and to do The careful and Religious use of it would tie Children more strictly to mind the great concerns of their Souls it would afford them occasion to consider what it is to have been Baptised and to be a Christian It would work in them a more Powerful Sense of the Obligations of Christianity and make them more careful to live up to that Holy Religion whereof they made so publick a Profession It would make them more afraid to do bad things against which they had protested so solemnly And not only fear but shame in this case would restrain them from doing wickedly This would be to young People a great defence against Temptations Bad Men would not so boldly ask them to sin if they knew they had openly and Solemnly disowned and renounced them and all their wicked Courses and if they were tempted they would be more apt to say in their own minds Shall we do such wicked things and run the hazard of being Covenant-breakers and Perjured Persons Shall we commit such Villanies and practice such Abominations and thereby break our Solemn Vow and Engagement Shall we by our Folly and Impiety give occasion of Offence and Scandal to the Church of Christ which he hath purchased with his Blood Shall we renounce the Captain of our Salvation and prove Deserters who have so lately vowed to renounce the Devil and all his Works What a mighty defence would this be to your Children when Assaulted by the fiery Darts of the Devil the Vanities of the World and the Lusts of their own Deceitful Hearts to consider that by their own actual Consent they have renounced all these and given up themselves into the Hands of God to be kept by his Mighty Power through Faith unto Salvation They have Vowed and they ought to perform it to keep his Righteous Judgments These things being impartially considered should mightily excite Parents to see that their Children do openly and Solemnly proâ—ess their Faith in Christ Crucified their Resolution to Obey him to Serve him and Love him to fight under his Banner against Sin the Devil and the World and to continue his Faithful Souldiers and Servants unto their lives end Is not this your Glory that your Children are Christians And do you think it a Shame or Dishonour for you or them if they make a Solemn Profession of their Christianity that they avoâ— their Religion and will by God's help make good the Promise which was made in their Name in Baptism Of so great Importance is this Custom that the greatest Men amongst the Reformers did highly commend it and did earnestly wish that it might be restored as a thing of great use towards the reviving the true Spirit of Christianity 8. Duty to encourage them to come to the Lord's Table Eightly When they are fit for it you should encourage them to come to the Table of the Lord that they may be strengthened in their most Holy Faith and further assured of the Love of God that they may make a publick Profession of their Christianity of their Love to their Lord and Master Jesus of their Charity to all Men and of their sincere Affection to those who are Christ's Members and Followers They ought to make use of this Holy Sacrament that their Love to their dearest Lord and Saviour may be kindled and enflamed by remembring his Love and shewing forth his Death that they may bind themselves more strictly to Serve and Obey him and to fulfil their Baptismal Engagement How glad should Parents be to see their Children advanced to this Honour to eat and drink at their Lord's Table to partake of so great a Testimony of his Kindness and Friendship How earnestly should they encourage them to embrace this opportunity of renewing their Covenant with the Lord to live and to die his Faithful Servants Do you not desire to have them saved to have them delivered from their Lusts and Passions their Pride and Vanity their Bitterness and Wrath their Malice and Envy and from all manner of Sin and Folly To be made pure and clean in Heart and Life to be made meet for that Holy Place where no unclean thing can enter Do you not desire that their Sins may be blotted out that they may be washed with the Blood of their Saviour And yet do you not advise and entreat them for their Souls Health and Safety to come to the Holy Communion which is designed as a means for these excellent and great Ends and Purposes to as many as are qualified according to the Terms of the Gospel that is who unfeignedly repent of their Sins and believe in the Lord Jesus with all their Heart But alas how far are too many Parents from doing this for their Children How many do either wholly or for the most part neglect and slight this Holy Ordinance themselves as if our Lord had without any just or necessary ground appointed it How can such Persons expect the precious Fruits of the Death of Christ who will not remember his Death when he so lovingly and kindly calls and invites them to do it Do this says he in remembrance of me What a great Argument is it of a wonderful decay of true Piety and Religion in the World when Men do thus despise and set at naught the kindness of their Lord and Saviour When they refuse to do a thing so just and reasonable and so easie as this is which tends so much to his Glory and their own true Happiness and Welfare both here and hereafter 9. Duty to take care that they accustom themselves to Self-Examination Ninthly When they are fit for it see that they accustom themselves to Self-Examination that they spend a few Moments every Night if another time of the Day be not more convenient for them to do it in in calling themselves to an account that they may see what good or what evil they have done that they may give Praise and Thanks unto God for any thing they have done which was good and right and that they may confess their Sins and Follies begging his Gracious Pardon and renewing their Purposes and Resolutions to do better for the time to come But besides these daily short Reviews of their Heart and Life 't is fit to call â—pon them when they are well advanced iâ— Years to a more strict and Solemn Examination of themselves to Prayer and Fasting as their Age and Strength can bear it This may be done at first once a Month or once iâ— two Months or once a Quarter at least but after some time it may be done oftner according as your necessary Affairs and your Circumstances in the World will permit They who are Great and Rich ought so much the more frequently to call upon their Children to those private extraordinary Excrcises of Devotion because their outward Estate in the World does ordinarily afford them enough of time and leisure for such Performances if they will but redeem it from Idleness and
to remove them Teach them to yield and to condescend to one another to take pleasure in gratifying rather than in overcoming one another to rejoice in the Company of one another to be mightily concerned for one another's Happiness and Welfare to be upon all occasions ready to help and assist one another to sympathize very tenderly with one another in any Pain Grief or Loss and in a Loving and Friendly manner to tell one another of their Faults without publishing of them Do not encourage them to speak ill of one another and to report every little thing whereby they think to lessen one another in your Esteem and Affection Such things use to be the Seeds of Discord and Contention amongst Children and therefore Wise Parents ought to prevent them as much as may be If you find them over Curious to know what may be their Lot and Fortune as 't is called in the World and therefore apt to hearken to Gypsies and Fortune-Tellers to consult with Divinatory Books and to use such other Wicked tho' but too common Arts for gratifying their Curiosity do what in your lyes to deliver them from such dangerous and unlawful Practices Shew them what is written Levit. 20. 6. The Soul that turneth after such as have familiar Spirits and after Wizards to go a whoring after them I will even set my fave against that Soul and will â—ut him off from among his People And Isa. 8. 19. When they shall say unto you seek unto them that have familiar Spirits and unto Wizards that peep and that mutter should not a people seek unto their God Likewise Deut. 18. 