Blessed is a person who endures temptation, for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord promised to those who love him. Let no man say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God,” for God can’t be tempted by evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own lust and enticed. Then the lust, when it has conceived, bears sin. The sin, when it is full grown, produces death. Don’t be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, nor turning shadow. Of his own will he gave birth to us by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

(Year A). Alas, alas, I am unworthily taken, all suddenly death hath assailed me, the pains of his stroke be so sore and grievous that I may not long endure them; my last hour, I perceive well, is come; I must now leave this mortal body; I must now depart hence out of this world never to return again into it. But whither I shall go, or where I shall become, or what lodging I shall have this night, or in what company I shall fall, or in what country I shall be received, or in what manner I shall be treated, God knoweth, for I know not. What if I shall be damned in the perpetual prison of hell, where be pains endless and without number? Grievous it shall be to them that be damned for ever, for they shall be as men in most extreme pains of death, ever wishing and desiring death, and yet never shall they die. It should be now unto me much weary, one year continually to lie upon a bed were it never so soft; how weary then shall it be to lie in the most painful fire so many thousands of years without number; and to be in that most horrible company of devils most terrible to behold, full of malice and cruelty?

O wretched and miserable creature that I am, I might so have lived and so ordered my life by the help and grace of my Lord Christ Jesus, that this hour might have been unto me much joyous and greatly desired. Many blessed and holy saints were full joyous and desirous of this hour, for they knew well that by death their souls should be translated into a new life; to the life of all joy and endless pleasure, from the straits and bondage of this corruptible body into a very liberty and true freedom among the company of heaven, from the miseries and grievances of this wretched world, to be above with God in comfort inestimable that cannot be spoken nor thought. They were assured of the promises of Almighty God, which had so promised to all them that be His faithful servants; and sure I am that if I had truly and faithfully served Him unto this hour, my soul had been partner of these promises.

But unhappy and ungracious creature that I am, I have been negligent in His service, and therefore now my heart doth waste in sorrows seeing the nighness of death, and considering my great sloth and negligence. I thought full little thus suddenly to have been trapped; but, alas, now death hath prevented me, and hath unwarily attacked me and suddenly oppressed me with his mighty power, so that I know not whither I may turn me for succour, nor where I may seek now for help, nor what thing I may do to get any remedy.

If I might have leisure and space to repent me and amend my life, not compelled with this sudden stroke but of my own free will and liberty, and partly for the love of God, putting aside all sloth and negligence, I might then safely die without any dread; I might then be glad to depart hence and leave my manifold miseries and encumbrances of this world. But how may I think that my repentance or mine amendment cometh now of mine own free will, since I was before this stroke so cold and dull in the service of my Lord God? Or how may I think that I do this more rather for His love than for fear of His punishment, when, if I had truly loved Him, I should more quickly and more diligently have served Him heretofore? Me seemeth now that I cast away my sloth and negligence, compelled by force. Even as a merchant that is compelled by a great tempest in the sea to cast his merchandise out of the ship, it is not to be supposed that he would cast away his riches of his own free will, not compelled by the storm. And even so likewise do I: if this tempest of death were not now raised upon me, it is full like that I would not have cast from me my sloth and negligence. O would to God that I might have now some farther respite, and some longer time to amend myself of my free will and liberty. O if I might entreat death to spare me for a season: but that will not be; death in no wise will be entreated; delay he will none take; respite he will none give, if I would give him all the riches of this world; no, if all my lovers and friends would fall upon their knees and pray him for me. No, if I and they would weep (if it were so possible) as many tears as there be in the seas drops of water, no pity may restrain him. Alas, when opportunity of time was, I would not use it well, which, if I had done, it would now be unto me more precious than all the treasures of a realm. For then my soul as now should have been clothed with good works innumerable, the which should make me not to be ashamed when I should come to the presence of my Lord God, where now I shall appear laden with sin miserably, to my confusion and shame. But, alas, too negligently have I let pass from me my time, not regarding how precious it was, nor yet how much spiritual riches I might have got therein, if I would have put my diligence and study thereunto.

