Sera 19 in holy Duties .? 459 this is a very great lofs ; You that are Tradefmen are troubled if you happen to be abroad when a good Cufizomer cometh to deal with you: the Ordinances of God are the Market for your fouls, if you had not beenabroad,withEfau,you might have received the bleffing,and gone away richly baden from a Prayer,ftsom the Word, and the Lards Sup- per, but you lofe your advantages for want of attention. Allowed 4;4- ft-rat-lions turn your Prayers into fin, and make them no Prayers ; when the foul departeth from the body, it is no longer a man but a Carkaf s : So when the thoughts are gone from Prayer, it is no longer a Prayer, the Effence of the duty is wanting. What is Prayer ? as .Damafcene defined it, The lifting up of the heart to God ; Many have prayed without words, but never any prayed without lifting up, or pouring out the heart, If a man fhould kneel, and ufe a geflure of War - íhip and fall afleep, no doubt that man doch not pray : This is to fleep with the heart, and.the words uttered are but like a dream have but a fleight touch of reafon in them, a sneer drowfre unattentive devotion, the foul is afleep though the eyes be. not clofed, and the fenfes locked up. Can we expert that God fhould hear is and biefs us becaufc of our meer outward prefence P We are afhamed of thofe that fle.ep at a duty, and this is as had or worfe, they may fleep out of natural infirmity, as weaknefs,age,ficknefs, &c. But this loth more direEfly proceed from fome fleightnefs or irreverence : Well then, with what face can we ex- ped the fruit of that Prayer to which we have not attended ? It is a great prefumptiun to delire God to hear thole rrqurfls, a great part whereof we have not heard our [elves; if they be not worthy of our attention, they are far more unworthy of Gods. x cT yprian or Ru ffinue , X crp,. de Oran. or whoever was the Author of the Explication of the Lords Prayer in IDotnin, C,yprians Works, hath a notable paffage to this purpofe, is rodo to a Deo exaudiri poflulad , cum to ipfe non audiru ? Vs Deum c ffe meme,- rem tui cum rogad, cum ipfe tui meinor non frs ? Thou art unmindful of thy felt, thou doff not hear thy frlf and how canfl thou with reafon delire the bleflïng and comfort of the duty which thou thoughtefl not worthy thine own attention and regard I would not willingly grate too hard upon a tender confci:nce, it is a queflion that is often propounded,ukether wandring thoughts do altoge- ther f uflratea duty,and make it of none ¡fed? And whet`ier in Tome cafe avert seal attention d,th not fuffice? I here is an aClu.il intention,,: a vrr tual intention; The a1 ual intention is when a foul loth difiin` -ly & con- f1antlr regard every thing chat is faid and done in a duty : And a ver- tual intention is,when we keep only a dc-foftion and purpofe ;o attend., "'a ^ a thoi::h
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