Happy Thanksgiving!

Today marks the 450th anniversary of the first Protestant Thanksgiving worship service on North American territory, at Fort Caroline, Florida (near modern-day Jacksonville), on June 30, 1564, by French Huguenot colonists. 

It was in 1562 that the first French Huguenot expedition, organized by Admiral Gaspard de Coligny and led by Jean Ribault, landed on the bluffs of the St. John's River, and staked their claim to the site. The second expedition, led by Ribault's second-in-command, René Goulaine de Laudonnière, returned on June 22, 1564, and by June 29, his men had constructed a fort named in honor of King Charles IX of France. The following day, Laudonnière held a service of thanksgiving in which, he wrote, “On the morrow about the break of day, I commanded a trumpet to be sounded, that being assembled we might give God thankes for our favourable and happie arrivall. Then wee sang a Psalme of thanksgiving unto God, beseeching him that it would please him of his grace to continue his accustomed goodness toward his poore servaunts, and ayde us in all our enterprises that all might turne to his glory and the advancement of our king.”

This Thanksgiving service took place 54 years before the Berkeley Hundred Colony, Virginia Thanksgiving celebration (December 19, 1619) and 56 years before the Pilgrims' Thanksgiving celebration at Plymouth Colony, Massachusetts, in the autumn of 1621. Although summer may not seem to us today to be the ideal season for thanksgiving, yet we can take every opportunity to remember with gratitude "the grace of God's accustomed goodness to his poor servants," and today, we might give special thanks to him for the legacy of those brave French Huguenots souls who settled in Florida 450 years ago and staked a claim for the banner of Christ in North America. "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you" (1 Thess. 5.18).

Help Me To Be Thankful Always

A Psalm or Song for the sabbath day.

“It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High.” (Psalm 92.1)

“In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”

(I Thessalonians 5.18)

“Is any merry, let him sing psalms.” (James 5.13b) 

What return shall I make to my ever-blessed Redeemer for all the favours he hath bestowed upon me? Help, I entreat you, help me to be thankful, and as you abound in prayer, abound in praises. I find my heart too backward to this divine exercise. I am ready enough to ask for mercies, but alas! how slow to return thanks! Indeed sometimes God touches me from above, and my heart, hard as it is, is melted down and quite overcome with the sense of his free grace in Christ Jesus towards me. But I want always to go on my way rejoicing; I want the heart of a seraphim;

 I want to sing as loud as they

Who shine above in endless day. 

I could almost say more than they, and why should I not return angelic thanks? But my heart is as yet unhumbled, I see not what I am, what I deserve, and therefore set not a due value on the divine mercies. Pray therefore, …, that I may receive my sight, that my eyes may be opened, and that seeing what God hath done for me, I may break out into songs of praise, and by such heart-transforming divine exercises be gradually trained up for eternal uninterrupted communion with that heavenly choir, who cease not chanting forth day and night hallelujahs to Him that sitteth upon the throne and to the Lamb for ever.

 – George Whitefield, Letter XXXIII (Jan. 25, 1738), George Whitefield’s Letters: For the Period 1734 to 1742, pp. 35-36 

The whole life of a Christian should be nothing but praises and thanks to God. We should neither eat, nor drink, nor sleep, but eat to God, and sleep to God, and work to God, and talk to God; do all to his glory and praise. 

– Richard Sibbes, “Divine Meditations and Holy Contemplations,” in The Works of Richard Sibbes, Vol. 7, p. 185

On the Sight of a Shooting Star

On March 27, 2013, at 11:37 pm, while driving south in central Virginia, I saw a fireball in the southwestern sky. It arced from south to west and lasted several seconds, getting brighter and more colorful (white, blue, green) before disappearing. It was reported by other witnesses but it did not seem to make the news. Yet as brief as the moment lasted, its memory has stayed with me. Seeing this shooting star reminded me of a meditation by Joseph Hall, "On the Sight of a Gliding Star." I thought to post his meditation here, but it did not seem to capture what I felt. So instead I wrote my own.

Years ago in Eisenach, for an audience of one,
a clavichord concert orchestrated by Bach,
gave me a sense of wonder and awe
feeble, clapping hands could not convey.

Tonight it was as if his finger traced across the night sky
among thousands of pinpoints, in crystal clear cold,
and with a flourish sparkled a firework display
for an audience of one. It was over before
I could catch my breath, but the moment lives still. 

When one beholds beauty, one must share,
one must praise. Thank you Lord, for eyes to see,
ears to hear, a tongue to speak, feeble hands with which to write,
and a heart to love. 

A Huguenot Family Thanksgiving

Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him: talk ye of all his wondrous works. (Ps. 105.2) 

We will not hide from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done. (Ps. 78.4)

It was after the October 22, 1685 Revocation of the Edict of Nantes, that the family of Jaques (James) Fontaine decided to flee France. After enduring many perils, they successfully crossed the English Channel on the night of November 30-December 1, 1685. Later, they emigrated from England to Ireland, settling at Bear Haven in County Cork in 1699, where the family built a farm, despite hostile Roman Catholic neighbors and marauding French privateers. 

Early on the morning of June 1, 1704, a French privateer ship attacked the Fontaine family with the aid of some of the Irish neighbors. It was on this occasion particularly that this farmer-fisherman-pastor-educator earned the nickname "the fighting Huguenot." Fontaine tells what happened in his own words: 

Early in the morning of the first day of June 1704, a French privateer hove in sight, she floated gently towards the house in a perfect calm, she had on board four of my Irish neighbours to act as guides, in addition to eighty men of her own. She mounted ten guns. I watched her progress, and thought the intention was to bring her to the south of my house, so that her guns would bear directly upon the front and have full scope at high water. I would prevent this if it were possible, and so I mustered all the men I could find, exactly twenty in number, I gave the Protestants muskets, and the Papists clubs on their shoulders, which made them at a distance look like armed men. I ordered them to follow me and do as I did. We went round the little cove, stooping very low as if we wished to hide ourselves, though in reality I made choice of the highest ground in order that we might certainly be seen from the privateer. I then placed all the men behind a large rock near the shore, while I stood alone on the top of it, within sight of the vessel; I ordered them all to appear on one side of the rock, as if they were peeping out of curiosity, while I was looking the other way; then I turned, and made angry gesticulations as if I were finding fault and striking some of them, and at the same time I told them all to show their heads on the other side of the rock; I turned again, and appeared to be very anxious that they should conceal themselves. The enemy, having seen (as they thought) forty men behind the rock, did not deem it expedient to effect their landing at a point so well guarded; thus my manoeuvre produced exactly the effect I intended it should, and they turned about towards the mouth of the creek upon which my house stood; and there they were opposite to one corner of the house, from which point their fire would be comparatively without effect. They dared not venture up the creek for fear of getting aground at low water.

When I saw that they had decided upon their position, I took my men back by a low path, and this time I really made them hide themselves, so that those in the vessel could not see one of us returning from the rock. I took the Protestants into the house to assist in our defence, and sent the Papists away. The privateer cast anchor about a long musket shot distant from the house, and the lieutenant landed with twenty men. I had seven men with me in addition to my wife and children; four or five of these were of very little use. I placed them all at different windows, I posted myself in one of the towers over the door, and as the Lieutenant was advancing with every appearance of confidence in his mien, I fired at him with a blunderbuss loaded with small leaden balls, one of which entered his neck above the shoulder blade, and another his side. He took aim at me before he fell, but his fire went too high. While I was gone to fetch another loaded piece from the next room, his men took him up, crossed the ditch, and carried him back to the ship.

The Captain, furious at such unexpected resistance from a minister, sent twenty more men ashore, with another commander, and two small cannon; these they placed under cover of the rocks and hedges, and cannonaded the house from the north, while the guns on board the vessel fired upon us from the south east. I must acknowledge that being unaccustomed to this sort of music, I felt some little tremors of fear when the first cannon ball struck the house, but I instantly humbled myself internally before my Maker, and having committed myself both soul and body to his keeping, my courage revived, and I suffered no more from fear. I put my head out of the window see what effect the ball had produced on our stone wall, and when I perceived it had only made a slight scratch, I cried out with joy. "Courage my dear children, their cannon balls have no more effect on our stone walls than if they were so many apples!"

