee till by thy grace he be wholly throughly and effectually turned unto thee Finding no true satisfaction but in thee no rest no comfort no peace but in thee Thus by degrees dost thou wean us from the world and wed us unto thee Till at last we are fully accepted pardoned and in Jesus Christ justified and by thy Spirit wholly united unto thee So thirsting for and drinking in thy grace that at last thou givest us full satisfaction in all thy Glories Dearest Lord it is thine own self that workest all our works in us And therefore well mayest thou require all good works from us Thou makest that good ours which first was thine That so in us thy whole goodness might shine For thou alone enablest us to do good and to resist evil Thou teachest us how to abound without abusing thy mercy and how to want without repining at thy justice Thou dost help us to overcome yet crownest us for overcoming O wonder of Mercy miracle of Grace It is thou only dost comfort us in our sorrows support us in our trials and take care of our welfare in all estates Thou givest us Songs in the night of affliction and victory in the day of temptation It is only thou canst qualifie our turbulent tempestuous spirits and give us calmness and serenity therein Who could make our impatient natures contented in the midst of all the storms and tempests of a raging world but only thou It is thou alone dost establish our fickle hearts and fix them fast on
thee Who givest us joy in our reproaches and in all our labours of serving thee peace of Conscience and joy in the Holy Ghost intire love of our enemies and zeal of Souls yet alienated from thee O thou that hast given us such a sense of them hear our prayers for them that they also may see the felicity of thy chosen and rejoyce in thy Salvation That all the Sons of God may shout for joy in the Gates of Jerusalem O thou who hast shewed a miracle of Mercy in converting us who do call upon thee shew the same upon them who do not yet call effectually upon thee O Lord God of Mercy convert all Infidels all dead insensible Souls into a true sense of thee make them and us to yield all obedience to thee And to thy Name be rendered all Honour Praise and Glory for all these and for all other thy abundant mercies shewed unto us from everlasting until now and from this time forth for evermore Amen An Hymn to Jesus wherein the the Soul may expatiate it self with delight in Him JEsus the only thought of thee Fills with delight my memory But when thou dost thy presence shew Heaven into my brest doth flow No Theme for voice so sweet can be Nor to the ear such Melody No Heart can Thought so charming frame As Jesus his most precious Name Our hope when we for sins do grieve Thy mercies all our wants relieve If good to those that seek thy Grace What art thou when they see thy face Jesus in whom we comfort find Life of our Souls light of our Mind Thou dost our Hearts with true joys feed Thy gifts our utmost wish exceed No eloquence of tongue can teach Nor art of Pen this secret reach Only the experienced Soul doth prove What sweets they taste who Jesus love Him then I 'le seek retired apart Shutting the world out of my heart Amidst my business him I 'le strive With fresh pursuits still to retrive Early with Magdalen I 'le come A Pilgrim to my Saviours Tomb Wailing my sins with mournful cries I 'le seek him with my Mind not Eyes My Tears shall on his Grave distill My faithful Sighs the Garden fill Prostrate before him on my face His sacred feet I 'le fast embrace Striving to follow where they lead Jesus in thy blest steps I 'le tread Nor shall my Soul give o're to mourn Till to thy favour it return O Jesus most admired King Who didst triumph ore deaths sharp sting Thy Mystick sweetness first excites Then satisfies all appetites Thy quickening visits life bestow Thy light true good doth clearly shew That they who once have relisht thee Know all the world 's meer vanity Come then dear Lord possess our Hearts Enflame our Love with thy chaste darts All clouds of error drive away And change our night to thy bright day To thee our Hearts and Voices sing To thee our Vows and Prayers we bring That when we end this life 's short race In Heaven with thee we may have place A Prayer upon the third Hour O Blessed Jesus being the third hour was devoted to thee by the ancient Christians in memory of thy Prayer in the Garden thine Agony there suffered before thy Passion and of thy sending the Holy Ghost to thy Disciples accept of me in Communion with them doing honour to thy Name therein Enable me now seriously to consider that in that Garden of sorrow to thee thou didst repair our sin first committed in a Garden Thine Agony there was so great thy Conflict so strong thy Love so forcible thy Fathers wrath so weighty our Sins so hearty that thou didst sweat drops of blood prest out by thine intollerable anguish for our sins I humbly beseech thee to make me in utter abhorrence of all sin to forsake iniquity Give me a deep sense and sorrow for my sins and a thorough conversion to thee from them all Let this suffering of thine make me contented with all sufferings for thy sake And let thine infinite love therein melt my heart into love of thee and fill me with love to all Mankind for thee Great O Lord was this anguish of thine when it urged thee to pray that this Cup might pass from thee But greater was thy Love which did drink it up for me Great was thy dolor in thy prayer but greater was thy obedience Great was thy human suffering but greater was thy divine perfection that therein could make so perfect a Resignation Great was thy love to our Souls that suffered such inexplicable torments in thine own Most deeply fervent were thy prayers when thou didst shed thy very blood for tears O let me ne're refuse to bleed for thee Who shedst this strange prodigious blood for me O thou who didst pray prostrate on the earth and didst repeat the same prayer thrice Grant I beseech thee that by the outward gesture of our bodies we may encrease the inward devotion of our minds and in often repeating the same prayer may still advance to new degrees of pious affections make me in all things resigned unto thee O thou who wert falsly apprehended and betrayed deliver me from the