of the victory over Death and Hell and all the incumbrances this side Heaven with a sanctified expectation after him who is the procurer of all my happiness in whom my Soul desires to acquisece both here and hereafter O help me Lord to sing a new song of praise to that spotless Lamb that hath not spared to pour out that precious Blood to reconcile an angry God to despicable Dust and Clay to make known an invisible God to poor blind stupid Creatures and that mortality might be swallowed up of life he was holy harmless and undefiled seperate from sinners to the end he might fulfil all righteousness that he might be a meet high Priest a sufficient Saviour of sinners who by his own example left us a pattern of humility to be submissive to the will of our Father and to contemn the World and to subjugate our selves to his Cross Oh! holy Father thou that hast said them that come unto thee in thy Sons Name thou wilt not cast out that gavest life to poor worthless dying Creatures ready to drop into Hell and that life is thine own Son that is able to save to the uttermost all that come to him O give ability to a poor drooping Creature that he may recover his strength before he go hence and be no more that I may yet praise thee in the Land of the living and that I may regain that precious time that I have been so lavish of Redeem my strength that I may work out my Salvation with fear and trembling O sanctifie me throughout and change me and let me have the New Creation wrought upon me and in me that I may yet acknowledge thy great power in and through thy Son in whose Name I farther call on thee in the words of his own institution saying Our Father which art in Heaven c. A Prayer in time of War O Holy Great and Glorious Lord God of Hosts thou that hast of old appeared for thy Churches and Servants and that art for ever worthy to be praised that hast wrought great deliverances for the relieving of them that were in straits to the admiration of thy very enemies by whose power thy Servants have run through Troops having thy shield of Salvation by thy power one hath chased a thousand and thine enemies hearts have melted away yea even of the most valiant If thou appear for us Lord we shall prevail O be gracious unto us and shew thy self for us Give courage and wisdom to all our Commanders and Souldiers Gird them with strength and teach their hands to fight Direct their Consultations prosper their Enterprises suffer not deserved vengeance to break out upon us deliver us not to a merciless enemy Say unto our Armies Let no mans heart fail for fear of neither number nor power of the enemy Let all our trust of Victory be in the Lord of Hosts thou that art Lord of Lords and King of Kings Get thy self Honour in the Destruction of those that are Peace-Disturbers let thy hand become glorious to dash in pieces the most potent enemies and in the greatness of thine excellency overthrow those that are instigated against us and let it be known that there is none like unto thee that art glorious in Holiness fearful in Praises doing Wonders so shall we record thy righteous Acts. O help and deliver us that we may tell thy Deeds among the Nations and let not our enemy escape least they say our own hands hath saved us Thou the God of Peace grant us Peace here and everlasting Peace hereafter through Jesus Christ Amen A Prayer for Children O Most glorious Lord God insinite in Wisdom and Goodness thou art the great Creator Redeemer and Preserver of Man I thy poor Servant bewail my Youth and time of Vanity Notwithstanding my Parents care in Education Instruction and Correction I have sinned greatly against thy self O pardon also Lord my unthankfulness toward them for all their Care Cost Pains Crys and Tears with respect to my everlasting welfare O cause me with thankfulness to fear love honour and obey them in order to the obedience due to thy self Lord keep me from snares of evil company and temptations of the same and from youthful lust and let me be a delight to those that fear thee Let me be furnished with treasures of Wisdom and Holiness and pardon all the sins of my corrupt heart and life and be a reconciled Father unto me and let me be able to know thee as a God in Covenant and renew me in the inner Man in the Spirit of my Mind Enlighten my dark understanding quicken my dead heart purifie my impure conscience mortifie and rectifie my will Let all my sinful carnal Love or rather Lust be quenched and vain Pleasures turned into sweet Delights for God Hear me in every respect as thou knowest mâ— condition requires in the Name of thy dear Son in whose words I farther call on thee Our Father c. A Prayer for Servants O Most gracious Lord God thou art the great preserver of those that truly trust in thy mercy deliver us from sin and the bondage of Sathan help us to obey our Master according to the flesh with fear and trembling in singleness of heart as unto Christ not with eye-service as men pleasers but as the servants of Christ doing the will of our God with good will from the heart Make us submissive and obedient to our Governors keep us from Self-will and Pride from Murmurings and unreverent Speeches from Falshod Slothfulness and all Deceit and help us cheerfully and willinglly to do our Duty as believing that thou O Lord art the avenger of all unfaithful Dealers O pardon the neglect of our immortal Souls and of the great work for which we were Created and Redeemed Help us with all our hearts and strength that we may attain to the reward of that Glory prepared for all those that look and long for the appearance of Christ and to enjoy his presence with the Angels and Saints in Glory and all this we humbly beg and hope for on the accompt and merits of Jesus in whose own words we farther call on thee as he hath taught us saying Our Father c. A Prayer for a Virgin BLessed and Holy Lord preserve me thy Servant and give me grace with those Wise Virgins to make ready my Lamp and Oyl in my Vessel that at what hour the Bride-groom shall come I may be found ready prepared with those undefiled Virgins that follow the Lamb. Deliver me from the sins of Pride that common sin far different from that Plainness Simplicity and Modesty of old O help me thy Servant to walk circumspectly O cleanse and purge me keep me blameless cause me to hate the Garment spotted by the Flesh let the Pride of the Daughters of Jerusalem so severely threatned awake those that tread in their steps they were haughty and walked with stretched-out Necks and wandring Eyes and mincing as they went whose
