by mentioning some of his several names, perfections and attributes, his works and wonders, in order to awaken in our souls suitable affections towards him, and to impress our minds with a reverend and most awful sense of his Majesty. For though we are privileged with a freedom of access to his presence, we must not forget the distance we are from him through our unworthiness. We are bound to pray to him, as well as to serve him, with reverence and godly fear. He is the Author of our being, who breathed life into us. It is therefore with the lowest veneration that we should worship, bow down, and kneel before the Lord our Maker.

The second part of prayer is the confession of our sins, original and actual, against the law and the gospel, by omissions and commissions, in thoughts, words, and deeds. The many repetitions and aggravations of them, with the grievous judgments we deserve for them, must be considered, that we may take shame to ourselves and humble ourselves, and cry in the bitterness of our souls for his grace and mercy, which leads to.

The third part, namely, petition; that is, earnestly begging at the hands of God, all such things that tend to the glory of his great name, and are needful for us, to the securing of our salvation, and the sanctifying of our natures. Our necessities are many, and therefore our petitions cannot be few.

The fourth part of prayer is pleading; which is a most humble and earnest intreating of the Divine Majesty, having our mouths filled with arguments from the merits of his blessed Son, the infinite compassion of his divine nature, the faithfulness of his promises, and from our own wants, so that we may not be sent empty

away from his presence. He delights to reward a fervent prayer, because it makes us better disposed to receive what we ask.

And the last part is the giving of thanks for mercies received, and acknowledging the divine bounty from which we have received all our blessings. This is a part of that tribute which God our great King expects at our hands, for all the favours he bestows upon us every moment. Our prayers must not only be a heap of petitions, our praises must not be wanting. The sending up of sincere thanks is the way to fetch down more mercies.

Each of these five heads may be enlarged into innumerable particulars; a little premeditation would suggest to us a great many. If we consider what are the perfections of God, what our sins and our wants are, what our danger is if our prayers do not succeed, and what the mercies are which we have already receivedIsay, if we take time to consider these five things, we shall find some thing to say in every part of our prayer. However, you are not to think it necessary to insist upon all these parts of prayer in every address to God, though in our stated and solemn prayers hardly any of them can be left out. What we omit at one time we may perhaps pursue at another, with more lively affection. Nor is there any necessity of keeping to the same order always,when these heads are attended to. Sometimes the mind may be so divinely full of one particular part of prayer, as giving of praise, which may occasion the bringing of it into the beginning of our prayers. Nor do I think it necessary to bind ourselves to any one certain method; for we find that the prayers recorded in the holy scriptures, are very various in the order and dis

position of them, as the Spirit of God and the divine affections of those saints led and guided them. So that though method is prescribed for the more regular performance of prayer, and is also of service to guide and instruct us therein; yet there is no necessity of confining ourselves to this, that or any other prescribed method, any more, than of confining ourselves in private devotion to any prescribed form.

I think that in this case every one is to be pretty much at liberty, to use what method seems to him most natural and easy, and to alter and vary it, as he thinks may best suit his time, place, condition, and the business on which is heart is most concerned to treat with God. We should not neglect to insist mostly on those things which press mostly on our minds, they being likely what we mostly want, and probably what God calls upon us in a particular manner to pray for. At least the method of prayer must not be minded so much, as the spirit of it. Agar, the handmaid, must not out-brave her mistress Sarah,nor blear-eyed Leah be preferred to beautiful Rachel. We should consider the things we would carry to God in prayer, and endeavour to engage our hearts to insist upon them more than method, or any other circumstance.

What we should carefully look to is, that our desires should keep pace with every expression of our prayer. We must not affect to pray long for the sake of length, or stretch our matter, by labour and toil of thought, beyond the length of our devotions. God is not pleased with prayers, merely because they are long, but because they are fervent, and come from a praying heart. Frequent prayer is ab

solutely necessary, and the frequent practice of this and other duties will mightily assist us in the better performance of them.

Those

things which we learn for practice, we best learn by practice. Frequent acts beget habits, and habits are both acquired and improved by exercise. And last of all, in addition to all the directions about this duty, the disciples' prayer to our Saviour, should be made a part of ours every day, "Lord teach us to pray."

VIII. The grace and spirit of prayer.

1734, MARCH 11.-You well remember that I wrote some things to you a few weeks ago, about the matter and method of prayer; but the grace and spirit of prayer, which was the third thing, of what I intended to speak, deserves a very particular consideration; not only because a devout inward temper of mind wrought and assisted by the grace of God in the soul, is necessary for the right and profitable performance of that duty in particular, but because it is also absolutely needful for the well performance of all other religious duties in general. It is the life and spirit that must run through the whole body, and every part of divine worship. This will enliven our duties with becoming vigour and energy. It will be like a soul entering into a dead corpse, infusing life and activity into all its members, conveying warmth into every limb, and giving beauty and liveliness to the whole, which would otherwise be but cold and lifeless. How specious soever our devotions may seem to be in other respects, the spiritual frame and fervour of the mind is the principal thing that God requires: "My son, give me thy heart." Tongue,

lips, and hands, without it, will never do. The alms, fastings, prayers and austerities of the Pharisees were all rejected, because their hearts were not right with God. These people were very famous for their religion, and indeed in outside righteousness, excepting some erroneous traditions they had in practice, they went as far as any men could well go. They constantly went to their churches or synagogues; they prayed daily, heard the word and fasted, gave alms and offerings, strictly tithed their posessions, and shewed a mighty veneration for the temple of God; but their fault was, (which is the reigning fault of most men now) they minded no more than to do the work, no matter how. They were much in devotion, but without the spirit of it. It was the spirit of the world, which is sensual, earthly, and devilish, that ruled in them, and therefore the judge of the world denounced a dreadful woe upon them, because they were as whited sepulchres, which appeared fair without, but within were full of all uncleanness. And we are biden to take notice, that except our righteousness exceeds theirs, we shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven.

External devotion, though exactly right with respect to the manner and materials of it, if the mind feels not an awful sense of God, if a man's spirit is not consecrated to him, if the affections be not glowing towards him, such devotion is nothing else but the mocking of God with empty husks. It is bringing a dead carcase, instead of a living sacrifice. What avails hearing the word of God, praying to him, and receiving the blessed sacrament, if we do not stir up our hearts, and call in the assistance of God's grace, to employ our minds.