false apprehension and treacheries of Men and grant that neither for reward nor danger I ever withdraw my fidelity from the but learn by thy example to do good with cheerfulness and to suffer evil with patience O blessed Lord thou didst deliver thy self to the violence of thine enemies suffering them to bind scourge deride and abuse thee in most barbarous manner Grant I beseech thee that the sins of our hands may be loosed by the binding of thine that the scourges due for our sins may be acquitted by thine let all our vain affections be confounded by the indecencies cast upon thee Grant that when ever thou callest us thereunto we may not only be bound but be ready to die for the Lord Jesus O by these bindings of thine deliver us from the chains of eternal darkness and bind our Souls and Hearts unto thee in the Chains of a strong obedience and everlasting love and dissolve now all the bonds of my sins O blessed Jesus being bound thus by Annas thou wast sent to Caiphas the high Priest where thou wert yet worse abused buffeted and blindfolded Have mercy upon me and make me to remember that no darkness can hide me from thy sight that so I may ever behave my self as in thy presence and be able to suffer all things rather than offend thee willingly any more Grant also that for thy sake who wert stript mockt spit upon wounded and derided for me I may patiently bear the devesture of all things and the derision of all men for thee hoping that if I be afflicted for thee here I shall by thy mercy and merit be glorified with thee hereafter I furthermore approach thee to commemorate the sending of thine holy Spirit upon thine Apostles humbly beseeching thee not to take it from me but to renew me
Obedience thy Humility thy Meekness thy Purity and Intention thy Patience thy Wisdom thy Silence thy Contentedness thy Sweetness thy Mildness thy Mercy thy Pity thy Fortitude and Courage thy Constancy and Perseverance thy Righteousness to cover me and all thy Merits to save me Glory be to thee O Lord most High Amen A Prayer for the Sixth Hour O Blessed Jesus I now commemorate thy holy Sufferings for me both in thankfulness to thee for them and for the application of them to my poor Soul as also to offer them up to thy holy Father for the full satisfaction of all my sins O dearest Saviour how wert thou led for me as a Lamb to the slaughter and as a Sheep before the shearer is dumb so thou openedst not thy mouth Thou didst turn thy back to the smiters and thy cheek to the nippers Thou wert mockt and whipt and rent and torn defiled with spittle wounded and scourged harshly and terribly nailed and crucified for me Yet in all thy sufferings thou didst nothing but good to thine enemies and didst pray with loud cries for thy persecutors Have mercy upon me plant in my heart I beseech thee gentleness and patience a meek and long suffering spirit quietness of mind and stability of Soul that I may never more be transported with violent anger or be disordered and discomposed by an offensive peevishness much less ever think of revenge Give me grace dear Lord mildly and rationally lovingly and discreetly to reprehend my Inferiors sweetly and tenderly my Equals and freely to forgive all Give me patience in all injuries and contentedness in all conditions and cross accidents Make me with charity return good for evil Deliver me from an evil tongue and a turbulent mind from an angry spirit and a cross contentious humour Let thy example convert me thy sweetness mollifie me thy gentleness soften me thy sufferings heal me thy blood cleanse me thy death satisfie thy Fathers wrath and save me Fill me with thy Graces that I may imitate thy Virtues and by thy Merits be replenished with thy mercies here and with thy Glories hereafter Amen Blessed Lord thou wert charged with the heavy burden of thy cross O for thy mercy sake discharge me of the heavy burden of my Sins Thou wert led up to Mount Calvary lift me up I beseech thee to the Mount of Heavenly felicity Thou wert nailed betwixt two Thieves be pleased to place me between thy Saints and Angels Thou didst charge Simon of Cyrene with thy Cross make me with him contentedly to take it up and follow thee Let me not by folly make it but with all obedience and chearfulness take it when thou shalt impose it upon me Dearest Lord I see by the light of Faith thy sacred Arms stretch'd and extended upon the Cross for me O by that infinite love of thine that made thee endure all this for me have mercy upon me and save me Receive me now into those arms of mercy and secure my Soul for ever unto thee O thou who at the Sixth hour and only the sixth day didst fasten the Sins of the whole world with thy self upon the Cross cancel I beseech thee the hand-writing of our Sins which is against us and take it quite away from us Let all these sufferings of thine satisfie for what I deserve to suffer and deal not with me after my Sins neither reward me after mine iniquities Let the nails of thy Feet nail my Affections which are the feet of my Soul unto thee Let the nails of thy Hands nail all good works unto mine Let the Meditation of the Thorns wherewith thou wast crowned for me pierce mine Eyes unto Tears and my Heart with sorrow for thy Sufferings and my Sins O let the most precious Blood which issued out of all thy Wounds wash me clean before thee and keep me clean Let me not after such a Bathing ever be polluted more O dearest Saviour who didst hang naked wounded wrackt tenâ—…'d tortur'd and bleeding even to death upon the Cross for me to offer up the only propitiatory Sacrifice by which thy Fathers wrath can be appeased have mercy upon me For in this thy alsufficient satisfaction I place my only hope of Salvation O let me ne're confounded be Since all my Hope is plac'd in thee I come dear Lord I come unto thee O take me into the Comprehensions of thine unalterable and everlasting love for thou hast opened thy Heart as well as thine Arms to receive me As thine Arms of Mercy are stretch'd out for me behold my Heart is by the hand of Faith reached up unto thee O let us be joyn'd together and never divided more By thy Sufferings grant me deliverance By thy Stripes let me be healed By thy Wounds let me be cured By thy Blood let me be saved As