Practice of Piety 61 - A Prayer before taking of Medicine.
O Merciful Father, who art the Lord of health and of sickness, of life and of death; who killest and makest alive; who bringest down to the grave and raisest up again; I come unto thee, as to the only physician, who canst cure my soul from sin, and my body from sickness. I desire neither life nor death, but refer myself to thy most holy will; for, ...read
Practice of Piety 62 - Meditations for the Sick.
Whilst thy sickness remains, use often, for thy comfort, these few meditations, taken from the ends wherefore God sendeth afflictions to his children. Those are ten.
1. That by afflictions God may not only correct our sins past, but also work in us a deeper loathing of our natural corruptions, and so prevent us from falling into many other sins, ...read
Practice of Piety 63 - Meditations for One That Is Like to Die.
If thy sickness be like to increase unto death, then meditate on three things:-First, How graciously God dealeth with thee. Secondly, From what evils death will free thee. Thirdly, What good death will bring unto thee.
The first sort of Meditations are, to consider God's favourable dealing with thee.
1. Meditate that God uses this chastisemen ...read
Practice of Piety 64 - A Prayer to Be Said of One That Is Like to Die.
A Prayer for a sick Man, when he is told that he is not a man for this world, but must prepare himself to go unto God.
O heavenly Father, who art the Lord God of the spirits of all flesh, and hast made us these souls, and hast appointed us the time, as to come into this world, so having finished our course, to go out of the same, the number of m ...read
Practice of Piety 65 - Meditations against Despair, or doubting of God's Mercy.
It is found by continual experience, that near the time of death, when the children of God are weakest, then Satan makes the greatest nourish of his strength, and assails them with his strongest temptations. For he knows that either he must now or never prevail; for if their souls once go to heaven, he shall never vex nor trouble them any more. And ...read
Practice of Piety 66 - An Admonition to them who come to visit the Sick.
They who come to visit ihe sick, must have a special care not to stand dumb and staring in the sick person's face to disquiet him, nor yet to speak idly and ask unprofitable questions, as most do.
If they see, therefore, that the sick party is like to die, let them not dissemble, but lovingly and discreetly admonish him of his weakness, and to p ...read
Practice of Piety 67 - A Prayer to be said for the Sick by them who visit him.
O merciful Father, who art the Lord and giver of life, and to whom belong the issues of death, we, thy children here assembled, do acknowledge, that in respect of our manifold sins, we are not worthy to ask any blessing for ourselves at thy hands, much less to become suitors to thy Majesty in the behalf of others; yet because thou hast commanded us ...read
Practice of Piety 68 - Consolations Against Impatience in Sickness.
If in thy sickness by extremity of pain thou be driven to impatience, meditate-
1. That thy sins have deserved the pains of hell; therefore thou mayest with greater patience endure these fatherly corrections.
2. That these are the scourges of thy heavenly Father, and the rod is in his hand. If thou didst suffer with reverence, being a child, ...read
Practice of Piety 69 - Consolations Against the Fear of Death
If in the time of thy sickness thou findest thyself fearful to die, meditate-
1. That it argueth a dastardly mind to fear that which is not; for in the church of Christ there is no death (Isa. xxv. 7, 8), and whosoever liveth and believeth in Christ, shall never die (John xi. 26). Let them fear death who live without Christ. Christians die not; ...read
Practice of Piety 70 - Seven Sanctified Thoughts and Mournful Sighs of a Sick Man Ready to Die.
Now, forasmuch as God of his infinite mercy doth so temper our pain and sickness, that we are not always oppressed with extremity, but gives us in the midst of our extremities some respite, to ease and refresh ourselves, thou must have an especial care, considering how short a time thou hast either for ever to lose or to obtain heaven, to make use ...read
Practice of Piety 71 - Of the Comfortable Assurance of God's Forgiveness of Sins.
The sick Person ought now to send for some godly and religious Pastor.
In any wise remember, if conveniently it may be, to send for some godly and religious pastor, not only to pray for thee at thy death-for God in such a case hath promised to hear the prayers of the righteous prophets, and elders of the church (Gen. xx. 7; Jer. xviii. 20; xv. 1 ...read
Practice of Piety 72 - Meditations of Martyrdom.
Now follows the Practice of Piety in dying for the Lord.
The practice of piety in dying for the Lord is termed Martyrdom.
Martyrdom is the testimony which a Christian bears to the doctrine of the Gospel by enduring any kind of death; to invite many, and to confirm all, to embrace the truth thereof. To this kind of death Christ hath promised a ...read
Practice of Piety 73 - A Divine Colloquy Between the Soul and Her Savior
A Divine Colloquy between the Soul and her Saviour upon the effectual Merits of his dolorous Passion.
Soul. Lord, wherefore didst thou wash thy disciples' feet?
Christ. To teach thee how thou shouldst prepare thyself to come to my supper.
Soul. Lord, why shouldst thou wash them thyself? (John xiii. 4.)
Christ. To teach thee humility, ...read
Practice of Piety 74 - The Soul's Soliloquy, ravished in contemplation of the Passion of our Lord.
What hadst thou done, O my sweet Saviour, and ever-blessed Redeemer, that thou wast thus betrayed of Judas, sold of the Jews, apprehended as a malefactor, and led bound as a lamb to the slaughter? What evil hadst thou committed, that thou shouldst be thus openly arraigned, accused falsely, and unjustly condemned before Annas and Caiaphas, the Jewis ...read
Lewis Bayly