your indisposition to approach God, still endeavor to come with freedom, knowing that you "have an advocate with he Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the proitiation for our sins."*

At the time of prayer. Let the intercession of Christ Encourage you. Expect, through his mediation, the spirit f grace and supplication. By the exercise of faith, however weak, still expect to receive, "out of his fullness, grace," suited to our necessity. However great the mater for which you ask, however many things in yourself nay tend to discourage or discomfort you; you have a suffiient ground to hope for the acceptance of your prayers, hrough the name and mediation of Jesus Christ. His gracious intercession remains firm and unchangeable. Let aith in Christ's merits quiet and compose your troubled mind, and dispose and strengthen you to leave every petiion with comfort and confidence in his hands.

After prayer. However conscience may accuse you of nany wanderings, imperfections, and distractions, or abuses of former answers to prayer, or however earnest or fervent our petitions, still plead for acceptance only on this ground, Christ is your mediator. Your hope of a favorable recepion of any prayer is, and is only, in the name and work of Jesus Christ, and not in your own prayers. A practical vriter observes, "If we cast our anchor on Christ, and rest pon his merits, and intercession, in order to the receiving f an answer to our prayer, we shall have a sufficient hold o keep us sure and stedfast, in the midst of the tossing vaves of this world. By this we may answer all. Christ is aithful, and a tender sympathizing High Priest, and so will hot, and cannot forget or neglect our cause."

"He," says Ambrose, "is our mouth, with which we adIress the Father; our eye, by which we behold him; our hands, by which we present ourselves to him: without whose mediation neither we, nor any of all the saints, have he least intercourse with God."

Brown on Prayer: an author to whom the writer has been often ndebted.

CHAPTER V.

ON PRIVATE PRAYER.

observed by Dr. Owen, "that if a man of a carnal e brought into a large company, he will have much if into a company of Christians, he will feel little t; if into a still smaller, engaged in religious exere will feel still less; but if taken into a closet, and to meditate on God and eternity, this will be insupe to him." Man is evidently by nature averse to all nion with God. There is an enmity to be removed.* ence arises the necessity of a change of mind; of oba spiritual mind," without which, spiritual truths ercises can neither engage nor influence the heart. an who possesses a spiritual mind, does, through the of the Holy Spirit, often find that closet retirement, Dr. Owen states to be so insupportable to the carnal a real privilege.

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duty of prayer generally has already been proved; at of closet devotion is plain from our Lord's direcLet us endeavor, however, always to consider it as antage afforded to us, rather than as a work required

ter well expresses this: "What delightful converse Christian have with God alone! He is always t, always at leisure to be spoke with, always easy of He has no interest that will clash with our hapHe never mistakes our meaning nor our characn proportion, indeed, as any thing of God appears in heir converse is excellent and delightful. But there much of vanity and sin in all of us, as exceedingly s our light, and damps the pleasure, and blasts the of our mutual converse. How often have I been deI in God, when I have found most deceit and darkthe world! How often has he comforted me, when not in man to do it!"

rder to have a fuller view of secret prayer, we will

consider 1 from othe worship; the variou ward of this chap marks on

SECT. I.

There advantag

secret we present, a ledge not

communit over us in his power, The Chi desire; var

0

his mind, which he i and, in sho his whole not before Prayer i ing a line mere profe the hypocri gogues, an seen of me not as an a cessity, an may hope v our souls b

Other a wards. B liar difficu

have many

both reluct

cient in ou

onsider it under different sections, as it is distinguished om other kinds of worship; as it respects the object of worship; the subjects to be mentioned; the use of forms, he various parts, the answer, the frequency, and the reward of prayer. After dwelling on these particulars in his chapter, we may afterwards be the more brief in remarks on other kinds of prayer.

SECT. I.-On Secret Prayer, as distinguished from other den kinds of worship.

There are some things in which secret prayer has an dvantage over social and public worship. By praying in ecret we give God the glory of his being everywhere present, and seeing and knowing all things. We acknowedge not only his general providence, as taking care of communities; but his particular providence, as watching over us individually. We express our faith in his presence, is power, and his love.

The Christian can also in secret give free vent to every lesire; vary his request according to the present state of is mind, or the present necessities of the day or hour in which he is living; he can dwell on his personal wants; und, in short, give full scope to his feelings, and pour out his whole soul before God, with a freedom that he would not before his dearest friend.

Prayer in secret is also considered by our Lord as forming a line of distinction between the Christian and the mere professor. "When thou prayest thou shalt not be as the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues, and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men."* When we are constant in secret prayer, not as an act of self-righteousness, but from a feeling of necessity, and of its being both our duty and privilege, we may hope well of our sincerity, and of the general state of our souls before God.

Other advantages of secret prayer, will be noticed afterwards. But it must not be concealed, that there are peculiar difficulties in constant and fervent secret prayer. We have many adversaries opposing us. We are by nature both reluctant to the duty, and utterly helpless and insufficient in ourselves. We can do nothing by our own strength;

d hypocrisy of mere professors," having a form of godliess without the power."

That those who are here addressed do pray is taken for anted: the duty is manifest and unquestionable; and the ode of our Lord's expression may imply, that a Christian's ing without prayer is a contradiction in terms.

The retirement of private devotion is strongly inculcated the expression, "Enter into thy closet." Retire from mpany. Go by thyself. Be alone. The word, rapetov, loset) means any retired solitary place, at home or road, where we may escape from the observation of hers, and be undisturbed by them; not that the closet itIf possesses any sanctity, or will work in the way of a arm. You are not to go into your closet on that account; at you retire from the notice of others to avoid ostentation the one hand, and distraction on the other. "Shut thy or." Keep out the world, and prevent every intrusion: ou hast a great business to transact with thy God, and t not the dearest friend or relative interfere with thy inrcourse and converse with him. The privacy of prayer the great thing which is here enforced. Poor persons ho have but one apartment, may enter into the spirit of is direction by praying wherever they can be retired. aac's closet was a field. "He went out to meditate in e field at even-tide."* David's closet was his bed-chamr. "Commune with your own heart upon your bed, and still." Our Lord's closet was a mountain. "When had sent the multitude away, he went up into a mounin apart to pray, and when the evening was come, he as there alone." Peter's closet was the house-top. Peter went upon the house-top to pray, about the sixth ur." Hezekiah's closet was turning "his face towards e wall, and praying unto the Lord." ||

But there is a retiredness of heart and a self-recollection hich is of greater importance than any particular place prayer. This is the fruit of the Holy Spirit, as has ready been shown; let us then continually look for and lely depend on his aid, which alone can enable us to ve our whole hearts to this great work. Some have und it a happy means of assisting in gaining self-recol