thou hast the pain O give me the ease of all thy Sufferings Ease me O Jesus of the burden of my Sins By thy Crown of Thorns pricking and wounding thee adorn my Head with a clear Understanding here and the Crown of Glory hereafter For thou hast paid the price of my Redemption that I may get the purchase of thy Kingdom therefore I adore thine unspeakable goodness I delight I rejoyce and glory in thine infinite Mercies I desire to know nothing but Jesus Christ and him crucified O let the powers of the Cross prevail against all the powers of darkness Let thy patience and love on the Cross reconcile me to all persons and sufferings Let the peace of the Cross reconcile me to thy Eternal Father and bring me peace of Conscience Let thy pains on the Cross mortifie all my evil and corrupt affections Let thy Victory on the Cross give me victory over all my spiritual enemies Let thy Patience satisfie for my Impatience Thy Obedience satisfie for my disobedience Thy Humility for my pride Thy Love for all my uncharitableness Give me such Patience Obedience Humility and Love as may make me live conformable to thee and make thy Merits effectual to me By thy Prayer for thine Enemies do thou mediate and intercede for me By thy care of thy Holy Mother and Saint John take care of thy Church and me By thy Mercy shew'd on the Thief have mercy on me powerfully convert me and all sinners unto thee By thy strong loud cries unto thy Father hear my prayers and let my cry come unto thee By thy thirst after my Salvation give me the benefit of this thy Passion By the Vinegar and Gall given unto thee make bitter every sin unto me By thy finishing all things foretold of thee finish my course of sining against thee By thy Recommendation of thy self into thy Fathers hands receive my Soul into thy Almighty protection here and to thy everlasting Glory hereafter By all thine unknown Sufferings felt by thee but not understood by me have mercy upon me By all thy dolors during the three long hours thou didst hang bleeding on the Cross for me have
and in all lowly devotion and devout obedience here casting my Soul and Body prostrate before the dreadful Throne of his Justice I acknowledg and confess and I yield my self a most miserable wretched sinner guilty of that Death and Passion which Christ once suffer'd for me upon the tormenting Cross But turning my self to the Throne of his infinite Mercy and with all my might from the very bowels of my heart detesting the iniquities of my fore-passed life I most humbly beg and crave pardon for the same with an entire absolution from all my sins even for the precious Death and Passions sake of my Lord and Saviour upon whom as upon the only foundation of my hope I repose all my confidence and unto whom I promise and confirm again I vow and solemnly renew the sacred profession of loyal service and fidelity which was made in my name and in my behalf unto him in my holy Baptism renouncing unfeignedly the vanities of this wicked world the lusts of my sinful flesh and the suggestions of the Devil and converting my self to my most gracious and most merciful God I desire deliberate purpose and fully resolve to honour him serve him love him and obey him now and for ever hereafter giving and dedicating to him for this end the powers of my Soul the affections of my Heart and the faculties of my Body to be his faithful loyal and obedient servant for ever without unsaving revoking or repenting me of this my holy and sacred promise or any part thereof And I most humbly beseech Almighty God the Father Son and Holy Ghost to confirm me in this constant resolution and to accept of this my broken and contrite Heart which he hath promised not to despise entirely desiring his fatherly goodness that as he hath given me a will to purpose so he would give me strength and grace to perform all holy actions through Jesus Christ A Prayer for acceptation of acts of Humiliation or Abstinence on Fasting-Days LOrd Jesus who both by thy Word and thine own example hast taught us to deny our selves and by thy Apostle hast councell'd us to judg our selves that we be not judged of the Lord. I offer unto thee this act of Abstinence not out of a proud conceit of satisfying thy justice by it for the least sin or meriting any the least favour at thy hand but in a pure acknowledgment that through my manifold sins I am unworthy of so liberal an use of thy good Creatures and even of the necessary sustenance of life in an holy revenge upon my self for former excesses through heedlesness or wanton appetites in an humble desire of bringing forth some fruits worthy of repentance as also in honour of and conformity to thy hunger and thirst abstinence and austerity voluntarily undergone by thee to expiate the errors of our excesses Beseeching thee graciously to accept of me and mine as thou usest to do to those that love thy name and fear thy wrath and are displeased at themselves for having displeased thee and that judg themselves to prevent being judged of thee Purge and purifie our humiliations and abstinencies from all hypocrisie vain-glory and self-pleasing and offer it to thy holy Father in the Union and through the merits of thy holy Abstinences for the averting of thy Judgments and for procuring of thy grace and favour for my self and others to the beating down of the body and the bringing of it into subjection to the crucifying of the flesh with the affections and lusts for the disposing of my Soul to the more free influences of thy Divine Grace to fit me for Prayer Meditation and all other Blessings wherewith thou usest to crown the worthless service of thy poor Creatures infinitely beyond their deserts in such sort as shall seem good to thee and be expedient for us to thy Glory and to the Glory of the Father and the Holy Ghost Three persons and one God world without end Evening Thoughts and Exercises to Bedward The ADVICE DO not dare to go to Bed in such a state with such a conscience in which you do not dare to die For who can tell whether this night your Soul may not be required of you Having retired therefore and set God before you and your self before God stir up your self to an act of self-examination thus or to this purpose The MEDITATION SEE O my Soul the