618 AN HUMELE' ATTEMPT, &C. experimental ministry : the whole assemblyhang attentive upon the lips of a man, who speaks to the heart as well as the under- standing, and who can enforce his exhortations from a manifold experience of the success of them. They delight to hear the preacher, whose plain and powerful addresses to the conscience, and whose frequent methods of reasoning in the pulpit, have been drawn from what they themselves have read in scripture concerning God and man, sin and 'duty, our misery and divine mercy, death, resurrection, judgment, heaven and hell. They attend with holy reverence and affection un such a minister, whose frequent argument bothin pointsof doctrineandpractice is, Thus saith -the Lord. . X. Benot slothful or negligent in your weekly preparation for the pulpit : take due time for it : begin so early .in the Week, that you may have time enough before you to finish your prepa- rations well ; and always allow for accidental occurrences, either from indisposition of body, from interruptions by eompany, from unforeseen business or trouble,' &c. that, you may not be reduced to the necessity of hurrying over your work in haste at the end of the week, and serving God and the souls of men with poor, cold and careless performances. Remember that awful word, though spoken on another occasion, .Ter. xlvii. 10. Cursed be he that (loth thework of the Lord deceitfully. Manage so as to leavegenerally the Saturday evening, or at least the Lord's-day morning, entire for the review and correction of your discourse, and for your own spiritual improvement by the sermon which you have prepared for the people. If it should happen that the mere providence of God, with- out any neglectof yours, has hindered you from making so good a preparation as you designed, you may with courage, and hope of divine assistance, venture into the assembly with moreslender and imperfect furniture : but if your conscience tells you that your preparations are very slight, and the neglect is all yotr own, you have less reason to expect aids from above without great humiliation for your negligence. And what if God should forsake you sofar in the pulpit, as to expose you to public shame, and thus punish you for your carelessness in the midst of the congregation ? Study your matter, well by meditation and reading, and comparing scriptures together, till you have gotten it completely Within your grasp and survey : then if you should happen to be So situated in preaching, that you could not refresh your memory by the inspection of your paper @very minute, yet you will not he exposed to hurry and confusion ; a ready thought will sug- gest something pertinent to your purpose. Let your preparations be usually so perfect, that you may he able to fill upllihe time allotted for the discourse with sad sense and uroper language,
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