import, that we should pray often, and continue with pa- SER M. tience and earnestness in prayer; but that we should annex XXXIII. it to, or interpose it among, all our actions, undertaking nothing (at least of confideration or moment) without it. We should do it (our Saviour commands) év wavri xasp, Luke xi.36. that is, on every occafion: and St. Paul gives the fame direction; Praying, says he, iv wavrì xaigã, on all opportuni- Eph. vi. 18. ties, with all prayer and fupplication in spirit; (in spirit,

Εν παντί.

Hox. 6.

ვი.

lxxiii. 24.

that is, I take it, in our hearts at least, and with fecret Eph. v. 19. Εν καρδίᾳ. elevations of our mind, if not with our mouth and voice.) And more explicitly otherwhere faith he, Be careful for Phil. iv.6,7. nothing, but in every thing (in all your affairs) by prayer and fupplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to Godn. And thus to do (to accompany all our undertakings with prayer) we are indeed concerned upon many accounts. We need God's direction (being Job xviii 7. ourfelves very blind and ignorant) in the choice of what a xxx. 1. we attempt; that our ends and defigns may be good, Prov. i. 25, conducible to God's honour and our own true advantage. Pfal.cvi.13. For, as the Prophet tells us, The way of man is not in xvi. 7. himself, neither is it in man that walketh to direct his steps ; cvii. 11. and, as the Wife Man adds, Man's goings are of the Jer. x. 23. Lord; how then can a man understand his own way? (im-24. xvi. 9. plying, fince God only knows what is best for us, that we of ourselves, without his direction, know not what to do, whither to go.) The holy Pfalmift fignifies the fame in those words, (very encouraging to the practice of this duty,) What man is he that feareth the Lord? (that fear- Pfal. xxv. eth him, that is, who worshippeth him, and feeketh his 12, 9. guidance,) him fhall he teach in the way that he shall choose. We need also (being ourselves not only weak and infirm, but inconftant and unstable) God's affiftance and upholding hand in the pursuance of our well-chofen defigns, (that we may use the best means, and proceed in a ftraight course; that we may perfift upright and steady in

"Bene ac fapienter majores inftituerunt, ut rerum agendarum, ita dicendi initium a precationibus caperetur; quod nihil rite, nihilque providenter homines fine Deorum immortalium ope, confilio, honore aufpicarentur. Plin. in Paneg.

Prov. xx.

23, 24, 31.

133.

SERM. our proceedings,) that which the Wife Man feems to call, XXXIII. the establishing of our thoughts, and promises, as a confequence, upon our feeking God's affiftance in our actions, Prov. xvi.3. and relying thereon; Commit, faith he, thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts fhall be established; (thou fhalt drive on thy good purposes steadily, without stumbling or falling; at leaft irrecoverably.) So the Pfalmift affures us Pfa. xxxvii. concerning a good man; The Steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord; none of his steps fhall flide: though he fall, he shall not utterly be caft down; for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand. We alfo farther, as to the final fuccefs of our affairs, ftand in need of God's bleffing; that he, upon whofe will altogether depends the disposal of all events, should bestow a good iffue unto our endea vours, that they prove not matter of difcouragement or difcomfort to us; that which alfo the Pfalmift affures us of obtaining, upon condition of our imploring and depending Pía. xxxvii. upon God for it: Commit thy way, faith he, unto the 5. cxix. 5. Lord; truft alfo in him, and he shall bring it to pass. We do thus need in all our affairs the direction, affsistance, and bleffing of our Lord; but fhall not have them without Luke xi. 9, prayer; for the rule is, Afk and have, feek and find. Without asking, we are not likely to obtain those gifts; without feeking, we must not hope to find those benefits from God. If we are so proud as to think we do not need them, or fo negligent as not to mind them, or fo diftrustful of the divine power or goodness, that we imagine he cannot or will not afford them to us, we are like to be fo unhappy as to want them. God expects from us, that we should, in whatever we do, acknowledge him: (it is Prov. iii. 6. the Wife Man's expreffion, In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths :) acknowledge him as the only faithful guide and counsellor; as the only fufficient helper and protector; as the only free arbitrator and donor of good fuccefs. Nothing therefore is well done, which is not thus done: we cannot be fatisfied in what we do; we cannot hope for a comfortable end thereof; we cannot expect a bleffing from God, if we have refused, or if we have neglected the recommending our proceed

10.

John xiv.

13.

Pfal. ix. 10.

ings to his care. We can, I fay, do nothing; not eat, SERM. not sleep, not trade, not travel, not study with any true XXXIII. content, any reasonable security, any fatisfactory hope, if we have not first humbly implored God's favour; committing ourselves and our bufinefs into his hand, that hand which difpenfeth all good, which alone can keep off all danger and mifchief from us. God fhall fend his angel Gen. xxiv. before thee: fo did our father Abraham fend his fervant" about his business; having questionless before commended

14.

Pfal. lv. 22.

