¶A medi­tacion vpō the the lordes praier, made by Thomas Leuer, at sainct MA­ry Woll chur­che in London.

Anno. 1551.

To the christian reader.

PRopter laborem in­opū, et gemitum pau­perum, nunc exurgā dicit dominus. Psal. xij. Su­rely euen now in greate scarsitee lacke and dearth of meate, drynke, clothyng, and all o­ther necessaries, the sorowfull sighes of the poore and needy, muste either sinke into the riche mennes hartes, and from theim procure releue and comforte, vnto the needy members of Christes body: or els directly ascende vnto the throne of Goddes Iustice, and from thence bryng doune indi­gnacion and vengeaunce, to destroye wicked worldlynges, whiche beeyng thē selfes in welth and aboundance, fele no griefe of their brothers di­stresse and miserie.

But if any man, euery weke will be content, to spare one meale of hym self, & bestowe the price of that meale in Charitable Almose to releue the [Page] poore, and the tyme of thesame in godly meditacion and Praier, to dispose his awne mynde deuoutly: then shall all suche feele and tast, bothe of poore mennes honger, and of Godly com­fort in abstinence and praier, yea, and many poore be muche releued, and no riche man any thyng charged, and so thereby Goddes vengaunce auoyded and Goddes grace procured, when as fastyng and praier dooeth plucke out of mennes hartes coueteousnes whiche is the roote of all euil, and the cause of all calamities that now dooe trouble, greue, and daunger all men: This meditacion therfore of the Lordes praier, shall be good comfortable spirituall fode, in that tyme of bodi­ly abstinence.

A meditacion vpon the Lordes praier.

OUR father whiche art in heauen. We (glorious­ly formed vn­to the Image of thy diuine Maiestie, created by thy gracious goodnes vnto highest honor, howbeit, by our awne sinfulnes disfigured with vilenes, deseruyng dampnaciō. and yet by Christes death re­stored vnto grace, to be citezens with sainctes of the family of God) now all together in Chri­sten vnitee, as membres of one body, with this one voyce, for the manyfolde miseries of eue­ry member, and worthy meri­tes of Christ our hedde, praie, [Page] desire, and truste, to obtain of thee our heauenly father, accor­dyng vnto thy gracious good­nes, mightie power, and faithe­full promes, vnto vs that aske aboundaunce of thy grace.

I That thy name maie bee halowed. That thy di­uine power and glorious Ma­iestie, may be certainly knowen & reuerently honored. That the hartes of vs men, by thy worde and praier, maie bee sanctified frō worldly vanities and flesh­ly lustes, so that wee with all that wee haue, seruyng thee in holines and righteousnes, may shine so afore menne vpon the yearth, that thei thereby maie bee occasioned, to honour and glorifie the, our father in heauē

[Page]Thy kyngdom come II Thy woorde bee so fruictfully Preached vnto vs thy people, that we maie bee throughly in­structed and taught, to bridle our sensuall appetite by natu­ral reason, and submit our wit­tie reason vnto a Godly spirite. and try our spirites by the true Scriptures, so that within vs maie reigne the Kyngdome of God, whiche is neither meate nor drynke, but righteousnesse, peace, and comforte in the holy Ghoste, by the whiche wee now tastyng of thy heauenly ioyes, maie be made from hencefurth wery of all worldly vanities, continually wishyng and loo­kyng for the spedy apperaunce and commyng of thy eternall [Page] and euerlastyng kyngdome.

III Thy will be doen in yearth as it is in heauē. In heauen the Angelles of re­uerent loue, dooe thy will and commaundement, with comfor­table courage, and ioyful plea­sure: in hell the wicked spirites through malice and enuie, re­pinyng and grudgyng, do tor­ment and vexe themselfes, what soeuer thei be doyng: and vpon yearth we men beeyng subiecte vnto synne, do thinke it a labor and pain, to be occupied in any thyng that is good and godly. Wherefore wee praie, that the grace of thy heauenly Spirite maie so worke in our yearthly bodies, that our myndes maye bee deliuered from synne and [Page] vanitie, frely to delite and take pleasure in Godlines and ver­tue, so that we with a comforta­ble courage, maie finde delite and pleasure to dooe thy com­maundement and will, beeyng men vpon yearth, as the glori­ous company of Angelles doo whiche be in heauen.

Geue vs this day our IIII daily bread. We beeyng in greate nede, and not able of our selfes to deserue any thyng, be­seche thy Fatherly goodnesse of thy bounteous liberalitee, to geue frely vnto vs all in gene­rally, so that none bee hurte or hyndered seuerally, this daye when as we crie, constrained by present neede, not craftely cra­uyng for vain care against to [Page] morowe, our daily breade, our daily and necessarie foode and releue, bothe bodily and ghostly and especially the Spirituall fode of Christes fleshe and his bloude, by daily Preachyng of the Gospell, and ministracion of the Sacramentes, to reple­nishe, refreshe, and renue oure hartes & mindes, with the com­fortable remēbraunce of Chri­stes death and his passion dai­ly to bee vsed for necessary and spirituall consolacion.

V Forgeue vs our tres­passes, as wee forgeue theim that trespasse a­gainst vs. Geue vnto vs that felyng and knowyng our awne synfulnes, doo neede and desire thy mercifull forgeue­nes [Page] of oure trespaces and fau­tes, whiche we haue committed against thy diuine Maiestie, so that we freely forgeuyng other that haue offended vs in any thyng what soeuer it bee, maie bee sure that mercie spryngyng in thee, hath proceded vnto vs, beyng graciously offred of thee hath been thankfully receiued of vs, and beyng charitably v­sed of vs towardes other, shall mooste certainly bee confirmed and enlarged of thee towardes vs, and so finally, by gracious mercie, spryngyng and proce­dyng from thee, all fautes and trespasses shalbee freely forge­uen, euen as those whiche other haue committed against vs, so likewise those that wee haue doen against thee.

[Page] VI And leade vs not in­to temptacion. And suffre not the deuill, by thabuse of thy benefites, to leade vs captiue into deceiptfull and dampna­ble temptacion, drawyng vs by deinteth meates vnto greedy glottony, by money and riches vnto vnsaciable coueteousnes, and by wealth and prosperitie, vnto pride and vain glory, and by all thy godly gracious gif­tes, vnto euery Deuelishe ab­hominable synne.

VII But deliuer vs from all eiuill. Deliuer our good­des from abuse, our bodies frō corrupcion, our Soules from dampnacion, yea, deliuer vs by Christe, from the bondage of synne, vnto the libertie of the [Page] Gospell, so that without daun­ger of Deuelishe temptacion, driuyng vnto euerlastyng dā ­pnacion, wee maie serue thee in holines and righteousnesse all the daies of oure liues, with moste certain and comfortable hope, of euerlastyng life and saluacion through Christ Ie­su, in whom our hope and thy promes is moste certain, that is to saie. Amen. So be it.

FINIS.
Thomas Leuer.

Imprinted at Lon­don by Ihon Kyngston.

Cum priuilegio ad im­primendum solum.

¶And are to be sold at the West doore of Poules, by An­thony Kyngston.

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