An officer was then in my house, with whom I had been conversing the evening before on what would be my prospect of success, if I were to defend myself on such an occasion as the present; and he thought I should have no chance, because he said a cannon would overthrow my house with as much ease as if it were a castle of cards; and this opinion of his I verily believe occasioned me the apprehension of which I have just now spoken, but which was only perceptible to myself and my Heavenly Father, who, in answer to my petition, had dissipated my fears.

John McLiney, a brave Scotchman, who was stationed at a window which overlooked the cannon on shore, having fired repeatedly without any apparent effect, at last put a double charge of powder into his musket, and killed a man who was pointing the cannon. This obliged them to alter the position of their battery, and they moved their cannon to the foot of the wall, and sheltered themselves behind a rock about thirty paces from the north east corner of the house, where every one was protected from our fire except the men who reloaded the cannons. The new position was much more favourable for us, because being at one corner of the house they could not strike the walls or injure any thing but the slates on the roof. During the whole battle there were two or three hundred Irishmen collected on a neighbouring height watching the conflict, rejoicing in the anticipation of our defeat, and waiting impatiently for the moment when they might come down and help to plunder.

A Frenchman named Paul Roussier, a brave man, and a skilful soldier, was in the garret opposite to the enemies' battery, he constructed a sort of rampart of sheep's fleeces, then made a hole through the slates, and from thence he fired without the slightest intermission; a fresh loaded piece being handed to him from below directly after he had fired; and he killed one of them. They on their part also kept up a continual fire with the cannons against the house, and the pirates from the vessel fired with small arms upon our windows, which we had barricaded with mattresses and large books.

At the commencement of the action some of our muskets were a little out of order. The officer who was loading for Paul Roussier had put in the ball before the powder, (by which you may judge of his confusion) and seeing my wife enter the room, who was here, and there, and every where, carrying ammunition, and giving encouragement both by her words and her manner, he went up to her, and taking her by the hand, he said, "Alas! my dear lady, we are undone, it would be the height of folly to attempt to resist any longer when our arms are in bad order; here are no less than three useless muskets." (Observe we had eighteen muskets, two blunderbusses and several pistols.)

My wife replied with her usual composure, "We are in the hands of the Almighty, and nothing can befall us without his permission; I trust he will not suffer us to fall into the hands of these wicked men. We must not lose our courage, but try if we cannot repair what is defective."

She then came to me where I was on duty, and told me to go into the parlour directly to encourage the people, and do away the alarm caused by this faint-hearted gentleman. I went immediately and examined the three muskets; one wanted a flint, another had some dirt in the touch hole, and the third had two cartridges in it, one on the top of the other and a ball below both, next to the touch hole. I laughed at him a little, and from that time there was no further complaint of arms being out of order. My wife was so entirely free from fear, that when she went to fetch a needle for me to broach the muskets from a place where the balls were coming in at the window like hail, she did not think of stooping until I called out to her so to do. The children were a good deal alarmed when the balls struck the roof and made the slates fly, which she perceiving said to them "Courage my children, we are in the hands of God, and it is not fear that will insure our safety; on the contrary, God will bless our courage. If you cannot fire yourselves, you can load the muskets for your father and others who are older and stronger than you are; drive away all fear if you can, and leave the care of your persons to God."

This address of hers to the children had a great effect upon the older persons present, and seemed to inspire them with new courage and confidence. Ere long however we had serious cause for anxiety, our powder was becoming so scarce that we felt as if we ought to be sparing in the use of it. We were in great perplexity; if we did not continue the same fire we thought the enemy would perceive the difference and attack with fresh vigor, and to go on at the rate we were using it, we had not more than enough for three hours; we had only had twelve pounds at the outset. "Great God! it was then that thou discouraged our enemies and showed us their backs. "

Claude Bonnet, a French soldier, seeing one of them run away, went forward to take aim at him, and just; at that moment a ball from the enemy struck against the house, rebounded, and entered the fleshy part of of his arm without touching the bone. This showed us that if we had been spared, it was to God that we owed it, and to him we should return our thanks. My dear wife was the surgeon, she had him laid upon a bed without any noise, and applied the first dressing to the wound with her own hands. The battle lasted from eight o'clock in the morning till four in the afternoon, and during that whole time, there was never the least cessation in the firing except for a few minutes when the first man was killed. We had no one wounded but Claude Bonnet, and one of the children from a piece of slate striking against his thumb. The enemy had three men killed and seven wounded, as we learnt afterwards from the Irishmen who were on board. When the assailants had returned to the vessel, we visited the stations they had occupied, and found a quantity of blood which they had evidently tried to hide by treading earth and leaves into the ground.

The privateer remained at anchor for some time, and we were afraid they meditated a second attack, for which we were badly prepared being so near the end of our powder; but we determined if they did land again that we would only fire when we could take aim. While we were waiting the development of their plans, we took some nourishment, which was much needed after our fatigues. I had given each one a large glass of Sherry when we entered the house on our return from the rock, first thing in the morning; and after that, during the whole action, I did not permit any one to taste a drop of wine, or spirit, or strong beer.

We had the satisfaction in a short time of seeing them draw up their anchor and sail away, and we returned thanks to God for our glorious deliverance. 

After the Fontaines had successfully repelled the privateers, they built a fort to defend themselves against any future attack. A second attack occurred on October 8, 1708, which resulted in victory, albeit with hostages taken. Fontaine continues:

With a constant apprehension of attack before us we lived on the "qui vive," from the 1st. June 1704 until the 8th. October 1708, when with all our precautions we were actually taken by surprise.

A French Privateer entered the harbour during the night and anchored off Bear Haven, about five miles from our house, and entirely out of sight. At that time a company of soldiers was quartered among the Irish in the Half Barony, and the Captain who commanded them lodged and boarded at my house, but unluckily both he and the Lieutenant happened then to be absent at Bantry, and the Ensign was left in command of the company. He was an imprudent, inexperienced young man, entirely destitute of judgment.

The Privateer hoisted English colors by way of deception, and she succeeded to her wish, for the Ensign no sooner discovered her, than, concluding she was a vessel just arrived from America, he went down with two or three soldiers of his company, in great haste to be the first on board her, in order to regale himself with rum punch, a beverage of which he was unhappily much too fond. He was a prisoner from the instant he set his foot on board the vessel, but the Captain and officers behaved towards him with the greatest civility. He was a little shocked at first, but they made him so welcome, treating him to the best of wine and brandy that he soon lost the remembrance of his situation, and gave the Captain every information he wanted, and it was of a nature to encourage him exceedingly, for he told him that the soldiers were dispersed throughout the country and without any commander, the Captain and Lieutenant both being absent, and that he was sure nothing would be easier than to surprise me, for I had nobody with me but my own family. Upon the strength of this information the Captain had three boats prepared to go ashore, sent eighty men in them, commanded by his two Lieutenants, who were both Irishmen born within the Barony.

A great proportion of the crew were Irishmen, and amongst them was one Sullivan, whose life I had formerly saved, when he was proclaimed as a tory and a robber, and after he fled to France I had compassion on his unhappy wife whom he had left with seven or eight children, and I allowed her to live rent free upon my farm, and fearing the family might perish with hunger, I returned to her a milch cow and ten or twelve sheep, which I had received from Sullivan himself for rent before he went away. And this was the man who came to recompense me by acting as guide to the party; for he knew better than any one else the exact situation of my house and every thing belonging to it.

