Jesus come quickly Having thus Conducted Young Persons to the Holy Altar which unless they are extreamly wanting to themselves is next to Conducting them to Heaven I shall leave them there to the blessing of God and our Saviour who is ready to embrace them with the Arms of his Mercy and seal them with his life-giving Spirit to the Day of Eternal Redemption Only to their own Pious Meditations and Prayers they may if they please add the following Litany A LITANY FOR Young Gentlemen O God the Father of Heaven of Angels and of Men have Mercy upon us Miserable Sinners O God the Son who hast Redeem'd the World with thy most Precious Blood have Mercy upon us Miserable Sinners O God the Holy Ghost the Lord and giver of Spiritual Heavenly Life have Mercy upon us Miserable Sinners O Holy Blessed and Glorious Trinity whose Wisdom and Power and Goodness is Infinite have Mercy upon us Miserable Sinners Remember not Lord the Sins and Offences of our Youth nor be extream to mark what we have done amiss Spare us good Lord spare us a little that we may recover our strength and according to thy Mercy think thou upon us for thy goodness Spare us good Lord. From forgetting our Creator in the Days of our Youth from wasting the flower of our age in vanity and folly and reserving our decrepid Years for the Service of God Good Lord deliver us From valuing the Blessings we enjoy more than the Giver of them from trusting in any thing more than in Providence and from loving Pleasure more than thee our God Good Lord deliver us From dishonouring our Bodies with Intemperance and Vncleanness from polluting our Souls with impure Imaginations from defiling our Mouths with prophane and impious or obscene Discourses Good Lord deliver us From abusing our Reason in opposing Religion from debasing our Wit to the service of our Lusts from living like Beasts when thou hast made us Men and Christians Good Lord deliver us From excesses of Passion and a turbulent Spirit from tormenting our selves because others misuse us from the guilt and the misery of Malice and Revenge Good Lord deliver us From Conceit and Pride Envy and Ambition from foolish Rashness and inconsiderate Heat from despising our Guides and following our own Counsel only Good Lord deliver us From stubborn Obstinacy and deafness to Advice from contempt of Reproof and anger at the Reprover from a blinded Mind and a seared Conscience Good Lord deliver us From deadness in thy Service and a formal Religion from obedience that is fanciful humoursome and uncertain from a superstitious use or neglect of the Ornaments of Worship Good Lord deliver us From forgetting Thee or our selves in raptures of Enthusiasm from pretending to Piety for the sake of the World and from all the Paths that lead to the Portion of Hypocrites Good Lord deliver us From conforming to the World in the Arts of Deceit from fawning and flattery Censure and Detraction from false Smiles and treacherous Friendship Good Lord deliver us From impatience in Trouble and excessive Dejections from distrust of thy Providence and Desperate Courses from fretting against God for what we bring upon our selves Good Lord deliver us In all time of Temptation by Prosperity or Adversity in all sudden Surprizes and imminent Dangers in the hour of Death and in the Day of Judgment O Blessed Jesus by all that thou hast done and suffered for us then succour and deliver us And tho' unworthy as we are and miserable Sinners yet encouraged by thy boundless Mercy and Goodness we beseech thee farther to hear us and as the Guardian and guide of our Youth shew us the way that we should walk in for we lift up our Souls unto thee Good Lord we beseech thee to hear us O that our ways might be directed by thy Commandments and our footsteps never wander from them that we might meditate upon thy Precepts and delight our selves in thy Service and never forget thy Word Good Lord we beseech thee to hear us Thy Hands have made us what we are from thee comes all we have or hope for O give us the Vnderstanding that we may entirely Praise and Love thee and not be stupid and insensible as the Beasts that perish Good Lord we beseech thee to hear us That it may please thee to inspire us with Affections becoming Christians that we may live worthy of that most Holy Profession as Disciples of Jesus and design'd for Glory We beseech thee to hear us good Lord. That our Saviours life may be the rule of ours that we may tread in his steps and become like him in temper and spend our days as he did in advancing thy Glory and doing good in our Generation We beseech thee to hear us good Lord. That we may employ our Youth and our Strength in the great work of our Salvation and run the way of thy Commandments with vigour and spirit and the warmth and fervour of a chearful Mind We beseech thee to hear us good Lord. That Religion may be esteem'd by us as our chief good that all things else may be subservient to it as the