Three Prayers, one for the Morning, another for the Evening: the third for a sick-man. Whereunto is annexed, a godly Letter to a sick friend: and a comfortable speech of a Preacher upon his death bed. Anno. Dom. 1591.  
AT LONDON, Printed for Thomas man.. 1591.   

Three Prayers, one for Morning, an other for Evening: the third for a sick-man.  

A Morning Prayer.  
O Lord prepare our hearts to pray.  
Eternal God, giver to them which want, Comforter to them which suffer, and forgiver to them which repent: we have nothing to render thee but thine own. If we could give thee our bodies, and souls, they should be saved by it: but thou were never the richer for them. All is our duty and all of us cannot perform it: therefore thy son died, and thy spirit descended, and thy Angels guide, and thy Ministers teach, to help the weakness of men. All things call upon us, to call upon thee, and we are prostrate before thee before we know how to worship thee: even since we rose, we have tasted many of thy blessings, and thou hast begun to serve us, before we begin to serve thee. Why shouldest thou bestow thy health and wealth, and rest, and liberty upon us more than other? we can give no reason for it, but that thou art merciful.  
And if thou shouldest draw all back again, we have nothing to say, but that thou art just. Our sins are so grievous and infinite, that we are feign to say with judas, I have sinned: and there stop because we cannot reckon them. All things serve thee, as they did at first, only men are the sinners in this world.  
Our heart is a root of corruption, our eyes are the eyes of vanity, our ears are the ears of folly, our mouths are the mouths of deceit, our hands are the hands of iniquity, and every part doth dishonour thee, which would be glorified of thee. The understanding which was given us to learn virtue, is apt now to apprehend nothing but sin; the will which was given us to affect righteousness, is apt now to love nothing but wickedness.  
The memory which was given us to remember good things, is apt now to keep nothing but evil things. There is no difference between us and the wicked, we have done more against thee this week, than we have done for thee since we were borne, and yet we have not resolved to amend; but this is the course of our whole life, first we sin, & then we pray thee to forgive it, and then to our sins again, as though we came to thee for leave to offend thee.  
And that which should get pardon at thy hands for all the rest, that is, (our prayer) is so full of toys and fancies, for want of faith and reverence, that when we have prayed, we had need to pray again that thou wouldest forgive our prayers, because we think least of thee when we pray unto thee. What Father but thou, could suffer this contempt, & be contemned still? Yet when we think upon thy son, all our fear is turned into joy, because his righteousness for us, is more than our wickedness against ourselves. Settle our faith in thy beloved, and it sufficeth for all our iniquities, necessities, and infirmities.  
Now Lord we go forth to fight against the world, the flesh, and the devil: and the weakest of our enemies, is stronger than we: therefore we come unto thee, for thy holy spirit to take our part; that is, to change our minds, and wills, and affections, which we have corrupted, to remove all the hindrances which lets us to serve thee: and to direct all our thoughts, speeches & actions, to thy glory, as thou hast directed thy glory to our salvation. Although we be sinners (O Lord) yet we are thine, & therefore we beseech thee to separate our sins from us, which would separate us from thee, that we may be ready to every good, as we are to evil. Teach us to remember our sins, that thou mayest forget them, and let our sorrow here, prevent the sorrow to come. We were made like thee, let not flesh and blood turn the Image of GGD to the image of sathan: our foes are thy foes, let not thine enemies prevail against thee to take us from thee, but make thy word unto us, like the star which led unto Christ: make thy benefits, like the pillar which brought to the land of promise: make thy cross, like the messenger which compelled guests unto the banquet: that we may walk before men like examples, and always look upon thy son, how he would speak and do, before we speak or do any thing.  
Keep us in that fear of thy Majesty, that we may make conscience of all that we do, and that we may count no sin small, but leave our lying, and swearing, and surfeiting, and coveting, and boasting, & flaunting, & inordinate gaming, & wanton sporting, because they draw us to other sins, & are forbidden as straightly as other. Let not our hearts at any time be so dazzled, but that in all temptations, we may discern between good and evil, between right and wrong, between truth and error: and that we may judge of all things as they are, and not as they seem to be; let our minds be always so occupied, that we may learn something of every thing, & use all those creatures as means and helps prepared for us to serve thee. Let our affections grow so toward one another, that we may love thee as much for the prosperity of other as if it were our own: let our faith, & love, and prayer be alway so ready to go unto thee for our help, that in sickness we may find patience, in prison we may find joy, in poverty we may find contentment, and in all troubles we may find hope. Turn all our joys to the joy of the holy Ghost, & all our peace to the peace of consciences, and all our fears to the fear of sin, that we may love righteousness, with as great good will as ever we loved wickedness: and go before other in thankfulness towards thee, as far as thou goest in mercy towards us before them; taking all that thou sendest as a gift, & leaving our pleasures before they leave us, that our time to come, may be a repentance of the time past, thinking always of the joys of heaven, the pains of hell, our own death, and the death of thy son for us.  
Yet Lord let us speak once again like Abraham, one thing more we will beg at thy hands, our resolutions are variable, and we cannot perform our promises to thee, therefore settle us in a constant form of obedience, that we may serve thee from this hour, with those duties which the world, the devil, and the flesh, would have us defer until the point of death.  
Lord we are unworthy to ask any thing for ourselves, yet thy favour hath preferred us to be petitioners for other. Therefore we beseech thee to hear us for them, and them for us, and thy son for all. Bless thy universal Church, with truth, with peace, and thy holy discipline. Strengthen all them which suffer for thy cause, and let them see the Spirit of comfort coming towards them, as thy Angels came to thy son, when he was hungry.  
Be merciful unto all those which lie in anguish of conscience, for remorse of their sins: as thou hast made them examples, so teach us to take example by them, that we may look upon thy Gospel, to keep us from despair: and upon thy law, to keep us from presumption. Prosper the Armies which fight thy battles, & show a difference between thy servants & thy enemies, as thou didst between the Isralites and the Egyptians, that they which serve thee not, may come to thy service, seeing that no God doth bless besides thee. Make us thankful for our peace, whom thou hast set at liberty, while thou hast laid our dangers upon others, which mightest have laid their dangers upon us: And teach us to build thy Church in our rest, as Solomon built thy Temple in his peace. Have mercy upon this sinful Land, which is sick of long prosperity, let not thy blessings rise up against us, but endue us with grace as thou hast with riches, that we may go before other Nations in Religion, as we go before them in plenty; give us such hearts as thy servants should have: that thy will may be our will; that thy Law may be our Law; and that we may seek our kingdom in thy kingdom. Give unto our Prince a princely heart, unto our Counsellors, the spirit of counsel, unto our judges, the spirit of judgement, unto our Ministers the spirit of doctrine, unto our people, the spirit of obedience: that we may all retain that communion here, that we may enjoy the communion of Saints hereafter.  
Bless this Family with thy grace and peace, that the Rulers thereof may govern according to thy word, that the servants may obey like the Servants of God, and that we may all so love one another, that we may all be loved of thee. Now Lord we have commenced our suit, our understanding is weak, and our memory short, and we unworthy to pray unto thee, more unworthy to receive the things which we pray for. Therefore we commend our prayers and ourselves unto thy mercy in the name of thy beloved son our loving Saviour, whose righteousness pleadeth for our unrighteousness. Our Father which art in heaven. etc.   