They quitted the ship at midnight, landed before it was light, and commenced their march about daybreak, in perfect silence and stooping very low, in order that they might be neither seen nor heard. An Irish servant who was fetching home the cows was the first person to discover them, marching in good order, and only, about the distance of a long musket shot from the house. He ran home as fast as he could, and cried out that we were all lost, for a number of armed men were in sight. We got up directly and I ordered every door to be shut; but there was so much bustle and confusion that they forgot to close the gates of the large court in front, and even the house door below the tower was left open; this the enemy perceived, as we afterwards learned, but dared not approach, thinking it was a feint, and that we must have a loaded cannon within, ready to fire upon them. When the men were near enough to hear me I hailed them through a speaking trumpet, and told them if they were friends to stop, and let us know who they were; and if enemies, I called upon them to come forward and we would receive them with vigor.

In the mean time my children were busily engaged loading our arms and putting them in order, and as the men still continued to advance I desired my oldest son to fire from the garret window our large gun whose barrel was six feet in length; this made them lower their heads; they then separated into different parties, and hiding themselves by means of the hedges and ditches contrived to get round to the back of the house. Their first act was to set fire to the malt house which was at the east, then to straw, and grain, and hay stacks which were at the north and east, and at last to the cow house, stable, and long fish press which were at the west of my house. These being of very combustible materials, in less than half an hour we were encompassed with flames on every side but one, and by reason of the fire and smoke between us and them, we were unable to see any of our enemies, and our lungs were dreadfully oppressed by the smoke which found its way in at every crevice.

I ordered the servants to fill all the tubs and buckets that could be found with water, which fortunately for us flowed into the kitchen, and then immerse sheep-skins with the wool upon them, and ox-skins, of which we had many in the house, and when thoroughly soaked to cover the windows with them, as being the most exposed parts of the house; the roof was slated and so there was little danger of the fire being communicated to us in that direction. My dear wife superintended this department.

Our whole garrison consisted of our children, your mother and myself, and four servants, two of the latter were mere cow boys, and the other two had never seen a battle. We fired haphazard as fast as we could load; I say so, because we could actually see nothing but fire and smoke. My great apprehension was that they might seize our cannon, and turn them against ourselves, and therefore I thought the best thing I could do was to fire my large blunderbuss every few minutes in the direction of the cannon; and once after I had fired I thought I discovered that they had been making an attempt, for there was much noise and confusion, and it was evident they were carrying away a wounded man. I could hear them very distinctly, but I saw nothing; however I continued from time to time to fire in the same direction.

After a while we perceived that the door of which I have already spoken was open, and I sent some one to shut it, and continued firing at random.

I caught a glimpse of one of the enemy setting fire to the covering of the fish press, and took deliberate aim at him with my blunderbuss loaded as usual with swan shot, and wounded him in several places but not seriously.

While the stacks of grain were burning and we were being suffocated with the smoke, our adverseries raised a little mound of turf and wood, and intrenched themselves behind it, and they set to work with long poles to detach the slates from the roof of the north-east tower. As soon as they had uncovered a portion, they attached burning straw to the end of their poles, and in that way set the roof on fire three several times, and we as often extinguished it from within.

About two o'clock in the afternoon, they succeeded in making a breach in the wall of this same north-east tower, and as we could see them at work with iron bars, my children took one of those large baskets used in the country for peat to the corner opposite the hole that was made, put a mattress on the top of the basket, and kneeling behind this rampart they fired one after the other as fast as they possibly could; they were hard at work all the time but did not dare to show their noses. The enemy did not relax at all in their efforts to fire the roof with long poles armed with fire brands, and at last, the smoke subsiding a little, I hit upon a position from which I could see to take aim at their hands as they raised them above the intrenchment to guide the poles, and I fired, apparently with some success. Seeing however that they still persevered I began to think it probable that I had not put a sufficient charge in my piece, and when I loaded it again I determined to use a double quantity of powder. I had no sooner put in the charge, than I had an opportunity of trying it, for I saw a hand raised, and I fired. The piece being overcharged, burst, and I was thrown down with great violence, three of my ribs and my right collar-bone were broken, and the flesh of my right hand was very much torn. I was so completely stunned that I had no power to move or even to breathe for some seconds. My wife saw the fall and supposed I had received a ball from the enemy, she ran to my assistance, and raised me up without making the slightest noise. As soon as I was able to speak I explained to her that I was wounded by the bursting of my own piece. I was now completely "hors de combat," but I had already done my part, for during the course of the morning I had fired five pounds of swan shot from my now disabled piece. While I was prostrated, my dearest wife had an eye to every thing, she went round to furnish ammunition and to give courage to all, as well by her exhortations as by her example.

In the mean time, the enemy had enlarged the breach until it was from four to five feet square; nevertheless, they derived no advantage from it, my sons kept up such an incessant fire from behind their mattress rampart. At last, a grenade was thrown it at the breach which ran under the basket, exploded, and overturned the whole affair, without (thanks be to God) doing any harm except giving my sons a fright which made them abandon their post for a very short time. One of them ran to me, in great dismay, to tell me that the hole was as large as any door, and that the enemy were entering by it; the other boys were still firing from the dormer windows.

I immediately rose from the bed, asked for a pistol ready loaded and cocked, which I took in my left hand, the right being useless. I called my children together, and said to them, "I see, my dear children, that we must inevitably fall a sacrifice to the number of our enemies, but do not let them kill us like dogs, rather let us sell our lives dearly and die like lions;" and while I was speaking I continued advancing towards the room into which the breach was made.

A melancholy sight it was, but at the same time a gratifying one, to behold these poor boys, as soon as I had done speaking, re-enter the room and take their old position without a word or a gesture indicative of fear; they replaced their basket and mattress exposed to the fire of more than ten muskets. Blessed be thou oh God! who preserved them untouched amid such a shower of balls.

When they began to fire, the enemy retreated from the breach, and dared not raise their heads again, or even so much as their hands, and thus their fire was all thrown away; for by not raising the butt ends of their muskets, they carried too high and went far above us every time. Seeing that we did not give way in the least, they began to tire of our obstinate resistance. It was possible they might have overheard my address to the children, added to which, they were under the impression that we had at least twenty men from the constant fire that was kept up in every direction, as well as upon the main point of attack. They called out to us to surrender and we should have good quarter.

I held a consultation with my wife and children, and we determined at any rate to listen to their proposal. We ceased firing, they did the same, and I advanced to the breach to hold a parley with them. One of the Irish Lieutenants came forward and took aim at me, my second son Peter saw him before I did and immediately caught hold of me and drew me aside, barely in time to save me from this treachery, for the ball passed within three inches of my stomach.

I was extremely indignant and cried out, "Ah ! Traitors! was it then to surprise me that you called me to parley with you? Fire upon these traitors my sons, fire ;" which the poor boys did without loss of time and with all their hearts.

I had foolishly exposed myself to imminent danger, by placing confidence in the good faith of an enemy whom I might have been sure was altogether destitute of such a virtue, but a watchful and kind providence interposed for my deliverance.

We kept up an incessant fire for another quarter of an hour, and then they called to us again, and made a second offer of good quarter. I reproached them with their recent perfidy, and told them I could not trust people who had already attempted to betray the confidence I had reposed in them. They then made a threat that if we did not surrender they would throw a barrel of powder in the breach and blow us up.

"I have three or four at your service," said I, "and I intend to scatter their contents over this door and the inner hall, and whenever you are pleased to approach, I will throw a lighted turf upon it and make you dance. You may depend upon one thing that I will not perish without you."

This desperate reply induced them to offer good quarter once more.
I said, "I do not know what you mean by good quarter, but this I know that I am resolved not to surrender unconditionally, I would rather perish with all my family than do so."

They then left off firing and called to me to order my people to do likewise, so we had a cessation of hostilities on both sides. Their proposition was that they should be allowed to plunder, to which I consented, for with our lives we must of course lose our goods. I demanded life and liberty for myself and all who were with me; but as they spoke English, I said, "I do not choose to have any thing to do with English or Irishmen in making the treaty. I look upon myself as a British subject, and as such I will only treat with the French who are at war with England, and I request the French Commander will put his head to the breach, and I assure him that he may do so with perfect safety, for we have no traitors in our ranks."

