Things, he proportions out our Trials, and supplies us with Remedy, and where his Rod ftrikes us, his Staff fupports us. To which we may add this, That God, who is always with us, is especially by Promife with us in Tribulation, to turn the Mifery into a Mercy, and that our greatest Trouble may become our Advantage, by entitling us to a new manner of the Divine Pretence.

In vita S.
Antho.

3. It is apt to produce joy and rejoicing in God, we being more apt to delight in the Partners and Witneffes of our Converfation; every degree of mutual abiding and converfing being a relation and an endearment: we are of the fame Houfhold with God; he is with us in our natural Actions to preferve us, in our Recreations to restrain us, in our publick Actions to applaud or reprove us, in our private to obferve us, in our Sleeps to watch by us, in our watchings to refresh us; and if we walk with God in all his ways, as he walks with us in all ours, we fhall find perpetual reafons to enable us to keep that Rule of God, Rejoyce in the Lord always, and again I say rejoyce. And this puts me in mind of a Saying of an old religious Perfon, [There is one way of overcoming our ghoftly Enemies! fpiritual Mirth, and a perpetual bearing of God in our minds] This effectively refifts the Devil, and fuffers us to receive no hurt from him.

4. This Exercife is apt allo to enkindle holy defires of the enjoyment of God, because it produces joy when we do enjoy him, the fame defires that a weak man hath for a Defender, the fick man for a Phyfician, the poor for a Patron, the Child for his Father, the elpoufed Lover for her betrothed.

5. From the fame fountain are apt to iffue humility of Spirit, apprehenfions of our great diftance and our great needs, our daily wants and hourly fupplies, admiration of God's unfpeakable Mercies: It is the cause of great Modefty and Decency in our actions; it helps to recollection of Mind, and reftrains the fcatterings and loofenets of wandring thoughts; it establishes the heart in good purposes, and leadeth on to perfeverance; it gains purity and perfection, (according to the faying of

God

God to Abraham, Walk before me, and be perfect) holy tear, and holy love, and indeed every thing that pertains to holy Living: when we see our felves placed in the eye of God, who fets us on work, and will reward us plenteously, to ferve him with an eye-fervice is very pleafing; for he alfo fees the heart and the want of this confideration was declared to be the caufe why Ifrael finned fo grievously, [For they fay, Ezek. 9. 9. The Lord hath for faken the earth, and the Lord feeth Bral. 10. 11. not: therefore the Land is full of bloud, and the City full of perverfenefs.] What a Child would doe in the eye of his Father, and a Pupil before his Tutor, and a Wife in the prefence of her Husband, and a Servant in the fight of his Mafter, let us always do the fame: for we are made a fpectacle to God, to Angels, and to Men; we are always in the fight and pretence of the All-feeing and Almighty God: who alfo is to us a Father and a Guardian, a Husband and a Lord. &

Prayers and Devotions according to the Religion and Purpoles of the foreg ing Confiderations.

I.

For grace to spend our Time well.

Eternal God who from all Eternity doft behold and love thy own glories and perfections infinite, and haft created me to doe the work of God after the manner of men, and to serve Thee in this generation, and according to my capacities; give me thy grace that I may be a curious and prudent spender of my time, fo as I may best prevent or refift all temptation, and be profitable to the Chriftian Commonwealth, and by discharging all my duty may glorifie thy Name. Take from me all flothfulness, and give me a diligent and active spirit, and wildom to chufe my employment, that I may do works proportionable to my perfon, and to the dignity of a Chriftian, and may fill up all the (paces of my time with actions of Religion and Charity; that when the Devil affaults me, he may not find me idle, and my deareft Lord at his fud

den

Rev. 11. 17.

&s. 10, 13.

& 4. 10.

& 15.3.

den coming may find me bufie in lawful, neceffary and pious actions, improving my talent intrusted to me by thee, my Lord, that I may enter into the joy of my Lord to partake of his eternal felicities, even for thy mercy lake,and for my deareft Saviour's fake. Amen.

Here follows the Devotion of ordinary days; for the
right employment of thofe portions of time which
every day must allow for Religion.