day is past the time of working is over the night is come and invites us to rest our life is one day shorter than it was in the Morning and what if it be our last Our gracious Lord has given us this day to serve him and what service have we done him to work out our Salvation in and what have we done towards it How have we spent this day how has it past from our down-lying to our uprising to the first hour the third the sixth the ninth to the Evening to this hour where was each hour spent and with whom and in what employment 2. What were the considerable passages of each hour what was done by us what devotions businesses recreations Have we ordered our Conversations aright to Godward in the exercises of Religion Prayer spiritual reading of this Book or other good Books of Devotion looking up to his hand in all things that befell us both the good and the evil directing all our doings to his Glory To our selves in the exercises of prudence ordering all our affairs wisely of Temperance moderating our selves Actions Appetites Affections of Courage both doing the good we had the power and opportunity to do notwithstanding the difficulty or danger and suffering the evil that befell us bearing afflictions pains losses injuries with patience and as much as may be with cheerfulness To others in the common exercises of Respects Justice Charity in our proper duties according to the special obligations of our Relations Callings Offices c. How have our thoughts been busied about wholsom good things or vain impertinent sinful dwelling upon such with delight Our Affections have they been set on things above or altogether on things of the Earth Our Senses how have they been disciplin'd or have they been loose or wanton wandring especially our Eyes Our Words have they been few discreet gracious or have they been light vain offensive boasting censuring And our doings of what worth in themselves or benefit to others or have they been of little worth in themselves or small benefit to others Our carriage how grave harmless affable obliging patient or otherwise How have we kept our Rule our Hours our Measures have we done all we were to do to day our daily tasks our accustomed devotions our proper businesses have we not exceeded for there is the danger in our Refections and Recreations have we done every thing as we ought Have willing distractions and careless indevotions stoln in upon us Our business was it begun with that purity of intention carried on with that diligence and industry and
with that constancy and unweariedness that was fitting till brought to an end our Refections and Recreations were they used with that sobriety as was meet and broken off with cheerfulness to go fresh to our Masters service again 3. Were all things done in their due and set time or did we fail otherwise than for necessity or charity out of inconstancy in good things or tediousness of our proper business 4. Lastly have we done what we might have done by the means afforded us by the opportunities offer'd us such hints given such impulsions moving such occasions inviting Or have we done contrary have we fail'd in any one kind or more in our duty or manner of doing it by omission not doing what we ought And how often and how deeply and why did we so Then sum up readily what comes to mind in every kind with ordinary intention of mind and without study such hath been our Lords blessings such his provisions for us such his scourges if any such temptations to prove our faithfulness and for return of service thus and thus have we done no better in answer to all his love and care for us All his talents helps means opportunities impulsions restraints upon us and these our rebellions if any gross sin these failings that we know of and for our secret sins who can tell how oft he offendeth and worse than thus we had done had not he upholden us with his hands prevented supported restrained us by his grace Lord I know I have done amiss I have done evil in thy sight thou alone knowest how much how evil Thou seest my Soul wherein thy discharge lies in a peace-offering of Praise a sin-offering of sorrow and contrition for offences committed with a promise of better obedience These make up the Evening Sacrifice and with these prepare to meet thy God A Prayer against Afflictions HEavenly Father seeing thou art willing so to have it let the cup of thy wrath and displeasure pass from us and let the cup of thy blessing be ever amongst us expose us not good Father to those bloody and grievous conflicts with the powers of Hell and darkness which thy Son sustained for us Oh lay no more upon us than thou shalt give us strength and patience through him and for him to undergo and vanquish Make us to triumph as conquerors in this victory over Hell and Satan over all the power of the enemy Amen A Brief Soliloquy by way of Admonition FOrasmuch as the violence of sickness which ordinarily goes before death hinders us often from applying our selves in due manner to God in our last duties suitable to that estate to prevent such hinderances it will be to very good purpose O my Soul to make choice of some solemn time of Retirement every year if not every week or day to do such duties in before-hand which then we should but cannot so well perform An Exercise Preparative to a good Death consisting of several Acts of Piety VIZ. I. Submission to the sentence of Death II. Thanksgiving for all benefits of the life past III. Confession of our Sins IV. A Prayer to die to Sin V. A Petition for the Virtues of the dying Jesus with special recommendation of those of our charge to Gods grace and blessing and of our own spirits into the hand of God I. A Submission to the Sentence of Death O Lord my God in most profound humility of Soul and Body I cast my self at the feet of thy Divine Majesty adoring thee as my Soveraign Judg who hast pronounc'd against me and all sinners in the first man that sinned the sentence of death saying Dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return In homage of thy Divine Justice I submit from my Soul to the sentence then pronounced against me acknowledging it most just and due to me both for that and infinite other sins of mine that I have since committed against thee As