Oh, with thy grace my heart inspire, <br />To bring forth fruites of thy desire. <br />Give me thy Peters penitence, <br />Paul's faith, and Job his patience, <br />And Marie's grace, and John his loue, <br />That in my heart I may approue. <br />When all these graces meete in mee, <br />What ioy my soule shall have in thee: <br />But oh, my God ! my heart cloth ake, <br />My soule with trembling fear doth quake, <br />That sinne hath brought me in such plight <br />As makes me ouglie in thy sight; <br />And I (O wretch !) am one of those <br />Whom thou hast reckoned for thy foes, <br />And that thy mercie will not heare me, <br />Nor comfort euer shall come near mee ; <br />My prayer turned into sinne, <br />No gate of grace shall enter in ; <br />But all my thoughts are farre amisse, <br />Shall banisht be from hope of blisse ; <br />And my poore soule, by sinne's desart, <br />Condemn'd vnto eternall smart. <br />And yet again, meethinks, I see <br />How thy great mercie lookes on mee, <br />And tels me faith may be victorious, <br />While grace will be in mercie glorious, <br />And what true hartes do truelie proue, <br />That turne to thee in teares of loue; <br />In which vnfaigned faithfull teares, <br />Wherein the wofull spirit weares, <br />I humbly fall at mercie's feete, <br />Where grace, and loue, and glorie meete; <br />And in teares of true contrition <br />Thus makes my wofull soule's petition : <br />In mercie looke on me, deare God ; <br />Forgive my sinnes, forbeare thy rod; <br />Behold my griefe and ease my paine, <br />And take me to thy grace againe, <br />That I may see that bright Sunne shine, <br />Whose glorie neuer can decline ; <br />Where I with Simeon's ioy may sing <br />When I embrace my holy King, <br />And sinne and sorrowes cease, <br />As my soule may rest in peace.<br /><br />Nicholas Breton<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/a-prayer-146/