Then came forward one of those rascally Irish Lieutenants, Carty, alias La Touche, who was commender of the party and could speak French as well as I could. I told him that as an Irishman I placed no reliance upon him, and that I would treat with him only as the authorised agent of the French Captain. I repeated to him in French the terms of capitulation. Life and liberty guaranteed to all of us, and strictly honorable deportment on their part while in possession, and they were to have the plunder.

They swore to the observance of this as French. men and men of honor. After which, I said, "I am now going to open the door for your admittance, and I warn you beforehand that I will allow no one to enter by any other way, and should you attempt to come in by the breach I shall shoot you directly."

This was agreed to also, and I had the doors opened and ranged myself, my wife, my sons, and four servants in regular order to surrender our arms to the commander as he entered.

"Thou knowest, Oh God! our preserver! and none else can know, what was the state of my feelings at that moment, to see my beloved wife and dear children at the mercy of enemies, fourteen of whom we had wounded. Oh! what everlasting praises do we owe to thee for our preservation. It was thou who restrained these bloodthirsty wretches from executing the vengeance they had sworn against us. Oh God! I beseech thee to sanctify the lives which thou hast so miraculously preserved, and assist us to devote them to thy service."

When the commander and a good many of his men had entered, they looked anxiously around seeing only five youths and four cow-herds, and asked me where all my people were, evidently suspecting that I had laid an ambush.

"You need not fear any thing dishonorable from me," I said, "you see all our garrison."

"Impossible ! " said he, ''these children could not possibly have kept up all the firing."

My wife then spoke, and said "I am in hopes, Sir, that the fact of so few persons having made so gallant a defence will be an inducement to you, whom I trust we shall find a man of honor, to treat us with the more consideration. Are you," added she, "the commander of this party?"

"I am, Madam," said he. 

She then handed him her keys, and intreated him to restrain his followers within strict bounds, which he promised to do. I told him, that I had forgotten to stipulate for my books, but that as they would be altogether useless to them, I hoped he would grant me the indulgence of retaining them in my own possession. He promised that they should be spared, and for a time he kept a guard at my study door, but soon after they entered it and plundered there as elsewhere, taking all the handsomest books, and leaving behind a few that looked old and were badly bound. The house was very completely furnished, and as we had never thought of a surrender until it actually took place, we had not had time or opportunity to secrete anything. We were stripped of every article both of furniture and clothing even to our coats, for in the heat of action we had taken them off to have more freedom in the use of our arms.

They not only filled their own three boats with the booty, but they took three of mine and loaded them also. When they were ready to depart they took me and my two oldest boys and two of the servants with them as prisoners. It was all in vain for me to remind them that it was an infraction of the treaty they had made with me previous to our surrender. Their reply was, that my name had made so much noise amongst the Privateers at St. Maloes that they dared not return to the vessel without me, the Captain's order to-them was peremptory, not to come back unless they had me with them dead or alive. They promised me faithfully, however, that as soon as the Captain had seen me, I should be set at liberty. My remonstrances were of no avail, go I must, and by the time I reached the vessel I had become so entirely powerless from the effect of my wounds and fractures, that they were obliged to hoist me like a log; I could not assist myself the least in the world.

As soon as the crew saw me alongside, they all shouted "Vive le Roi," and repeated it three times in grand chorus.

This roused me from my pain and depression; and when they ceased shouting, I raised my voice to its highest pitch, and said, "Gentlemen, how long it is since victories have been so rare in France, that you are glad to avail yourselves of such an occasion as the present to sing in triumph? I am ashamed, positively ashamed, of my native country, to hear rejoicings over such a victory. A glorious achievement truly! Eighty men all accustomed to warfare have actually been so successful as to compel one poor Minister, four cow-herds, and five children to surrender upon terms. And, furthermore, Gentlemen I would have you to know, that though I do appear before you as a prisoner, it is in direct violation of the treaty made with your commanding officer, and sworn to by him previous to our surrender. He cannot deny that he has broken his faith, and committed a flagrant offence against the established Law of Nations."

I was then carried to the Captain's Cabin, and I renewed my complaint, telling him of the treaty which his authorised agent had made with me, and I added, "Sir, I assure you that if I had had the least idea of being carried off as a prisoner, so far from surrendering, I would have resisted as long as I had breath in my body. I trust, under the circumstances, you will see the justice of restoring me to liberty immediately."

He answered me with much courtesy of manner, and said, "I cannot tell you how delighted I am to have on board my vessel a man of such undaunted courage, and whose name has made so much noise."

"You may indeed, Sir," said I, "find to your cost that my name is pretty well known in England and Ireland. I have received so many marks of friendship from the Lords in Council at the Irish seat of government, that I feel certain as soon as they are aware of my situation, and especially of the fact that my being made a prisoner at all was contrary to a sworn treaty, they will send instructions to Kinsale to retaliate upon the French prisoners there, which may probably bring you into a little trouble."

"What!" said he, "do you dare to make use of threats?"

"No, no, I only give you fair warning of what will most assuredly come to pass. This unjustifiable conduct of yours will be the occasion of many an honest man suffering hardships, to which the mere circumstance of his being a captive would not subject him; probably friends of your own may be among the number; and nobody will give you any thanks for what you are doing."

"Never mind," said he, "let us drink a glass of wine together now, and discuss these matters in the morning. "

"I want no wine," said I, " but I stand in great need of repose, and of having my wounds dressed."

The surgeon was thereupon summoned, and he applied some linen dipped in brandy. Notwithstanding the number of good beds they had just brought from my house, it was with great difficulty that I could obtain a very poor one to lie down upon, and a coarse sheet and coverlid to throw over me. I was placed between decks with the bed resting upon some cordage. This was Saturday night, 8th October, 1708.

Our noble Ensign, who ought to have protected us, was still on board, as drunk as a hog; he was in excellent spirits, and on the best of terms with the Captain and crew, to whom he was infinitely grateful for indulging him in his vicious propersity. The next day being Sunday, he was sent ashore early in the morning without having received the least injury, or being deprived of any thing whatsoever. My two sons and the servants were sent away at the same time, and I alone detained. When the boat returned from landing them the Captain gave orders to raise the anchor.

My wife did not sit down quietly to bemoan and lament over her misfortunes, as many would have done in her situation, but was in action at once to endenvour to remedy them. She went early in the morning to the place where the Papists said Mass to see the Priest, and persuade him if possible to go after the vessel, and use his influence to obtain my liberty. He positively refused. She dwelt upon the many obligations that I had from time to time laid his people under, and the numbers of them I had saved from the gallows; but it was all in vain. Finding persuasion useless, she changed her tone and had recourse to threats, pointing out to him that he would inevitably expose himself to the resentment of those in power, if he persisted in refusing to assist a man who was so much and so deservedly esteemed by the Lord Lieutenant, and the Council. She succeeded no better than before, and seeing the vessel under sail, she determined to follow it by land as long as she could.

The weather was clear, calm and mild. Our Captain proceeded to the Island of Durzey and found my wife waiting upon the promontory till the vessel got opposite to it. She made a signal with her apron tied to the end of a stick, and a boat was despatched to hear what she had to say. She had taken the precaution of borrowing a speaking trumpet, and thus she was able to carry on conversation, from the cliff on which she was standing, with those who were below in the boat. After a great deal of bargaining, and many difficulties raised, they at last agreed to set me at liberty upon the payment of L100 sterling. All this time I was stretched on my pallet between decks, and was in total ignorance of what was going forward.

The privateer remained off the Island of Durzey waiting for my wife's return with the money, and she was gone to try to borrow it. She was unable to procure more than L30, and the greater part of this sum I had paid to Boyd for rent only five days before we were attacked. Unable to raise more she came back to the vessel accompanied by our second son Peter, several of our tenants, and our friend Mr. Hutchins of Bear Haven.

The Captain agreed to give me up on condition of his having the L30 she had brought with her, and retaining one of my sons as a hostage for the payment of the remaining L70. He paid her many compliments upon the courage she had displayed, and told her he looked upon her as a second Judith.