10 11. There shall not be found among you any one that useth Divination or an observer of times or an Inchanter or a Witch or a Charmer or a Consulter with familiar Spirits or a Wizard or a Necromancer For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord. Shew them that they who follow such courses do thereby provoke God to leave them and to deliver them over to the Wicked one that he may bring upon them those Calamities and Judgments which they deserve and which perhaps they were told should happen to them Not as if those Pretenders to Prophecy did infalliblâ— know what would come to pass which most certainly they do not but God in his Righteous Judgment doth often punish with some remarkable stroke such curious Persons who presume to enquire into those things which he has thought fit to conceal from them 'T is said of Saul 1 Chron. 10. 13 14. That he died for his Transgression and also for asking Counsel of one that had a familiar Spirit to enquire of it and enquired not of the Lord Therefore he slew him And tho' they who have been guilty of such impious Enquiries shall be delivered from Eternal Condemnation and possibly from some great punishments in this Life if they sincerely Repent of their Sin and Folly yet oftentimes they suffer not a little from the impressions which are made on their fancy by their having heard that some Tragical thing or other should befall them How many even good People having found unspeakable uneasiness almost all their Life time only by having heard it said without their own asking by such impious pretenders to Divination that thus or thus it should happen to them Tho' they abhorred and despised such things and did what they could to be delivered from having any Reflections upon them yet now and then of a sudden their fancy has been struck therewith which did not a little disquiet and disturb them From all which it appears how necessary it is for Parents to prevent their Childrens doing such things Shew them that their only safe way is to be always careful to do what is good and right to make the Laws of God their Rule to seek his Glory as their chief end to depend on him for direction and assistance never to be anxious about what is to come but to leave all Events to his Wise and Good Providence humbly to resign themselves to his Holy Will and Pleasure and to be always ready to be disposed of as he shall see fit Tell them which you may do with great assurance that if they do these things they may be confident that all shall be well for God will not fail according to his Promise to make all things even the greatest Afflictions work together for good to them that Love him Rom. 8. 28. If you perceive them to be unthankful for Favours and Benefits so as not to take notice of those who help and assist them and who have done them or are always ready to do them good Offices endeavour to cure them of this very ill Quality Cause them to thank those who are kind and serviceable to them strive to make them retain a lasting Sense of Kindnesses and to be ready when there is an opportunity to make some fit acknowledgment and return For which end 't will be convenient now and then to give them some small matter according to your Quality for a present to those who have been at some pains to serve them or who have been very Bountiful or Generous to them And when they make an acknowledgment for Favors received advise them to do it with a chearful Countenance so as to express thereby the inward Sense of their Minds that they to whom they make the return of Kindness may see how hearty and real they are that they do it not grudgingly but very willingly There is the greater need to instil into your Childrens Minds Principles of Gratitude because 't is so very common amongst Men to be unthankful For what is there more common than to see those neglected and slighted who have been very kind and serviceable How many root up those by whom themselves have been planted How many basely betray their truest Friends and greatest Benefactors How many think it a disparagement to be so much as thought to be beholden to others tho' their Obligations be very great Now what can there be more base and abominable than such a Temper as this What Villany and Wickedness seem they not likely to commit who have no Sense of Benefits The Apostle Paul reckoneth unthankfulness amongst the great Sins which make the last days perilous and difficult 2 Tim. 3. 2. To excite your Children to be thankful shew them how great an abhorrence the very Heathens had of Ingratitude they thought it one of the worst things you could say of them to call them unthankful they reckoned that this Name included all the bad things that could be imagined that unthankfulness was the Fountain from whence the greatest Vices did spring See Sen. de Benef. l. 1. c. 10. 'T was a very Excellent and Commendable Custom amongst the Persians * that they who were over their Children amongst other things taught them Gratitude so that if any of the Boys was able to make a grateful return
but did it not they punished him severely for they judged that they who were unthankful would also neglect their Duty to God to their Parents their Country and Friends Amongst other things to be suggested to your Children to stir them up to be Thankful you may represent to them what a shame it is for them to be unthankful when the very Beasts both Tame as may be seen every day and wild as several Authors tell us do things which look like a grateful acknowledgment to their Benefactors If you find them to be of too Prodigal a Temper apt to be too profuse in their Expences ready to throw away their Money upon Trifles and when there is no reasonable occasion for it you ought by all prudent and proper Methods to endeavour to make them a little more discreet and careful That they waste nothing in vain that may be of use to poor People That they do not throw away that which may do good at some time or other Suggest often to them that we are Stewards of whatever God bestows upon us that he will call us to an Account and that therefore we ought to employ to good purpose all those good things he gives us Shew them what our Saviour said to his Disciples after he had fed five thousand men with five Loaves and two Fishes Joh. 6. 12. When they were filled he said unto his Disciples Gather up the fragments that remain that nothing be lost He would not have any thing lost 〈◊〉 thrown away unnecessarily whi◠might be useful afterwards to one 〈◊〉 other If you find them of a Covetous Temper endeavou◠to enlarge their thoughts b◠the Principles of Christian Charity Shew them what an excellent thi◠it is to do good to shew mercy an◠kindness to make Peoples hearts glad◠Accustom them to the doing such kin◠and charitable Offices for which en◠give them now and then money an◠other things to bestow on those wh◠are poor and needy Shew them th◠evil of Covetousness that it 's the ro◠of all evil that it take◠the heart off from God an◠rendereth it unfit for th◠consideration of Divin◠things and for all worthy and useful designs that it disposeth◠man for the basest and vilest action◠and undertakings as it did Judas to betray his Lord That it bereaves him of true repose and satisfaction of mind and pierceth him through with many sorrows 1 Tim. 6. 9. 