regular in thy course and withal be mindful who it is that must be thy Judge 4. Be much in the attendance of the Word read and preached for that is the only way that God has appointed for himself to be found in moreover it is that that will discover unto thee what is thy Duty 5. And lastly Be much in Prayer for this is that that will give success to all other this is the Conduit-pipe to convay or discover all our wants to God and mercies from God to us FORMS OF PRAYERS For Particular Persons For every Day in the Week A Prayer for the Sabbath-day Morning MOst Holy and Glorious Lord God I sinful dust and ashes presuming to approach thy presence desire that thou wilt please to fit my heart for the approaching so holy a Presence as thine is that on this day I may be so sitted according to the preparations of thy Sanctuary as that I may meet with thy self that thou mayest communicate something that may be of refreshment unto my Soul by thy Word and Spirit yea that I may be found in the Spirit on the Lord's day O Lord pardon my sins that I have been guilty of this week past and all my life past and let them not stand as a flood to stop my Prayers from ascending unto thee or to keep back the influences of thy holy Spirit from my Soul O Lord looking upon them and upon my nature polluted by them it makes me afraid to look up unto Heaven Nay indeed I durst not only thou hast commanded me to come unto thee by the vertue of the precious Blood of thy Son Christ that is my strong consolation hope and comfort Moreover Lord thou hast prescribed a comfortable promise that thou wilt pardon the sins of thy People for thy own Names sake O therefore for thy own Names sake do away all my sins in the Blood of Jesus Christ that I may appear before thee in the Robes of Christ's Righteousness and and not in mine own seeing all mine is but as menstruous cloth and filthy rags Lord prepare me for this thy days work help me in it and keep me after it that thy Spirit may seal up Divine Truths in the closet of my heart that laying them up in my heart I may practise them in my life and bring forth fruit with patience meet for repentance Lord let neither the cares of the World nor the deceitful thoughts of riches choak thy Seed sown nor let Satan steal it out of my heart but let it be as good seed sown in a good and honest heart that taking root downward it may bring forth fruit upward being watered with the bedewings of thy Spirit O come in this day with fresh reviving Grace that thereby I may be so quickned and qualified as that I may meet with thy self Let this day be so sanctified to me as that I may say in the close thereof 't is not in vain but good to draw nigh to thy self that I am drawn a step nigher this day to thy self by the Blood of Christ Lord pardon the want of a reverent frame of spirit the unworthy obtrusion into thy presence at this time and look upon my unworthiness in the worthiness of Christ my imperfection in his perfection my sinfulness in his righteousness and my weakness in his strength that I may appear righteous in thy sight in his righteousness and that for his own sake Amen A Prayer for the Sabbath-day Evening GRacious God notwithstanding the much imperfection my Soul has been clogged with this day thou hast given me cause this day to say from a grounded experience that it is not in vain to draw nigh unto thee Lord I heartily thank thee for the refreshing smiles of thy countenance this day in thy Ordinances O how good is it to draw nigh to God in his own way Blessed be thy Name holy God That never saidst to the Seed of Jacob seek ye my face in vain Lord thou hast been so good in communicating thy self unto me by thy Word and Spirit that I may say with thy Servant David What shall I render unto the Lord for all his Mercies Lord it is matter of wonder and admiration to me that thou shouldest deal so with me seeing thou hast been provoked by my coldness and deadness in such a manner I beseech thee O Lord pass by all my miscarriages that I have been guilty of this day let not them be a prevention of a future supply of my wants and necessities Nay let not them be the cause of thy withdrawing thy self in future attendances on thee nor the cause of removing thy Ordinances thy Gospel thy faithful Ministers and Messengers O Lord thou hast declared thy self a God of mercy and indeed I may as it were set to my Seal seeing my provocations have been so many and so great Lord thou hast not dealt after the manner of men with me Let thy manifold Mercies be an engagement to stir me up to a more watchful frame of spirit that by my negligence I incur not thy displeasure Lord pardon sins past and humble me for sins present and keep me from sins â—o come that thereby I may be rendred meet for every good word and work Accept my willing ness and overlook my weakness in thy only Son Jesus Christ in whom thou art well pleased In whose Name I thank thee for all my enjoyments and through whose Blood I desire to receive all my Mercies and for whom I desire to bless thee To him and thee the onely wise God be praise for ever Amen A Prayer for Monday Morning BLessed God all thy dealings with the Sons of men attest thy liberality â—y and bounty thou renewest thy merâ—ies every morning Lord renew my â—eart that I may be capacitated to serve thee and to sing new Songs of praises â—o thee every morning Blessed God thank thee that thou hast made my life â—recious in thy sight that thou hast chained up Satan that roaring Lyon that goes about night and day seeking whom be may devour that would have devoured me Soul and Bâ—dy unless prevented by thy power and goodness O help me so long as I have a being to praise thee Lord how mightest thou have made my â—ed my grave my sleep my death and have cut me off from the Land of the living yet thou hast been pleased to preserve me and keep me from the rage of cruel Enemies both spiritual and corporal Seeing Lord thou hast dealt thus with me let this day be of great use to to me that I may learn some things in it that may be of special use for my Souls advantage and that seeing all time was given for the Service of God that I may in my employment meditate either on the word that I have heard thy day past or thy works in which are many wonderful mysterious things to be seen worthy taking notice of and contemplating upon Help me so to begin the week
