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OCCASIONAL

PRAYERS AND THANKSGIVINGS.

Though the Prayers and Thanksgivings which follow, are intended for a variety of Occasions, yet the Minister is at liberty to introduce such Petitions of his own, as he may more perfectly adapt to the circumstances of the time, and of his Congregation.

PRAYERS.

FOR A SICK PERSON.

O GOD, who hast taught us at all times and in every condition to make our requests known unto thee; we offer up our humble supplications in behalf of thy servant, who is laboring under pain and sickness. Look down upon him with mercy, and let the consideration of thy goodness strengthen and comfort his soul in the time of affliction. We pray, with submission to thy wise providence, that thou wouldst be pleased

to remove his disorder and restore him to health. Graciously prolong his days

upon earth; and grant that his affliction may produce the fruit of righteousness to the honor of thy name. By the sadness of his countenance may his heart be made better; and may he live to manifest his thankfulness to thee his great preserver.

[*But if this affliction should be unto death,

*This is to be said when there is small hope of recovery.

may thy servant be prepared to give himself up into thy hands with christian patience and fortitude, in joyful expectation of thy mercy unto eternal life. Give him unfeigned repentance for all his sins, and a firm reliance on thy great mercies declared unto mankind by Jesus Christ our Lord. May the hope of thy favor support him in the hour of death; may he leave the world in peace; may he be received into thy heavenly kingdom, and made a partaker of that happiness which eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive.]

O God, command thy blessing upon thy servant, even life evermore, through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. Amen.

FOR A SICK CHILD.

O GOD, the fountain of all mercy, we offer up our humble prayers unto thee in behalf of the child, on whom thou hast seen

fit to lay thine afflicting hand. We beseech thee, if it be thy will, to remove the disorder under which he labors, and restore him to health and strength. Suffer not the wishes of his parents to be disappointed, but in thy great mercy spare him to be the comfort and support of their advancing years, and to be useful in the world. But whatever thou hast determined concerning him, thy will, O God, be done. Into thy hands we commit ourselves and all our enjoyments, and we humbly pray that, by all the dispensations of thy providence, we may be trained up for that world where pain, and sorrow, and death shall be known no more. Amen.

FOR A PERSON IN AF

FLICTION.

0 MERCIFUL God and heavenly Father, who hast taught us in thy holy word that thou dost not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men ;

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O GOD, gracious and merciful, who bindest up the broken heart, and pitiest the sorrows of those who fear thee, fulfil to thy servant, for whom our prayers are now desired, the promises of thy word. Sanctify to him, we beseech thee, thy correcting hand. Suffer him not to faint under thy rebuke. Let not his faith fail, nor his fortitude be overcome, nor his patience nor his hope depart from him. Enlighten

the darkness which covers him, by the cheering truths of religion. Let the remembrance of thy goodness comfort his heart.

Let the conviction of thy wisdom fortify his soul. Enable him to resign unto thee the object of his affections, in the assurance that as thou hast appointed unto all men once to die, so after death will be a joyful resurrection, when they who sleep in Jesus shall awake to everlasting life, and friends shall meet again, to separate more. Amen.

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FOR A PERSON AT SEA, OR GOING TO SEA.

O ETERNAL Lord God, who alone spreadest out the heavens, and rulest the raging of the sea; be pleased to receive into thine almighty and most gracious protection the person of thy servant, for whom our prayers are desired. Preserve him from the dangers of the sea, from sickness, from the violence of enemies, and

from every evil to which FOR THE GENERAL COURT,

he may be exposed. Conduct him in safety to the desired haven, with a grateful sense of thy mercies, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

..

FOR MALEFACTORS AFTER CONDEMNATION.

O MOST gracious and merciful God, we earnestly beseech thee to look down upon those persons recommended to our prayers, who now lie under the sentence of the law, and are appointed to die. Visit them, O Lord, with thy compassion; make them sensible of the miserable condition to which their wickedness has reduced them, and give them true and unfeigned repentance. O God, in judgment remember mercy, and whatever sufferings they are to endure in this world, deliver them

ΤΟ BE READ DURING THEIR SESSION.

MOST gracious God, we humbly beseech thee, for the Legislature of this Commonwealth, at this time assembled, that thou wouldst be pleased to direct and prosper all their consultations, to the advancement of thy glory, and the safety, honor, and welfare of thy people; that all things may be so ordered and settled, by their endeavors, upon the best and surest foundations, that peace and happiness, truth and justice, religion and piety may be established among us for all generations. and all other necessaries for them, and for us, we humbly beg, in the name of Jesus Christ, our most blessed Lord and Saviour. Amen.

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from the bitter pains of A COLLECT FOR SPRING. eternal death. Pardon their sins, and save their souls, for the sake of thine infinite goodness, in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

O LORD, the Creator and Preserver of all things, who with unerring wisdom maintainest the

beauty and order of thy works; we look up with joy and confidence unto thy gracious power, which causes the returning seasons to know their place. Bless, we beseech thee, the springing of the year, and enrich the earth with the rain of heaven. May grass grow for the cattle, and herbs and fruits for the service of man. May our pastures be clothed with flocks, our valleys covered with corn, and the year crowned with thy goodness; and may we so improve the various blessings of thy providence in this world, as to be prepared for the unchangeable felicities of thine everlasting kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

in this our necessity such seasonable weather, that we may receive the fruits thereof in due time; and grant that we may show forth our thankfulness to thee for all thy mercies, by a sincere obedience to thy holy laws, which thou hast taught us by Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

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IN TIME OF GREAT SCARCITY.

O GOD, our heavenly Father, who hast mercifully given us life, and on whom we depend for its support and preservation; mercifully behold, we beseech thee, the present afflictions of thy people; alleviate the distresses of the miserable, the miserable, and may the cries of the poor come unto thee; increase

FOR SEASONABLE WEATH- the fruits of the earth by

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thy heavenly benediction; may our scarcity be turned into plenty, and grant that we may improve the bounties of thy providence to thy praise, by relieving the distresses of others, and by thankfully acknowledging thee

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