Certain devout prayers of Mr. Bolton upon solemn occasions. PublishedCertaine devout prayers of Mr. Bolton upon solemne occasions. Published

Most merciful Father we humbly beseech thee to give every one of us grace to let these things sink deeply into our hearts. Bless we beseech thee our wills and affections with sanctified desires to entertain them, our memories with faithfulness to retain them, our minds with serious meditations to digest them, ⟨p. 123⟩our hearts with fervency and prayer for thy blessings upon them, our lives with practise and piety to profit by them. LORD we see clearly that all our pleasures shall die and perish, that our honours shall be laid in the dust, that our gold and silver shall canker, and the rust of of them shall be a witness against us at the last day, that outward performances of religious duties without inward sanctification, shall have their portion with Hypocrites in the lake ⟨p. 124⟩which burneth with fire and brimstone. Where then shall appear the liar, the swearer, the drunkard, the profaner of the Sabbath, the unclean person, the proud, the idle, the malicious, the careless in his calling, even without timely and sound repentance, in the bottomless pit of the lowest hell. O then we beseech thee, gracious Father, to vouchsafe us in time wise and understanding hearts, the spirit of judgement to discern between the short span of this miserable ⟨p. 125⟩life, and the length and breadth of eternity. Let us now at length make a through and deep search into the state of our souls and consciences, and if we find that we be not yet possest of that inward sincerity and true happiness; let us for ever hereafter, with greatest fervency, earnestness and contention of spirit hunger and thirst, labour and strive after saving grace, the power of religion and true godliness, that so for a few and evil days, we stand wisely