A Prayer for the Evening.  
O Lord God, what shall we render unto thee for all thy benefits? which hast given thy son for a ransom, thy holy spirit for a pledge, thy word for a guide, and reservest a kingdom for our perpetual inheritance: of whose goodness we are created, of whose justice we are corrected, of whose mercy we are saved: our sins strive with thy benefits which are more, let us count all creatures, & there be not so many of any kind, as thy gifts, except our offences, which we return unto thee for them. Thou mightest have said before we were form: let them be monsters, or let them be Infidels, or let them be beggars, or Cripples, or bondslaves so long as they live. But thou hast made us to the best likeness, and nursed us in the best religion, and placed us in the best land, that thousands would think themselves happy, if they had but a piece of our happiness. Therefore why should any serve thee more than we, which want nothing but thankfulness?  
Thou hast given us so many things, that scarf we have any thing left to pray for, but that thou wouldst continue those benefits which thou hast bestowed already, yet we covet as though we had nothing, and live as though we knew nothing: when we were children, we deferred till we were men, now we are men, we defer until we be old men; and when we be old men, we will defer until death. Thus we steal thy gifts, and do nothing for them, yet we look for as much at thy hands, as they which serve thee all their lives. The least of thy blessings, is greater than all the courtesies of men, and yet we are not so thankful to thee for all that we have, as we are to a friend fore one good turn: we are ashamed of many sins in other, and yet we are not ashamed to commit the same sins ourselves, & worse than they; yea we have sinned so long almost, that we can do nothing else but sin, and make others sin too, which would not sin but for us.  
If we do any evil, we do it cheerfully and quickly, and easily: but if we do any good, we do it faintly, and rudely and slackly; When did we talk without vanity? when did we give without hypocrisy? when did we bargain without deceit? when did we reprove without envy? when did we hear without weariness? when did we pray without tediousness? Such is our corruption, as though we were made to sin: in deed, or in word, or in thought, we have broken all thy Commandments, that we might fee what good is in evil, which hath left nothing but guilt, and shame, and expectation of judgement, while we might have had peace of conscience, joy of heart, and all the graces which come with the holy spirit. Some have been won by thy word, but we would not suffer it to change us: some have been reform by thy cross, but we would not suffer it to purge us: some have been moved by thy benefits, but we would not suffer them to persuade us: nay we have given consent unto the devil, that we will abuse all thy gifts, so fast as they come: & therefore thy blessings make us proud, thy riches covetous, thy peace wanton, thy meats intemperate, thy mercy secure, and all thy benefits are weapons to rebel against thee, that if thou look into our hearts, thou mayst say our Religion is hypocrisy, our zeal envy, but wisdom policy; our peace security, our life rebellion: our devotion ends with our prayers, and we live, as though we had no souls to save.  
What shall we answer for that which our conscience condemns? We are one day nearer to death since we rose, when we shall give account how every day hath been spent, and how we have got these things which other will consume when we are gone.  
And if thou shouldest ask us now, what lust assuaged, what affection qualified, what passion expelled, what sin repent, what good performed, since we began to receive thy benefits this day, we must confess against ourselves, that all our works, words, & thoughts, have been the service of the world, the flesh and the devil: we have offended thee and contemned thee all the day, and at night we pray unto thee, Father forgive us all our sins, which have dishonoured thee, while thou didst serve us: run from thee while thou didst call us: & forgotten thee whilst thou didst feed us; so thou sparest us, so we sleep, and to morrow we sin again: this is the course of all our pilgrimage, to leave that which thou commandest, and do that which thou forbiddest. Therefore thou mightest justly forsake us, as we forsake thee, & condemn us, whose conscience condemns ourselves; But who can measure thy goodness which givest all, and forgivest all?  
Though we are sinful, yet thou lovest us: though we knock not, yet thou openest, though we ask not, yet thou givest; What should we have if we did serve thee, which hast done all these things for thine enemies? therefore thou which hast given us all things for thy service, O Lord give us a haste to serve thee, and let this be the hour of our conversion, let not evil overcome good, let not thine enemy have his will, but give us strength to resist, patience to endure, & constancy to persevere unto the end.  
Instruct us by thy word, guide us by thy spirit, mollify us by thy grace, humble us by thy corrections, win us by thy benefits, reconcile our nature to thy will, and teach us to make profit of every thing, that we may see thee in all things, and all things in thee. And because (o most merciful father), we walk between thy mercy and justice, through many temptations, govern our steps with such discretion, that the hope of mercy may prevent despair, and the fear of justice may keep us from presumption: that in mirth, we be not vain, in knowledge we be not proud, in zeal we be not bitter, but as the Tree bringeth forth first leaves, than blossoms, and then fruit, so first we may bring forth good thoughts, then good speeches and after a good life, to thee honour of thy name, the good of thy Children, and the salvation of our souls, remembering the time when we shall sleep in the grave, & the day when we shall awake to judgement. Now the time is come (O Lord) which thou hast appointed for rest, and without thee we can neither wake nor sleep, which hast made the day and night, and rulest both: therefore, into thy hands we commend our souls and bodies which thou hast bought, that they may serve thee: restore them O Lord to their first Image, and keep them in thy service, and resign us not to ourselves again, but finish thy work, that we may every day come nearer and nearer to thy kingdom, till we hate the way to hell, as much as hell itself, and every cogitation, and speech, and action, be so many steps to heaven. For thy name's sake, for thy promise sake, for thy sons sake O Lord, we lift up our hearts, hands, and voice unto thee in his name, which suffered for sin, and sinned not. Our Father etc.   

