Teach me, O my God, to use this world so as not to abuse it; 15 to receive and manage all thy temporal blessings with thankfulness to thee, sobriety to myself, and charity to all besides. 16 Make me ever, O my God, upright and faithful in trusts, and trade, and agreements, diligent and honest in my station and calling,17 and according to my ability willing to lend and remit to my poor neighbours.1 18 Whenever, O my God, I am forced to go to law, O, let me ever contend more for right than victory, and in all prosecutions preserve a charitable and an equitable disposition.19 O my God, let thy all powerful love abound in my heart, and in the hearts of all that profess thy name, that in all these, and all other possible instances of duty, our lives may be continually employed to love thee, and for thy sake to love our neighbour, and to excite our neighbour to love thee. Sins forbid den. The Ninth Commandment. O my God, I renounce, and detest, and bewail, as odious and offensive to thee, as directly opposite to thy love, and to the love of my neighbour for thy sake, All manner of "bearing false witness against my neighbour," all false accusations, or glosses, or pleadings, or testimonies, or sentences in courts of judicature,20 by concealing or over-speaking, or perverting right and truth. All things prejudicial or destructive to my neighbour's good name. 15 1 Cor. vii. 31. 18 Psalm xxxvii. 26. 16 Luke xi. 41. 17 2 Thess. iii. 10, 12. 20 Ps. lxxxii. 2; Matt. xxvi. 60; Tit. ii. 3; Micah iii. 9. 88 heard for much AN EXPOSITION ON speaking," and to measure our prayers rather by their fervency than length. That prayer, which was composed Most divine. by thy own self, O God, that hearest prayer, we are sure is most divine and excellent, and perfect like its Author, and most agreeable and acceptable to thee; for which I adore and love thee. able. Most acceptO blessed Jesus, the only beloved of God, thou best understandest the language of love, and in that language thou hast taught us to pray; and whenever we pray in that language, we have an humble confidence thy heavenly Father will hear us, who with the words of his own beloved Son will ever be well pleased; and therefore I adore and love thee. Necessity of prayer. Thou, O heavenly Guide of our devotion and our love, by teaching us to pray hast shewed us that prayer is our treasury where all blessings are kept, our armoury where all our strength and weapons are stored, the only great preservative, and the very vital heat of divine love. Give me grace, therefore, to call on thee at all times by diligent prayer. Misery of not pray. O, the unspeakable misery of those those who do who either totally neglect the duty of prayer,12 or else profane it by drawing near to God with their lips, when their hearts are far removed from him; whose prayers, being void of all devotion and concern, are turned into fresh sins.13 How deservedly shall he have God for his enemy, who would not beg pardon of a most reconcilable Father! How deservedly shall he suffer eternal wrath, who thought heaven not worth the asking! 12 Ps. x. 4. 13 Ps. cix. 7. THE CHURCH CATECHISM. 87 pray to thee, to pour out our souls, to breathe out our desires, to present our wants, and to unbosom our griefs, at thy throne of love. I praise and I love thee, O sove- Encouragereign Love, for not only permitting us ments to pray. miserable wretches to pray to thee, but also for giving us all imaginable encouragement to so important and divine a duty. I adore and love thee, O munificent Goodness, for inviting,6 for commanding us to pray. I adore and love thee for pouring out thy Holy "Spirit of grace and supplication" on us, to help our infirmities, to assist us in praying, to make " intercessions for us, with sighs and groans that cannot be uttered,"9 with the utmost ardours of a peni.. tential and indigent love. I adore and love thee for giving us so many glorious promises 10 of hearing our prayers, so many firm assurances of a gra cious acceptance. O thou great Prophet of Divine A pattern Love, who, as if thy invitation, and of prayer. command, and assistance, and promise, were not enough to move us to pray, hast condescended to teach us this duty thyself, and to give us a perfect pattern of prayer; for which I adore and love thee. Glory be to thee, O blessed Master A form of devotion, who, in dictating a form most condeof prayer, and enjoining us to use it, scending. hast complied with our weakness, and warned us not to rely on rash and unpremeditated effusions; who, in dictating a short form, hast taught us to avoid "vain repetitions," or "thinking we shall be 5 Rom. x. 13. 8 Zech. xii. 10. 6 Ps. 1. 15. 9 Rom. viii. 26. 11 Matt. vi. 7, 8, 9; Luke xi. 2. 7 Phil. iv. 6. 10 Matt. vii. 7. 86 Previous considerations. AN EXPOSITION ON O infinite Love, it is my duty and my happiness to love thee; but, alas, my own sad experience teaches me how little I am able to love. Our impot ence to good. Ah, Lord, there is a dark cloud of ignorance spread over my soul, that intercepts thy beams. I cannot clearly see, I cannot fully know, how lovely thou art. Ah, Lord, whenever any gleams of thy loveliness break in upon my spirit and attract my will, a crowd of strange loves importune and tempt me wander after them. to God is our Since, O my God, I can of myself refuge. neither know nor love thee; since I cannot by my own strength do "those things thou requirest, nor walk in thy commandments, nor serve thee," nor think so much as one good thought;1 whither can I fly, but only to thy free and unbounded love? Thou art my hope, my help, and my salvation;2 thou only canst teach and enable me to know and to love thy own goodness. Our assist ance God. from O, By thy special grace, O my God, by thy particular assistance, by the strength of thy love, "I can do all things." let thy grace ever enlighten and inflame me; let it ever prevent, and accompany, and follow me; let it ever excite, and increase, and support thy love in my heart. O, let it ever work in me both will and to do of thy good pleasure."4 Gained by prayer. to I know, Lord, that thy grace, and all other blessings, "I must learn at all times to call for by diligent prayer;" and I adore and love thy infinite benignity to sinners, in indulging us the privilege, the honour, the happiness, to 1 2 Cor. iii. 5. 3 Eph. iii. 16; Phil. iv. 13. 2 Ps. Ixii. 7; John xv. 4, 5. 4 Phil. ii. 13. The Lord's Prayer. Q. My good child, know this, that thou art not able to do these things of thyself, nor to walk in the commandments of God, and to serve him without his especial grace, which thou must learn at all times to call for by diligent prayer. Let me hear, therefore, if thou canst say the Lord's Prayer. A. Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen. Q. What desirest thou of God in this prayer? A. I desire my Lord God, our heavenly Father, who is the giver of all goodness, to send his grace unto me and to all people, that we may worship him, serve him, and obey him, as we ought to do. And I pray unto God, that he will send us all things that be needful both for our souls and bodies; and that he will be merciful unto us, and forgive us our sins; and that it will please him to save and defend us in all dangers, ghostly and bodily; and that he will keep us from all sin and wickedness, and from our ghostly enemy, and from everlasting death. And this I trust he will do of his mercy and goodness, through our Lord Jesus Christ; and therefore I say, Amen, so be it. |