fhould always be remembered, that it is a Throne of Grace, because the Seat of Judgment, not any of us is able to ftand before; that Mercy is the only Thing we can pretend to, and that even this is, in no Degree, due to us for our own Sakes, but purely upon the Account of another, who purchafed it for us at the Price of his own Blood; that therefore, if we obtain our Petitions, this is an Excess of Bounty; but if we wait long, or be denied, God is Mafter of his Favours, and may do what he will with his own. So that every Thing that may conduce to the laying us low in our Thoughts, every Thing that may help to speak our Modefty, and Reverence, and Submiffion, is all little enough for Creatures fo despicable by Na-. ture, and by Sin. fo deteftable as we, fuing for Bleffings, that they deferve not, and for Mercies, that they have no Right to. 5. One Condition more of the final Succefs and Validity of our Prayers is Patience and Perfeve-> rance For though God, for the Trial of our. Faith, and the Improvement of our Humility; for the Manifeftarion of our Trust in him, and Submiffion to his Will; for the Increase of the Value of his Bleffings, and the clearer Demonftration of our intire Dependence on his Goodness and Boun-) ty; may think it proper fometimes to delay the Answer to our Prayers; yet muft we not, upon. that Account, defpair of the Acceptance of our renewed Addreffes. The Relenting of the unjust Judge ftands upon Record in Scripture, as a plain Initance of the irrefiftible Force of Perfeverance in Prayer. He neither feared God, nor regarded Man ; and yet, because this Widow troubleth me, faith he, I will avenge her, left, by her continual Coming, fhe weary me. Now, though it were Blafphemy to think that God acts upon the fame Motives with this unjust Judge; yet this we may learn from the Nature Nature of the Parable, that if a Man, who neither fears God, nor regards Men, who hath neither any Senfe of Religion or Humanity, may be supposed to be so far prevailed upon, by the earnest Prayer of a miferable neceffitous Perfon, as to grant the Request made to him, and to adminifter Relief to the Supplicant, merely upon the Account of the Continuance and Importunity of the Petitions that are put up: How much more ought we to think, that God, who is infinite Goodness itfelf; who is always kind and bountiful to his Creatures; who delights to do them good, even without their defiring it; and who is able to do them good with much less Pains, than they request it: How much more ought we to think, I fay, that this God, upon our earnest and hearty Prayer to him, for any Thing we ftand in Need of, will return us a kind Anfwer, and grant us fuch Supplies as are proper for us? But then we are to remember, that we pray always, and faint not; that we be diligent, importunate, and perfevering in our Devotions; otherwife, we are not to expect any more favourable Return of them, than the Judge, in the Parable, made to the Widow, upon her first or fecond Application to him. These are some of the chief Qualifications that give Wings to our Prayers, and Strength to our Addreffes: And, that they may never fail of a kind Acceptance, we must be mindful at all Times to offer them up in the Name of our Lord Jefus Chrift. Having therefore not only a gracious God, who heareth Prayers, when offered up in a due and regular Manner, but a merciful Redeemer likewife, through whom we have Access to the Father; let us draw near with a true Heart, in full Afurance of Faith, having our Hearts Sprinkled from an evil ConScience: And praying always with all Prayer and Sup plication plication in the Spirit, let us watch thereunto with all Perfeverance. 2. Of publick and private Prayer. F we confider the Matter of Prayer, we may diftinguish it into Prayer for spiritual, and Prayer for temporal good Things, or into Prayer for ourfelves, and Interceffion for others: If we confider the Manner of Prayer, we may distinguish it into mental, which is, when we pray only with our Hearts, without uttering or expreffing any Words; and vocal, which is, when we express in Words, and utter with our Mouths the Defires of our Hearts: But the only Diftinction that we shall at present infift on, is that of publick Prayer, which is, when we join with others in putting up our common Petitions; and fecret Prayer, when, retired from all Company, we put up our private Petitions to God; and these, though for Matter and Substance the fame, are yet two distinct Duties, and both