She replied, "I should have felt more honored if you had compared me to Deborah; but I am far from being surprised that you should not be well versed in books that you are prohibited from reading."

My deliverance was accomplished, but it was upon hard terms, and I felt melancholy indeed at leaving my poor dear boy in my stead.

When we came away, that traitor, Sullivan, of whom I have already spoken, took me upon his shoulders, and climbed with me up the rocks. He had waited upon me the whole time I was on board the privateer, for I was literally as helpless as an infant. I reproached him with his treachery. "How could you find in your heart, after all that I had done for you and yours, to act the part of guide to my enemies?"

He tacitly acknowledged his ingratitude, for he replied, "I have not a word to say in excuse for my conduct."

It was late on Monday night, almost Tuesday morning, when I was ransomed by the exertions of my wife and the tenderness of my sons; I say sons, because, though only one was left, they were all equally anxious to have taken my place. James could not be spared, he was old enough to look after the farm and take care of the few cattle remaining to us. Peter, being next in age, would not hear of any one but himself being selected.

On the night of Tuesday, the eleventh day of October, I slept at Bear Haven at the house of Mr. Hutchins, and the next day I went in a boat to Bantry, in order to have the requisite surgical assistance, and in going there we passed near enough to have a view of our now desolate mansion.

My wife waited to see me comfortably settled under the care of a skilful French surgeon, and she then went to Cork to endeavour to raise the L70 for the payment of which Peter was retained as a hostage. The Bishop lent her twenty guineas, and she could easily have borrowed the remainder from other friends, but the merchants of Cork, upon bearing the particulars of the affair, set their faces against any payment being made, and assured her that our son would soon be liberated without it, and their reasoning seemed to her so sound that she returned the Bishop what he had kindly lent to her, and declined borrowing any more. She also contrived to have a letter sent privately to Peter, exhorting him to keep up his courage, and have patience, and that she had no doubt he would soon be set at liberty without ransom, but advised him to appear ignorant of it.

The privateer hovered about the Island of Durzey for a long time, waiting for the money. Peter conducted himself remarkably well on board the ship, and evinced much more both of prudence and courage than might have been expected from so young a lad. The steadiness of his deportment attracted the attention of the Captain, and he placed so much confidence in him as to give into his charge the key of the liquors, and this caused the whole crew to pay court to him.

While he was in the privateer she was one day chased by a British man of war; it was proposed to him to hide himself in the hold, which he declined; a musket was then offered to him that he might assist in the defence, but he said, "No, I would rather fight for the English than against them, for I regard them as my friends and countrymen."

The English vessel was inferior in point of sailing and thus they escaped from her.

The Captain had a son with him about Peter's age, a vain, disagreeable boy, much disliked by the officers of the ship; he came to Peter one day, being intoxicated at the time, and with a drawn sword in his hand threatened to kill him. Peter seized a sword to defend himself, and succeeded in disarming the drunken boy, and lowering his importance, much to the satisfaction of the bystanders.

When they reached St. Maloes, the Governor of Brest condemned the Captain very much for his misconduct in bringing a hostage away with him, in direct contravention of the Law of Nations, and he would not suffer Peter to be landed and placed with the other prisoners.

The poor Captain was sadly perplexed, and nothing would have pleased him so much as Peter running away, and thus getting him out of his dilemma, and he had it hinted to him that he was a great fool not to make his escape; but after the letter he had received from his mother, he very properly considered that it would be an act of great folly to leave the vessel in a foreign country, when he had every reason to expect that he would be taken home again. After remaining a while at St. Maloes, the vessel went out on another cruise, Peter still in her.

Peter Fontaine was ultimately freed from captivity. In the years following, Peter, sister Mary Anne Fontaine, and brothers Francis and John all left Ireland to settle in the colony of Virginia. Many French Huguenots found refuge at Manakintowne, near Richmond, where both Peter and Francis served briefly as pastors. John accompanied Gov. Spotswood on the famous Knights of the Golden Horseshoe expedition across the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Shenandoah River, and recorded it in his journal. Francis would serve as chaplain of the Virginia House of Burgesses, Professor of Oriental Languages at William & Mary College in Williamsburg, and Rector of the York-Hampton Parish. Peter went on to become Rector of the Westover Church near Charles City, Virginia. Ann Maury records that even in Virginia the memory of remarkable deliverances in Ireland was cause for regular thanksgiving among the Fontaine family. In 1723, for example, Peter preached a sermon preceded by the following prayer. 

The next interesting item of family history, which we are able to bring to light, is the fact, that, after our ancestors emigrated to Virginia, they were in the habit of meeting annually, to hold a solemn religious thanksgiving, in commemoration of their remarkable preservation, when attacked by French privateers, in the south of Ireland.

The following; sermon was preached on one of these occasions, by the Rev. Peter Fontaine. It bears the date upon it, and also a pencil memorandum of the Psalms and Lessons which he had selected as appropriate to the services of the day.

1st June 1723

PROPER PSALMS XVIII., CIII., CXVIII.

I. LESSON. Exodus xiv.

II. LESSON. Ephesians vi., from v. 14 to the end.

C O L L E C T.

Almighty and most glorious Lord God, who dost render ineffectual the most subtle devices and best concerted measures of wicked and haughty men, and didst as at this time with a high hand and lifted up arm deliver us from our inveterate enemies; and hast sundry times before and since exerted thy power in our favor; grant that we may always bear so grateful a sense of these thy mercies in our minds, as may engage us to embrace all opportunities of worshiping; and glorifying and praising thee, with one mind and with one mouth, through Jesus Christ our Lord, who taught us,&c.

It was a desire to bequeath a godly heritage to his children that led James Fontaine to write his autobiography, and it was Peter's aim in colonial Virginia to glorify God in the recollection of those remarkable events at Bear Haven, Ireland, which formed the basis of one Huguenot family's Thanksgiving. 

Gratefulness

George Herbert, The Complete English Poems, pp. 115-116:

Gratefulness

You that have giv'n so much to me,

Give one thing more, a grateful heart.

See how your beggar works on thee

By art.

He makes your gifts occasion more,

And says, If he in this be crossed,

All you have giv'n him heretofore

Is lost.

But you did reckon, when at first

Your word our hearts and hands did crave,

What it would come to at the worst

To save.

Perpetual knockings at your door,

Tears sullying your transparent rooms,

Gift upon gift, much would have more,

And comes.

This notwithstanding, you still went on,

And did allow us all our noise:

Nay, you have made a sigh and groan

Your joys.

Not that you have not still above

Much better tunes, than groans can make;

But that these country-airs your love

Did take.

Wherefore I cry, and cry again;

And in no quiet can you be,

Till I a thankful heart obtain

Of thee:

Not thankful, when it pleases me;

As if your blessings had spare days:

But such a heart, whose pulse may be

Your praise.

To Every Thing There Is A Season

Richard Sibbes, The Soul's Conflict With Itself, and Victory Over Itself By Faith, in Works, Vol. 1, p. 249:

Though in evil times we have cause to praise God, yet so we are, and such are our spirits, that affliction straitens our hearts. Therefore, the apostle thought it the fittest duty in affliction to pray. 'Is any afflicted? let him pray,' saith James; 'is any joyful? let him sing psalms,' James v. 13; shewing that the day of rejoicing is the fittest day of praising God. Every work of a Christian is beautiful in its own time. The graces of Christianity have their several offices at several seasons. In trouble, prayer is in its season. 'In the evil day call upon me,' saith God, Ps. xci. 15. In better times praises should appear and shew themselves. When God manifests his goodness to his, he gives them grace with it to manifest their thankfulness to him. Praising of God is then most comely, though never out of season, when God seems to call for it by renewing the sense of his mercies in some fresh favour towards us. If a bird will sing in the winter, much more in the spring. If the heart be prepared in the wintertime of adversity to prase God, how ready will it be when it is warmed with the glorious sunshine of his favour!

