that are at variance, inftructing thofe that know thee not enough, entertaining all the world, O God, with thy greatnefs and goodness; inflaming all hearts with thy love, and provoking them to praise thee, to bless thee, and to glorify thee; that I may one day mingle my praises with those of thy elect, tranflated to the manlions of eternal blifs, through Jefus Chrift, my Lord and Saviour. Amen. A Prayer to be used on fafting Days, and during the forty Days in Lent. God, the Father, who didft fend thy beloved Son into this world, for the fake of all mankind, and in human nature didft appoint him to faft forty days and forty nights; give me grace to use such abftinence, that, my fleth being fubdued to the Spirit, I may ever obey thy godly motions, in righteousness and true holiness, to thy honour and glory, and the falvation of my own foul, through the merits and mediation of the fame thy Son Jefus Chrift, who, with thee and the Holy Ghost, liveth and reigneth one God, world without end. Amen. A Prayer for true Mortification. Lmighty God, who madeft thy beloved Son to be circumcifed and obedient to the law for man; grant me the true circumcifion of the Spirit, that,iny heart and all my members being mortified from all worldly and fleshly lufts, I may in all things obey thy bleffed will, through the fame thy Son Jefus Chrift, my Mediator and Advocate. Amen. A Prayer for Repentance. Moft mighty God, and merciful Father, who haft compaflion upon all men, and hateft nothing that thou haft made; who wouldeft not the death of a finner, but rather that he should turn from his fin, and be faved; mercifully forgive me my trefpaffes; receive and comfort me, whom thou haft redeemed; enter not into judgment with thy fervant, who am vile earth, and a miferable finner: but fo turn thine anger from me, who meekly acknowledge my vilenefs, and truly repent me, of my faults and fo make hafte to help me in this world, that I may ever live with thee in the world to come, through Jefus Christ, my Lord. Amen, A Prayer for Afiftance of Grace. God, the ftrength of all them that put their truft in thee, mercifully accept my prayers; and because, thro' the weakness of my mortal nature, I can do no good thing without thee, grant me the help of thy grace, that, in keeping thy commandments, I may pleafe thee both in will and deed, through Jefus Chrift, my Lord. Amen. A Prayer against inordinate Anger. God, give to thy fervant a meek and gentle fpirit, that I may always be flow to anger, and eafy to help and forgive; grant that I may not be moved to intemperate wrath on every trifling occafion; preserve me from a peevish and contentious fpirit, and suffer me not fo far to give place to the devil, as to bear hatred and malice in my heart; and grant that I may follow peace with all men, being meek, humble, and merciful, bearing with the infirmities of others, and forgiving their offences, as I defire to be forgiven of thee, through the merits of my bleffed Saviour Jefus Chrift. Amen. A Prayer under Loffes and Damages in our Goods and Efates. ALmighty God, the Creator and Preferver of all man kind, the world is thine and the fulnefs thereof. Teach me to be content as well when I am abafed and fuffer need, as when I abound: for, as it will profit a man nothing to gain the whole world and lofe his foul; fo all the loffes in the world cannot undo him, whofe foul is fafe in thy hand. Let me not grieve therefore, as if I were undone, for what I have loft; but incline my heart to commit myfelf chearfully unto thee, as knowing that I have in heaven a better and an enduring fubftance of good things to come. And, feeing how little any thing is to be confided in here on earth, grant that I may look lefs on temporal things; and fo provide for the good of my foul, and be fo rich towards God, that, when all here fhall fail me, thou mayeft be the ftrength of my heart, and my portion for ever; all which I humbly pray for, through Jefus Chrift. Amen. A Prayer A Prayer in Profperity. Almighty and moft gracious God, who makeft me to abound and to be full of thy good things, and furroundeft me on every fide with thy mercies, I acknowledge, blefs, and praise thee for all thy fpecial favours towards me; but whereas I know not what shall be on the morrow, nor how foon the fun may be hid from my eyes, I must not fay in my profperity, I fhall never be moved. And grant that in time of my health, and peace, and profperity, I may remember, and provide for the time of trouble, fickness, and death, when the enjoyments of this world will be so far from being able to fupport and relieve me, that they will vanish away. Oh! give me grace alfo not to abuse the good things of this world, but always to use them in humility, fobriety, and thy holy fear: and make me willing, as thou haft made me able, to refresh the bowels of fuch as want what I do enjoy; and as freely give, as I have received; that riches may not be kept to my hurt; but, as I have opportunity, enlarge my heart to do good unto all. If thou, O Lord, fhouldft make me poor, or fend me any other affliction, give me therewith a refigned and contented heart, that I may praise thy name always: and grant that whatever I here enjoy may never draw