also in homage of the bloody and shameful death of thy Son Jesus Christ who after that he had suffer'd unspeakable sorrows of his soul in his Agony and bloody sweat offer'd up himself a Sacrifice for mine and the sins of the whole World I resign my self wholly to thy Will touching my death at least I desire so to do for the time and place and manner and all circumstances that all be according to the high pleasure of thy holy Will If thou hast ordained that I die a painful death and even a shameful death or that I should be forsaken and cast off by all humane succours so my God be ever with me I submit If I should be void of reason or sense by the extremity of my disease so as to fall into any idle or even evil words any thing against the Catholick Faith thy house or the purity of the Christian profession I yield my self a living sacrifice to thee to do and to be done with as it shall please thee Only I make this protestation that I abhor from my soul and renounce and hereby revoke all or any such words as may be offensive to Christian ears as none of mine humbly begging this my protestation may be entred in thy Book resolved and ready by thy grace if thou shouldst call me to die for the honour of thy name of the Christian Catholick faith and religion to thy glory and the eternal salvation of my poor soul through Jesus Christ our Lord Amen II. Having accepted the sentence of Death the first thing we are to do is to prepare for an holy Death to be thankful to God for all the benefits of this life GRacious God the fountain of all goodness and all Graces out of the storehouse of whose all-sufficiency Angels and Men and all Creatures have received all the good that is in them that they have and that they can do I bless and adore thy sacred Majesty for all thy goodness to all and especially to me and mine for all thy blessings of my being and well-being from the first hour of my conception to this day from the womb and from the breasts to my riper years to my age of full strength to my gray hairs for all thy blessings in the Ordinances of Nature and Grace and for the hopes of glory for all the Blessings of my Creation Redemption Preservation for all the good things thou hast bestowed upon me and all the evil thou hast saved me from or kept from me bodily or ghostly for the abundant supply of all my necessities of body and soul for all my worldly comforts and ghostly comforts for all thy mercies in forgiving my infinite transgressions for all thy patience in bearing with my follies and for thy long-suffering in my errors and strayings expecting my return and for all thy goodness in receiving thy child thy prodigal Child so graciously for all the gifts of grace for thy holy Spirit and for all the means of Grace and for the good use of it and them For all the good
thou hast done me by thy self or others Angels and Men the Ministers of thy providence to me for the good of my soul and body and for all the good thou hast wrought in me and for giving me grace and strength in the discharge of my duty to thee and my neighbour for all and every of thy blessings in every kind which are infinite for number and for worth invaluable and every way unspeakable whatsoever from thy bounteous hand I have received I thankfully return my heart and soul in a most grateful acknowledgment of thy infinite Bounty and my unworthiness with the tribute of all possible love honour and praise beseeching thee to the vast heap of all thy unspeakable blessings to add this one more of a thankful heart that with joyful lips and a glad heart I may praise and bless thee all the days of my life whilest I have any being here and in the land of the living in Heaven hereafter everlastingly Amen III. After Thanksgiving for all Benefits it will do well to make a confession and beg pardon for all our sins and to do it as if it were to be our last LOrd God who didst make me for nothing else but to serve thee and love thee who art most worthy of all love and service and to whom I have infinite obligations so to do With shame and blushing I confess I have not loved nor served thee as I ought nay I have dishonour'd thee and offended thee as I ought not doing what thou hast forbidden and not doing what thou hast commanded In my thoughts in my words in my actions by all the senses of my body and all the powers of my soul and all the Creatures which thou hast given to serve me in thy service transgressing thy Commandments infinite ways by numberless Transgressions O my sins my many sins my grievous sins my ingratitudes my unfaithfulness O that my soul were all sorrow my heart full of Contrition my eyes of Tears and if it might be tears of blood to blot out my offences against a God so glorious so gracious whom having all the reason in the world to love honour and to please I have so little loved so much dishonour'd and offended if all the torments and martyrdoms in the world all the violent and voluntary sufferings that such a wretch could endure were sufficient to expiate my faults sure I would at least I should undergo them to make amends for my Injuries against my God my dear God But alas they cannot repair the least injury nor satisfie for the least of my offences But this is my comfort thy Son my Saviour hath done it for me he hath honoured and pleased thee in all holy obedience in all his thoughts words and actions by all his senses the powers of his soul and members of his body and by all the Creatures of the world he made use of yielding exact obedience to thy holy will for me and by the sorrows and sufferings of his soul and body made full satisfaction for all my sins Him therefore I offer up to thee and all that he hath done and suffer'd for me that as thou hast promised I may be accepted to pardon grace and favour through him in whom thou canst not but be well pleased Holy Father look upon thy Son thy beloved Son and pardon thy ungracious servant Lord set thy sorrows and sufferings between my Sins and thy Fathers wrath that his justice being satisfied I may be received to mercy and as to God so to all Men and Angels and all Creatures whom I have injured do thou satisfie all my injuries and offences that none of them come in against me to accuse me at that day but that I