thee more to have blessed me in all my Enterprizes Lord help me to redeem time because the days are evil I thank thee for thy care and preserving providence this day As touching those things that have been done amiss in any way or manner this day by me let them not prevent night mercies O deal in Mercy and not in Judgement with me let thy love conceal all my offences As touching this night Let my rest in it be sweet unto me Let every night be as it were a memento of the silent night in the Grave a remembrance of death to put me in mind of my later end Make my rest sweet unto me that being refreshed with moderate rest I may the next morning bless thy name and be ingaged to a more lively activity for God the next day and that for Christs sake Amen A Prayer for Fryday Morning GLorious Lord 't is thy great condescension that thou dost after such a manner afford the priviledge of the means of Grace unto me and that thou doest give me fresh occasions every morning to praise thee and to pray unto thee to thank thee for Mercies received and to beg further supplies of future Mercies O Lord let not my unthankfulness prevent what further blessings thou mayest design for me O I have been very ungrateful unthankful and unkind in that I have expressed my thankfulness no more by an holy humble and a regular walking before thee Pardon that black sin of ingratitude of which I have been too too much guilty by walking contrary to thy Prescriptions and contrary to the Canons and Constitutions of Heaven Pardon that I have done so little for God that I have loved so little whereas God has loved me so much evidenced by his gracious dealings to me-wards O help me to believe and that strongly hope for Heaven more confidently and love thee more servently and bear the Cross more patiently and submissively that thereby I might steer my course more evenly to the New Jerusalem Lord thou hast been very kind unto me thou hast dealt with me in love this night in my preservation and protection in Soul and Body from Spiritual and Corporal Enemies thou hast guarded me by thy special Providence Accept of my thankfulness and grant that my humility and thankfulness may ingage thee to extend more of thy benignity prosperity and ability in the affairs of this life Sanctifie my heart that this day I may act for God as in the presence of God Direct me in the courses not only of this day but all my days that all may be to thy Glory and the comfort of my Soul through Christ Amen A Prayer for Fryday Evening BLessed God it is the great comfort of thy People that at any time thou art pleased in such a condescending manner to let them spread their cases before thee O Lord sure I am Thou never saidst to the Seed of Jacob seek ye my face in vain for so thy word manifests unto us Whereas Lord I dust and clay have rebelled against thee from time to time yet thou art pleased to admit me to come into thy presence and to tell what my wants are and blessed be thy Name thou hast granted a supply and hast encouraged me to come again and hast not dealt with me after the manner of men but hast been pleased many times to grant me the same Mercies that I formerly abused How many days have I spent vainly and yet thou hast given me the enjoyment of more I pray thee pass by my many miscarriages in this very days course O how little have I done for thee how little honour have I brought to thy Name How selfish have I been How unmindful of God have I been How little have I done in order to the making of my Calling and Election sure Lord how shall I escape in the neglecting so many precious opportunities Instead of doing thy will I have followed the dictates of mine own carnal heart and corruption Instead of doing thy will I have done mine own Pardon what is amiss this day and sanctifie this nights Mercy unto me Let thy good Angels keep me let thy Spirit preserve me let my very thoughts be towards thee keep me from vanity from sin that foul destructive enemy and keep me from the Paw of that roaring Lyon Let me acquiesce and rest in thee through thy Son Jesus Christ Amen A Prayer for Saturday Morning LOrd God Merciful and Gracious and abundant in Goodness and Truth thou hast been pleased to preserve me with thy special Providence from time to time from day to day and night to night and to keep me under and in all straits in and amidst the vicissitudes of this World of Incumbrances O thou hast dealt bountifully with me Grant that I may not be barren under all that thy Providences may not be silent to me Thou hast said Day unto Day uttereth Wisdom and Night unto Night sheweth Knowledge O teach me by all Let every Mornings Mercy and every Evenings Mercy and every Days Mercy be of much use unto me yea let all Seasons be advantagious to me Let time be improved by me for God for which end all Time was given to Man Lord direct me in all my Affairs this day counsel me in all my Concerns prosper me in all my Designs strengthen me in all my undertakings and grant that as thou renewest my strength by rest and sleep thou also may'st renew me in the spirit of my mind let not my heart be set upon the world as to draw my assections from thee nor let the cares of the world prevent me in the care for my Soul Mortifie all my corruptions in me for me rectifie my Judgment mortifie my Will change my Nature illuminate my Understanding and transform me to the Image of God Grant these and what thou in thy wisdom know'st necessary for me through Christ Jesus Amen A Prayer for Saturday Evening HOly Lord what great cause have I to bless thee that thou hast pleased to preserve me all this week and keep me in the midst of all the vicissitudes of this sickle and unconstant world and admittest me yet again to come before thee by way of duty Grant that I may not look upon it as a Duty only but as a Priviledg and that a great one a Priviledge that many enjoy not And what am I more than they I have been guilty of sins both for quantity and quality it may be that they were never guilty of Opardon me that I can be no more thankful for nor profitable in the enjoyment of the same Work in me Lord a more active frame of spirit that I may bring more honour to thy Name let the fruits of Grace spring more apparently in my life Let thy Word teach me thy Spirit guide and sanctifie me thy Son redeem me thy Power preserve me and thy Providence sustain me Yea let all work together for the best for me Pardon the sins of this