10. If you perceive them to be naturally melancholy and fearful of every little thing endeavour to chear up their Spirits Suggest to them such considerations and possess them with such Maxims and Principles as tend to fortifie their minds against those things which are apt to make them uneasie and are the occasion of their fear If their distemper proceed from some bodily indisposition as oft-times it does use such helps as are necessary When such evil habits of body are once rooted and strongly fixed and when the blood and spirits are deeply infected therewith they are a very grievous clog to the Soul and a great hindrance to that chearfulness and liberty of Spirit wherewith people ought always to endeavour to serve God If you see them to be of too gay and airy a Temper so that they cannot fix and be stayed at any time you are to use a great deal of prudence and discretion to compose and settle their Spirits See that they use their Wit and Fancy without giving offence and that they hurt no body by indecent reflections Let them by no means take liberty to indulge their humour in jesting about things that are Sacred or that have any relation thereto But you are to take heed lest your endeavouring to cure one fault occasion another lest your striving to deliver them from one extream drive them to the contrary that is lest instead of their being too gay you make them melancholy and dull Their Wit and Spirit is not to be rooted out but reformed and rightly managed for this may be of use for seasoning and sweetning Conversation If you observe them to be rash and forward ready to speak and act without due consideration strive to make them more cautious and circumspect to reflect and think a little more on what they say and do lest otherwise they fall into a habit of speaking and acting impertinently and indiscreetly When they say or do a foolish thing for lack of consideration then take occasion to make them sensible what a shame it is for them to do so what a reproach to those who are reasonable Creatures to speak and act like Fools without Reason and Understanding Shew them some of the bad consequences which attend speaking and acting in this manner Particularly that such Persons not only expose themselves to Contempt and Scorn but likewise to a great deal of danger and trouble Tell them how a great many by their rash and unadvised though not ill intended Speeches and Actions have not only highly exasperated their Enemies but also provoked their Friends and forfeited their kindness which thereby has been changed sometimes into the utmost Indignation and Hatred Shew them how some by this means have lost their Estate their Honour and Life it self and not only have ruined themselves by their rashness and folly but likewise a great many of their best Friends and dearest Relations A due sense of these things ought to excite all Parents to do what they can to render their Children very considerate and wary in whatever they say or do And because for lack of knowledge and experience they are in hazard to fall into many miscarriages and to commit great absurdities if they govern themselves wholly by their own fancy and apprehension or by their inclinations and desires therefore direct them to ask you or to ask others whom you recommend to them whether it be fit for them to do this or that which they have a mind to do It will be of unspeakable advantage to them all their Life long to learn this piece of Wisdom betimes to wit to be jealous and not too confident of their own Apprehensions and Opinions and to have a great regard for the Judgment and Opinion of others Solomon makes this a distinguishing Mark betwixt a wise Man and a Fool that the way of a Fool is right in his own Eyes and therefore he scorns to ask the opinion or to follow the advice of others but he that hearkeneth unto Counsel is wise Prov. 12. 15. Thus you are to make it your Business to watch over your Children and to consider what are their defects and faults and to do all that you can to cure them thereof and to direct them in the ways of Wisdom and Virtue You are careful to pluck up the weeds in your Gardens while they are yet young and not deeply rooted lest otherwise the good Seeds should be choak'd up with them How much more careful ought you to be lest the Souls
be got by heart for this will do more hurt than good A few things well understood do better than a great many by rote Be careful lest they read any Books which tend to poyson their minds to fill them with false Opinions or to lead them to bad practices Their tender minds are apt very quickly to be corrupted by such Treatises Even they who are of a more fixed and solid Virtue are in danger of receiving hurt by reading such Books especially when they are writ with great Art and when their Notions are represented in fair and Beautiful Colours They are apt to impress on the Fancy some Images of no good consequence to the Soul How great need therefore have Parents to restrain their Children from reading such Books as tend to pollute their innocent and chaste minds which are capable of receiving any sort of impressions either good or bad As for Books of Devotion great care is to be taken that only such be put into their hands as are writ in a plain and easie style which treat of things fit and needful to be known by them and which are most likely to make them Wise and Good They are to be accustomed to the Writings of those who are Men of greatest Moderation who do not impose their own conceits as necessary Rules of Devotion who do not require such things as absolutely needful to be done which God hath not declared to be so nor yet who shorten the Rule by cutting off such things as God hath injoyned us All Books which lead Men to extreams are carefully to be avoided and such Treatises are to be made use of as contain the plain and necessary Doctrines of Christianity which tend to inspire Men with the Spirit of Purity of Truth of Peace and Love which promote Sincerity Justice Temperance Charity Meekness Humility Patience Resignation to the Will of God in all things Zeal for his Honour and Glory a firm Belief and Trust in him c. When it is requisite to acquaint them with the different Opinions amongst Protestants that their minds may not be unfixed and unsettled when they go abroad into the World be sure not to put into their hands such Tracts as are writ with a fiery uncharitable Spirit and in a Dogmatick and Magisterial manner but such as are writ with great Temper and Moderation which tend to heal the Church of all Contentions and Divisions and not to kindle and increase them which do not load Mens Opinions with unjust extravagant and impious consequences which never entred into the minds of those who vouched them but such as make fair and favourable Constructions and just allowances Such Treatises are chiefly to be chosen for them which dispose Men to be humble and modest not to be stiff and pertinacious in their own private Sentiments not rashly and severely to condemn others who have different thoughts and never on the account of any such particular Opinions to break the Peace of Christian Society nor to grow more cold in their respect and affection towards those who have not the same thoughts with themselves in lesser matters They are as it were to feed upon Books of this sort and carefully to digest them 6. Duty to bring them to the place of publick Worship so soon as they are fit for it Sixthly You are to bring them to the place of publick Worship so soon as they are fit for it that they may have the benefit of the Prayers of God's People and may learn as they are capable somewhat that may make them wiser and better Thus we find when Joshua read the Law before the Congregation the little Ones are mentioned as present amongst the Men and Women Josh. 8. 35. Teach them to pray to God before they go to Church and to beg of him that he would fit them and assist them to joyn in the publick Worship with unfeigned Devotion and to hear the Word in a right manner Teach them also to pray for all those whom God employs to Preach his Word and particularly for his Servant whom they are to hear that he would Sanctifie him and direct and enable him to teach others the true way to Life and Blessedness And as you ought to direct them what to do before they go to Church so you must take heed how they carry themselves in the House of God that it be with all possible silence and reverence and that they perform their publick Devotions in a decent manner See that they do not spend their time in gazing upon others in observing their Dresses and Modes their looks and Gestures nor yet in bowing and making Courtesies to every body of their Acquaintance they happen to see in the midst of their Prayers Though this be too common a Practice yet it ought carefully to be avoided as unsuitable to that seriousness that fear and Reverence that Fervency and Devotion which true Worshippers of God ought to be possessed with when in the most Solemn manner they are or ought to be employed either in paying their Homage to the King of Heaven and Earth their Lord their Maker and Saviour or in hearing the Message that is delivered in his Name by his Ambassadors When they come from Church see what they remember if they have got any thing by heart encourage them If they remember nothing you may tell them somewhat or other of the Sermon which is fit for them to learn Stir them up so soon as their Years are fit for it to meditate more or less on what they have heard that so the Word of God may profit them Shew them that as their Food cannot nourish them if their Stomach do not concoct and digest what they Eat and Drink so neither will the Word of God nourish quicken and strengthen their Souls if they do not by serious Meditation digest what they read and hear Endeavour by their constant attendance on the publick Worship to beget in them a mighty regard thereto as being one great means appointed of God to increase in them true Knowledge and Piety Let them not spend the rest of the Lords Day in rambling about but so far as their Age can bear it let them be imployed usefully Shew them why they should observe this Day to wit because on it Our Blessed Lord Jesus Christ rose from the Grave Triumphed over Death and finished the work of Our Redemption As He was delivered and died for our Offences so He was raised again for our justification Rom. 4. 