Family devotions for Sunday evenings, throughout the year being practical discourses, with suitable prayers / by Theophilus Dorrington.

THE PRAYER.

O Most great and most righteous God! the Heaven of Heavens cannot contain thee; nor can any time set Bounds to thy Duration; nor the power of any Creature can resist thee. Thou art worthy to be fear'd and had in reverence by all that draw nigh un∣to shee. We adore and worship thee, O Lord, who art every where present and knowest all things. Thine Eyes behold, and thine Eyelies try the Children of Men. And thou, O Lord, dost dispose of us all as pleaseth thee, thy Kingdom ruleth over all. If thou favour us, it is well with us: If thou hide thy Face, we are troubled and afflicted; if thou take away our Breath, we die, and return to the Dust from whence▪ we were Created. We do entirely depend upon thee, and in thy Hand is our Breath and all our Ways. But, alas, how little do we foolish Creatures consider these things! when we live as without God in the World, when we take little care how we behave our selves in thy sight. We do not regard and seek an Interest in thy favour as our greatest Happiness; nor have we so fear'd thy Displeasure as we should. Oh how foolish and mistaken have we been, while we have thought to mend our Condition, or profit our selves by doing ill, or to do our selves any good by breaking thy Laws! In vain do we ever attempt to be Happy in ways offensive to the pure Eyes of thy Glory. Thou wilt sooner or later reward every Man according to his Works. We believe, O Lord, accor∣ding to thy Word and thy just Sentence and Doom that Evil pursueth Sinners: That all the Profits and Pleasures which we can gain or enjoy by Wickedness are very vain and worthless; that in pursuing such we should weary our selves for very Vanity. Convince us

we pray thee, O Lord, steadily and effectually of these things; let us not sell our Souls for nought; let us not spend our Life in the pursuit of shadows, and neglect substantial things; teach us that he who sows unto the Flesh, shall of the Flesh reap Corruption. And make us to believe, that in keeping thy Com∣mands there is great Reward; to believe that thou art, and art a Rewarder of those that diligently seek thee; that we shall not serve God for nought: But if we do by patient continuance in well-doing seek for Glory and Honour, and Immortality, we shall ob∣tain eternal Life. Let thy bounteous and faithful Promises effectually allure us from the ways of Folly and Perdition. O that we were so wise, as constantly to take thy Testimonies for our heritage! to desirea∣bove all things the Happiness which thou hast prepa∣red for them that love and serve thee! O turn thou, we humbly pray, the Byass and Propensity of our Souls that way! Give us not up to the choice and pursuit of this World; condemn us not to have all our Portion in this short, miserable and transitory Life. Strengthen and encrease our Faith of unseen things, that it may be in us the Evidence of things not seen, and the Substance of things hoped for: and let this quicken, let this encourage us at all times to our Duty, by assuring us that our Labour shall not be in vain in the Lord. By alluring us of everlasting Rest to reward our Labours in well-doing, of our having fulness of Joy in thy Presence, and Rivers of Pleasures at thy Right hand for evermore. Deliver us, O Spirit of Truth, from all the deceits of the World, the Flesh and the Devil; lead us into all Truth necessary for us to know in order to Salvation, and make us to pursue the things which make for our everlasting Peace. Give us, we pray thee, a Treasure in Heaven, through the merits of Jesus Christ.

In whose Name we humbly make our Prayers and Supplications for all Men: Give, O Lord, to all Na∣tions Unity, Peace and Concord; and pour out thy

Spirit upon all Flesh, that they may all know thee from the least to the greatest. Bless thy Church and prosper it, and make it yet more Holy and more U∣niversal. Bring in all Jews, Turks, Infidels and He∣reticks into the way of thy Truth, and into the way of Salvation. We pray thee pour down thy abun∣dant Blessings upon these Nations wherein we live; deliver us from those that hate us: continue to us thy true Religion establisht among us in the Administra∣tions of it, and continue us in the due and univer∣sal Practice of what it teaches and requires of us. Bless, we pray thee, our King and Queen, and Magi∣strates; be thou their Guide and Defence, and make them useful Instruments to promote thy Glory a∣mongst us, and our Happiness. Let us know those that are over us in the Lord and admonish us, those who are thy Ministers in Holy things, and esteem them very highly in Love for their Works sake, and follow their Godly Counsels, and good Examples. Grant, we beseech thee, that the means of Grace which we have this Day enjoy'd, may be effectual up∣on us to the Salvation of our Souls. Pardon the im∣perfections of our Services, and graciously accept them through the merits of Jesus Christ. In whose Name we present and dedicate our selves to thee, we re∣commend our Relations and Friends to thy Mercy, and all that are desolate and afflicted; and we pray for the pardon and conversion of our Enemies. We com∣mit our selves to the Care of thy Providence this Night, beseeching thee to keep us in safety while we are not in a Condition to look to our selves: And if it shall please thee to add yet more days to our Lives, we desire to spend them all in thy excellent Service; to which purpose we humbly implore the continual Guidance of thy Spirit, to whom with the Father and the Son, one Infinite and Eternal God, we ascribe all Praise and Glory, for ever and ever.

Our Father, &c.