A Prayer to be Used at Any Time, by One Alone Privately.
you as He has taught us in His Gospel, saying, "Our Father who art in Heaven, etc."
A Prayer to be Used at Any Time, by One Alone Privately.
O Lord my God, and heavenly Father, I, your most unworthy child, freely confess in your presence that I am a sinful creature and a transgressor of all your holy laws and commandments. From the moment of my birth, I have been tainted by sin and have continuously manifested the corrupt and unpleasant fruits of that infection in my thoughts, words, and actions. If I were to attempt to enumerate my specific offenses, I do not know where to begin or end.
They are more numerous than the hairs on my head, far more than I can feel or comprehend. For who truly knows the extent of their corruption? Who knows how often they offend? You alone, O Lord, know my sins, for you know my heart. Nothing is hidden from you; you know what I have been and what I am. My conscience accuses me of many grievous evils, and through woeful experience, I daily feel my frailty, inclination towards evil, and aversion to goodness. My mind is filled with vanity, my heart with profaneness, and my affections with lifelessness, apathy, and laziness in matters of worship and service to you. Indeed, my entire soul is plagued by spiritual blindness, hardness, unfruitfulness, indifference, and complacency. I am, in reality, nothing more than a bundle of sin and a mass of misery. Therefore, I have forfeited your favor and incurred your deep displeasure, giving you just cause to frown upon me, abandon me, and leave me to my own corrupt will and desires. But,
O my dear Father, I have learned from your teachings that you are a God abounding in mercy, slow to anger, and rich in compassion and kindness towards all who groan under the burden of their sins.
Therefore, extend your great mercy to me, a poor sinner, and grant me a general pardon for all my offenses. Seal this pardon in the blood of your Son and affirm it to my conscience through your Spirit, assuring me more and more of your love and favor towards me, and that you are a reconciled Father to me. Grant that from this moment forward, I may love you greatly because much has been given to me, and out of sincere love, fear and obey you in all times to come.
O Lord, increase my faith so that I may steadfastly believe in all the promises of the Gospel made in your Son Christ and rely on them completely. Empower me to produce the genuine fruits of faith and repentance in all my actions. Fill my soul with joy and peace through my belief. Grant me inner comfort and spiritual strength against all temptations. Give me an even greater awareness of your love and abundant mercies towards me. Work in my soul a love for your
Majesty, a zeal for your glory, a hatred of evil, and a desire for all good things. Grant me victory over the sins that you know are most powerful in me. Let me finally conquer the world and the flesh.
Purify in me anything that is worldly, sanctify me entirely through your Spirit, bind my heart to you forever so that I may fear your name. Renew in me the image of your Son Christ daily, more and more. Instill in me a delight in reading and meditating on your word.
Let me rejoice in the public preaching of it. Help me love and respect all faithful Ministers of your Gospel. Sanctify their teachings in my conscience, seal them within my soul, inscribe them upon my heart.
Give me a soft and tender heart, so that I may tremble at your words and be deeply moved by godly sermons. May my sins not hinder your mercies from reaching me, nor my unworthiness block the flow of your grace. Open my eyes to see the great wonders of your law.
Reveal your secrets to me; be open-hearted towards me, your unworthy servant. Conceal nothing from me that may contribute to your glory and the well-being of my soul. Bless all the means you employ for my good. Bless all holy teachings and instructions for my soul. Bless me at all times, whether in hearing or reading your word.
Grant me the proper use of all your mercies and corrections, so that I may grow from them. Let my love for your children abound. May my
heart be closely knit to them, so that where you love most, there I may also love most. Help me watch and pray, so that I do not fall into temptation. Grant me patience and contentment in all things. Let my love for you increase while my love for the world diminishes. Draw my mind upward, so that I may disregard all fleeting things. May I be so captivated and enraptured by the sight and experience of heavenly things that I consider all earthly things as insignificant.
Allow me to use this world as if I did not fully depend on it. Let me only use it for necessities like food and drink. May I not be swayed by empty pleasures and superficial delights. Good Father, carry out your good work within me and never abandon or forsake me until you have brought me to true happiness. Oh dear Father, make me faithful in my vocation so that I may serve you in it and always strive to do good in everything. Bless my external circumstances. Bless my soul, body, possessions, and reputation. Bless all that is associated with me. Bless my entrances and exits. May your favor always shine upon me. Uplift me with the joys and comforts of your spirit. Fill me with gratitude for all your mercies. I must confess that you are truly kind to me in all things. In you I live, move, and exist. My well-being and prosperity come from you. You are a constant friend and a generous benefactor to me. I live at your expense. I acknowledge that everything I have comes from you, and I recognize that you never tire of doing good for me. Your goodness towards me is boundless. Oh, I can never express enough gratitude to you for all your mercies, both spiritual and material. But to the best of my ability, I praise your name for all of them. I implore you to accept my thanksgiving through your Son Christ and grant me the ability to make profitable use of all your blessings, so that my heart may be wholly devoted to you. Father, grant me a good nature and disposition that can be won over by gentleness and fair treatment, as if you were giving me many rewards. Forgive all my ingratitude, unkindness, and abuse of your mercies, and give me the grace to use them more for your glory in the future. Dear Father, strengthen me to continue praising and glorifying your name here on earth, so that after this life, I may be eternally crowned by you in your kingdom. Grant these requests,
most merciful God, not only to me but to all your dear children throughout the world, for the sake of Jesus Christ. In his name, I further call upon you, saying as he has taught me: Our Father, who art in Heaven, etc.
FINIS.
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