25. To us the Lord's Day saith One of the Ancients is therefore venerable and to be observed in a Solemn manner because thereon Our Saviour as the rising Sun having dispelled the darkness of Death shone forth by the Light of His Resurrection 'T will not be unfit to acquaint them with some instances of God's righteous and dreadful judgments against prophaners of this Day and particularly how a great many who have come to an untimely
use of them likewise and if they do not serve the turn then try the Rod Chasten thy Son says Solomon Prov. 19. 18. while there is hope and let not thy Soul spare for his crying And Ch. 13. 24. he saith He that spareth his Rod hateth his Son but he that loveth him Chasteneth him betimes But let this be always the last Remedy after you have in vain attempted their Reformation by milder and gentler Methods And when you use Severity do it with due moderation not exceeding the Quality of the Fault Beware of using great Severity when the Fault is very small and inconsiderable Respect must also be had to the Age Temper and Disposition of your Children if they are very young and tender your Correction must be the more gentle and moderate and if they are of a flexible and Ingenuous Temper you must be the more Favourable towards them Beware of correcting them when you find your Anger very hot for then you are apt to do more hurt than good Your Passion will hurry you if you restrain it not into somewhat or other very wicked as well as indiscreet it will make you do and say a great many things very unworthy of a Christian. Always therefore be careful that your Reason and not your Passion direct you in so important a matter as this is â—f once you fall into the rough severe and violent Method of dealing with your Children there are a great many Disadvantages will attend it First You discourage your Children you break their Spirits you make them unfit for any useful thing you tempt them to do such things as are hurtful to themselves and may prove grievous to you If Oppression makes a wise Man mad 't is no wonder if a Child or young Person is sadly disordered and made half mad by cruel and tyrannâ—câ—l usage Tho' it be a Fault in Children to be so yet Parents ought to be careful not to provoke them overmuch to wrath by a severe unmerciful carriage towards them 'T is not the less important and true because it is a common Observation to wit That a tender Sprig which grows crooked may be made straight by little and little if you bend it and handle it gently but if you bend it with great Force and Violence you may quickly break it Thus it is with Children generally who discover very early somewhat of crookedness in their Nature which is increased by evil Example if you use mild and gentle Methods to reform them temper'd now and then as need shall require with a little severity there is hopes that by degrees they will be reformed and made straight but if instead of this moderate course you use cruel Methods and deal rigidly and unmercifully with them you cannot expect any other but that their Spirits should be broken or hardened and so lose all sense of Ingenuity Secondly You kindle your own Passions you disorder your minds and accustom your selves to a fiery Temper you become fierce barbarous and savage whereby you turn one of your great Temporal Comforts into a grievous Cross and heavy Burden Thirdly You hereby likewise teach your Children through your Example to be of a passionate and violent Spirit and so you do them more hurt than all your Corrections and Instructions can do them good Never think to cure them of their Faults by your committing as bad your selves You must not do evil that good may come of it The Wrath of Man worketh not the Righteousness of God Fourthly You make your Children care less for your Corrections than otherwise they would do When you are always beating them in your Passion and tormenting them they must needs think that you do so not so much for any Fault they are guilty of as because you are very passionate and therefore must give your Passion a vent one way or other If therefore you would chasten your Children to good purpose do it when your Spirits are cool when your Reason is at hand to direct you and to keep you within bounds and not when you have lost your selves by being under the Power of a violent Passion If you are careful to follow this Christian Method you may then expect that God's kind Providence will second you in your Endeavours for reforming your Children Either they will grow better or however you will find Peace and Comfort when in this manner you govern your selves by the Laws of Religion and are not led by your unruly Passion That Parents may the better perform their Duty in correcting their Children they ought to observe and imitate the Example of our Heavenly Father who tho' whom he loveth he chasteneth Heb. 12. 6. yet he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the Children of Men. Lam. 3. 33. He does not make use of the Rod but when it is necessary when his Mercy and Kindness do not prevail And when he does correct in the midst of Wrath he remembreth Mercy When he visits the Transgressions of his Children with the Rod and their Iniquity with Stripes Nevertheless his loving Kindness he does not take utterly from them nor suffer his Faithfulness to fail Ps. 89. 32 33. He is always ready to receive his penitent Children to have Mercy upon them He does not keep his Anger for ever A due Consideration of these things will direct Parents how to correct their Children both as to Time and Measure To what hath been said it will not be unfit to add That to render Reproof and Correction the more effectual it is necessary that both Parents concur therein not as if it were proper for them both together or one after another to reprove or chasten their Children for the same Fault for this would be rather very improper for the most part But when one of the Parents chides of corrects their Children the other ought so far to concur as to approve what is done and shew their displeasure towards those Children who have done that which deserves Chastisement They must not oppose one another in this matter when one reproves the other must not approve and commend when one condemns the other must not justifie when one endeavours to correct the other must not hinder it Otherwise the Children will be lost for it is not likely they will amend their Faults if they see that either of their Parents is their Patron to encourage and defend them or to excuse and extenuate what they do amiss They who are wise Parents ought to be so far from doing this that tho' one of them should happen to reprove or chasten a Child when there is no very great necessity for so doing yet the other Parent whether Father or Mother ought to conceal their present thoughts and wait a fit occasion to discourse the matter together that such unnecessary Reproofs and Chastisements may be prevented for the future If Parents do not carefully observe this Rule their Children will be sure to take notice of their Indiscretion and to make