delight and the joy of our hearts Good Lord we beseech thee to hear us That our Faith may be irreproveable steady and modest such as may work by Love and purifie our Hearts and bring down every thing that exalts it self against obedience to Christ Good Lord we beseech thee to hear us That with our whole Heart we may devote our selves to thy Service and be sincerely what we do Profess and value the Joys of a quiet Conscience above thousands of Gold and Silver We beseech thee to hear us good Lord. That our Baptismal Vow may be kept Inviolate the Promises we have since made to thee faithfully perform'd and all our Pious Resolutions made good We beseech thee to hear us good Lord. O let us not go wrong thou guide of our steps O let us not fall thou that art our Support Discover to us the snares that are laid for our Souls and grant that we may ever escape them Good Lord we beseech thee to hear us And when we are down Lord do thou raise us up When we go astray like Sheep that are lost O seek thy Servants pity our sad state and bring us back unto thy fold again Good Lord we beseech thee to hear us We will think on our ways and turn our feet unto thy Testimonies we will make haste without delay to keep thy righteous Judgments with thy assistance which we humbly beg and Beseech thee to hear us good Lord. But who can tell how often he offendeth Cleanse thou us therefore from our secret faults and keep us from presumptuous Sins lest they get the Dominion over us Good Lord we beseech thee to hear us May we never despise the Riches of thy long-suffering and forbearance nor by our continu'd impenitence treasure up Wrath against the day of Wrath but be intirely softned
are the ways that lead to Misery and Ruin not only in the World to come but ev'n in this too And whoever goes on in 'em without controul and will not be recall'd will at length and very likely before He is aware after all the Misfortunes he has run through here find himself a miserable Inhabitant of the Place prepared for the Devil and his Angels Now by Frequent Self-Examination I mean no less than Daily that every Night when we 're retir'd from the World and the noise and hurry of that day's Stage is over and we have taken up our Lodging to Refresh our selves for the next then as David expresses it Ps 4.4 to commune with our own Hearts in our Chamber and be still That is without Prejudice or Passion to Consider quietly and seriously as in the Presence of God Omniscient Ps 139. who is about our Path and about our Bed and spyeth out all our ways what our behaviour that Day actually hath been and what it should have been and Consequently to which State we have been Travelling to the Kingdom of Life and Glory or to the Regions of Eternal Death And this Daily Scrutiny into our Lives and Conversations is so agreeable to Reason that Heathen Philosophy did particularly Recommend it and 't is one of the Golden Precepts as they are deservedly call'd of the School of Pythagoras Admit not sleep to close your eyes till you have recollected thrice each single Action of the day and ask'd your selves such Questions as these Wherein have I transgressed What have I done What Duty have I omitted Run over these things beginning at the First and then if you have done ill be Troubled if well Rejoyce What can be more excellently said than this What more useful Practice can there be in this our Pilgrimage as the Scripture calls our Life and really it is no other than at the close of every Stage thus to look back upon our Goings observe where we have err'd and wandred at what we stumbled and fell upon what Motives and Temptations that so we may Prevent the next Day the miscarriages of this see our Error before it is too late return before we have wandred too far set a greater value upon our Guides more heedfully observe their Directions and be the more wary and circumspect in our future Journeys for being so easily thrown down deceived and led aside in those that are past How much easier is it to Recollect and Amend the miscarriages of a Day than of Months or Years And Consequently how much safer is it for every Man thus to Consider his ways whilst his Memory can tell Him what they were and whilst 't is in his Power with so much ease to amend them if they are amiss than to go carelesly on till for want of Examining he takes the Wrong way for the Right gets a habit of going astray and so becomes not sensible of his Error till 't is too late to Mend it or at least has wandred so long that the difficulty of Recovering the right way is almost Insuperable No better Office certainly than to direct a Stranger in the Road that He should take to warn Him of Dangers that He may meet with in it and to lead Him back and set Him Right when He has lost his Way Especially when He is in Haste and Night is coming on and the Business he goes about of greatest Consequence Now nothing can be of greater Consquence than the Journey of a Christian