The rule and exercises of holy living. In which are described the means and instruments of obtaining every vertue, and the remedies against every vice, and considerations serving to the resisting all temptations. Together with prayers containing the whole duty of a Christian, and the parts of devotion fitted to all occasions, and furnish'd for all necessities.

A prayer of preparation or addresse to the holy Sacrament.

An act of Love.

O most gracious and eternal God, the helper of the helplesse, the comforter of the comfortlesse, the hope of the afflicted, the bread of the hun∣gry, the drink of the thirsty, and the Saviour of all them that wait upon thee, I blesse and glorifie thy Name, and adore thy goodnesse, and delight in thy love, that thou hast once more give•• me the opportunity of receiving the greatest favour which I can receive in this World▪ even the body and blood of my dearest Saviour. O take from me all affection to sin or vanity: let not m•• af∣fections dwell below, but soar upwards to the element of love, to the seat of God, to ••he Re∣gions of Glory, and the inheritance of ••esus, that I may hunger and thirst for the bread of life, and the wine of ••lect soules, and may know no loves but the love of God, and the most merciful Jesus. Amen.

An act of Desire.

O blessed Jesus, thou hast used many arts to save mee, thou hast given thy life to redeem me, thy holy Spirit to sanctifie me, thy self for my example, thy Word for my Rule, thy grace for my guide, the fruit of thy body hanging on the tree of the crosse, for the sin of my soul: and after all this thou hast sent thy Apostles and

Ministers of salvation to call me, to importune me, to constraine me to holinesse and peace and felicity. O now come Lord ••esus, come quickly: my heart is desirous of thy presence, and thirsty of thy grace, and would fain entertain thee, not as a guest, but as an inhabitant, as the Lord of all my faculties. Enter in and take possession, and dwell with me for ever, that I also may dwell in the heart of my dearest Lord which was opened for me with a spear and love.

An act of contrition.

Lord thou shalt finde my heart full of cares and worldly desires, cheated with love of riches, and neglect of holy things, proud & unmortified, false and crafty to deceive it self, intricated and intan∣gled with difficult cases of conscience, with knots which my own wildnesse and inconsideration and impatience have tied and shuffled together: O my dearest Lord, if thou canst behold such an im∣pure seat, behold the place to which thou art in∣vited is full of passion and prejudice, evil princi∣ples and evil habits, peevish and disobedient, lust∣ful and intemperate, and full of sad remembran∣ces that I have often provoked to jealousie and to anger thee my God, my dearest Saviour, him that dyed for me, him that suffered torments sor me, that is infinitely good to me, and infinitely good and perfect in himself. This O dearest Savi∣our is a sad tru••h, and I am heartily ashamed, and truly sorrowful for it, and do deeply hate all my fins, and am full of indignation against my self for so unworthy, so carelesse, so continued, so great a folly: and humbly beg of thee to increase my sorrow, and my care, and my hat••ed against sin; and make my love to thee swell up to a great grace, and then to glory, and immensity.

An act of Faith.

This indeed is my condition: But I know O blessed Jesus that thou didst take upon thee my nature, that thou mightest suffer for my sins, and thou didst suffer to deliver me from them and from thy Fathers wrath: and I was delivered from this wrath that I might serve thee in holinesse and righteousnesse all my dayes? Lord I am as sure thou didst the great work of Redemption for me and all mankinde, as that I am alive: This is my hope, the strength of my spirit, my joy & my con∣fidence: and do thou never let the spirit of unbe∣lief enter into me and take me from this Rock: Here I will dwell for I have a delight therein: Here I will live, and here I desire to dye.

The Petition.

Therefore O blessed Jesu, who art my Saviour and my God, whose body is my food, and thy righteousnesse is my robe, thou art the Priest and the Sacrifice, the Master of the feast, and the Feast it self, the Physician of my soul, the light of my eyes, the purifier of my stains: enter into my heart, and cast out from thence all impurities, all the remains of the Old man; and grant I may partake of this holy Sacrament with much reve∣rence and holy relish, and great effect, receiving hence the communication of thy holy body and blood, for the establishment of an unreproveable faith, of an unfained love, for the fulnesse of wis∣dom, for the healing my soul, for the blessing and preservation of my body, for the taking out the sting of temporal death, and for the assurance of a holy resurrection, for the ejection of all evil from within me, and the fulfilling all thy righteous Commandements, and to procure for me a mercy and a fair reception at the day of judgement, through thy mercies O holy and ever blessed Sa∣viour Jesus. Amen.

Here also may be added the prayer after receiving the cup. * Ejaculations to be said before or at the receiving the holy Sacrament

Like as the Hart desireth the water-brooks: so longeth my soul after thee, O God. My soul is a∣thirst for God, yea even for the living God, when shall I come before the presence of God?

O Lord my God great are thy wondrous works which thou hast done: like as be also thy thoughts which are to us-ward, and yet there is no man that ordereth them unto thee.

O send out thy light and thy truth, that they may lead me, and bring me unto thy holy hill and to thy dwelling: And that I may go unto the Al∣tar of God, even unto the God of my joy and gladnesse: and with my heart will I give thanks to thee O God my God.

I will wash my hands in innocency, O Lord: & so will I go to thine altar: that I may shew the voice of thanksgiving, & tell of all thy wondrous works.

