hand while thou stvetchest it out in prayer ? — make thy tongue falter when thou wouldst make use of it ? — yea suffer a sudden damp to fall upon thy spirits that shall chill all thy affections, and leave thy heart as cold as a stone, in thy bosom? ' Siu-ely man, at his best estate, is vanity!' And this in regard of the temper of his spirit, as well as in the constitution of his body, and his worldly advantages. How often do we see the gifts of his mind and the viva- city of his graces fade and wither in one duty, which at another, when the Spirit of God vouchsafed his gentle breath to quicken them, did flovn-ish, and send forth their fragrant spices in abundance ! Do not, therefore, entertain too high thoughts of thyself. Secondly, Pray often rather than very long. It is difficult to remain long in prayer, and not slacken in our affections. Those watches which are made to go longer than ordinary at one winding, do commonly lose time towai-d the end. The flesh is weak, and if the body tire, the soul, that rides on this beast, must needs be cast behind. Our Saviour, when he prayed for his life, prayed rather often than long at once. He who in a long journey lights often to let his beast take breath, will get to his journey's end sooner than he that puts him beyond his strength. Especially observe this in social prayers ; for when we pray in company, we must consider them that travel with us in the duty: as Jacob said, 'I will lead on softly, as the children are able to endure.' Yet I speak not this that you should give any check to the Spirit of God in his assistance, which sometimes comes so strong, that the Christian is, as it were, carried with a full forewind ; the ship of the soul goes with great speed ; such assistances lift both the person praying, and those that join with him (if gracious, and under the same influence,) in a manner above all weariness. The Spirit brings affections with him. Such a soul is like a vessel that runs full and fresh ; what comes from him is quick and spiritual ; whereas, at another time, when the Spirit of God denies these assistances, his prayer tastes flat to his own palate, if not to others. Thirdly, Be vei-y careful to approve thyself faithful in the soid-humbling work of the day ; let thy confes- sions be free and full ; the sense thou hast of thy sins be deep, and thy sorrow for them sincere and evangelical ; for as thou accjuittest thyself in this, so thou wilt be in all the other parts of the duty : if thou confessest sin feelingly, thou wilt pray against it fervently ; if thy sorrow be deep, and reach to thy very heart and spirit, then thy petitions for pardoning mercy and purifying grace will also come from the heart, be cordial, warm, and vehement : whereas he that melts not in confession of sin, will freeze in the prayers that he puts up against it; if his tears be false, his desires cannot be true. Why do men ask in their petitions for that grace which they do not in their hearts desire, but because they do not feel the smart, and do not loathe the evil of their sins which they confess. Thus many confess their sins, as beggars sometimes shew their sores, which they are not willing to have cured. Again, as thou art in confession of sin, so thou wilt be in thy acknowledgments of mercy ; the lower thou fallest in the abasement of thyself for thy sins, the higher thou wilt mount in thy praises for his mercies. The deeper thy confession, the louder will thy praises be. The greater our mercies are, the greater are our sins ; and the greater our sins, the greater are the mercies : so that the sense we have of one, must needs be in proportion to the other ; as we are afflicted for sin, so shall we be affected with mercy. Fourthly, Improve the intervals of prayer with suitable meditations, that thou mayest be fitted to return to the work with more vigour. Meditation is prayer's handmaid, to wait on it both before and after the performance. It is as the plough before the sower, to prepare the heart for the duty of prayer, and as the harrow to cover the seed wlien it is sown. As the hopper feeds the mill with grist, so doth meditation the heart with matter for prayer. Now if it be necessary that thou shouldst consider before duty what thou art to pray, then surely after duty it is necessary to rcffect how thou didst pray. The mill may go, and yet no corn be ground. Thus thou mayest confess many sins, and yet thy heart be not broken for them ; thou mayest pray for many graces, and ex- ercise little or no grace in thy praying for them, without which these spices are not broken, and so send not forth their sweet savour. Look, therefore, back on the duty, and observe narrowly what the behavioiu- of thy heart was in it. If thou findcst it to have been lazy, or played the truant, by gadding from the work with impertinent thoughts; in a word, if under the power of any sinful
V.-ITII ALL rRAYER AND SUPPLICATION. 7 [5