perform these things Consider first it is the Will of God that you bring up your Children in his Fear and acquaint them with his Holy Laws and Commandments He who made you requires you to do this he who preserves you and keeps you alive he who is your King and Lord who has a right to your service to all that you are able to do who is your Father in Heaven who daily takes care of you and Loads you with his benefits who is the God of your Salvation who hath sent his Son into the World to die for you It is even he who saith Deut. 6. 6 7. And these words which I command thee this day shall be in thine Heart And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy Children and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house and when thou walkest by the way and when thou liest down and when thou risest up And Eph. 6. 4. And ye Fathers provoke not your Children to Wrath but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. 'T is He who Established a Testimony in Jacob and appointed a Law in Israel Which he Commanded our Fathers that they should make them known to their Children That the Generation to come might know them even the Children that should be born Who should arise and declare them to their Children That they might set their hope in God and not forget the Works of God but keep his Commandments And might not be as their Fathers a stubborn and Rebellious Generation a Generation that set not their heart aright and whose Spirit was not stedfast with God Psal. 78. 5 6 7 8. If you then be the Subjects the Servants and the Children of the great God If you love and fear Him as you ought to do you will be sure to make it your Business to train up your Children in true Virtue and Piety to make them what God requires them to be holy as he who hath called them is holy in all manner of Conversation you will excite them to strive to enter in at the strait gate To work out their Salvation with fear and trembling To remember their Creator in the days of their youth Tâ— seek God while He may be found and to call upon Him while he is near To love the Lord with all their heart and theâ— Neighbours as themselves To endeavour to follow the Example of our Blessed Master to Learn of him to be meek and lowly to take up their Cross and to bear it patiently to be zealous for the Glory of God to abound in the work of the Lord not to be weary in well-doing but to grow in Grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Secondly Is not this a work worthy of all your care and pains to save the Souls of those who are parts of your selves who derive their Being from you You are the Instruments not only of their being but the means of conveying unto them natural defilement and corruption And therefore you ought with a great deal of Zeal to endeavour to have their pollutions washed off by true unfeigned Repentance and a hearty turning from Sin unto God by their putting off the works of darkness and putting on the Armour of Light by their putting on the Lord Jesus Christ and walking as he walked Are you ready to do all that you can to make your Children Rich and Wealthy Great and Honourable in the World And yet are you at so little pains to do that for them which tends to make them rich in Faith and Heirs of a Glorious Inheritance You endeavour to acquaint them with those who may be useful to them in their worldly Affairs and Concerns And why do you not strive to acquaint them with God their greatest and best Friend who is sure to stand by them to take them up and to take care of them when all forsake them and turn their backs upon them Why do you not with greater earnestness endeavour to procure unto them his Friendship and Love who is infinitely Powerful and infinitely Good and Kind and therefore not only can but will do for them exceeding abundantly above all that either you or they can think or ask Thirdly The doing of this is attended with great Rewards not only in another World but even in this Life You cannot but find unspeakable Joy and Comfort when you behold your Children walking in the Fear of God going from Strength to Strength and from Grace to Grace that at last they may come and appear before the Lord in Sion It will free you from a great many anxious thoughts about them for the time to come when you know that they have God for their Friend who will be a Guide and Buckler to them What a great Satisfaction will it afford you to think that they for whom you make so great Provision and are at so much pains are Good and Wise and in all Probability will make good use of what is given them or designed for them When you see them humble of a mild and gentle Temper apâ— to bear uneasie things Meekly and Patiently when you see them Sober and Temperate Charitable and Compassionate Just and Upright True and Faithful Wise and Prudent Devout and Religious Zealous for the Honour of God and studying daily to grow up in all Virtue and Piety how will this fill you with a Pleasure that cannot be expressed So true is it that is said by the Wise Man Prov. 15. and 20. A Wise Son maketh a Glad Father And Ch. 23. v. 24 25. The Father of the Righteous shall greatly rejoyce and he that begetteth a wise Child shall have Joy of him Thy Father and thy Mother shall be glad and she that bare thee shall rejoyce They who Plant an Orchard are mightily pleased to see the young Trees prosper grow regularly and bear a great deal of good Fruit this makes them reflect upon all their cost and pains with much satisfaction How much greater must their Pleasure be upon whom God hath bestowed Children when they see them growing in Grace as they grow in Years When they behold them straight and upright in their Lives pure and undefiled in the way walking in the Law of the Lord having Respect unto all his Commandments flourishing in the Courts of the Lord bringing forth the Fruits of Righteousness and true Holiness Doubtless there is no Pleasure in any Earthly thing comparable to this of Religious Parents when they are Happy in Pious and Virtuous Children And as such Children are a great Comfort and afford a Mighty Pleasurâ— to their Parents so they are a great Honour and a lasting Ornament unto them What can be more for thâ— Glory of Parents than to have theiâ— Children adorned with the Image oâ— God cloathed with Virtue and Goodness as with a Garment This doth reflect somewhat of its Lusture and Beauty upon the Parents themselves who have been under God the Instruments
of making their Children Lovers and Followers of that which is good All wise and good People who observe the Truth and Faithfulness the Justice and Uprightness the Meekness and Modesty the Prudence and Discretion and the other Virtues which appear in Children must needs conceive and entertain very respectful thoughts of the Parents themselves by whose means the Children have been so Virtuously and Religiously Formed and Educated But besides all that has been said Good and Virtuous Children afford manifold Advantages to their Parents The Psalmist Psal. 128. 3. compares them to Olive Plants round about the Table of their Parents that is as Olive Plants are not only for Ornament but of great use to those who possess them so good Children are not only Ornaments to their Parents but very useful and profitable to them in many regards for example they serve their Parents they assist and help them in their Employment they stand by them in their danger and defend them they provide for them in their want they pray for them and do many Important Offices to them so that no wonder if the Psalmist saith Psal. 127. 