A Spiritual Propine of a Pastor to his People, Section 5 – Section 7
Euening Prayer.
VVE humbly present vntounto thee in the name of thy sonne Iesus Christ, euerlasting praise and thanks (almightie God and father maist mercifull) for all thy benefites and blessings sa largely bestowed vponupon vsus, all the dayes and times of our life, preseruing vsus in saule and bodie from all euill, and prouiding for vsus aboundantly all things needefull & comfortable baith for the ane and vther, blessing the warkes of our hands in that measure that thou hes thought meetest, like as we hauehave found these benefits in fresh and new experience this present day. Lord, let not our sinnes committed against thee this day, nor na day heretofore, procure the withdrawing of thy blessings, and powring of thy plagues vponupon vsus, as we cōfesse, that they maist justly deserue, bot as of thy free merciemercy and grace in Iesus Christ, thou hes bin vntounto this houre, a gratious & bountifull Lorde and father vntounto vsus, sa of the same grace and merciemercy in Iesus Christ, wee earnestly beseike thee, to warke amendement in vsus, bee a mair effectuall force of thy haly Spirit, and sa to continew thy bounty and fauour toward vsus. And now Lord, this night vouchsafe to receaue vsus vnderunder thy gratious protection and saifegard, for we commend and giuegive ouer our saules and bodies, our houses, guds, geare, and whatsumeuer perteins to vsus into thy hands, watch therefore ouer vsus gud Lord, & make thy holy Angels to campe about vsus; that we may sa safely rest & refresh our wearied bodies with sleepe; that in the meane time our saules hauing their conuersation with thee, may await for the glorious appearing of Christ our King to the last judgement. And grant O father, that when hee fall come to judge ather the world in generall or in particular, to call any of vsus from this life, we be not found sleeping in cairles securitie, nor drunken with surfeit of sinne or louelove of things temporall, nor blinded in the darkenes of ignorance with the miserable multitude of the warld, that fall perish eternallie: bot weil occupied, watching & praying in sobrietie, prepared with the precious oyle of faith & louelove in the lampes of our hearts burning, that wee may readely and gladly meete our Lord Iesus, and accompanie him to the rest and joy euerlasting. O Lorde our life is bot as a day; and a thousand yeare is bot a day before thee, the euening is as the end of our life, our sleep as death, our bed a graue, our sheittes winding sheittes, the cocks wakning bels, as the arch-angels trumpetes sounding to judgemēt. And luke how surely we knaw that we man die, sa vncertaine are we, whair, when, & how. Make vsus therefore we beseik thee gud Lord sa resolued, that we may end this day as wee wald ende our life, enter in our bed as in our graue, resting in the peace of our conscience, and assurance of thy louelove with a stedfast hope of that joyfull resurrection amangs thy saincts, and that by true and sure faith in the resurrection of our Christ, quha in that pleasand morning, fall change our vile bodies, and fashion them like vntounto his glorious body, to be placed with him in the presence and at the right hand of his father, whair the fulnes of joyes and pleasures ar for ever. Graunt vsus thir thinges deare Father, and whatsoeuer els thou knowis to be for thy awin glorie, the weill of thy Kirk of this Congregation, and all the members thereof, of this familie, and euerie ane of vsus, and sik in speciall as we hauehave promised to remember in our prayers, asking all in that forme maist perfite, that CHRIST hes commanded vsus saying, Our father, &c.
The maner how to vse the Catechisme in verse, pleasandly and fruitfully.
HEre I wil insert the manner how ye may vse the Catechisme in verse, pleasandly & fruitfully: as I hauehave some experience in my awin familie. The night before the Sabboth (whilk I wauld ye suld hauehave alwaies free from your warldlie turnes, except in necessities, and that for a preparation to the Sabbothe) ye sall expone to your servands and children some part of the said Catechisme, as a petition of the prayer, or artickle of the Beleefe, or ane of the Commandements, to mak it cleir in proofe to them, whilk is shortly packed vp in verse: syne injoyne that to sik as can reade, to be tuned perquere the Sabboth following, of the whilk at night thou sall take account; and on the first day of the oulk following, after morning prayer, thou sall enter in conference be questioning therevpon with thy children and servands, shortly, to assay their vnderstanding and cleir and helpe the …amin: the whilk when thou hes done, then let sik as can reade, sing clearely and distinctly the same part, that sik as can not, may tak tent & folow, & so learne: And in conclusion, prayse God with these verses taken out of 68. and 89. Psalmes.
Now praysed be the Lord for that,
he powres on vsus sik grace:
From day to day he is the God
of our health and solace.
He is the God from whom alone
saluation cometh plaine.
He is the God by whom we scape
all dangers death and paine.
The Lord the God of Israell
be praysed euermore.
Euen so be it, Lord will I say,
euen so be it therefore.
Thereafter vse the prayer for working of the spirite to mak the word fruitfull, as ye hauehave it hereafter, & end with the blessing, to be alwayes pronounced by the Father, Mother, or maister of the familie or companie. And siklik, after evening praier the same pairt, & so continue all the oulk, gif they he hard to learne, till it become familiar, but gif they be able to learne, and hauehave beneanes or twise through, then may ye hauehave a pairt euer-ilk day. This ordour, or the like being daily vsed without intermission, and cairfull over-sight of discipline joyned therewith, by the Father and Maisters of familie and companies, for a godlie and honest conversation: but question, by the grace of God, thou sal finde great grouth, baith of knawledge, and godlines: and sa of al vther blessings, in thy familie or companies.
A maist pithie prayer, for obteining of the working of the halie spirit, be the word and Sacraments, taken out of the 1. &. 3. Eph. & Phil. 3.
VVE bow our knees vntounto thee, O God of glorie, and father of our Lord Iesus Christ, of whom is named the halie familie of thy Kirk in Heauen & in earth; beseik and thee according to the riches of thy glorie, to lighten the eyes of our mindes with the spirit of wisedome and knawledge, that wee may vnderstande what is the hope of thy calling, and the riches of the glorie of thy inheritance amangst the Saints, & what is the excellencie of the greatnes of thy power amangst them that beleeue, according to that efficacie of thy strong power, whilk thou shewed forth in Christ, when thou raysed him from the dead, and set him at the right hand in the heauens. And grant, Lord, that we may be strenthened by thy Spirit in the inwarde man, that thy Christ may dwell in our hearts be saith; that we being rooted and grounded in louelove, may be able to comprehend with al the faints; what is the breadth & length, the deapth & height of that inestimable grace, redempption, and glorie, that thou hast prepared for them, and to embrace that louelove of Christ, whilk passeth all vnderstanding, that wee may be filled with all fulnesse of God. Graunt O Lord & Father, that thy spirit, the true and inward teacher and comforter, wauld by the fruitfull vse of thy word and sacraments, mak our faith and louelove to grow and abounde yet mair and mair in knawledge and feeling, that wee may rightly discerne, betuixte gud and evill, thy will, and our will, thy LoueLove, and the louelove of this warlde, that wee may bee pure, duplicate page duplicate page and without offence, vntounto the day of our CHRIST, filled with the fruites of righteousnes, whilk at by IESVS CHRIST vntounto the glorie and prayse of thee our God, & thir things, as for our selues, euen sa in hearty affection, we ask for al thyne, with whom in thy CHRIST, we gladly professe that maist happy communion & blessed vnitie. Therefore vntounto thee, O Father, wha is able to doe exceeding aboundantly, aboue all whilk wee can aske or thinke, according to the power of thy spirite, whilk worketh in vsus, be prayse in the Kirk by IESVS Christ throughout all generations for euer. Amen.