For assuredly no deed that is, be it never so little, but it shall be rewarded of Almighty God. One draught of water given for the love of God shall not be unrewarded, and what is more easy to be given than water? But not only deeds, but also the least words and thoughts shall be in like wise rewarded. O how many good thoughts, deeds, works, might one think, speak and do in one day? But how many more in one whole year? O alas, my great negligence! O alas, my foul blindness! O alas, my sinful madness that knew this well, and would not put it in eifectual execution! if now all the people of this world were present here to see and know the perilous condition that I am in, and how I am prevented by the stroke of death, I would exhort to take me as an example to them all, and while they have leisure and time, to order their lives and cast from them sloth and idleness, and to repent them of their misbehaviour towards God, and to bewail their offences, to multiply good works and to let no time pass by them unfruitfully. For if it shall please my Lord God that I might any longer live, I would otherwise exercise myself than I have done before. Now I wish that 1 may have time and space, but righteously I am denied, for when I might have had it I would not well use it; and, therefore, now when I would well use it, I shall not have it.

O ye, therefore, that have and may use this precious time in your liberty, employ it well, and be not too wasteful thereof, lest, peradventure, when you would have it, it shall be denied you likewise, as now it is to me. But now I repent me full sore of my great negligence, and right much I sorrow that so little I regarded the wealth and profit of my soul, but rather took heed to the vain comforts and pleasures of my wretched body. O corruptible body! O stinking carrion! O rotten earth, to whom I have served, whose appetites I have followed, whose desire I have procured, now dost thou appear what thou art in thy own likeness! That brightness of thy eyes, that quickness in hearing, that liveliness in thy other senses by natural warmness, thy swiftness and nimbleness, thy fairness and beauty; all these thou hast not of thyself, they were but lent unto thee for a season, even as a wall of earth that is fair painted without for a season with fresh and goodly colours, and also gilded with gold, it appeareth goodly for the time to such as consider no deeper than the outward craft thereof; but when at the last the colour faileth and the gilding falleth away, then appeareth it in his own likeness; for then the earth plainly showeth itself. In like wise my wretched body, for the time of youth it appeareth fresh and lusty, and I was deceived with the outward beauty thereof, little considering what naughtiness was covered underneath; but now it showeth itself.

O alas, many years of deliberation suffice not before so great a Judge to make answer, who shall examine me of every idle word that ever passed my mouth. O then how many idle words, how many evil thoughts, how many deeds have I to make answer for! and such as we set but at light, full greatly shall be weighed in the presence of His most high Majesty. O alas, what may I do to get some help at this most dangerous hour? Where may I seek for succour? Where may I resort for any comfort? My body forsaketh me, my pleasures be vanished away as the smoke, my goods will not go with me. All these worldly things I must leave behind me; if any comfort shall be, either it must be in the prayers of my friends, or in mine own good deeds that I have done before.

But as for my good deeds that should be available in the sight of God, alas, they be few or none that I can think to be available; they must be done principally and purely for His love. But my deeds, when of their kind they were good, yet did I linger them by my folly; for either I did them for the pleasure of men, or to avoid the shame of the world, or else for my own affection, or else for dread of punishment; so that seldom I did any good deed in that purity and straightness that it ought of right to have been done. And my misdeeds, my lewd deeds that be shameful and abominable, be without number; not one day of all my life, no, not one hour I trow was so truly expended to the pleasure of God, but many deeds, words and thoughts miscaped me in my life. Alas, little trust then may I have upon my deeds!

Therefore, first and before all things, prepare for this; delay not in any wise, for if you do you shall be deceived as I am now. I read of many, I have heard of many, I have known many that were disappointed as I am now. And ever I thought and said and intended that I would make sure and not be deceived by the sudden coming of death; yet, nevertheless, I am now deceived, and am taken sleeping, unprepared, and that when I least weened of his coming, and even when I reckoned myself to be in most health, and when I was most busy and in the midst of my matters. Therefore, delay not you any farther, nor put your trust overmuch in your friends; trust yourself while ye have space and liberty, and do for yourself now while you may. I would advise you to do that thing that I, by the grace of my Lord God, would put in execution if His pleasure were to send me longer life. Account yourself as dead, and think that your souls were in prison of purgatory, and that there they must abide till that the ransom for them be truly paid, either by long sufferance of pain there, or else by suffrages done here in earth by some of your special friends. Be you your own friend; do you these suffrages for your own soul, whether they be prayers or almsdeeds or any other penitential painfulness. If you will not effectually and heartily do these things for your own soul, look you never that others will do them for you, and in doing them in your own persons, they shall be more available to you a thousandfold than if they were done by any other. If you follow this counsel and do thereafter, you be gracious and blessed, you shall doubtless repent your follies, but too late. (The Ways to Perfect Religion)

Musical Selection (Dan Craig)