Our life is nothing but as it were a web woven with interminglings of wants and favours, crosses and blessings, standings and fallings, combat and victory, therefore there should be a perpetual intercourse of praying and praising in our hearts. There is always a ground of communion with God in one of these kinds, till we come to that condition wherein all wants shall be supplied, where indeed is only matter of praise.

My Sun's Returned

Anne Bradstreet, Meditation, May 13, 1657:

As spring the winter doth succeed
And leaves the naked trees do dress,
The earth all black is clothed in green.
At sunshine each their joy express.



My sun's returned with healing wings,
My soul and body doth rejoice,
My heart exults and praises sings
To Him that heard my wailing voice.

My winter's past, my storms are gone,
And former clouds seem now all fled,
But if they must eclipse again,
I'll run where I was succored.

I have a shelter from the storm,
A shadow from the fainting heat,
I have access unto His throne,
Who is a God so wondrous great.

O hath Thou made my pilgrimage
Thus pleasant, fair, and good,
Blessed me in youth and elder age,
My Baca made a springing flood.

O studious am what I shall do
To show my duty with delight;
All I can give is but Thine own
And at the most a simple mite.

How Grief May Be Sanctified

J.I. Packer, A Grief Observed: Through Sorrow to Eternal Hope, Including Richard Baxter's Timeless Memoir of His Wife's Life and Death, pp. 168-169:

Grief -- the experiential, emotional fruit of the bereavement event -- is, as we have seen, a state of desolation and isolation, of alternating apathy and agony, of inner emptiness and exhaustion. How may such a condition be sanctified -- that is, managed, lived with, and lived through in a way that honors God? No Puritan to my knowledge addresses the question in this form, but the Puritan answer would be this:

Starting from where you are, do what you can (it may not be much at first) to move toward the thanksgiving, submission, and patience of which we have just heard.

Do not let your grief loosen your grip on the goodness and grace of your loving Lord.

Cry (for there is nothing biblical or Christian, or indeed human, about the stiff upper lip).

Tell God your sadness (several of the psalms, though not written about bereavement, will supply words for the purpose).

Pray as you can, and don't pray as you can't. (That bit of wisdom is not original to me, nor was it distilled in a grief-counseling context, but it is very apropos here).

Avoid well-wishers who think they can cheer you up, but thank God for any who are content to be with you and do things for you without talking at you.

Talk to yourself (or, like Richard, write) about the loved one you lost.

Do not try to hurry your way out of the inner weakness you feel; grieving takes time.

Look to God as thankfully, submissively, and patiently as you can (and he will understand if you have to tell him that you cannot really do this yet).

Feel, acknowledge, and face, consciously and from your heart, all the feelings that you find in yourself at present, and the day will come when you find yourself able, consciously and from your heart, to live to God daily in thanksgiving, submission, and patient hope once again -- as did Richard, and [C.S.] Lewis, and millions more.

Grieving properly leads back to thinking properly, living properly, and praising properly. God sees to that! "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted" (Matt. 5:4).

An Act of Thanksgiving

Alexander Whyte, Lancelot Andrewes and His Private Devotions, pp. 147-148:

By night I lift up my hands in the sanctuary,
and bless the Lord.
The Lord hath commanded His lovingkindness
in the daytime,
and in the night His song shall be with me
and my prayer unto the God of my life.
I will bless Thee while I live,
and lift up my hands in Thy name.
Let my prayer be set forth before Thee as incense;
and the lifting up of my hands
as the evening sacrifice.
Blessed art Thou, O Lord, our God,
the God of our fathers,
Who hast ordained the changes of the day and night,
Who givest songs in the night,
Who hast delivered us from the evil of this day,
Who hast not cut off like a weaver my life,
nor from day even to night made an end of me.

The Covenanters' Grace

Long before it was popularized as "The Selkirk Grace" by Robert Burns, this saying was often recited "in the south-western province of Scotland before the days of Burns. [It was] always called the Covenanter's Grace" (Robert Chambers, Select Writings of Robert Chambers, Vol. 7, p. 317):

Some hae meat that canna eat,
And some wad eat that want it;
But we hae meat, and we can eat,
For which the Lord be thankit!

Laus Deo

Sprinkled throughout the Diary of Samuel Sewall, which he kept from 1674 to 1729, one finds the Latin phrase Laus Deo, "Praise God." He often wrote this short ejaculatory thanksgiving after returning safely from a trip and finding "all is well," reporting on the healing or comfort of the sick, or receiving other good news. For example,

Monday, about 3. mane, June 4 [1688]. My wife is taken very ill with pains like travailing pains, of which afterward has an abatement. Laus Deo.

Wednesday, Augt. 9 [1693]. There falls a plentifull Rain after a long distressing Drought. Laus Deo.

Jany 31 [1703/4]. Second day of the week, about four hours before day, my Daughter Hirst was delivered of a Living lively Daughter. Her mother went to her after the forenoon exercise Jany 30. Mother Hirst came the evening before. We have an Answer of Peace to our many Prayers. Laus Deo.

Feria tertia, March 25, 1707....Am well notwithstanding my journeying in the Rain, and find mine well; Laus Deo!

Lord's Day, June, 15th [1707]. I felt my self dull and heavy and Listless as to Spiritual Good; Carnal, Lifeless; I sigh'd to God, that he would quicken me.
June, 16. My House was broken open in two places, and about Twenty pounds worth of Plate stolen away, and some Linen; My Spoon, and Knife, and Neckcloth was taken: I said, Is not this an Answer of Prayer? Jane came up, and gave us the Alarm betime in the morn. I was helped to submit to Christ's stroke, and say, Wellcome CHRIST!
June, 19th. The measuring Bason is found with Margaret Barton just carrying of it to Sea, to Hingham; said she had it of James Hews, he gave it her to sell for him. Mr. Secretary sent her to Prison.
June, 21. Billy Cowell's shop is entered by the Chimney, and a considerable quantity of of Plate stolen. I give him a Warrant to the Constable, they find James Hews hid in the Hay in Cabal's Barn, on the Back side of the Common; while they was seising him under the Hay, he strip'd off his Pocket, which was quickly after found, and Cowell's silver in it. At night I read out of [Joseph] Caryl on Job, 5. 2. The humble submission to the stroke of God, turns into a Kiss -- which I thank God, I have in this instance experienced. Laus Deo.

June, 30 [1711]....Just as I had written this I went to look of the Rain at my East-Chamber, and saw a perfect Rainbow. I think the setting of the Sun caus'd its Disappearance. Laus Deo.

In reviewing the three volumes of Sewall's Diary, published in 1878-1882 in the Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society, I came across about 113 instances of this expression of praise and thanksgiving over a 55-year period. Many more instances, I suspect, went unrecorded. In this way, Sewall exemplified the Apostle's injunction to "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you" (1 Thess. 5.18).

Save Asia, Africa, Europe and America

Eve LaPlante (author of Salem Witch Judge: The Life and Repentance of Samuel Sewall and American Jezebel: The Uncommon Life of Anne Hutchinson, the Woman Who Defied the Puritans.), "The Opposite of Thanksgiving," Boston Globe (Nov. 18, 2007):

Remarkably, [Judge Samuel] Sewall also left us a careful record of his devotions during a private fast day, providing a glimpse of the mental world of a devout Puritan and the deeply spiritual aims of fast and thanksgiving days. Sewall's description of a private day of prayer and fasting that he observed on Tuesday, Feb. 10, 1708, when he was 55, is "the most full and minute existing record of a private fast-day as kept by" devout Puritans, according to M. Halsey Thomas, a historian of Colonial America who edited the published volumes of Sewall's diaries.
...
First, Sewall retreated from family life. He and his 49-year-old wife, Hannah, who had watched seven of their 14 children die, still had three daughters at home. He went alone to an upper room on the second floor of his house, which occupied the southeastern corner of Washington and Summer streets in modern Boston, and was surrounded by gardens, orchards, and on one side a pond. (Shoppers who visited Filene's Basement, in Downtown Crossing, entered a space that was once the cellar of Sewall's mansion.) The window of Sewall's room overlooked Boston's noisiest thoroughfare, which is now Washington Street. He fastened the shutters and closed the door.

