Let us make conscience, I beseech you, of this duty more than we have done, and never give God over for gi-ace ; for strength against our corrup- tions ; for his church ; for the prosperity of the means of salvation ; for those things that we have ground for ; let us never give him over till we see he hath answered om* desires. And when he hath answered our desires, let us go on still to desire more ; for this life is a life of desires. The life of accomplishment is heaven. Then all our desires shall be ac- complished, and all promises performed, and not before then. This is a Ufe of desires, and we must be in a state of desires and prayers still till we be in heaven.
Quest. What is the reason that God doth not presently accompUsh our desires ?
Ans. There be diverse reasons. First of all he loves to hear the ihsires of his servants, he loves to be sued unto ; because he knows it is for our good. It is music that best pleaseth God's ears to hear a soul come to him to re- quest, especially spiritual things of him, which he delights most to give, which he knows is most useful and best for us. This pleaseth him so marvellously, that he will not presently grant it, but leads us along and along, that still he may hear more and more from us.
2. And then to keep us in a perpetual humble subjection and dependence on Mm, he gi-ants not all at once, but leads us along, by yielding a Uttle and a little, that so he may keep us in a humble dependence,
3. And then to exercise all our graces; for a spirit of prayer is a spirit of exercise of all grace. We cannot pray, but we must exercise faith, and love to God and his church ; and a sanctified judgment to esteem what are the best things to be pra^^ed for ; and to exercise mortification. * If I regard sin, God will not regard my prayers,' Ps. Ixvi. 18. A spirit of prayer is a spirit that puts all into exercise ; therefore God, to keep us in the exercise of all grace, answers not at the first.
4. And then he would have us to set a high price npoyi ivhat u-e desire and seek after. If we had it at the first, we should not set so high an esteem and price of it.
5. And then, that we might better use it when we have it. Then we use things as we should do when we have gotten them with much ado ; when we have won them from God with great importunity, then we keep and pre- serve them as we should. These and the like reasons may be given, and you may easily conceive them yourselves. Therefore let us not be ofiended with God's gracious dispensation if he answer not our desires presently, but pray still ; and if we have the spirit of prayer continued to us, that
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gpirit of prayer is better tlian the thing we beg a great deal. Ofttimes God answers us in a better kind, when he gives us a spirit of prayer ; for in- creasing a spirit of prayer in us, he increaseth all gi-aces in us. What is it we would have ? this or that particular grace. But when God gives us a spirit of prayer, he answers us better than in the thing we ask, for there is all grace. He will answer in one kind or other. But I will not be large in these points. You see then what was the affection of the holy prophet, to that one thing. ' One thing have I desired.' And he did not only desire it, but turned his desire into a prayer. He prayed to God ; and he not only prayed once or twice, but he seeks it still, till God vouchsafed to grant it.
Obj. Well, but that that he prayed for, he was assui'ed of, and therefore what need he pray for it ? He had a promise, ' He shall prepare a table before mine enemies, my cup doth overflow,' Ps. xxiii. 5, 6. But what is that to this ? These be things of this life. Oh ! but, saith he, God will be good to me in the things of another life, and all the days of my life too. ' Doubtless the lovingkindness of the Lord shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord.' He takes in trust his dwelling in the house of God ; and that the lovingkindness of God should follow him all the days of his life, he was assured of it, and yet here he seeks it and prays for it.
Ans. I note it, to shew that the assurance of the thing takes not away the earnestness of prayer. Daniel was assui-ed (Dan. ix. 4, seq.) that God would deliver the Jews out of Babylon. He had read Jeremiah's pro- phecies, he knew the time was accomplished ; yet we see what an earnest prayer he makes there. Christ knew that God heard him in all his desires, that he should have all good from God, being his only Son, yet he prayed whole nights sometimes, and a whole chapter, John xvii., is an excellent prayer of his. So that the assurance of the thing takes not away prayer to God ; nay, it stabUsheth it, for God so makes good his promises for the time to come, as that he makes them good this way, he will be sought to by prayer. And I may know hence that he ^'ill make good his pro- mises for the time to come to me, if I have a spirit of prayer for them ; if I pray for perseverance to the end, that God would vouchsafe me grace to hve in the church, and to grow up as a cedar. God surely means to grant this, because he hath given me holy and gi-acious desires, which he would not have given me, but that he means to give the thing. For this is an encouragement to pray, when I know I shall not lose my labour. I pray, because I have a promise to have it, and I know the promise runs upon this. ' But I will be sought unto of the house of Judah for this,' Ezek. xxxvi. 37. For if we have it, and have not sought it b} praj'er, for the most part we cannot have a comfortable use of it, unless we have things as the fruit of our prayers. Though there be not a particular prayer for every particular thing we have of God, yet unless it be the fi-uit of the general prayer, that we put up daily, we cannot have comfort m it ; if God give it by a general providence, as he fills ' the bellies of the wicked with good things,' Ps. xvii. 1-i. But if we will have things for om- good in particular, we must receive them as the fruit of oui- prayers fi-om God. You see here he seeks, and desires that that he had a promise to have, ' One thing have I desired of the Lord, and that will I seek.'