The Flower of Godly Prayers, Prayer 71
¶ A prayer for the sycke to be sayde of the congregacyon▪
O Iesu the alone sauyoure of the world, and the onelyonly true Phisicion bothe of body and soul, we ar come together at this presente before the thorne of thy godly Maiestie to offer our humble prayers vntounto the for our sicke and weake brother whome thou haste visited wyth thy louing rod of correcciō, wherby thou offerest thyself vntounto hym as a most gētle father to his deare sonne, and by temporall punyshment …uttest away eternall paynes, whych both he and all we thorow our synfull liuing hauehave most ryghtouslye deserued and by makyng the outeward man weke, thou comfortest and makest strōg the inward mā, which is made like to thi glorious image. We most entirely besech the, mercifully to behold this our weke brother, and as that piteful Samaritane to poure wine and oyle into his woundes & to bynde them vp, that is, to relieue hym, & to cōfort hym, and to cherysh him wyth thy holy spirit, to make him stronge in his inwarde man that in the middes of his syckenes, he may not only …ere the crosse, that thou haste layed on hym pacyently, and so shewe hym self conformable to thy blessed wyll, but also thanckfully praise thy holy name for thy fatherly correccion, & with vnfayned and stronge fayth, say: The lord gaue me my health, the Lord hath taken it away agayne. As it hath pleased the lord, so it is come to passe, now blessed be the the name of the Lord. Oh it is for my great profyt, that the lord hath thus visited me, euen yt I shulde learne to forsake myne own wyl, and to walcke in hys holye ordynaunces. I am his creature, & a shepe of his pasture, let him deale wyth me, as semeth good in hys godly syghte. For whyther I liue or dye, I am the Lordes. Hys wil therfore be done and not myne. Gyue hym grace (O swete Iesu) thus to be perswaded of thy good wyll towarde hym euen in the myddes of hys moost bytter agonyes, that he faynt not vnderunder the crosse, but paciently and thanckefully abyde thy good plesure, and wyth earnest fayth cal on thy blessed name, which is a strong tower for all them that fle vntounto it.
Moreouer forasmuch, O Lord as it is not thy property alway, to chyde, alway to be angry alwaye to punyshe, neither to deale wyth vsus accordyng to oure sinnes, nor yet to reward vsus after our iniquities, but as thou takest awaye, so geuest thou againe, as thou bryngest downe to the graue, so liftest thou vp agayne, as thou makest weake, so makest thou stronge agayne: We most humbly beseche the, if it be thy godly pleasure the rather at the contēplaciō of these oure prayers to restore vntounto oure weake brother after this his long sicknes the confortable benefyte of ioyfull healthe. And as thou haste broughte him low wyth la… ing thy heauye crosse on hym, so we moste hartely beseche the, if it be thy godly wyll, rayse hym vp agayne by restoryng vntounto hym his former healthe, that he may lyue and contynue here among vsus vntounto the glorye of thy name and the comfort of vsus hys neyghbours.
But if thy godly pleasure hauehave otherwyse determyned, that by thys hys sycknes thou wylte call hym from this vale of miseri and place hym in thy gloryous kyngdome, which alone is the true, ioyful and greatly longed for contre of al thy chosen and faythful people: we most entierly pray the in ye meane whyle to geue hym grace paciently and thankfully to beare hys crosse, diligently to cal on thy holy name, valeauntly to fight agaynst al the tentacions of the deuyll, the flesh and the worlde, and faithfullye to beleue, that the merits of thi blessed passiō & precious bloud are the full satisfaccion for all hys synnes, and hauehave made a perfect atonement and frendlye reconciliaciō betwene god the father and hym. Graunt O mooste merciful sauioure, that his whole hart and mynde may so be set vponupon the, that at what soeuer houre thou callest hym out of this wretched world, he mai be willing and glad to depart from it, and to cōe vntounto the. O let the remembraūce of the ioyes of heauen bee so feruent in hys brest, that all wordlye thynges may waxe vyle in hym, and a perfect desyre found in him to be losoned out of this bodi, and to be with y• in glory. And when ye time commeth, that he shall gyue ouer to nature, and depart out of thys miserable world, though the paynes of deathe take awaye the vse of hys tonge and speache, yet graūt that his heart may cry vntounto the and saye: O Lorde, I commende my soule into thy hādes. Lorde Iesu take my spirite vntounto thee. Graunt also most louyng Lord that when death hath shut vp the eyes of his bodye, he maye wyth the eyes of hys soule, beholde and looke vponupon thy gloryous maiestye in thy heauenlye kyngdome, where thou wyth the father and the holy Ghoste lyuest and reignest one true and euerlasting God in al honour and glory worldes wythout ende.
Amen.