114 A OV DE TO Pf.AYLR. but as a reward of his diligence in preparing his heart before. handfor this work. Another christian will tell me, that sometimes whenhe has thought over many materials for his prayer before, he has found agreater confusion in his mind between his former preparations andhis present suggestions, than if he prayed in an extemporary way. In reply to this objection. I must confess that I have sometimes had the'same unhappy experience : but I impute it to one of these three defects : Either my premeditation was very slight and imperfect, as to the matter or method ; so that I had not ranged' the materials of my prayer in any settled form and order in my memory,. but let't them almost as much at uncer- tainty, as new thoughts that might occur to my mind in praying. And it is more troublesome sometimes to mend and finish what is very imperfect, than to make entirely new. Or perhaps my pre- meditation had been chiefly the work of myhead, without so due a consultation of the frame of my heart. I had prepared my head, but not my heart for prayer ; and then it is no wonder . that when the heart comes to be warmly engaged in praying, it runs far away from the mere premeditations of the head; and sometimes betwixt both, create a confusion in the mind. 3. Or it may be, my soul bath been out of frame, and indisposed for prayer ; and then I would not 'lay the fault upon premeditation, ,which would have been as bad or worse without it. But where my preparation both of head and heart hath been carefully and wisely managed, I have had several experiences of the conveniency and usefulness of it, especially in my younger years, and upon some extraordinary and solemn occasions. , After all, if some particular persons have conscientiously, and with due diligence, attempted this way, and find they always praymore usefully, and more honourably, with more regularity and delight, by the mere preparation of the heart for this duty, without fixing the parts and method of their prayer in their me- mory beforehand, they must follow those methods of devotion themselves, which they have found most effectual to attain the best ends ; but not forbid the use of premeditation to others, whom God hath owned and approved in that way. And let this be observed, that it is but a fewchristians that attain so great a a readiness and regularity in the gift of prayer, without learn- ing by premeditation ; far greater is the number of those whose performances are very mean, for want of thinking beforehand. Having thus endeavoured to secure you from these two dangerous extremes, viz. a perpetual confinement to forms on the one hand, and a neglect of all premeditation on the other ; I proceed. In the gift of prayer we are to consider these five things : the matter, the method, the expression, the voice, and the gesture. I shall treat of each of these at large.
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