Eternity on which felicity or eternal misery attends O Lord increase our Faith and settle us in that Faith that is precious and pure that by it we may be able to resist the Devil and overcome and conquer the World and the Flesh that it may be the substance of things not seen and that thereby we may be like Noah to prepare an Ark against a Deluge condemning the World O give us the trying Faith of Abraham the living Faith of dying Jacob and the living Faith of Moses to chuse affliction rather than sin that we may esteem the reproach of Christ the greatest riches that we may by that Faith obtain Promises work Righteousness Now the God of Peace that brought again our Lord Jesus Christ the great Shepherd through the everlasting Covenant keep us Amen A Prayer for Fryday Evening GReat and glorious Lord in Jesus Christ a tender Father to humble and penitent sinners let conscience of duty and not custom attend our approaches unto thee the Lord of Life and Glory thy mercies of this day are more than we can conceive but the requitals we have made how inequivolent are they How seldom did we look up to thee that always seest us at what a low ebb are our thoughts of thee O lay our hearts as low and much lower in reference to our selves Let us not O our God find our return of mercies according to our miscarriages let us not thereby be disappointed of our rest and refreshment this approaching night Blessed be thy Name that thou hast laid help on one that is able to save O save us by him let his Blood plead and his Person satisfie and let him prevail for us and his offering up of himself clear us Lord we believe help our unbelief O that our hearts were more heavenly and more removed from this drossie earth that we might in nothing be careful O help us to be good and do good in our Generation Help us to chuse affliction rather than sin that we may follow the great high Priest of our Profession by the Cross to the Crown and by the Grave to Glory Mind us of our end and give us wisdom to consider in this day of ours the things that belong to our peace before they be hid from our eyes and seeing our time is but short let our zeal be the greater Let the blessing pronounced in the Mount be our portion Let us both be pure and poor in spirit Give us to mourn for sin that we may be comforted Let us be armed with meekness and hungering and thirsting after righteousness and satisfie us Let mercifulness peace and sufferings for righteousness sake comfort us here and hereafter in and through Jesus Christ in whose Name we farther call on thee in his own words Our Father c. A Prayer for Saturday Morning MOst holy most glorious Lord the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ for whose sake alone we beg pardon for all our sins secret and known of ignorance or knowledge of youth or riper years against thy Law or Gospel Deliver thy poor Creatures from all those curses denounced against sin and sinners None ever confessed and forsook sin but found mercy O sanctifie us throughout with thy holy Spirit that we may live the life of faith and not of sin being assured that it shall go well with the righteous they shall eat the fruit of their doings Blessed Lord give us grace to walk worthy the mercies of the last nights refreshments Let thy good providence be over us this day preserve us in our concerns Deliver us both Souls and Bodies that desire to fear thy holy Name that we may be praising the riches of thy free grace Let us be blessed in our goings out and comings in Let thy glory be our greatest design in whatsoever we undertake Prepare us for our later end and our great account and let Eternity be always eyed by us Let our thoughts words and actions be considered and poised Let every day put us in mind of the great day that in every day we may be drawn a step nigher unto Christ our Redeemer in whom and for whom we bless thee for ever Amen A Prayer for Saturday Evening O Most blessed Lord thou art acquainted with our down-lying and uprising and art near to all them that call on thee in truth and sincerity Let not iniquity prevail over us Let thy grace be sufficient for us against sin and Sathans wiles and help us to be thankful both in heart and life for what thou art pleased to bestow upon us by way of providence Help us in time of health to prepare for sickness and death in time of plenty to prepare for want and to lay up a store of never sading treasure Sanctifie both days labour and nights rest and pardon the sins of the whole week past and help us in thy day following to be so sitted and qualified that we may be as diligent for thee as we have been for our selves that it may be a day of rejoycing Let it be such a Sabbath as that it may be an earnest of an eternal Sabbath where we shall rejoyce and praise thee for ever Grant that by practising holiness we may enjoy happiness seeing that it must and shall go well with the Godly their great evils shall be removed and sin pardoned the mercy of mercies he cannot be miserable who has a God so merciful as to pardon his sin O grant us this mercy what ever else thou deny thy will be done for outward comforts so that we by the riches of this thy free grace have such pardon of sin as we be not disturbed in inward comforts Grant that by living to thee here we may enjoy thee hereafter Let us be content with tossings so that we may enjoy the desired Haven nay though our Ship viz. this Body breaks let us that is our Souls be secured in the Lord Châ—â—â—â— Let our crosses end in comforts our miseries in matchless joyes our tears in true tunes for Heaven and let our conquest over all end in the praise of our great Captain All these and what thou knowest may better fit us for thy self grant for thy promise and for thy Sons sake to whom be Eternal Glory Amen A Prayer for a Woman with-child before her time of Delivery MOst Holy Lord Blessed be thy great Name for thy mercy shewed to thine Hand-maid thou hast given her good hopes through grace to become a joyful Mother thou art Righteous in all thy ways thy threat for sin is just that in sorrow the Woman should bring forth yet thou of thy great mercy hast taken off from me the reproach of Woman and hast given me strength to conceive and to nourish it hitherto O preserve both me and it at the time of Travel Let me bring forth and let the work be compleated by thee by whom Creatures are wonderfully made Prepare thy poor Creature by Faith and Prayer for that hour that