He may have prostrated himself on the floor, as his peer the Rev. Cotton Mather sometimes did in prayer, but he surely did not kneel, for Puritans were loath to kneel during prayer, a Catholic custom that seemed to them idolatrous.

"Dear God," Samuel began, according to his notes, "perfect what is lacking in my faith and in the faith of my dear yokefellow," his wife. "Please convert and recover our children, especially Samuel," his oldest son, age 29, who was struggling in his career and marriage, "and Hannah," his sickly 28-year-old daughter. Mentioning his other living children, he prayed, "Recover [18-year-old] Mary, and save Judith [6], Elizabeth [16], and Joseph," a 19-year-old student at Harvard College. He prayed for two servants: "Make David a man after thy own heart. Let Susan live and be baptized with the Holy Ghost, and with fire."

Sewall prayed for his own church. "Bless the South Church in preserving and spiriting our pastor, in directing unto [us] suitable supply, and making the church unanimous." Moving outward, he continued, "Save the town [Boston], the college [Harvard, from which he graduated with a master's degree in 1674], [and New England] province from invasion of enemies, open and secret, and from false brethren. Defend the purity of worship. Save Connecticut and the New York government."

Extending his prayer beyond the world that he physically knew, he went on, "Reform all the European plantations in America - Spanish, Portuguese, English, French, and Dutch. Save this New World, that where sin hath abounded, grace may superabound...Save all Europe. Save Asia, Africa, Europe and America."

Sewall's goal was the reformation of the entire world - all its quarters - as well as his own small part of it. His prayer was a cry to God to help humanity.

Melvin Yazawa, ed., The Diary and Life of Samuel Sewall, pp. 30-31:

One of the finest descriptions of a "private day of prayer and fasting" appears in Sewall's entry for February 10, 1708. Isolated in an upper chamber of his house, with the shutters fastened, Sewall commenced his praying by beseeching God's help in perfecting "what is lacking in my faith, and in the faith of my dear Yokefellow." He then moved on to "other important matters," progressing smoothly from his immediate family ("convert my children, especially Samuel and Hannah"), to his servant ("make David [Sinclair] a man after thy own heart"), to the province ("steer the government in this difficult time, when the Governor and many others are at so much variance"), to other colonies ("save Connecticut...[and] N. York"), to the Western Hemisphere ("Reform all the European Plantations in America; Spanish, Portuguese, English, French, Dutch"), and finally to the world ("save Asia, Africa, Europe and America"). At the end, Sewall acknowledged the "bounteous grace of God" in helping him conclude a "very comfortable day."51

51 Ibid., 2:641, 961; 1:589.

Samuel Sewall, Diary of Samuel Sewall, 1674-1729, Vol. 2., pp. 216-217:

Court being to be made upon next Fifth day, Febr. 12 [1708], I pray'd God to Accept me in keeping a privat day of Prayer with Fasting for That and other Important Matters: I kept it upon the Third day Febr. 10. 1707/8 in the uper Chamber at the North-East end of the House, fastening the Shutters next the Street. -- Perfect what is lacking in my Faith, and in the faith of my dear Yokefellow. Convert my children; especially Samuel and Hanah; Provide Rest and Settlement for Hanah: Recover Mary, Save Judith, Elisabeth and Joseph: Requite the Labour of Love of my Kinswoman Jane Tappin, Give her health, find out Rest for her. Make David a man after thy own heart, Let Susan live and be baptised with the Holy Ghost, and with fire. Relations. Steer the Government in this difficult time, when the Governour and many others are at so much Variance: Direct, incline, overrule on the Council-day fifth-day, Febr. 12. as to the special Work of it in filling the Super. Court with Justices; or any other thing of like nature; as Plimo infer Court. Bless the Company for propagation of the Gospel, especiall Govr Ashurt &c. Revive the Business of Religion at Natick, and accept and bless John Neesnumin who went thither last week for that end. Mr. Rawson at Nantucket. Bless the South Church in preserving and spiriting our Pastor; in directing unto suitable Supply, and making the Church unanimous: Save the Town, College; Province from Invasion of Enemies, open, Secret, and from false Brethren: Defend the Purity of Worship. Save Connecticut, bless their New Governour: Save the Reformation under N. York Governmt. Reform all the European plantations in America; Spanish, Portuguese, English, French, Dutch; Save this New World, that where Sin hath abounded, Grace may Superabound; that CHRIST who is stronger, would bind the strong man and spoil his house; and order the Word to be given, Babylon is fallen. -- Save our Queen, lengthen out her Life and Reign. Save France, make the Proud helper stoop [Job IX. 13], Save all Europe; Save Asia, Africa, Europe and America. These were the genl heads of my Meditation and prayer; and through the bounteous Grace of GOD, I had a very Comfortable Day of it.

Rain and Shine

William Gouge, The Saints' Sacrifice: or, A Commentary on Psalm CXVI (re: Ps. 116.13), pp. 89-90:

Never was any saint brought into so desperate a distress but that through the mist of his misery sweet beams of God's mercy have shined upon him. Nor ever was there any set in so bright and clear a sunshine of God's favour but that some clouds have let fall showers of sorrows; if not in outward troubles, yet in regard of inward corruptions, yea, and in the thought or fear of some eclipse of that sunshine. Thus in greatest occasion of hearty thanksgiving there is just occasion of humble petition. And where there is most cause of humiliation, there is also much cause of exultation.

Better Poor Than Ungrateful

Joseph Hall, The Breathings of the Devout Soul VI:

O my God, I am justly ashamed to think what favours I have received from thee, and what poor returns I have made to thee. Truly, Lord, I must needs say, thou hast thought nothing either in earth or in heaven too good for me: and I, on the other side, have grudged thee that weak and worthless obedience, which thou hast required of me. Alas, what pleasure could I have done to thee who art infinite, if I had sacrificed my whole self to thee, as thou commandest? Thou art and wilt be thyself, though the world were not: it is I, I only, that could be a gainer by this happy match; which, in my own wrong, I have unthankfully neglected. I see it is not so much what we have, as how we employ it. O thou, that hast been so bountiful in heaping thy rich mercies upon me, vouchsafe to grant me yet one gift more: give me grace and power, to improve all thy gifts to the glory of the Giver; otherwise, it had been better for me to have been poor than ungrateful.

Saying Grace

Dear Christian,

Do you give thanks before a meal? After a meal? Is it the case that your family practice is like that described by John Whitecross, The Shorter Catechism Illustrated, p. 166:

A minister of the gospel went to dine at the house of one of his hearers, whom he was in the habit of visiting. Dinner being on the table, the master of the house requested the preacher to ask a blessing. It was no sooner said, than one of the children, a boy about seven years old, asked the following appropriate and memorable question. 'Father, what is the reason we always have a blessing asked when the minister dines with us, and never at any other time?'