may have a clear and full acquittance through thy blood O my dear Redeemer whereby thou hast fully purchased me that I may be wholly thine Amen IV. A Prayer to die to Sin LOrd Jesus Christ who didst die for me to the end I should no longer live to my self but unto thee who diedst for me and that so I might reckon my self dead indeed unto sin but alive unto God in righteousness and true holiness mortifie in me wholly the life of sin and of the old Adam that all my sins and even the affections and lusts thereof may die before me that I may be perfectly dead to the world and to my self and to all things else but thee Mortifie in such a manner my eyes mine ears my tongue my hands my feet my heart and every member of my body and all the powers of my Soul that I may no more see hear or speak or do or walk or think or wish or make any use of any Member of my body or faculty of my Soul to the service of 〈…〉 service of 〈…〉 may retain 〈…〉 â—…ctions 〈…〉 such 〈…〉 and 〈…〉 course 〈…〉 thy servant in this world to 〈◊〉 when death comes it find me not unprepared but that I may receive and welcome it as my summons to a better life where there is no sin nor temptation nor misery nor want nor pains nor death but bliss and happiness and joy and fulness of pleasure and life for evermore Amen V. A Petition for the Virtues of the Dying Jesus LOrd Jesus teach me when the time of my dissolution shall come to depart this life as thou didst with the like holy affections and dispositions of soul that thou hadst that I may loose hold not only of my sins and all that is sinful but even of all that is in the world the chiefest of the allowed comforts of it my dearest Friends and even my self to be ready at thy call as thou wast at thy Fathers Teach me as thou didst earnestly to commend to thy Father the care of the Catholick Church and especially of this of England my dear Mother to keep her in unity and purity to the end Teach me then and even now and till then to give good spiritual counsels and instructions to those about me as thou didst to thy followers Teach me from my heart to pardon all mine enemies as thou didst thine and to pity and pray for them with all other high and holy lessons of the Cross of submission to the hand of God his heavy hand of patience in pains of body and sorrows and heaviness in soul contempt of the world obedience to the death and all other those virtues which in the last act of thy life thou didst in a most eminent manner practise in thy self leaving the pattern for an example to all and to me in particular that I might practise them in my last Act and leave them as a Legacy to all mine Particularly teach me the art of true love to and of a right care for all mine that I leave behind me that as thou didst commend thy blessed Mother to the care of thy beloved Disciple so may I all my nearest Relations my my Friends to such as St. John was if such be to be had beloved of God and faithful in their trust that they may be so carefully instructed and bred up in piety and virtue as to live in holiness and righteousness all their days that when they come to depart this world as I am now a doing we may meet and enjoy one another in thee in bliss everlasting But if no such there be to whose hands I may leave them or if there be there is none to thee I consign them over unto thee the only friend of the friendless that thou conducting them either by thy self or by the Ministry of such faithful friends of their Souls as thou shalt raise them they may so pass with innocency through the things temporal that finally they lose not the things eternal And that I may not be ingrateful to all other my Benefactors whom thou hast used as thy instruments to convey thy Blessings Spiritual and Temporal to me for what I can make no return to them of I earnestly recommend them to thee to the riches of thy bounty and mercy to reward them sevenfold into their bosom humbly beseeching that they may find mercy in that day and abundant recompence in the day of recompence for all the good they have done to me in thy name and for thy sake Amen And now my God and my all as having nothing in the world left me but my self my sins I have renounced and all my affections to them as none of mine and the dearest pledges of my love which I have past over to thee as no longer mine but thine I cast off from me all the care of my self and cast all the care of me upon thee put off this earthly tabernacle of flesh when and as it pleaseth thee and return it to its ancient dust and commend my Spirit deliver'd from this burden of flesh by the Ministry of thy holy Angels to be presented to thy Father as pure and spotless as thy Divine Blood can make it that among those he hath given thee according as thou hast prayed and thy Father granted it may ever be where thou art And now what have I to do having taken leave of earth and sent my thoughts and desires and hopes and in them my soul to Heaven but to languish and call and cry and not to cease till I breath out my soul into thy hands Come Lord Jesus come quickly Amen and Amen DEus vitae meae quam vane consumpta sunt quam infructuose elapsa sunt tempora mea quae dedisti mihi ut facerem voluntatem tuam in eis non feci quanti Anni quot Dies quot Horae perierunt apud me in quibus sine fructu vixi coram te Quomodo subsistam quomodo levare potero oculos meos in faciem tuam in illo magno examine tuo si omnia peccata mea vel tempora mea fructus requisiveris singulorum Patientissime pater non fiat hoc sed sint in oblivione coram te Et quae perdidi tempora heu multa sunt nimis si quae te juvante utiliter servavi quorum O domine numerus brevis est in memoria aeterna fac permanere Fiat amande Pater saltem hoc residuum temporis mei fructuosum sanctificatum in Gratia tua ut in diebus Aeternitatis inveniat locum computabile sit ante te Amen FINIS