5. Happy is the Man that hath his Quiver full of them they shall not be ashamed but they shall speak with the Enemies in the Gate That is it makes Parents Couragious it encourages them to appear in publick in their own just defence when they have worthy Children to attend them and to assist them against those who endeavour to wrong them Fourthly The benefit of the good Education of Children is not confined to the Parents alone but is extended both to Church and State Families being the Nurseries both of one and t'other 1 st As to the Church when Children are rightly educated in the Knowledge and Practice of true Religion they will then be sure to observe all such things as tend to Peace Unity and Edification they will readily and gladly joyn in Religious Assemblies and carefully avoid whatever tends to unnecessary Separation Neither will they only joyn outwardly in Christian Assemblies but will be careful likewise to do it sincerely to Worship God in Spirit and in Truth and to hear his Word with great Reverence and Attention with a great desire to know the Divine Will and with a real and hearty design to do it They will also observe all other Sacred Institutions without consulting with Flesh and Blood And as they will do those things themselves so they will do what they can to engage others to do the like And not only will they carry themselves as Christians in publick but likewise in their several Relations and Capacities wherein God hath placed them in the World they will be careful to adorn their Christian Profession they will study to avoid whatever is contrary to true Piety they will Zealously endeavour to do all the good they can in the World For which end they will watch the most fit Occasions of doing good to the Souls of those they are acquainted with and will be sure to comply with any favourable Opportunity of serving them in those things which are for their Everlasting Happiness which tend to make them wiser and better How great a Blessing would it be to the Church to have many such Persons of her Society And therefore as the sense of this ought to excite Parents to do their utmost to Educate their Children in the Fear and Love of God So it ought to stir up the Guides of the Church to employ themselves Vigorously in dealing with younger Persons to make them wise and good in endeavouring all they can to beget in their minds a true Sense of Religion and Virtue to possess them with the Knowledge and Love of God to fortifie them against the many Temptations to Sin and Folly to which they are exposed And in a word to make theâ— Followers of Christ in true Holinesâ— in this World and fit to live anâ— Reign with him in Glory in the Worâ— to come All who have dealt with Mankind about the concerns of another Life must needs lament that very littâ— can be done for reforming Aged People who are hardned in Evil Habits and therefore there is the greater neeâ— to deal in good earnest with young Persons to prevent their being corrupted and to lay in them the Foundatioâ— of solid Piety for the time to come 2 dly As to the State it would likewise reap no small Benefit by thâ— right Education of Children For 〈◊〉 As to those who are to Rule aâ—â— Govern others whether in an higheâ— or more subordinate Quality if theâ— are happy in a Pious and Virtuous Education if their minds are seasonâ— with Religious Principles if they aâ—â— possessed with a great Love to thâ— which is good and with a great Abhorrence and Detestation of thâ— which is Evil if they are trained 〈◊〉 in the daily Practice of Modesty anâ— Humility of Meekness and Patience of Truth and Faithfulness of Justice and Uprightness of Brotherly Kindness and Charity and of Temperance and Sobriety c. I say if they who are to rule others are Educated in this manner there is great reason to hope that they will prove great Blessings in those publick Capacities to which it shall please God to call them Such Persons are likely to Minister Justice impartially to encourage Piety and Virtue where-ever they see it and to curb and restrain whatever is dishonourable to God and unsuitable to the Christian Profession Whereas on the contrary when they who are to rule others are bred up in Idleness and Luxury are gratified in their Vanity and Folly are cherished in their Passions and Extravagancies are accustomed to no Society but of trifling or Atheistical Persons and are not employed in any useful sort of Business I say when they who are to rule others have such woful Education what can be expected from them but such things only as are dishonourable to God scandalous to Religion and in many regards prejudicial to Mankind 2 dly As for those of lower Quality when once they are inspir'd with the Knowledge of Christian Principles and when these have taken deep root in them and have a due Influence upon them they will not only teach them but also engage them to Honour and Obey their Rulers and that not only for Fear but also for Conscience sake As Christianity will make them give unto God the Things that be God's so it will cause them to give unto Caesar the Things that be Caesar ' s. It will likewise make them true and sincere in all their words just and upright in all their deeds faithful and constant in all their Lawful Undertakings and Charitable and Compassionate to every body in distress studious of Purity and Chastity of Temperance and Sobriety and of Peace and Concord It will cause them as much as is possible to live Peaceably with all Men to seek Peace and to pursue it to be Zealous Peace-makers and to be ready to overcome Evil with Good
This would only multiply your losses by making you lose not only your Fruit and your Flowers but your selves too Which they all do who lose their Patience in which it is that we possess our Souls When therefore your Children are removed from you by Death in some unusual and extraordinary manner you ought to look beyond Diseases or Accidents unto the Lord of Life and Death who by his Providence ordereth not only their death but the manner of it If the Sparrows fall not to the Ground that is die not without your Father You may be sure your Children do not die by chance or without the particular disposal of their heavenly Father As to the particular grounds and reasons for which God does after such a manner see fit to put an end to your Childrens days you are not to be too curious and inquisitive The Counsels of God are a great deep His ways are in the deep waters and none by searching can find him out unto perfection Job 11. 7. Upon such occasions all ought to remember the words of our Lord when they told him of the Galileans whose Blood Pilate hath mingled with their Sacrifices Luke 13. 2 3 4 5. Suppose ye that these Galileans were Sinners above all the Galileans because they suffered such things I tell you Nay But except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish Or those eighteen upon whom the Tower of Siâ—oe fell and slew them think ye that they were sinners above all Men that dwelt in Jerusalem I tell you Nay But except ye repeâ—t ye shall all likewise perish We see what was Aarons Carriage when God removed his two Sons Nadab and Abihu by a very extraordinary stroke Levit. 10. 2. There went Fire from the Lord and devour'd them c. And v. 3. 't is said That Aaron 〈◊〉 his peace He did not murmur against the Justice of God or complain as if he had been too severe No he was silent He submitted to the Will 〈◊〉 God and considered that the Honour of God ought to be dearer to him thaâ— the Lives of his two Sons In like manner we see how Job carried himself when God removed 〈◊〉 seven Sons and three Daughters all at one blow in an extraordinary manner Job 1. 18 19. Thy Sons and thy Daâ—ghters were eating and drinking Wine 〈◊〉 their eldest Brothers House And 〈◊〉 there came a great Wind from the Wilderness and smote the four Corners 〈◊〉 the House and it fell upon the young Men and they are dead This was sad news to the good old Man who had â—â—rd so much ill news before But yet for all this you see how patiently â—e hare his Affliction He fell down â—pon the Ground and Worshipped and said Naked came I out of my Mothers Womb and naked shall I return thither The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken 〈◊〉 blessed be the Name of the Lord Job 1. 