A Prayer for a sick-man.  
Almighty God and almercifull Father, which art the Physician of our bodies and souls, in thy hands are life and death, thou bringest to the grave, and pullest back again: we came into this world upon condition, to forsake it whensoever thou wouldst call us, and now the Summoner's are come, thy fetters hold me, & none can loose me but he which bound me: I am sick in body & soul, but he hath strooken me which in judgement showeth mercy. I deserved to die, so soon as I came to life: but thou hast preserved me till now, and shall this mercy be in vain, as though I were preserved for nothing? Who can praise thee in the grave? I have done thee no service since I was borne, but my goodness is to come, and shall I die before I begin to live? But Lord thou knowest what is best for all, and if thou convert me, I shall be converted in an hour: And as thou acceptedst the will of David as well as the act of Solomon: so thou wilt accept my desire to serve thee, as well as if I did live to glorify thee. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is frail, and as I did live sinfully whensoever thy spirit was from me, so I shall die unwillingly, unless thy spirit prepare me: therefore dear father give me that mind which a sick-man should have, & increase my patience with my pain, and call unto my remembrance, all which I have heard or read, or felt, or meditated to strengthen me in this hour of my trial, that I which never taught any good while I lived, may now teach other how to die, and to bear their sickness patiently: apply unto me all the mercies and merits of thy beloved son, as if he had died for me alone. Be not from me when the enemy comes: but when the tempter is busiest, let thy spirit be busiest too: and if it please thee to lose me out of this prison, when I shall leave my earth to earth, let thine Angels carry up my soul to heaven, as they did Lazarus, and place me in one of those mansions which thy son is gone to prepare for me. This is my mediator which hath reconciled me and thee, when thou didst abhor me for my sins, and thou didst send him from heaven to us, to show that thou art bound to hear him for us. Therefore in him I come unto thee, in him I call upon thee: o my redeemer, my preserver, and my Saviour; to thee be all praise with thy father and the holy spirit for ever. Amen.  