daily by it Grant me by the same spirit therefore to have a right Judgment in all things that I may both perceive and know what I have to do and have grace and power to fulfill the same Give me I beseech thee all the gifts and graces of thy holy Spirit Give me the spirit of wisdom to be sober wise and considerate in all things Give me the spirit of understanding to be quick clear and distinctive in my Apprehensions to distinguish between truth and falshood good and evil Give me the spirit of counsel to consult thy holy will and pleasure before I act any thing Make me meekly to receive all good counsel and prudently to give it Give me the spirit of ghostly strength that I may be modestly confident and impregnably couragious in thy service Give me the spirit of knowledg to know all thy revealed will to me and all my bounden duty to thee that so neither thy Law nor my duty thy mercy nor my sin may ever lie undiscerned in my Soul Give me I beseech thee the spirit of piety that I may ever be devoted unto thee And O my Saviour give me above all things thy holy filial fear that I may never more dare to offend thee Deliver me therefore I humbly beseech thee from all rashness inadvertency and inconsideration From a perverse confused unstable Understanding From refusing Counsel or neglecting to give it From ignorance of thy Will and my duty From all confidence of my self or diffidence in thee From all impiety and profaneness From casting off thy holy fear thereby growing bold or careless in offending And now dearest Lord having implored the gifts of thy holy Spirit and deprecated those evils that oppose it I humbly beg of thy divine Majesty the fruits of thy holy Spirit also that by finding those within me I may know thy holy Spirit rules and governs me Give me dear Lord I beseech thee an universal love make me to love thee for thy self my friend in thee and mine enemy for thee Give me joy in thee in thy works in thy ways in thy Laws in thy Saints and Servants in all the friends and blessings which I enjoy Give me O Prince of peace peace with thee my self my friends and enemies Give me patience in all my sufferings mercy to all who offend me or need my mercy Give me meekness in my heart words and behaviour in all to all Give me a true and irreprovable faith Give me modesty in all disputations shamefac'dness amidst all commendations sobriety in the midst of plenty that I never abuse thy bounty And with these give me I beseech thee the four Cardinal Virtues Prudence to govern me Justice to direct me Fortitude to discharge my duty Temperance to be moderate in all things Make me ever mindful Of Death to be prepared for it Of Heaven to desire it Of Judgment to dread it Of Hell to be deliver'd from it O keep me in with bit and bridle when I stick not close unto thee Make me to delight in the Assembly of the faithful to be among them that the holy Spirit which thou didst send upon thine Apostles may descend upon me even me also O my Lord compell I beseech thee my dearest N.N. to come in unto thee Make him to see the felicity of thy chosen Give him a taste and relish of all these Gifts and Graces of thy holy Spirit that he also may be filled with those unspeakable joys which they feel and find who spend their days and hours spirits souls and forces in knowing loving and obeying thee Give me the whole armor of God that I may resist all evil and persist in doing all good O give me the spirit of Grace and Supplication that these and all my other prayers may be acceptable to thee blessed to me and graciously answered for thy mercy sake Amen A Prayer to the Holy Ghost out of St. Augustine O Love of the Divine Power the holy Communication of the Omnipotent Lord and Father and of the most blessed Son come down even now I beseech thee by thy powerful Virtue into my Soul and get into all the corners of my heart and by thy splendor clearly illuminate all the darkness thereof Let thy gracious Visitation and abundant dew make my Soul fruitful in all good works pierce the most retired parts of mine inward man with the keen piercing darts of thy love enflame me with thy holy fires feed me with delicious Viands replenish me with thy Coelestial Graces Give me so to drink of the torrents of thy delights that I may have no taste of vain or sinful pleasures Come O thou comforter of all sorrowful Souls come thou comforter of the weak and strength of the strong come thou supporter of the falling and thou lifter up of the faln come thou cleanser of our sins and curer of our wounds Come thou teacher of the Meek and destroyer of the Proud Come O thou hope of the Poor and reviver of those that faint Come propitious Star of such as sail and haven against Shipwrack Come thou stay and comfort of those that live and thou only hope of all those that die Have mercy upon me have mercy upon me and make me fit for thy self and abide in me for ever And that thou mayst abide with me I do again beg of thee the fear of the Lord because this fear is Beautified by Wisdom Informed by Understanding Directed by Counsel Strengthened by courage Filled with Knowledg And crowned with Piety As this fear advanceth our knowledg so our knowledg brings us to this fear Therefore O thou only spirit of Wisdom give me this knowledg that I may always have this fear Such a fear as may make me wise unto Salvation Give me wisdom to understand thy Word Open mine eyes to see the wondrous things of thy Law Enlighten my Understanding to find out the hidden and glorious treasures thereof Fill me with the love of it With all delight in it Inspire me to meditate humbly of it Make me in every reading or hearing of it to profit by it and in all things to be obedient to it Amen Dearest Lord and most blessed Saviour give me I beseech thee such grace in meditating such divine light in understanding thy sacred sufferings in thy passion for me That by faith I may believe in thee and depend upon thy Merits therein By love feel thy sufferings be crucified to the world and be transformed into thee Make me willing to suffer any thing for thee Enable me to imitate thee in all thy imitable perfections and virtues which thou hast exemplified to me in this thy sacred Passion Give me the vast extensive love which thou didst shew to Almighty God in thy obedience to his Will and satisfaction of his Justice Give me that great Zeal of Souls which thou hadst even to die for their good especially their Coversion as thou didst for their Salvation Give me O Lord I beseech thee thy