through the World He Travels upon Eternal Life and Death His Journey is Great and therefore He had need to lose no Time and the Night with every Man is coming on apace and no Man can tell how soon it may be Night with Him and 't is a long Night too and may be Eternal and will certainly put an end to His Journey whenever it overtakes Him whether it be to Heaven or to Hell And therefore those Considerations that will set us right in our way and expedite our Great Business and help to Conduct us safely to that Happy Place where we all would be are no doubt well employ'd But for all this Young People I 'm afraid will not be very easily Persuaded to put this Advice in Practice and therefore the more need to press it earnestly upon them They look upon it as a very uncomfortable Way of Travelling to be still Doubting whether they are right or no continually Enquiring and list'ning to every melancholly or designing Person that shall pretend to give them better Directions If now and then a misgiving Thought arises 't is smother'd presently by Business or Pleasure and when a Guide of Souls is met with who Faithfully informs them of the way they ought to take tells them they 're in the wrong and must turn back if they would see their wish'd for Journey 's end and that That Path will lead them to their Ruin They look upon this as a Greeting of Course from Men of their Profession and make it their endeavour to Persuade Him to go along with Them rather than think of turning back with Him However let Him take his own Course they are resolv'd still to follow theirs 't is the way they have been us'd to and which offers it self readyest and fairest to them and is smooth and pleasant the Entertainment good and most of their Friends and Acquaintance it may be do bear 'em Company in it so that very loath they are to make too nice Enquiries lest they should be made sensible of the necessity of Performing so ungrateful a Task as with many a weary step to beat the Hoof back again and turn their Feet into a Track they have no Mind to But in short would this be Prudence in our Journeyings here in this World And why should not our Judgment be the same with Respect to the Other We need not be told I suppose that here we are Strangers have no abiding City but seek one to come where when we once Arrive we shall be for ever fix'd as in our proper Place of Abode our Home That other World consists of Two and but two States the one Infinitely Happy the other as Infinitely Miserable To these two States there are two Highways that lead which tho' they meet in a Point at the beginning yet Widen Insensibly and Infinitely and at length become as far distant from each other as Heaven is from Hell And therefore in all Reason as our First Care should be to set out Well so our next immediately to turn Back if we perceive that we have gone amiss For every step that we then take carries us further and further wide from Heaven and nearer to Destruction Well then if this Daily Self-Examination be of such vast Consequence what ever will make us uncapable of it should carefully be avoided Particularly Vnseasonable and Intemperate Drinking How can He close his Day with such a serious Scrutiny as we have now been speaking
than in Mine and the World's Creator who hath communicated Being and Happiness to all the Universe and by whose Bounteous Hand we are all supply'd with abundant Plenty of our proper Good For the same Reasons therefore that we love any thing we shall find our selves strongly engaged to Love our Creator infinitely more and Imitation and Obedience will naturally follow True Gratitude and Love So that Would Young Persons be but perswaded Eccles 12.1 as the Wise King Advises Thus to Remember their Creator in the Days of their Youth That His Hands have made them and fashioned them and trace their Life and their Happiness up to its Eternal Spring And would they do this seriously and not too seldom what Religious Affections would it not excite What Self-Annihilation and Humblest Thankfulness content in every Change of their Condition and Modesty and Moderation in their greatest Prosperity What Admiration at the Divine Wisdom and Power and Goodness and entire Resignation of themselves to all his Disposals and resolv'd Conformity to all his Pleasure And what a happy Influence upon their future Life such a Temper of Mind as this would have is not to be express'd The Second Advice BUT Secondly Advice 2 Let them Remember too that they are Christians the Disciples of Jesus that Eternal Son of God the King of Glory who is the Saviour of the World Who from a most deplorable Condition into which Mankind had plung'd themselves by Sin by his Bitter Sufferings in their stead and cruel Death upon a Cross Redeem'd and Rais'd them up to Infinitely Happy Circumstances and most Glorious Hopes And that upon this Reasonable Condition only that they Believe what He has done and suffer'd for them to be