A guide to godlynesse or a Treatise of a Christian life shewing the duties wherein it consisteth, the helpes inabling & the reasons parswading vnto it ye impediments hindering ye practise of it, and the best meanes to remoue them whereunto are added diuers prayers and a treatise of carnall securitie by Iohn Douname Batcheler in Diuinitie and minister of Gods Word.

§. Sect. 4 That the eue¦ning must be spent ••n religi¦ous exercises.

In the euening of the Lords Day we are not to surcease our Christian and religious exercises, but after wee haue at supper refreshed our bodies with the vse of Gods creatures, and our soules with holy conferences, wee are to spend some time in singing of Psalmes, and in reading the Scrip∣tures, or other religious and profitable writings. After which duties per∣formed, all in the family ought to ioyne together in hearty and effectuall prayer (not thinking themselues excused from priuate duties, because they haue beene at the publike exercises of Religion) wherein as wee are to acknowledge other sinnes and imperfections, so those especially wee haue shewed the day past in our cold, formall, weake, and negligent per∣formance of the duties of Gods seruice. And as we are to craue other bles∣sings, so especially that the Lord by his grace and holy Spirit will blesse vnto vs the meanes of our saluation, and Ministery of his Word, whereof we haue been partakers on that Day, writing the things we haue learned in our memories and hearts, and inabling vs to put them in practice, and to make vse of them in the whole course of our liues. And finally, as we are to praise God for all his other mercies, so particularly for giuing vs time to sanctifie his Sabbaths, and suffering vs to inioy the blessed light of his Word and Gospell, for granting vs liberty with such peace and safety, to tread in his Courts, and to make our suits and supplications knowne vnto him, with assurance to haue them heard and granted. And thus hauing fini∣shed

this holy exercise, and the time of sleepe approching, we must pre∣pare our selues thereunto with such religious Meditations, as on other dayes were prescribed, the which at this time are to be done with extraor∣dinary zeale and deuotion; and so commending our soules and bodies in∣to the hands of God, we are to desire him that he will watch ouer and san∣ctifie vs so with his grace and holy Spirit, that we may spend the night also in an holy Rest, being freed from worldly, carnall, and sinfull dreames, and hauing our phantasies and thoughts, our hearts and affections, both slee∣ping and waking, taken vp and exercised in good and godly Meditations: And that he wil so season our hearts with the sauour of the Dayes religious exercises, that euen in sleepe our dreames may rellish of their sweetnesse, and when we awake, our thoughts and Meditations may bee wholly taken vp and exercised about such holy things, as tend chiefly to the glory of God, and the euerlasting saluation of our soules.