20 21. This good Man was so far from Cursing God which Satan said â—e would do that he humbly adored and worshipped him He was so far from Blasphemeing God and from entertaining any dishonourable Thoughts of him as if he had done any thing which he ought not to have done that 〈◊〉 the contrary he approved of all he acquiesced in the Divine pleasure he considered that all that he once enjoyed was a free and undeserved gift from God which he so gave as still to reserve to himself the Supreme Power of disposing of it as he should think good and therefore when all was taken away from him he blessed the Name of the Lord he did not quarrel with the Divine Providence but was heartily thankful not only for the former Mercies but also for thâ— present Correction and Chastisement which he knew to proceed from Infinite Wisdom Goodness and Justice To the abovementioned instances from Scripture might be added several Examples of the patience and composedness of Spirit which some Heathens discovered when their Children were suddenly snatched away by a violent and untimely Death I shall only mention two related by Plutarch The 1 st is of Dio of Syracuse who as he was busie in consulting with his Friends about matters of importance heard a great noise and tumult in the House which occasioned his enquiring what the matter was and being told that his Son was dead by a fall from the Roof of the House he received this sad news without discovering any perturbation of Mind and having given Orders that the dead Body should be delivered into the hands of the Women that they might take care of it and that it should be buried in the accustomed manner He went on in his Design to consult with his Friends about the business that was before him The other instance is of Xenophon who when he was employed in offering Sacrifice received the news of his Son 's being killed in Battel at the hearing of which he pull'd off the Garland from his Head wherewith it was then covered and having askt the manner of his Son's Death and being told that he died fighting valiantly for his Country he quickly brought his Mind which was a little disturb'd into subjection to his Reason and again putting on the Garland he went on with his Sacrifice and told those who brought him the news of his Son's Death I never pray'd the Gods to make my Son Immortal or very long liv'd it being very uncertain if that be expedient but to make him an Honest Man and a Lover of his Country And now said he I have my desire Thirdly Consider from whence and whither they are gone They were here in a life of Vexation and Trouble subject to innumerable Vanities Temptations Snares and Dangers They were compassed about with great and terrible Enemies the Devil the World and the Flesh They were subject to daily necessities and wants Iâ— they had lived never so long they would only have seen the same things in a continual succession and revolution As for Example heat and cold fair weather and foul might and day Summer and Winter health and sickness plenty and poverty peace and war prosperity and adversity succeeding one to another All things going round But now they are delivered from all these they are at rest they are subject to no more necessities and wants oppressed with no more troubles and vexations exposed to no more enemies temptations or dangers but exalted to a state of perfect Peace Joy Love and Glory They are as well and better than you can desire You are not able to comprehend the Happiness that they are admitted to Will you then be in continual sorrow and grief for your Children when they are exalted to a state of Rest and Glory when they are where you would rejoyce to be when their Gracious Father hath freed them from the vain company of the World and Translated them into the blessed Society of Angels and of the Spirits of Just Men made perfect when he hath put an end to their Toil and Labour
them they shall not return to you Now what a folly is it for Men to consume to disquiet and to torment themselves where it is to no purpose at all to do so And not only do you thereby no good at all to your selves but you do your selves a great deal of mischief and prejudice You provoke God to anger against you to bring upon you yet heavier and more grievous punishments and to deprive you of other Mercies and Comforts which you still enjoy You do thereby no small hurt to your Bodies you bring upon your selves very dangerous distempers which will make you unfit for the actions of Life and the Duties of your Calling You likewise do unspeakable mischief to your Souls you deprive your selves of that vigour and chearfulness of Spirit that is needful to make you fit to serve God acceptably You thereby weaken your Memory and darken and disorder your Reason and Understanding and so expose your selves to all the sad consequences of a disordered and distracted Mind Your Example does also a great deal of hurt to others Your impatience and immoderate sorrow and mourning teacheth others to do so upon the like occasion Hereby you bring no small reproach upon our holy Religion as if it were not sufficient to support and fortifie us against our crosses and afflictions and to comfort us amidst the uneasie things which God sees fit to exercise us with in this World What an excellent Example is David unto you in this matter When God struck his Child so that it was very sick he fasted and prayed but when the Child died he arose from the earth and washed and anointed himself and changed his apparel and câ—me unto the House of the Lord and worshipped Then he came to his own House and when he required they 〈◊〉 Bread before him and he did eat Then said his Servants unto him What thing is this that thou hast done Thou didst fast and weep for the Child while it was alive but when the Child was dead thou didst rise and eat Bread And he said While the Child was yet alive I fasted and wept for I said Who can tell whether God will be gracious unto me that the Child may live But now he is dead Wherefore should I fast Can I bring him again I shall go to him but he shall not return to me 2 Sam. 12. 15 16 c. Thus ought all Parents to do who fear God When the Lord layeth his hand upon your Children you ought to pray to God for them and to use all lawful means for their recovery But when he â—ees fit to take them away by death you ought patiently to submit to his Will This is your wisest course It is the way to make your selves happy and to enjoy comfort and satisfaction of mind under your crosses This is the likeliest and readiest way to obtain new Mercies and Favours from the Lord instead of those you are deprived of Thus you see the Lord dealt with Job Jam. 5. 11. Ye have heard of the patience of Job and have seen the end of the Lord That the Lord is very pitiful and of tender mercy And Job 42. 12 13. The Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning And vers 16 17. After this lived Job an hundred and forty years and saw his Sons and his Sons Sons even four Generations So Job dyed being old and full of days But if God see it more fit to withhold from you the blessings of the Womb and to bestow no more Children upon you he can and will make up this want with much greater and better Blessings What you want in Temporals you shall have in Spirituals As Elkanah said to Hannah 1 Sam. 1. 8. He will be better to you than ten Sons He will give you a Name better than of Sons and Daughters even an everlasting Name that shall not be cut off Isa. 56. 