sufficient to their Salvation and trust in it as the only Meritorious Cause of it and give full Assent to the Great Truths He hath made known to them and carefully observe what He hath commanded in the Gospel Revelation All which was engag'd for them in their Baptism or Admission into this Happy Society and which they have since Agreed to and Ratified in their own Persons at their Confirmation There is no Title in the World that carries with it so much Honour empâ—â—ys so much Happiness and reminds of so much Duty as that of Christian It bespeaks a Man a Friend and a Favourite Rom. 8.14 c. nay a Brother of the Son of God receiv'd by Adoption into the same near Relation to the most High an Heir of God and Coheir with Christ of Eternal Glory in the Highest Heavens 1 Joh. 3.2 Where he shall be made Like to his Heavenly Father in all his Communicable Excellencies and in the Bosom of Jesus for ever enjoy the most consummate Felicity And all this from a state of Enmity with God and open Rebellion which had deservedly brought His Curse upon him made him the Object of the Divine Hatred and Vengeance which would have made him extremely Miserable to Eternal Ages had not the most Compassionate Jesus made an Attonement with His Blood and Introduc'd this wondrous Happy Change But then what Vast Obligations lie upon all Christians for such Amazing Favours as these As first so far to know themselves as to Live suitable to the High Honour conferr'd on them by God which the Apostle stiles Walking worthy of the Vocation wherewith we are call'd Eph. 4.1 and not to Degrade themselves by vile and finful Courses If God has rais'd 'em from so Low and Miserable to so Glorious and Happy a Condition 't will be Inexcusable Meanness of Spirit and contrary to all the Principles of Honour to become Slaves and Drudges for such pittiful base things in comparison as the Objects of Sense and the Enjoyments of Brutes and forgetting their Treasure in Heaven the Crown that awaits 'em there employ all their Thoughts and their Diligence upon the Trifles of this Earth Again If they are the Purchase of the Son of God Redeem'd by the Inestimable Price of His most Precious Blood from the Extreamest Misery there 's all the Reason in the World that they should entirely Dedicate themselves to His Service as no longer their own 1 Cor. 6.20 and Glorify that Blessed Saviour of theirs with their Bodies and their Spirits which are his Would a Slave ransom'd from the Mines or Gallies think much for ever to serve and obey his Redeemer Would a Wretch condemn'd to the Rack or Wheel there to be Tortur'd to Death think any thing too much to do for that dear kind Man who procur'd for him his Pardon Can his Life and his Liberty be employ'd better than in doing him Honour to whom he owes both And how would our Blood rise against that ungrateful Wretch who would take no Notice of all this or at most return a few cool dry Thanks and refuse some easy reasonable piece of Service that was requested of him or put it off till he had nothing else to do What Love and Duty then can be enough to the Great Saviour of the World from Misery infinitely greater than the most witty Malice upon Earth could e're invent and which too Never Never should have End and who besides has rais'd us to a State as Glorious and Happy as that we are redeem'd from would have been Wretched and Miserable And can we think the most Compassionate Jesus who underwent such barbarous cruel Usage and lost his Life in Torment for our Sakes would e're require of us unreasonable Things No no All His Commands are Holy Just and Good contriv'd on purpose to carry on the Gracious Design of making us both now and ever completely Happy and that at length we may have full Possession of what he has purchas'd for us That he may see the Blessed Effects of the Agonies and Travel of his Soul and conduct his little Flock which Mens own Obstinacy does make so little into the blissful Kingdom of his Father That where he is there they may be also Joh. 17.24 and behold and partake of his Glory How can we better spend the Prime and Flower of our Age than in the Service of so Good a Master and who himself did lead the way perform'd what he requires of us and made his excellent Precepts look still more lovely by the Lustre of his own Example Nothing can more commend the True Nobleness and Generosity of our Spirits than in the midst of those Temptations which surround us at our First Entrance into the World to Remember our Obligations to Jesus our Best Friend and freely lay our Fortunes our Strength our Reason our Affections our very Life down at his Feet to be entirely Govern'd and Directed by him who once as great a Person as he was submitted to Poverty suffer'd the greatest Hardships and e're he arriv'd to half the Age of Man became a Sacrifiee for us Certainly we can't but think this highly reasonable especially since we are so firmly engag'd to it by the most Solemn