fidence. We go boldly into his house whom Ave often visit. Secondly, Let it be true secret prayer, and not have its name for nought ; take heed no noise be heard abroad of what thou doest in secret. ' Enter into thy closet,' said Christ, ' and when thou hast shut thy door, pray.' Be sure thou shuttest it so close that no wind of vain-glory comes in ; rather than there should, shut the door of thy lips as well as thy closet : God can hear, though thy mouth delivers not the message. It is true, when Daniel prayed, he opened his window, but it was to show his faith, not his pride ; that he might let the world know how little he-^ feared their wrath, not that he coveted their praise. God observes which way the eye turns, and it is a dishonour he will not bear, that thou shouldst be expecting thy reward from man, and not himself; this is to change heaven for earth, and that is a bad bargain. Thirdly, Be free and open, and hide nothing from him : to be reserved and close are against the law of friendship. 'I have called you friends,' saith Christ, ' for all things I have heard of my Father, I have made known imto you.' Is Christ so open-hearted, as not to conceal any- thing he knows for our good ? And wouldst thou have any secret box in thy cabinet, that he should not see ? Art thou confessing thy sins ? Strip thy soul naked, and shuffle not with God ; if thou dost, it speaks two things, that thou hast some secret design of sin for the future, orharbourest an ill opinion of God in thy breast concerning thy past sins, as if he would not be faithful to forgive what thou art free to confess : like some prodigal child, who, though his father promiseth to pay all his debts, and forgive him also ; yet, because the sum is vast, dares not trust him with the whole trutli. The first is not the spot of God's children ; but into the latter they sometimes fall, and for a while may be held by Satan and their own unbelief. But consider, whatever thy sin is, and how great soever, yet the way to obtain pardon is by confessing ; neither is it concealed from God, though thou confess it not. But God likes a confession out of thy own mouth so well, that as soon as thoulayest open thy own shame, he hath obliged himself faithfully to cover it with the mantle of pardoning mercy ; 1 John i. 9, ' If we confess our sins, he is just and faithful to forgive us our sins.' Again, art thou making thy requests to God? Carry no burden away upon thy spirit through a foolish modesty, and fear of troubling God too much, so long as the promise is on thy side. Christ never complained that his saints opened their mouths, or enlarged their desires, too wide in prayer ; nay, he bids his disciples open them wider, and tells them, they had asked nothing ; that is, nothing proportionable to his large heart to give. Fourthly, It must be season- able ; this gives everything its beauty. First, take heed that it doth not jostle with public worship. The devil takes great pleasure in setting the ordinances of God at variance one against another : some he persuades to cry up public prayer, and neglect secret ; and others he would fain bring out of love with the public ; whereas, there is room enough for both in thy Christian course. Moses, though he killed the Egyptian, yet the two Israelites, when scuffling together, he laboured to reconcile. Beware of giving Satan such an advantage, as to neglect the communion of saints in public, under a pretence of praying in thy closet ; this is to set one ordinance to light with another. Deny thy presence in public, and thou art sure to lose God's in thy closet : 'He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, his prayer shall be an abomination,' Prov. xxviii. 9. Secondly, look that it interferes not with thy duty in thy particular calling. As thou art to shut thy closet door to pray, so thou art to open thy shop to follow thy calling in the world. Go into th)' closet before thou goest into thy shop, or else thou art an atheist ; but when thou hast been with God there, attend thy calling, or else thou art an hypocrite. Thou consistest of soul andbody,^ — God divides thy employment between both ; he that is not diligent in duty, is con- scientious in neither. When every part in the body hath its due nourishment distributed to it, health is preserved : so he is the sound Christian that divides his care wisely for his spiritual state, and temporal also. Sleep not away thy time for prayer in the morning, and then think thou art sufficiently excused for omitting it, because thy worldly business calls thee another way. Jade not thy body with over-labouring, nor overcharge thy mind with too heavy a load of worldly cares in the day, and then think, that the weariness of the one, and discomposure of the other, will discharge thee from praying at night ; this is to make a sin thy apology for neglecting a duly.
WITH ALL I'KAYKU AND SUPrLICATIOX. ggS
CHAPTER XXXVI.