The firft Prayers in the Morning as foon as
we are dressed.

Humbly and reverently compofe your felf, with heart
lift up to God, and your head bowed, and meekly
kneeling upon your knees, fay the Lord's Prayer:
after which ufe the following Collects, or as many
of them as you shall chufe.

Our Father which art in Heaven, &c.

I.

An Act of Adoration, being the Song that the Angels fing in Heaven.

*

Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come: Heaven and Earth, Angels and Men, the Air and the Sea give glory, and honour, and thanks to him that fitteth on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever. All the bleffed Spirits and Souls of the righteous caft their crowns before the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever. Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory, and honour, and power; for thou haft created all things, and for thy pleafure they are and were created. * Great and marvellous are thy works, O Lord God Almighty: Juft and true are thy ways, thou King of Saints. Thy wifdom is infinite, thy mercies are glorious and I am not worthy, O Lord, to appear in thy prefence, before whom the Angels hide their faces. O Holy and Eternal Jefus, Lamb of God, who wert

flain from the beginning of the world, thou haft redeemed us to God by thy bloud out of every nation, and haft made us unto our God Kings and Priefts, and we shall reign with thee for ever. Bleffing, honour, glory and power be unto him that fitteth on the Throne, and to the Lamb for ever.

II.

Amen.

An Act of Thanksgiving, being the Song of David, for the Morning.

Sing praifes unto the Lord, O ye Saints of his, and give thanks to him for a remembrance of his holinefs. For his wrath endureth but the twinkling of an eye, and in his pleasure is life: heavinefs may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the Morning. Thou, Lord, haft preferved me this night from the violence of the fpirits of darkness, from all fad casualties and evil accidents, from the wrath which I have every day deferved: thou haft brought my foul out of hell, thou haft kept my life from them that go down into the pit: thou haft fhewed me marvellous great kindness, and haft bleffed me for ever: the greatness of thy glory reacheth unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds. Therefore fhall every good man fing of thy praise without ceafing. O my God, I will give thanks to thee for ever. Allelujah.

III.

An Act of Oblation or presenting our selves to God for the day.

Moft Holy and Eternal God, Lord and Sovereign of all the creatures, I humbly prefent to thy Divine Majefty my felf, my foul and body, my thoughts and my words, my actions and intentions, my paffions and my fufferings, to be difpofed by thee to thy glory, to be bleffed by thy providence, to be guided by thy counfel, to be fanctified by thy Spirit, and afterwards that my body and foul may be received into glory : for nothing can perifh which is under thy cuftody;

D

and

and the enemy of Souls cannot devour what is thy portion, nor take it out of thy hands. This day, O Lord, and all the days of my life I dedicate to thy honour, and the actions of my calling to the ufes of grace, and the Religion of all my days to be united to the merits and interceffion of my holy Saviour Jefus, that in him and for him I may be pardoned and accepted. Amen.

IV.

An Act of Repentance or Contrition.

FOR as for me, I am not worthy to be called thy fervant, much less am I worthy to be thy fon; for I am the vileft of finners and the worst of men, a lover of the things of the world and a defpifer of the things of God [proud and envious, lustfull and intemperate ] greedy of fin and impatient of reproof, defirous to feem holy and negligent of being fo, tranfported with intereft, fool'd with prefumption and falfe principles, difturbed with anger, with a peevish and unmortified fpirit, and difordered by a whole body of fin and death. Lord pardon all my fins for my fweeteft Saviour's fake thou who didft die for me, Holy Jefus, fave me and deliver me: referve not my fins to be punifhed in the day of wrath and eternal vengeance; but wash away my fins, and blot them out of thy remembrance, and purifie my Soul with the waters of repentance and the bloud of the cross; that for what is paft thy wrath may not come out against me, and for the time to come I may never provoke thee to anger or to jealoufie. O juft and dear God, be pitifull and gracious to thy fervant. Amen.

V.

The Prayer or Petition.

Lefs me, gracious God, in my calling to fuch purpofes as thou shalt chufe for me, or employ me in: Relieve me in all my ladneffes, make my bed in my ficknefs, give me patience in my forrows, confidence