of all my enjoyment for whom I bless thee and to whom with thy Holy Self and blessed Spirit be praises for evermore Amen A Prayer for Wednesday Morning HOly God grant me a pardon of all my sins and in particular the sins of this night past all my vain thoughts and cogitations Lord I cannot express them unto thee in particular yet thou knowest them all I pray thee Lord blot them out of the Book of thy remembrance cast them behind thy back let them never be seen any more either in this life or in the world to come to my condemnation Lord as thou art pleased every Morning to renew thy Mercies to me renew my heart within me that I may be occasioned to renew my thankfulness to thy self for thy bounty and benignity to me let the improvement of left-hand Mercies engage thee to a further supply of right-hand Mercies the improvement of temporal Mercies engage thee to a further supply of spiritual Mercies and let both be so improved by me that thou mayest have the Glory and I may have comfort in and through thy dear Son Jesus Christ Help me this day in all my transactions to remember thee and that I may set the Lord always before mine eyes that I may thereby resist every temptation as thy Servants Job Joseph and David did Let the soundness of my state be demonstrated by the regularity of my course Regulate and rectifie what thou seest irregular in my life that all my designs and purposes may be for thy Honour let Piety be my delight let sin be the object of my hatred accept what is good in me Be my counsel in my enterprizes and undertakings and direct my will that I may do nothing but what tends to thy Glory for Christ's sake Amen A Prayer for Wednesday Evening O Eternal God who art glorious in Holiness fearful in thy Praises doing Wonders Blessed by thy holy Name thou givest poor C eatures such as I occasion to rejoyce in thee and to seek unto thee through the mediation of thy dear and well-beloved Son Jesus Christ Lord let all Mercies be of great use to me for the drawing out of my heart after thy self Pardon me that I have been no more enamour'd with thy Son that he has been no more amiable to my Soul even the fountain of all my Mercies the well-spring of all Goodness the Author of all my Enjoyments and by whom all my sins must be pardoned if they be pardoned O Lord look upon his satisfaction and intercession for me O divest me of the rags of my sin and invest me with the Robes of Christ's Righteousness let the stream of his precious Blood obliterate those crimson and scarlet stains that sin hath made in my poor Soul O Lord what time might I have redeem d wherein I might have had more communion with thy self and thy Son Christ and done more for thy Honour if I had been wiser Lord help me this night to experience more of thy love to my Soul by coming in with fresh supplies of Grace received Grace is not sufficient for me my nature is very much declining and therefore grant me fresh streams of Love and Grace that thereby I may acquiesce in and upon thee knowing thou art a God sufficient for all these things I stand in need of I bless thee for my preservation and sustentation thou hast preserved and sustained me with O sustain my Soul with fresh influences of thy Countenance and as I am about to betake my self to my rest draw thou the Curtain of thy Fatherly Protection about me Help me to sanctifie thee in my heart laying my head to my pillow And that for Christ's sake Amen A Prayer for Thursday Morning MOst Holy God before whose presence the Angels themselves who are such spotless Creatures vail their faces even them thou chargest with folly and if them what mayest thou charge such a sinful wretch as I with Nay Lord the best of my actions they are full of impurity Help me Lord to lay my face in the dust and to confess my uncleanness one of an uncircumcised Heart and Ears that since I could do any thing could sin and since I could sin I could almost do nothing but sin O Lord pardon me for the greatness of my sins is intollerable they are more than I am able to bear Help me to lay them on him who is mighty â—o save No sin O Lord is so great but thy Mercy is greater No sin is too great for thee to pardon Pardon sins of omission and commission actual and original do all away in the Blood of Christ O Lord let not the sinning away of received Mercies prevent future Mercies Pardon my vain and sinful thoughts this night or whatsoever thou hast seen amiss in me and accept my requests O Lord as a Sacrifice in Jesus Christ renew that league my very Dreams have broke and accept my thankfulness for thy prottecting Providence thou might est have made my bed my grave my sleep my death and cut me off from the land of the living but blessed be thy Name thou hast yet made me praise thee in the land of the living praises to thy holy Name Let the Mercies of this night stir me to an holy and close walking with thee all this day let me be actuated by thy Spirit they being only in a right frame to whom thy Sprit is leader and guider Bless my undertakings and let them be for thy Glory through thy Son the Mediator of the New Covenant Jesus Christ the Righteous to him and to thy self for him be praises Amen A Prayer for Thursday Evening MOst Holy Lord and in thy Son our most merciful Father speak to my Soul that I may hear and live that I though but a wilde Olive-branch may be grafted into the true Vine let me no longer be a stranger to the Covenant of Grace O Lord I have been very sinful and rebellious against thy self in all my deportment I have many times sinned against my own knowledge I have sinned against light and against love Pardon all my miscarriages not only this day but all my days O do all away in the blood of Jesus Christ and let me appear in my Elder Brother's Carments invest me with his Righteousness but first of all divest me of my own let thy Grace increase in me but let sin decrease let me grow in Grace as I grow in years and that no day may pass over my head wherein I have not learned something that tends to my Souls health Help me every day to learn something that may tend to the mortifying of some lust for my establishment in the truth and for the direction of my feet in the paths everlasting Pardon me that I have done no more for thee this day that I have redeemed no more time O Lord I might have redeemed more time if I had been wise wherein I might have had more Communion with thy self and might have engaged