Examine me, O Lord, and prove me, try out my reins and my heart: For thy loving kindnesse is now and ever before my eyes: and I will walk in thy truth.

Thou shalt prepare a table before me against them that trouble me: thou hast anointed my head with oil, and my cup shall be full. But thy loving kindnesse and mercy shall follow me all the dayes of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

This is the bread that cometh down from Hea∣ven, that a man may eat thereof and not dye.

Whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me and I in him: and hath eternal life abiding in him, & I wil raise him up at the last day

Lord whither shall we go but to thee: thou hast the words of eternal life?

If any man thirst let him come unto me & drink.

The bread which we break, is it not the com∣munication of the body of Christ? and the cup which we drink, is it not the communication of the blood of Christ? What are those wounds in thy hands? They are those with w^ch I was wound∣ed in the house of my friends, Zech. 13.6.

Immediately before the receiving say

Lord I am not worthy that thou shouldest en∣ter under my roof. But do thou speak the word onely and thy servant shall be healed.

Lord open thou my lips, and my mouth shall shew thy praise. O God make speed to save me, O Lord make has••e to help me.

Come Lord Iesus, come quickly.

After receiving the consecrated and blessed bread, say,

O taste and see how gracious the Lord is: bles∣sed is the man that trusteth in him. * The beasts do lack and suffer hunger; but they which seek the Lord shall want no manner of thing that is good. Lord what am I, that my Saviour should become my food, that the Son of God should be the meat of Wormes, of dust and ashes, of a sinner, of him that was his enemy? But this thou hast done to me▪ because thou art infinitely good and wonderfully gracious, and lovest to blesse every one of us, in turning us from the evil of our wayes. Enter into me blessed Jesus, let no root of bitter∣nesse spring up in my heart; but be thou Lord of all my faculties. O let me feed on thee by faith, and grow up by the increase of God to a perfect man in Christ Jesus. Amen. Lord I believe, help mine unbelief. Glory be to God the Father, Son, &c.

After the receiving the cup of blessing.

It is finished. Blessed be the mercies of God revealed to us in Jesus Christ. O blessed and eter∣nal high Priest, let the sacrifice of the Crosse which

thou didst once offer for the sinnes of the whole World, and which thou doest now and alwayes represent in Heaven to thy Father by thy never ceasing intercession, and which this day hath been exhibited on thy holy Table Sacramentally, ob∣tain mercy and peace, faith and charity, safety, and establishment to thy holy Church which thou hast founded upon a Rock, the Rock of a holy Faith; and let not the gates of Hell prevail a∣gainst her, nor the enemy of mankinde take any soul out of thy hand, whom thou hast purchased with thy blood, and sanctified by thy Spirit. Pre∣serve all thy people from Heresie, and division of spirit, from scandal and the spirit of delusion, from sacriledge and hurtful persecutions. Thou O blessed Jesus didst dye for us: keep me for ever in holy living, from sin and sinful shame, in the communion of thy Church, and thy Church in safety and grace, in truth and peace unto thy se∣cond coming. Amen.

Dearest Jesu, since thou art pleased to enter in∣to me, O be jealous of thy house and the place where thine honour dwelleth: suffer no unclean spirit, or unholy thought to come near thy dwel∣ling, lest it defile the ground where thy holy feet have trod. O teach me so to walk, that I may ne∣ver disrepute the honour of my Religion, nor stain the holy Robe which thou hast now put upon my soul, nor break my holy Vows, which I have made, and thou hast sealed, nor lose my right of inheri∣tance, my priviledge of being coheir with Jesus, into the hope of which I have now further entred: but be thou pleased to love me with the love of a Father, and a Brother, and a Husband, and a Lord, and make me to serve thee in the communion of Saints, in receiving the Sacrament, in the practise of all holy vertues, in the imitation of thy life,

and conformity to thy sufferings; that I having now put on the Lord Jesus, may marry his loves and his enmities, may desire his glory, may obey his laws, and be united to his Spirit; and in the day of the LORD I may be found having on the Wedding Garment, and bearing in my body and soul the marks of the LORD JESUS, that I may enter into the joy of my LORD, and partake of his glories for ever and ever. Amen.

Ejaculations to be used any time that day, after the solemnity is ended.

Lord, if I had lived innocently, I could not have deserved to receive the crumbs that fall from thy Table: How great is thy mercy who hast feasted me with the Bread of Virgins, with the Wine of Angels, with Manna from Heaven!

O when shall I passe from this dark glasse, from this vail of Sacraments, to the vision of thy eternal clarity, from eating thy Body, to beholding thy face in thy eternal Kingdom!

Let not my sins crucifie the Lord of life again: Let it never be said concerning me, the hand of him that betraieth me is with me on the Table.

O that I might love thee, as well as ever any crea∣ture lov d thee! Let me think nothing but thee, desire nothing but thee, enjoy nothing but thee!

O Jesus be a Jesus unto me. Thou art all things unto me. Let nothing ever please me but what favours of thee, and thy miraculous sweetnesse.

Blessed be the mercies of our Lord, who of God is made unto me Wisdom, and Righteousnesse, and Sanctification, and Redemption.

He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. Amen.