to do O give me the Image of thy Soul and let the same mind be in me that was in Christ Jesus both towards thine Eternal Father and towards all thy Creatures Let me despise all the vanities which thou didst contemn that I may enter into thy Joys and live in Communion with thee for ever Amen A Prayer upon the Day of Pentecost O Lord my Light my Life and Confidence my Love and my only Happiness I place my whole hope and trust in thee I now expect from thine infinite Bounty thy Holy Spirit which thou hast promised in thy mercy O send out thy Light and thy Truth unto me Thy Word is Truth thy Spirit is Truth thou O God art the God of Truth Inspire me with thy Truth and make me to know the Truth embrace love live in the Truth believe and speak the Truth serve obey and praise thee in Truth now and for evermore O blessed Jesus all the Treasures and Joys thou gavest us in thy Birth all the Mercies and mysteries of thy Life all the Benefits of thy Death and Passion all the Victories and Joys of thy Resurrection all the Triumphs and places thou givest us in thy Ascension all the advantages of thy Session and Intercession are lockt up and seal'd in this promise of sending the Holy Ghost Till he unlock and open these Treasuries to us till he illuminate us in and fit us for them till he reveal and apply them to us we cannot enjoy them O send thy Spirit then into us and seal all thy Mercies by him upon us now and evermore Amen Confession of Sin out of Bishop Andrews I Confess O Lord that I was shapen in wickedness and in sin hath my Mother conceived me That I was brought forth in uncleanness That I am a root of bitterness A wild Vine of Sodom A branch of the wild Olive A child of wrath a vessel of dishonour My heart is rebellious like a starting bow My throat an open sepulchre venting folly My lips so polluted that my tongue talketh nothing but vanity Mine eyes and my tongue uncircumcised I have a forehead of brass and a neck of iron My hand slow to do good and my feet swift to do evil I have sin'd against thee O Lord and trespassed in thy sight not fearing thy Majesty My sins are in quantity large of long continuance from my Mothers womb deep heavy like a burden like lead reaching to Heaven with their cry Many in number like the Starrs More than the hairs of my head or the sands of the Sea oftentimes reiterated as a fountain casting out waters till they become as a habit as red as scarlet and crimson For I am sold under sin I sin till they become natural to me like the Aethiopian's skin and the Leopards spots In quality sins as strong as cords and cart-ropes gaining nothing therby For a handful of Barley and a little Bread Committing sin with greediness sin upon sin with impudence not being ashamed knowing it to be sin Giving offence thereby unthankfully like the dog to the vomit Like the Sow to the mire Therefore O Lord because thou art just and thy Judgments true I do or may reap the fruit of my foolishness For what fruit have I in those things whereof I am now ashamed My days are consumed in vanity and my years in the bitterness of my Soul and now there is no health in me because of thy displeasure nor any rest by reason of my sin My Heart trembleth also for fear of thee and I am afraid of thy Judgments I feel bitterness beyond the bitterness of death for ever forsaking thee or being forsaken by thee Wo unto me rebellious wretch for so doing by which I become so vile I loath and abhor my self I have roar'd for the very disquietness of my heart And what shall I now say or how shall I open my mouth What shall I answer seeing I have done these things Miserable man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death When I have not what I can farther say or do this only remaineth this is my last refuge that I direct mine eyes unto thee Out of the deep have I cried unto thee O Lord Lord hear my vâ—ice If thou Lord shouldst be extream to mark what is done amiss who may abide it Enter not into Judgment with thy servant for in thy sight shall no man living be justified Wherefore O Lord I appeal from thee unto thee From thee a just Judg to thee a merciful Father From the Throne of thy Justice to the seat of thy Mercy O Lord be pleased to admit of this appeal if thou do not I perish and carest thou not that I perish who wouldst have all to be saved and none to perish I am thine O save me Despise not the works of thine own hands who hatest nothing that thou hast made I am thy servant the Son of thine handmaid I am called by thy name I am the price of thy Blood O spare thy workmanship spare thy child Thy name the price of thy Son's Blood But I am a sinner and God beareth with sinners be pleased to bear with me and remember of what I am made Remember that I am but dust Frail flesh light wind loose dust and wilt not thou O Lord break a leaf driven to and fro by the wind wilt thou pursue dry stubble Behold O Lord though I have sinned I humble my self before thee Spare the humble and contrite David spared Shimei that railed on him and David was a man after thine own heart therefore do thou spare me Ahab forgave the King of Assyria his offences upon his humiliation Was there ever King of Israel so merciful as thou art Thou therefore whose very nature is to have mercy have mercy upon me spare me and be not angry with thy servant for ever but for the sake of Jesus Christ turn away thy wrath from me and be reconciled to me Accept the sacrifice of a contrite heart and grieved Soul a wounded spirit a troubled conscience pity me and spare me though I have so grievously sin'd against thee It hath ever been thy practice to be merciful They trusted and were not confounded Thy Mercies have been ever of old When I look at the Generations of old I see never any trusted in thee and was confounded and thou never didst despise those that called upon thee Remember thy word unto thy servant in which thou hast caused me to hope Thou hast blessed the man that trusteth in thee my whole trust is in thee let me never be confounded Thy Mercies O Lord are comfortable better than life many plentiful and tender superabundant wonderful and infinite preventing us following us compassing us pardoning iniquity transgression and â—…n Thou art the Father of Mercies Thou sparest when we deserve punishment and in thy wrath thinkâ—… upon mercy Gently correcting in the midst of wrath remembring mercy It being of thy mercy that we