my heart from my duty, but that all my plenty may be bleffed and fecured to me with the fulness of thy grace, that fo, being rich in good works, my foul may profper, and be well in thy bleffed favour, and made glad with thy faving mercy, and thy good acceptance of me, in and through the merits of thy Son, my Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen, A Prayer to be said by such as are poor and low in the World. God, I believe that for just and wife reasons thou hast allotted to mankind very different ftates and circumftances of life; and that all the temporal evils, which have at any time happened unto me, are designed by thee for my benefit: Therefore, tho' thou haft thought fit to place me in a mean condition, to deprive me of many conveniencies of life, and to exercise me in a state of poverty; yet thou hast hitherto • Here re blefings you enjoy, as thy health, alfitance of friends, &c. hitherto preferved and fupported me by thy good providence, and bleffed me with advantages * above many others, who labour under great troubles. And, collect the O merciful Father, if thou feeft fit, blefs me with fuch a portion of the comforts and conveniencies of life, that thereby I may be inabled to go on more chearfully in my ftation, to ferve thee better, to love thee more and more, and to admire more thy wonderful bounty and loving-kindness; grant me health and ftrength, and abilities fuited to my circumftances, that I may honeftly provide for myfelf; fupport me, that I fall not into extreme want; lay not more upon me, than thou shalt inable me to bear with patience; and fupply the want of worldly bleffings, by the comfort and fupport of thy good Spirit, whereby I may be made perfect in every good work, become rich in faith, and an heir of thy kingdom. Grant, O Lord, that I may exercise all those chriftian graces and duties, which my present circumstances call for from me: let the sharpness of temporal wants put me upon confidering what mifery must attend the lofs of my foul: let a sense of my poverty ftir up eager defires after the true riches; and the lefs I have of this world, the more careful let me be to provide for the next, and to feek an inheritance incorruptible, and that fadeth not away; and let bodily hardships convince me of the great evil of fpiritual wants. Infpire me with diligence and industry in my calling; and, when I have done my endeavour, make me to caft all my care upon thee; that neither the contempt which vain perfons wrongfully caft upon poverty, nor any evil which I may endure, may tempt me to any difhoneft ways of living; but let me chufe rather to be poor than wicked, and to want any thing rather than thy bleffing. For which end, cloathe me with a meek, and quiet, and humble spirit, and a thorough contentedness in my present circumstances; that I may neither dare to repine at my own condition, nor envy the profperity of others. Raise up my heart to look unto Jefus, who, to reconcile man to a state of poverty, chofe to be born and live in a mean condition, enduring hunger, and thirft, and cold, and not having where to lay his head: that by his example I may be en couraged couraged to contemn the world; and through faith and patience having finished the race which thou haft fet before me, I may be received into the joy of my Lord, for the fake of my Redeemer, thy ever-bleffed Son Jesus Christ, Lord and Saviour. Amen. my A Prayer under any Injuries, Abufes, or Provocations. God, whofe beloved Son was evil-intreated, tempted, reviled, fpit upon, mocked, and perfecuted even unto death; and his blefied difciples hadalfo trials of cruel mockings and fcourgings, and of fevere bonds and imprisonment: what then am I, that I fhould expect to escape the injuries, abuses, and provocations of this world? therefore, Lord, fuch as my folly and mifcarriage have made to be my enemies, incline my heart to peace, and inable me to appease, and to gain them to my friendship: and such as hate me wrongfully, pardon their fin, open their eyes, purify their minds, and convert their hearts unto thee; that they may fee their fault, be reconciled to thee, O God, and then live, as much as in them lieth, in peace with all men, that wemayat laft live together in heaven: and for this end mortify, I beseech thee, in all of us, the carnal mind, which is at enmity against thee, and all thofe lufts, which war in our members, from whence wars and fightings arife; and unite us all against the common enemy of our fouls; to join all our hearts to thee, in thy true fear and love, that we may not meditate revenge, but study to be quiet; and this we humbly pray in the name of that great pattern of meekness, thy Son, my Lord and Saviour, Jefus Chrift. A Prayer for our Perfecutors. Amen. God, whofe nature and property is always to have mercy and to forgive, fhew mercy, I moft humbly befeech thee, to all thofe that perfecute me, though they neither fhew juftice nor mercy towards me: pity their ignorance, remove those prejudices that blind their eyes, sweeten and soften their spirits, that they may no longer be carried away with malice and bitter paffions; but difpofe them by humility and meeknefs, and by a fincere love of truth and righteousness, |