neceffary to be performed, as Occafion calls for them. The Church is God's Houfe, the Place on Earth of his immediate Refidence, and he hath promised, that, when two or three are met together in bis Name, be bimfelf will be in the Midst of them: In the Clofet however we do not shut ourselves up from his all-feeing Eye; fince our Saviour hath affured us, that, if we pray in fecret, our Father, which feeth in fecret, fhall reward us openly. The fitteft Place to acknowledge publick Mercies, and implore the common Bleffings of Life, is in publick, where the united Prayers of a Congregation are fuppofed to be more prevalent with Heaven, than fingle Petitions: But there are fome Favours we want, which it does not become us there to ask; some Wounds to be healed, which are not to be exposed to pub lick View; common Decency inftructs us to reserve these for our private Hours: Nor can we ever properly descend into ourselves, to know the true State of our Souls, but when we commune with our Hearts in our Chamber, and are ftill. In the Church, general Mercies are implored, and general Bleffings acknowledged; but then there is no confeffing our Guilt in all its Circumstances, or affecting our Souls there with that holy Grief, which can only work a thorough Repentance: Whereas, in the Clofet, we are at Liberty to indulge ourselves in all the Expreffions of Sorrow; and the pious Soul may let itself loose to all the Fervour of Devotion, which, at the Altar, is fo far from being praife-worthy, that it is highly blameable and indecent: For every Thing that is fingular in publick, every Thing that draws the Eyes and Obfervation of others upon us, favours of Hypocrify and Oftentation, and is forbidden by our Saviour's Command of not performing any Duty, that we may be feen of Men. But when we are under the Infpection of no Eye, but that of God, who fpies out all our Ways, and understands our Thoughts, long before they are formed, the more fervent our Devotions are, the more acceptable they are to him, because there can be no Reason to fufpect the Sincerity of them: For we can never entertain fuch unworthy Notions. of God, as to imagine, that we can, by any Artifice, deceive him, and make him believe that we bonour him with our Lips, when we know ourselves, that our Hearts are far from him. So that, though by a false Zeal, and pretended Sanctity in publick, we may prevail upon others to have a better Opinion of us, than we really deferve; yet there is no Fear but that we fhall act fincerely, when we address ourselves in private to God; and then our Zeal cannot be too high, nor our Devotions too much inflamed, fo long as they proceed from Sin cerity, cerity, and are equally tempered with Fervour and Humility. There is this farther Advantage of Retirement, that it is of fingular Ufe to fix our Attention, which, by the Variety of the Objects we meet with in publick, is often broke and divided; and that we are lefs fubject to fpiritual Languors, when we are at Liberty to make Ufe of our own Thoughts and Expreffions, to leave off when our Attention flags, and return to it again, at a more favourable Opportunity: But then we want in the Closet that aweful Reverence, that Solemnity of Devotion, with which the Church infpires us. There the Beauty of Holiness appears in its brightest Luftre, charms the Eyes, and inflames the Hearts of all Beholders. For what a decent, what an agreeable, what a ravishing Sight is a well-ordered Congregation, offering up their Prayers, with one Confent, and with one Voice, to their great Creator ; laying afide all Diftinctions of rich and poor, mean and noble, and refolving all their Differences into a pious Emulation of excelling each other in the Love of God, and Zeal for his Service? Certainly, if we could form to ourfelves any faint Image or Representation of Heaven here on Earth, we muft draw the Model of it, though in an infinite lower Degree, from the Uniformity and Order, the Reverence and Devotion of religious Affemblies; which, befides their Refemblance, have fo neceffary a Dependence on the other, that, to frequent the Service of the Sanctuary, to join in the religious Exercises of the Church militant on Earth, is the best Means to fit and prepare us to be worthy Members of the Church triumphant in Heaven. But here a Question may arife, "In what Manσε ner it is most expedient for us to make our Ad"dreffes to God in the publick Congregation; whether in fet Forms, or extemporary Inventions; " and |