Satan come and catch away the Seed but O that it may be as seed sown in good and honest hearts bringing forth fruit with patience meet for repentance and let it be for the weakning of sin but for the strengthening of faith and grace Let thy Word be as Manna for our poor Souls to feed upon for the week to come that thereby we may grow up in grace as we grow in years Let thy word be a sutable word unto every one of our conditions and come thou into our Souls with it with the freest influence of thy Spirit that we may of a truth meet with God communicating of himself unto us by his Word and Spirit And as the Soul is separated from the Body by Death so let sin be separated from our Souls by thy Word and Spirit O let it be separate from our Souls or else it will separate the Souls of us poor Creatures from God Let thy Minister who is thy Messenger be strengthened and touch his tongue with a coal from thine Altar that he may preach experimental truth to the hearts of us poor Creatures that desire to attend on thine Ordinances O let us taste and see how gracious the Lord is and let us have cause to say It is good to draw nigh to God in his own Ordinances on his own Day And let this day of rest be a certain pledge of an eternal rest purchased by our great high Priest who is preparing a place for his select ones O that this thy day may be spent in the performances of holy duties in praise and thanksgiving the work of thine appointment Unvail some secret this day let us be drawn nigher every day unto thy self Let us be so enlightened that sin may decay and grace may be renewed in us Let us come hungering and thursting after Spiritual Food for our Souls so that in the close of this day we by a grounded experience may say that God has satisfied our hungring Souls with refreshing influences from Heaven thorow the Blood of Jesus Christ in whose words we conclude our imperfect requests as he himself has taught us saying Our Father c. An Evening Prayer for the Sabbath MOst Holy and ever Blessed Lord God who fillest Heaven and Earth with thy presence fill the Souls of thy poor empty Creatures with the presence of thy Grace and let thy good Spirit bring to our remembrance the truths that we by thy providence have heard this thy day that we may lay it up in our hearts and practice it in our lives that we may be of those blessed ones that hear thy word and keep it and bring forth fruit in abundance and let it take root in our hearts downward and bring forth fruit upward Establish our Souls in the practice of Holiness without which we can never come to see thy self and let the power of sin be weakened but let Grace be strengthened every day Pardon that unpreparedness that we have intruded into thy presence with and that irreverence whilst under thy Ordinances and that carelesness after that we all have been guilty of Pardon our forgetfulness and pardon our imperfection in the perfection of Christ our weakness in the strength of Christ that thereby we may find acceptance with thee who art all fulness and in whose hands is all perfection Fill our Souls with the fulness of God and let the bedewings of thy Spirit and Word cause us to grow in our spiritual stature Help us to prize the priviledge of the Gospel at an inestimable rate and give us repentance from dead works that we may be changed from darkness unto light and from the power of sin unto God And help us to manifest in our lives and conversation what is the hope of our calling that we may be in Heaven whilst on Earth Pardon the sins of our holy things sins of omission and commission sins against thy Law and sins against thy Gospel Give us Wisdom to direct and teach us Righteousness to establish us Redemption to deliver us from the jaws of Sin and Hell Strengthen our weak Faith enlarge our shallow Capacities quiet our disturbed Consciences tread down Satan under our feet and subjugate our Necks under thy Yoak and help us to resign our selves to thy Will and fit us for Eternity at last that after these Sabbaths be ended here we may begin an everlasting Sabbath with the God of Sabbaths where we shall admire thy self in Christ in whose Name we conclude our imperfect requests in his own words as he hath taught us saying Our Father c. A Prayer for Monday Morning BLessed Lord thou renewest thy mercies every Morning it is of thy mercy that one day more is added to us poor Creatures Thou art he on whom depends our being rest life and all thou has been pleased to cause us to acquiesce in and under thy protection for our refreshment O Lord preserve us this day under the shadow of thy wing and keep us in thy ways and let thy watchful providence be an instigation to an holy walking and to redeem the time seeing the days are evil and to live as ever before the Eye of thy All-seeing Providence Keep us from sin and enable us to live with thankful hearts bearing in mind the acts of thy Spirit and the daily Mercies we enjoy help us to shew a thankfulness for Mercies received and humility for and under Afflictions Let the bitterness of Sin and the loveliness of Holiness make deep impression on the hearts of thy poor Creatures Let the great work of Salvation be much meditated upon that that work daily may be propagated by us with fear and trembling Let union and communion with Christ be our great design Let our Natures be changed Deliver us from a dark understanding and hardness of heart stupid consciences together with unmortisied wills Help us to be wise for the future wherein we have done foolishly and help us wisely to improve our Talents in every opportunity Let thy mercies constrain us to love fear and obey thee Subdue us wholly to thy self that our affections may be elevated from the Earth and transplanted into Heaven Help us in every transaction in our lives to consider that with thee every action is poised and thoughts words and works reviewed and taken notice of O that the affairs of this day and all the week to come may be no obstruction to the work of our immortal Souls And grant that every day that passes over our heads we may be a step nearer to thy self Preserve us by thy Grace and Spirit until it shall be thy will to translate us into that Glory that is prepared for them that wait for the coming of Jesus Christ Amen A Prayer for Monday Evening MOst Holy Eternal and ever Blessed Lord God in whom all our springs are it is good to draw nigh to thy self Thou that never slumberest nor sleepest suffer us not to sleep the sleep of Death The Day thou hast