Old Tranfl.

it to God by prayer. God Almighty give you mercy be- Gen. xliii. fore the man: fo did Jacob give his fons their dispatches toward Egypt. In fuch a manner did we enter upon all our affairs, we could not but be full of hope, and void of care concerning them; for that commonly we are so full of anxiety about the event of what we undertake, whence doth it arife, but from our neglect of this duty? for, having committed our bufinefs into fo fure a hand, how could we farther be folicitous about it? Had we, according to St. Peter's advice, caft our care upon the Lord; or, 1 Pet. v. 7. caft our burden upon him, (as the Pfalmift exhorts us ;) had we duly fought and invoked him, who never faileth Pfal. ix. 10. them that feek him, who is nigh to all them that call upon xx. 4." him; we should not have fuch a load of troublesome care Pfal. cxlv. resting upon us; our hearts would be light and free as to cxii. 7, 8. all thefe things; we fhould be fecure, that nothing very bad or difaftrous could befal us; we fhould experience it true, what the Prophet affirms in that prayer or pfalm to God; Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whofe mind is Ifa. xxvi. 3. flayed on thee. Be careful for nothing, St. Paul bids us ; but in every thing let your requests be made known to God: if we perform the latter part, the former will naturally be confequent thereon. Thus, in the laft place, fhould we do all things in the name of Jefus, (upon all occafions praying to him, or, which is all one, to God in his name,) which that we may do, (that we are allowed and encouraged to do it,) is also a privilege, and an advantage unvaluable.

In fo many ways and particular refpects may we, and ought we to perform all we do in the name of Jefus :

18.

Phil. iv. 6.

SERM. we fhould do every thing out of grateful affection and XXXIII. refpect to him, as our chief principle; every thing as his

fervants, aiming especially at the pleafing of him and promoting his honour, as our principal end; every thing according to his will and commandment, as our conftant rule; every thing after his example, as our best pattern; every thing in confidence of his gracious affiftance and bleffing, as our only ftrength and support; every thing with hope of acceptance purely upon his account; every thing with thankful fenfe and acknowledgment to God for the mercies and favours conveyed unto us by his means, conferred upon us for his fake; every thing with humble invocation of him, or with prayer to God in his name: in fum, every thing with a due and proper regard had to him; fo that he be not paffed over or left out in any thing we undertake; but come always into confideration, according as our relations to him and our obligations to him do require. In the performances of which duties the life indeed of our religion (of all our good practice, of all our devotion) doth confift.

To all this I shall only fubjoin the mention of one general duty, implied in all and each of those we have propounded, which is this:

VIII. That our Lord Jefus fhould be frequently (and in a manner continually; always, as to the habitual disposition of our fouls, actually upon all fit occafions) present to our minds and thoughts. This, I fay, is plainly implied in the former duties. For, how is it poffible we should perform all our actions (yea, utter all our words) with any fort of regard to him, if we feldom think of him? Such is the nimblenefs and activity of our minds, that it is feafible enough to do thus; and, in respect to other objects, we commonly experience it done; for animus eft ubi amat; whatever we affect, our mind, however otherwife employed, will be thinking on it; it is hard to reftrain our thoughts from it: (the covetous man's heart will be among his bags; the voluptuous man's mind will be in his difhes; the ftudious perfon will be mufing on his notions, do he what he can:) why then may we not as

well, as often direct our minds toward our Lord, and mix SERM. the remembrance of him with all other employments or XXXIII. entertainments of our thoughts? To do fo is furely very requifite, and very expedient toward our good practice. Things far diftant, or long abfent, can have fmall efficacy, or influence it is fo, we fee, in natural, and it is no lefs fo in moral caufalities; wherein reprefentation to the fancy and memory have a force anfwerable to that, which real conjunction and approximation have in nature. As the heat and light of the fun, the farther he goes, and the longer he ftays from us, do the more, proportionably, decrease; fo, according to our lefs frequently and lefs seriously thinking upon any object, our affection and our refpect thereto decay. If therefore we defire, according to our duty, to maintain in our hearts such dispositions (due affection and due reverence) toward Jefus; if we intend to fuit our actions accordingly with due regard to him; we should, in order to those purposes, apply this fo neceffary and useful mean, of frequently bending our minds toward him; the doing of which, in likelihood, will conduce much to the fanctifying our affections, and to the governing our actions in a conftant performance of our duty. For we can hardly fure (admitting we do ferioufly believe him to be fuch as we profefs to believe him) with any competent attention think of him, but that thought will be apt to reftrain us from doing ill, to incite us to do well; fince together with that thought, fome of his excellent perfections, fome of our principal relations, and fome of our great obligations to him, (each of which hath much virtue and force to those purposes,) will interpofe and represent themselves. Frequently thinking of him, we fhall fometimes apprehend him with inceffant toil labouring in the service of Acts x. 38. God, and in promoting the welfare of men; fometimes we shall imagine him undergoing all kind of contumelies and bitter pains, fuffering by the cruel hands and tongues of fpiteful men; we fhall, as it were, behold him bleeding under the fcourge, and hanging upon the cross for our fakes. Sometimes he will appear to our minds crowned