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DAILY DEVOTION.

[FROM BISHOP TAYLOR.]

A Form of Prayer for the Morning. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost Our Father, &c.

I.

MOST glorious and eternal God, Father of Mercy and God of all comfort, I worship and adore thee with the lowest humility of my soul and body, and give thee all thanks and praise for thy infinite, and eternal glories and perfections; and for the continual demonstration of thy mercies upon me, upon all mine, and upon thy holy Catholic Church.

II.

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I acknowledge, O God, that I have deserved thy wrath and indignation. But thy mercy triumphing over thy justice and my sins, thou hast still continued to me life and time of repentance; thou hast opened to me the gates of grace and mercy; and perpetually called upon me to enter in, and to walk in the paths of a holy life, that I might glorify thee, and be glorified by thee eternally.

III.

Behold, O God, for this thy great and unspeakable goodness, for the preservation of me this night, and for all thy graces and blessings, I offer up my Soul and Body, all that I am, and all that I have, as a sacrifice to thee and thy service; humbly begging of thee to pardon all my sins, to defend me from all evil, to

lead me into all good; and let my portion be amongst thy redeemed ones in the gathering together of the Saints, in the kingdom of grace and glory.

IV.

Guide me, O Lord, in all the changes and varieties of the world; that in all things that shall happen, I may have an evenness and tranquillity of spirit; that my soul may be wholly resigned to thy divine Will and Pleasure; never murmuring at thy gentle chastisements and fatherly correction, never waxing proud and insolent, though I feel a torrent of comforts and prosperous successes.

V.

Fix my thoughts, my hopes and my desires upon heaven and heavenly things; teach me to despise the world, to repent me deeply for my sins; give me holy purposes of amendment, and divine strength and assistance to perform faithfully whatsoever I shall intend piously. Enrich my understanding with an internal treasure of Divine Truths, that I may know thy Will, and thou who workest in us to will and to do of thy good Pleasure, teach me to obey all thy Commandments, to believe all thy Revelations, and make me partaker of thy gracious Promises.

VI.

Teach me to watch over all my ways, that I may never be surprised by sudden temptations, or a careless spirit, nor ever return to folly and vanity. Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth, and keep the door of my lips, that I offend not in my tongue neither against piety nor charity. Teach me to think of nothing but thee, and what is in order to thy glory and service; to speak of nothing but thee and thy glories; and to do nothing but what becomes thy Servant, whom thy infinite Mercy, by the Graces of thy Holy Spirit, hath sealed up to the day of Redemption.

VII.

Let all my passions and affections be so mortified and brought under the dominion of grace, that I may never by deliberation and purpose, nor yet by levity, rashness or inconsideration, offend thy Divine Majesty. Make me such as thou wouldst have me to be: strengthen my faith, confirm my hope, and give me a daily increase of charity; that this day and ever I may serve thee according to all my opportunities and capacities, growing from grace to grace; till at last by thy mercies I shall receive the consummation and perfection of grace, even the glories of thy kingdom in the full fruition of the Face and .Excellencies of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; to whom be glory and praise, honour and adoration given by all Angels, and all Men, and all Creatures, now and to all eternity. Amen.

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After which conclude with this Ejaculation. Now in all tribulation and anguish of Spirit, in all dangers of Soul and Body, in prosperity and adversity, in the hour of Death and in the day of judg ment, holy and most blessed Saviour, Jesus, have mercy upon me, save me and deliver me. Amen.

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O Eternal God, merciful and gracious, vouchsafe thy Favour and thy Blessing to thy servant: let the love of thy mercies and the dread and fear of thy Majesty, make me careful and inquisitive to search thy Will, and diligently to perform it, and to persevere in the practices of a holy life, even till the last of my days.

II.

Keep me, O Lord, for I am thine by creation; guide me, for I am thine by purchase; thou hast re

deemed me by the blood of thy Son, and loved me with the love of a Father; for I am thy child by adoption and grace. Let thy mercy pardon my sins, thy providence secure me from the punishments and evils I have deserved, and thy care watch over me, that I may never any more offend thee. Make me in malice to be a child; but in understanding, piety, and the fear of God, let me be a perfect man in Christ, innocent and prudent, readily furnished and instructed to every good work.

III.

Keep me, O Lord, from the destroying Angel, and from the wrath of God. Let thy anger never rise against me; but thy rod gently correct my follies, and guide me in thy ways; and thy staff support me in all sufferings and changes. Keep all my senses entire till the day of my death; and let my death be neither sudden, untimely, nor unprovided; let it be after the common manner of men, having in it nothing extraordinary, but an extraordinary piety, and the manifestation of hy great and miraculous mercy.

IV.

Let no riches make me ever forget myself, no poverty ever make me forget thee. Let no hope or fear, no pleasure or pain, no accident without, no weakness within, hinder or discompose my duty, or turn me from the ways of thy Commandments. Olet thy Spirit dwell with me for ever, and make my soul just and charitable, full of honesty, full of religion, resolute and constant in holy purposes, but inflexible to evil. Make me humble and obedient, peaceable and pious. Let me never envy any man's good, nor deserve to be despised myself; and if I be, teach me to bear it with meekness and charity.

V.

Give me a tender conscience; a conversation discreet and affable, modest and patient, liberal and

obliging; a body chaste and healthful; competency of living according to my condition; contentedness in all estates; a resigned will and mortified affections: that I may be as thou wouldst have me, and that my portion may be in the lot of the Righteous, in the brightness of thy Countenance, and the Glories of Eternity. AMEN.

Holy is our God. Holy is the Almighty. Ho-.
ly is the Immortal. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God
of Hosts, have mercy upon me.
Our Father, who art in Heaven, &c.

A Form of Prayer for Evening:

O Eternal God, Great Father of Men and Angels, who hast established the heavens and the earth in a wonderful order, making day and night to succeed each other; I make my humble address to thy Divine Majesty, begging of thee mercy and protection this night and ever. O Lord, pardon all my sins, my light and rash words, the vanity and impiety of my thoughts, my unjust and uncharitable actions, and whatsoever sins I have committed against thee this day, or any time before. Behold, O God, my soul is troubled in the remembrance of my sins, in the frailty and sinfulness of my flesh exposed to every temptation, and of itself not able to resist any. Lord God of Mercy, I earnestly beg of thee to give me a great portion of thy Grace, such as may be sufficient and effectual for the fortification of all my sins, and vanities, and disorders: that as I have formerly served my lust and unworthy desires, so now I may give myself up wholly to thy service and the studies of a holy Life,

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