thy Servant and Hand-maid may find help in time of trouble and need Let the Midwives Skill and Care be blessed by thee when she shall be called to do her Office thou that art the God of all Grace and Consolation strengthen the faith of thine Hand-maid in the hope of thy mercy Shew thy Servant a token for good for his sake alone who is worthy Jesus Christ the Righteous to whom be Glory for ever Amen The Midwives Prayer before Delivery GRacious Lord look in mercy upon thine Hand-maid now in extream pain strengthen her faith against all her fears and bless me thine unworthy Servant and make me an instrument of help and comfort to thine Hand-maid in the hour of trial in thine hand are the issues of Life and Death preserve both Mother and Child let it be a time of joy that a Child is Born and a Woman Delivered through thy great mercy so shall we thy poor Creatures rejoyce in thy Salvation shewed to thy Hand-maid and the fruit of her Womb. Hear and help for the sake of our Lord Jesus to whom be praises for ever Amen The Midwives Prayer after Delivery MOst Holy and most Gracious Lord praises wait for thee for those exceeding abundant favours vouchsafed to thine Hand-maid in the hour of her Distress for ever blessed be thy glorious Name thou alone wast a present help O perfect thine own work in her weakness Blessed be the Lord for the fruit of the Womb that no Member was left out of thy Book that in all parts it is perfected without blemish or deformity Make thine Hand-maid a joyful Mother and continue her in her place and enable her to discharge her duty to the comfort of her Relations and the glory of thy great Name and the everlasting joy of her own Soul when she shall have finished her course and that alone upon the account of Jesus Christ to whom be Glory for ever Amen The Pained Womans Prayer in the time of her Travail O Righteous Lord thou art just in all thy ways thy righteous sentence is past the time of sin was the time of punishment the Woman to bring forth in sorrow and the Man to cat his Bread in the sweat of his Brow Have mercy Lord upon thy distressed Hand-maid in great Pain and Anguish Fears and Sorrows as thou hast blessed me with the fruit of the Womb to conceive and nourish until the time of birth O Lord now give strength to bring forth and let this fruit of my Womb be to thy praise Thou art a present help in time of trouble O blessed Lord let my life be precious in thy sight and the fruit of my Womb let it live before thee and let both be vessels of mercy through the sanctification of thy Spirit so shall thine Hand-maid devote her self to thy fear and the fruit of her Womb to thy service Let me find thy love in Jesus Christ to support me for whom O my Soul praise his Holy Name Amen The Womans Prayer after her Delivery O Most glorious Lord thou art good and doest good thou hast remembered mercy to thy Hand-maid in the time of her distress to thy Name be praise for strength given to bring forth my life was and is in thine hand yet thou hast spared it in the depth of my anguish thy help was at hand Thou also hast given life to the fruit of my Womb to thy Name be praises Give me wisdom to dispose of thy mercy to thy glory that I may be useful to thy service and as touching the fruit of my Womb sanctifie it and let it be for the bearing up of the Name of God in its Generation let it grow in grace as in years These and what things thou knowest convenient grant in the Name of Christ to whom be praise for ever Amen Graces Before and After Meat Grace before Meat MOst Holy Lord the staff of Bread is in thine hand it is of thy bounty that we are daily provided for let these thy Creatures ordained for our nourishment be received by us with thankful hearts expressing it in our lives that we receiving strength may return praises to thy self for all through Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen Grace After Meat HOly and blessed Lord let thy continued mercies and refreshments from time to time ingage us to return to thy blessed Majesty the glory due to thy self for them and all other creature comforts wherewith we are supplied help us to express our thankfulness in discharging our Callings and Consciences through our Lord Jesus Christ Amen An other Grace Before Meat HOly and gracious Lord blessed be thy gracious good providence for all thy favours daily renewed O give thy blessing on these thy good Creatures at this time that we are about to receive that they may nourish and strengthen us that we may be bettered by them and that we may return praise to thy Name through Christ Jesus our Lord Amen An other Grace After Meat HOly Lord let thy refreshing mercies be an obligation to engage us to a more holy life to live to thee who art the fountain of all our enjoyments thou givest and refreshest us with the blessings of the upper and neather springs both spiritual and temporal help us to improve all so that thou mayst have glory and we may have comfort in and through Jesus Christ the purchaser of all Amen A Prayer in time of Affliction HOly and for ever blessed Lord God thou alone art acquainted with the condition of thy poor sinful weak Creature thou that art the Father of Spirits and their great Creator who alone art a present help in time of trouble and the God of all consolation thy poor sinful dust and ashes desires to look to thee even to thee alone seeing thou art alone able to deliver from trouble sanctifie my trouble and affliction and support me in and under affliction and make all work together for the best Thou canst bring comfort out of trouble joy out of sorrow mirth out of malady and can make thy Sion Saints to wait and to look for help even from the most improbable means O let thy grace be sufficient for me and help me to trust thy promises when I cannot have thy providences I have sinned greatly which is the cause of all my misery if it were not for sin I need fear nothing O let sin die in me that grace may abound and let this chastisement which at present is grievous be and work for good unto me that I may say with thy Servant David It is good that I have been afflicted Give me a patient and submissive frame of Spirit that I may say with my blessed Saviour Not as I will but thy will O Father of mercy be done Let pains temporal prevent pains eternal Let the inner man be strengthened by the weakness of the outward man Help me in patience to possess my Soul with the thoughts of that endless and unspeakable Glory and with a sense