5. The Duty of Parents On their Death-Bed The shortness and great uncertainty of your Time ought to make you very careful while you are in Health to improve as well as you can the present opportunities of doing good to your Children both as to their Spiritual and Temporal concerns There can be no greater Folly than to delay the doing whatever is needful for your Childrens real Happiness and welfare meerly out of a vain Expectation of having time enough to do every thing of this kind when you lie upon your Death-Bed 'T is strange that Men who daily see the Casualties which others do meet with and who have power to consider the great Dangers their own Lives have been exposed to should notwithstanding flatter themselves with such Thoughts and be so far bewitched thereby as to neglect any Duty of Importance and Necessity which now they have sufficient opportunity to do And therefore while you are in Health fail not to do all the good you can to your Children both for their Souls and Bodies and for their outward Estate But if it shall please God to afford you time and leisure upon your Death-Bed to do any thing for their Benefit neglect not at such a time to do whatever your Weakness and Sickness will permit Particularly 1 st Give them your best Advice Direct them according to their Capacities Consider what their faults and defects most commonly have been and suggest to them such things as God shall bring into your mind to make them sensible of their faults and to rescue them from their evil Habits Consider what those things are whereby they are most likely to be endangered and strive to fortifie their Minds with such wholesom Precepts and Maxims as may tend to preserve them for the time to come Consider what good thing does appear in any of them and endeavour to stablish their Minds in Virtue and Goodness in the Fear and Love of God Amongst other things 't is 〈◊〉 to recommend to them Unity and Concord that they Love one another heartily and be ready to assist and serve one another to the utmost of their power that they be friendly Monitors to One another and take it kindly and thankfully when they are so deale with Then likewise you may advise them to endeavour as much as is possible to live peaceably with all Men to be careful not to wrong any body by Word or Deed but on the contrary to seek the welfare of others to strive to do all the good they can in the World and to make it as their necessary Food to glorifie God David's Example is worthy of the imitation of all Religious Parents at such a time of whom 't is said 1 King 2. 1 2 3 4. He charged Solomon his Son saying I go the way of all the Earth Be thou strong therefore and shew thy self a Man And keep the Charge of the Lord thy God to walk in his ways to keep his Statutes and his Commandments and his Judgments and his Testimonies as it is written in the
7. 12. All things whatsoever ye would that Men should do to you do ye even so to them Some Motives to excite Guardians to do these Things The first thing which should stir up Guardians to perform their Duty towards their Pupils is A Sense of Justice When they are chosen for this End if they have no mind to undertake such a Charge or if they cannot attend it they ought to declare so much and peremptorily to refuse it that so care may be taken to get some other Body who will undertake it But when once they have undertaken it they ought to make Conscience of it and to do all that is in their power for the Childrens welfare and happiness in every thing 'T is both their Duty and Interest to fulfill their Ingagement and to act that part which they have undertaken which if they perform wisely and faithfully then they may expect the Praise Love and Esteem of not only the Children themselves and of their Relations but likewise of all good and worthy Persons who see or hear of their Fidelity and Carefulness for the benefit of their Pupils If Care is not taken in this manner to fulfill what is undertaken to be done and if there is no respect had to Covenants Trusts and Ingagements then the very Foundation of the Happiness of Society is subverted If there is no regard to Truth and Justice what a miserable thing must it be to live in Society To be united by any civil â—yes to those whose Promises and Ingagements are worse than none at all 2. Does not A Sense of Honour oblige Guardians to be careful of their Pupils and true and faithful to them 'T was the Opinion of their kindness and faithfulness and of their fitness and worthiness for such a Charge which made them be chosen before others And therefore if they have any thing in them of true worth if they have any sense of Honour they must needs strive to answer the Expectation of those who have testified so great a value and esteem for them 3 dly Does not Charity oblige Guardians to do these things Orphans have always been reckoned amongst the greatest Objects of Charity especially when they are very Young and are not able either in respect of Body or Mind to do any thing for themselves So great is God's Compassion and Tenderness towards such Children that he has been Graciously pleased to declare himself to be The Father of the Fatherless 'T is therefore the Duty of All who are Followers of God as dear Children especially of those who are chosen to perform so Charitable an Office as this I say it is their Duty to omit nothing that is needful to be done for the benefit of Fatherless Children both in their Spiritual and Temporal concerns We see a very worthy President and Example in Mordecai Esth. 2. Esther's Father and Mother being dead Mordecai took her and she was to him as his own Daughter How careful was he both of her Soul and Body How well did he instruct her As may be easily gathered from her Wise and Pious Carriage and Behaviour And when she was taken from him we find he was still mindful of her for v. 11. 't is said Mordecai walked every day before the Court of the Womens House to know how Esther did and what should become of her We find him likewise from time to time giving her his best Advice how to carry her self and how to glorifie God in that Honourable State to which it had pleased him to raise her How worthy is such an excellent Pattern as this of the imitation of all those who are called to be the Guardians the Guides and Defenders of Fatherless Children And for their encouragement let them consider how richly God did reward the Charity and Piety of Mordecai not only in raising him up to great Honour by Esthers means but also by making her the Instrument of preserving his Life and the Lives of all the Jews who were in the Provinces belonging to Ahasuerus From what hath been said it appears how great Reason there is for Guardians to be true and faithful to the Interests of their Pupils and to do all that ever they can for their Spiritual and Temporal Advantage Now if it be their Duty to do so what shall be said of those who are not only careless of seeking their good but do likewise too successfully seek their hurt and ruine As to their Souls they corrupt and poyson them by their wicked Example and by Atheistical Principles which they instill into them they breed them up in all manner of Licentiousness As to their Bodies they either too far gratifie their vanity and folly or they are too niggardly towards them in withholding from them not only Conveniencies but Necessaries As to their outward Estate they either suffer them to live idly or they put them forth to some Trade or other very unfit and unsutable to them And when they are fit for Marriage they force them to Marry as they think good according as they see it will best serve their own private and worldly base and vile Interests without ever regarding the Happiness of their Pupils As for their Patrimony and Inheritance they are so far from improving it that they impair it wofully and sometimes quite consume and waste it they study a great many Arts and Wiles to ruine the poor Children whom they have got into their merciless hands Instead of proving their Guardians they prove their Robbers instead of being as Parents to them they prove betrayers of them and their most Dangerous and Cruel Enemies But shall they escape who do such things No They shall not He who is the helper of the Fatherless will plead their Cause and will avenge them of those Treacherous and Perfidious Persons For He beholdeth mischief to requite it Ps. 10. 14. I shall conclude this Advice with what is written Ex. 22. 22. c. Ye shall not afflict any fatherless Child If thou afflict them in any wise and they cry at all unto me I will surely hear their cry And my wrath shall wax hot and I will kill you with the Sword And your Wives shall be Widows and your Children Fatherless And Prov. 23. 10 11. Enter not into the fields of the Fatherless for their Redeemer is mighty He shall plead their Cause with thee PRAYERS FOR FAMILIES A Morning Prayer for Parents or Masters of Families with their Family O Most Gracious and Merciful Lord God who affords us thy unworthy Servants the Honour and Liberty of drawing near unto thee Assist us by thy good Spirit to Worship thee with sincere Devotion to lift up Holy Hands without wrath and doubting We acknowledge O Lord we deserve not to appear in thy sight for we are not only Vile and Sinful by Nature being the corrupt Posterity of Sinful Parents but likewise we are Guilty of a great many actual Transgressions in our Thoughts Words and Deeds