Do you feel awkward doing so in public or with unbelievers around? Do you know why you give thanks or is it a mere formality? The Bible tells us that we are to "in every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you" (1 Thess. 5.18). More specifically, we are commanded to offer thanksgiving for every creature, every good gift that we receive from the Lord (1 Tim. 4.3-5). Moreover, we have the example of Jesus (John 6.11) and Paul (Acts 27.35) who thanked God and blessed their food before eating, even among the heathen in Paul's case. We beseech God for "our daily bread" in the Lord's Prayer, and should we not return thanks to the One who gave it and consecrate it to his glory and our good? Herman Witsius wrote, "For if we ask from God the supports of this life, it is proper that, when we have received them, we should render thanks" (Sacred Dissertations on the Lord's Prayer, p. 302). We are to do all things to God's glory, but particularly, the Apostle tells us, our eating and drinking (1 Cor. 10.31). Stonewall Jackson said, "I have so fixed the habit in my own mind that I never raise a glass of water to my lips without a moment asking God's blessing. I never seal a letter without putting a prayer under the seal. I never take a letter from the post without a brief sending of my thought heavenward." Should we not also guard against the temptation to think that we have gotten ourselves those things which we take for granted, even the very food upon our table? The Jews gave thanks not only before a meal but afterwards, on the basis of Deut. 8.10, upon which Matthew Henry writes:

I. He directs them to the duty of a prosperous condition, v. 10. They are allowed to eat even to fulness, not to surfeiting no excess; but let them always remember their benefactor, the founder of their feast, and never fail to give thanks after meat: Then thou shalt bless the Lord thy God. 1. They must take heed of eating or drinking so much as to indispose themselves for this duty of blessing God, rather aiming to serve God therein with so much the more cheerfulness and enlargement. 2. They must not have any fellowship with those that, when they had eaten and were full, blessed false gods, as the Israelites themselves had done in their worship of the golden calf, Exod. xxxii. 6. 3. Whatever they had the comfort of God must have the glory of. As our Saviour has taught us to bless before we eat (Matt. xiv. 19, 20), so we are here taught to bless after meat. That is our Hosannah--God bless; this is our Hallelujah--Blessed be God. In every thing we must give thanks. From this law the religious Jews took up a laudable usage of blessing God, not only at their solemn meals, but upon other occasions; if they drank a cup of wine they lifted up their hands and said, Blessed be he that created the fruit of the vine to make glad the heart. If they did but smell at a flower, they said, Blessed be he that made this flower sweet. 4. When they gave thanks for the fruits of the land they must give thanks for the fruits of the land itself, which was given them by promise. From all our comfortable enjoyments we must take occasion to thank God for our comfortable settlements; and I know not but we of this nation have as much reason as they had to give thanks for a good land.

Daniel Cawdrey, Family Reformation Promoted (Anthology of Presbyterian & Reformed Literature, Vol. 4, p. 61), writes that among the duties of families is the duty to say grace:

(5.). Grace, before and after meals, is a part of prayer and praises due to God; but shamefully neglected in families, or but a mere formality, if used, without any reverence. Is it any wonder children, servants, are so bad to them, when they are so bad to God? that they do as the children of Israel did, Sit down to eat and drink, and rise up to play; and that play was idolatry. Our blessed Savior himself never eat, or feed others at his table, but he blessed and gave thanks (Mark 8:6-7), and the apostle Paul amongst heathens observed the same (Acts 27:35). And the same apostle, speaking of meats particularly: God hath created them to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, if it be received with thanksgiving. For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer (1 Tim. 4:3-5). As if it were not good, if not sanctified by prayer and thanksgiving; but may prove a serpent, even a poison to our soul or body. And the neglect hereof argues (in the apostle's logic) that such persons, neither believe, nor know the truth. Let them consider it.

Lewis Bayly adds to our understanding of the theology of blessing meals:

5. Meditate how that thy master Jesus Christ did never eat any food, but first he blessed the creatures, and gave thanks to his heavenly Father for the same (Luke ix. 16; Matt. xiv. 19; xv. 36; Mark vi. 41; viii. 6; Luke xxiv. 30; John vi. 11.) And after his last supper, we read that he sung a 151 psalm (Matt. xxvi. 30; Mark xiv. 26;) for this was the commandment of God, “When thou hast eaten and filled thyself, thou shalt bless the Lord thy God,” &c. (Deut. viii. 10.) This was the practice of the prophets; for “the people would not eat at their feast, till Samuel came to bless their meat,” (1 Sam. ix. 13;) and saith Joel to God’s people, “Ye shall eat and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God.” (Joel ii. 26.) This also was the practice of the apostles; for St. Paul in the ship, gave thanks before meat, in the presence of all the people that were there (Acts xxvii. 35.)

Imitate, therefore, in so holy an action, so blessed a master, and so many worthy precedents that have followed him, and gone before thee. It may be, because thou hast never used to give thanks at meals, therefore thou art now ashamed to begin. Think it no shame to do what Christ did; but be rather ashamed that thou hast so long neglected so Christian a duty. And if the Son of God gave his Father such great thanks for a dinner of barley-bread and broiled fish (John vi. 9, 11), what thanks should such a sinful man as thou art render unto God for such variety of good and dainty cheer? How many a true Christian would be glad to fill his belly with the morsels which thou refusest; and do lack that which thou leavest! how hardly do others labour for that which they eat, and thou hast thy food provided for thee, without either care or labour! To conclude, if pagan idolaters at their feasts were accustomed to praise their false gods (Dan. v. 1, 4), what a shame is it for a Christian, at his dinners and suppers, not to praise the true God, “in whom we live, move, and have our being?” (Acts xvii. 28.)

For other meditations upon this subject and sample prayers, see Lewis Bayly, The Practice of Piety, pp. 149-154.

Returning to Matthew Henry, who is always so helpful at application of Biblical principles, consider his directions for prayer and the Biblical supports upon which they are grounded (A Method for Prayer, pp. 158-160):

3. In craving a blessing before meat.

Thou, O Lord, givest food to all flesh, for thy mercy endures forever.n The eyes of all things wait on thee;o but especially thou givest meat to them that fear thee, being ever mindful of thy covenant.p

Thou art our life, and the length of our days,q the God that hast fed us all our life long unto this day:r Thou givest us all things richly to enjoy, though we serve thee but poorly.s Thou hast not only given us every green herb, and the fruit of the trees, to be to us for meat,t but every moving thing that liveth, even as the green herb.v

And blessed be God that now under the gospel we are taught to call nothing common or unclean,w and that it is not that which goes into the man, that defiles the man,x but that every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused; for God hath created it to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.y

We acknowledge we are not worthy of the least crumb that falls from the table of thy providence:z Thou mightest justly take away from us the stay of bread and the stay of water,a and make us to eat our bread by weight, and to drink our water by measure, and with astonishment:b because when we have been fed to the full, we have forgotten God our Maker.c But let our sins be pardoned, we pray thee, that our table may not become a snare before us, nor that be made a trap, which should have been for our welfare.d

We know that every thing is sanctified by the word of God and prayer;e and that man lives not by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God,f and therefore, according to our Master's example we look up to heaven, and pray for a blessing upon our food;g abundantly bless our provision.h

Lord, grant that we may not feed ourselves without fear,i that we may not make a god of our belly,k that our hearts may never be overcharged with surfeiting or drunkenness,l but that whether we eat or drink, or whatever we do, we may do all to the glory of God.m

4. In returning thanks after our meat.

Now we have eaten and are full, we bless thee for the good land thou hast given us.n Thou preparest a table for us in the presence of our enemies, thou anointest our head, and our cup runs over.o

Thou, Lord, art the portion of our inheritance, and of our cup, thou maintainest our lot, so that we have reason to say, The lines are fallen to us in pleasant places, and we have a goodly heritage.p

Especially we bless thee for the bread of life, which came down from heaven, which was given for the life of the world. Lord, evermore give us that bread, and wisdom to labor less for the meat which perisheth, and more for that which endures for everlasting life.q

The Lord give food to the hungry,r and send portions to them for whom nothing is prepared.

Let us be of those blessed ones that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God,s and shall eat of the hidden manna.t

n Psal. 136:25.
o Psal. 145:15.
p Psal. 111:5.
q Deut. 30:20.
r Gen. 48:15.
s 1 Tim. 6:17.
t Gen. 1:29.
v Gen. 9:3.
w Acts 10:15.
x Matt. 15.11.
y 1 Tim. 4:3-4.
z Matt. 15:27.
a Isa. 3:1.
b Ezek. 4:16.
c Deut. 32:15.
d Psal. 69:22.
e 1 Tim. 4:5.
f Matt. 4:4.
g Matt. 14:19.
h Psal. 132:15.
i Jude 12.
k Phil. 3:19.
l Luke 23:34.
m 1 Cor. 10:31.
n Deut. 8:10.
o Psal. 23:5.
p Psal. 16:5-6.
q John 6:27, 33-34.
r Psal. 146:7.
s Luke 14:15.
t Rev. 2:17.

For information on the painting "Grace" by Eric Enstrom, see here.