Power working in thy Soul Have I not sprinkled thy Conscience with my pacifying Blood from which hath flowed an attestation of good things such a sense of mercy as many times hath filled thy heart with Joy and thy mouth with a song of Praise Have not I stirred thee up in great fervency to call on the Name of the Lord Have I not made thee to give my Name a publick testimony with thine own disadvantage and how oft hath thine heart been effectually moved at the hearing of my Word in such sort as it hath wrought in thee an holy remorse and inward contrition for thy sins which hath broken out into tears Have I not made thee a wrestler against thine inordinate lusts Have I not given thee strength many a time to stand against Sathans tentations whereas if I had left thee to thy self how oft hadst thou been made a prey to thine enemy Rememberest thou not that the Tempter hath assaulted thee but I have withdrawn the occasion of thy sin and when the occasion served did I not restrain and hold back the Tempter yea when both the occasion and the Tempter were present have I not filled thy heart with the fear and love of my Name and so kept thee from sinning against me And whereas many times thou of thy weakness hast offended did I not with a melting Heart and a mourning Eye raise thee again and renew my former familiarity with thee so that thou canst never say from the first hour I began to renew thee that I suffered thee to lie in thy sins as have done others that are strangers to my Grace And many notable effects of my workings in thee thou canst not deny Are not these undoubted tokens of my Grace in thee Will Nature do such things Mayest not thou feel that by these I have begun to apply to thee my merit for the remission of thy sins and my vertue for quickning thee to a new life Therefore think of thy self as basely as thou wilt but let the work of my Grace be esteemed of thee according to the excellency of it Be humble and cast down when thou lookest upon thine own corruption I find no fault with thee but I rejoyce at the new workmanship I have begun in thee Indeed if there were nothing in thee but that which thou hast of Nature thy estate were miserable but seeing thou seest a new workmanship in thee be comforted Art thou so in darkness that there is no light in thee that besides it there is not in thee a will to do good also and a love to righteousness If thou sayest thou hast no sin in thee thou art a liar and thinkest thou that I who have begun to translate thee from darkness to light and to make thee a new creature will leave thee until I have done my work in and upon thee Therefore beloved give not ear to thine own Corruption and Satan as to take their testimony against thee or to make thee think that my pledges that I have given thee are not worthy of credit that by them thou shouldest be assured of mercy Soul I cannot deny O Lord but that many times I have felt the sweetness of thy consolations which have greatly rejoyced my Soul But alas my grief is so much the greater that by mine own default I should now be deprived of them for I have grieved thy holy Spirit yea I have done what I could to quench him and therefore it is that the Comforter who was wont to refresh my Soul is away nor can I feel his presence with me as before Christ Because I am not changed therefore is it that the Sons of Jacob are not consumed Many indeed are the changes whereunto ye are subject but I remain the same and there is no shadow of alteration in me James 1.17 Be not afraid O my well beloved neither esteem thy self to be rejected of me albeit I sometimes hide my Face from thee all my ways are mercy and truth to mine It is for thee that sometimes I go from thee and it is for thee that again I turn unto thee for if I come it is for thy consolation that continual heaviness through manifold temptations should not oppress thee How oft hast thou found this when thou wast sick of love I have strengthened thee with the Flaggons of Wine and comforted thee with my Apples my fruit hath been sweet in thy mouth and I have put my left hand under thy head and with my right hand I have embraced thee Can. 2. But least the greatness of my consolations should exalt thee to disdain thy Brother and offend me by imputing that to thine own disposition I have again drawn these glorious feelings from thee give me the praise that I know best what is expedient for thee Had my servant Paul need to be humbled with the buffets of Sathan lest he should be exalted above measure by the greatness of his Revelations and hast not thou need that by my inward exercises I should hold thee humble If my comfort were always present with thee thou wouldest think that thy Heaven and permanent City were on Earth and so cease to inquire for a better to come Thou wouldest take the place of thy Banishment for thy home and the Earnest for the Principal Summe which I have promised thee Consider this wifely with thy self that albeit I smile not alike on thee at all times and fill thee not always with my Joys yet I always love thee if thou continue in my Love for whom I love I love unto the end If I close my Chamber door upon thee it is not to hold thee out it is to learn thee to knock If I cover my self with many vails that thou canst not see a glance of my loving Countenance 't is only to stir thee up to seek me and if sometimes I seem to go from thee 't is to provoke thee to follow me that thou mayest make haste from the Earth to Heaven where thou shalt injoy me without intermission Was Joseph so wise as to conceal his tender affection from his Brethren till he brought them to an humble acknowledgment of their sin And was he again so loving as when he saw them so humbled his affection was enflamed and compelled him to reveal himself unto them And thinkest thou that I am less wise and loving in dealing with mine I gave at first sharp answers to that Woman of Canaans Petitions and so will I to deal roughly seemingly with those whom I love and to be angry even at their Prayers but in the end I will make my love manifest to them and with mine endless mercies imbrace them Soul Suffer me yet once again Lord to speak unto thee that thou mayest answer me and I shall complain no more If we saw that such were our Disposition as thy holy Word doth require in us then should thy comforts rejoyce us but alas how far am I from that which I should be my