What shall stay me from my father,  
my brother, and my Comforter?     

A comfortable speech, taken from a godly Preacher, lying upon his death bed: written for the sick.  
I Own to God a death, as his son died for me. Ever since I was borne I have been sailing to this Haven, and gathering patience to comfort this hour: therefore shall I be one of those guests now, that would not come to the banquet when they were invited. What hurt is in going to Paradise? I shall-loose nothing but the sense of evil: and anon I shall have greater joys than I feel pains: for my head is in heaven already, to assure me that my soul and body shall follow after. O death where is thy sting? why should I fear that which I would not escape, because my chiefest happiness is behind, and I cannot have it, unless I go unto it? I would go through hell to heaven, and therefore if I march but through death, I suffer less than I would suffer for God. My pains do not dismay me, because I travel to bring forth eternal life, my sins do not fright me, because I have Christ my Redeemer; the judge doth not astonish me, because the judges son is mine advocate; the devil doth not amaze me, because the Angel's pitch about me. The grave doth not grieve me, because it was my Lord's bed: o that God's mercy to me, might move other to love him: for the less I can express it, the more it is. The Prophets and Apostles are my forerunners; every man is gone before me, or else he will follow after me, if it please God to receive me into heaven before them which have served him better, I own more thankfulness unto him. And because I have deferred my repentance till this hour, whereby my salvation is cut off if I should die suddenly, lo how my God in his merciful providence, to prevent my destruction, calleth me by a linger sickness, which stayeth till I be ready, and prepareth me to my end, like a Preacher, and makes me by wholesome pains weary of this beloved world, lest I should departed unwillingly, like them whose death is their damnation. So he loveth me while he beateth me, that his stripes are plasters to save me, therefore who shall love him if I despise him? This is my whole office now, to strengthen my body with my heart, and be contented as God hath appointed, until I can glorify him, or until he glorify me. If I live, I live to sacrifice, & if I die, I die a sacrifice, for his mercy is above mine iniquity. Therefore if I should fear death, it were a sign that I had not faith, nor hope as I professed, but that I doubted of God's truth in his promise, whether he will forgive his penitent sinner or no: it is my Father, let him do what seemeth good in his sight: Come Lord jesus, for thy servant cometh, I am willing, help my unwillingness.  
❧ Thus the faithful depart in another sort, with such peace & joy round about them, that all which see, wish that their souls may follow theirs.   

A Letter written to one's friend in his sickness.  
Beloved, I marvel not that you have pain, for you are sick: but I marvel that you cover it not for offence, because the wisdom of a man is to bite in his grief, and always to show more comfort in God, than pain in suffering. Now God calleth to repetitions, to see whether you have learned more constancy than others; if sickness be sharp: make it not sharper with frowardness but know that this is a great favour to us, when we die by sickness, which maketh us ready for him that calleth us. Now you have nothing to think upon but God, and you cannot think upon him without joy: your grief passeth, but your joy will never pass. Tell me (patiented) how many stripes is heaven worth? Is my friend only sick in the world, or his faith weaker than others? You have always prayed Thy will be done, and now are you offended that Gods will is done? How hath the faithful man forgotten that all things (even death) turn to the best to them that love God? Teach the happy (o Lord) to see his happiness through troubles. Every pain is a prevention of the pains of hell, and every ease in pain, is a foretaste of the ease and peace and joys in heaven.  
Therefore remember your own comforts to others before, & be not impatient, when there is most need of patience, but as you have ever taught us to live, so now give us an example to die: and deceive sathan as Job did.  
FINIS.