THE PRAYER OF FAITH.

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faith. There must be strong confidence in the existence and faithfulness of God. "He that cometh unto God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." The prayer of faith must also be dictated by the Holy Spirit. Faith itself is declared to be "the gift of God;" and the apostle says, "The Spirit also helpeth our infirmities; for we know not what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us, with groanings which cannot be uttered." "He maketh intercession for the saints, according to the will of God." When this is understood, we are no longer astonished that God should assure us, by so many precious promises, that he will hear and answer our prayers. Christians are called the Temple of the Holy Ghost; and if the Holy Ghost dwell in us, to guide and direct us in all our ways, will he forsake us in so important a matter as prayer? O, then, what a solemn place is the Christian's closet, or the house of prayer! There the whole Trinity meet in awful concert. The Holy Spirit there presents to the Everlasting Father, through the Eternal Son, the prayers of a mortal worm! Is it any wonder that such a prayer should be heard? With what holy reverence and godly fear should we approach this consecrated place!

5. We must ask in a spirit of humble submission, yielding our will to the will of the Lord, committing the whole case to him, in the true spirit of our Lord's agonizing prayer in the garden, when he said, "Not my will, but thine, be done." It is often the case that

a blessing is delayed until we come into just this frame of spirit—when we seem to have no will of our own, but are willing that God should exercise his holy and wise sovereignty, and dispose of the whole case according to his good pleasure; and then the blessing comes, often with greater measure than we had dared to ask.

PRACTICAL DIRECTIONS.

"Con

1. Maintain a constant spirit of prayer. tinuing instant in prayer." "Praying always, with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit." "And he spake a parable unto them, to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint." The meaning of these passages is, not that we should be all the time exclusively engaged in prayer, to the neglect of every thing else; but that we should maintain such a prayerful frame, that, the moment our minds are disengaged, our hearts will rise up to God. Intimately connected with this is the practice of ejaculatory prayer, which consists of a short petition, silently and suddenly sent up from the heart. This may be done any where, and under all circumstances. Nehemiah offered up a silent prayer to God, as he presented the cup to the king of Persia, that he might find favor, in the request which he was about to make; and so may we do, in all circumstances of difficulty. This kind of prayer is indispensable to the Christian warfare. It helps us in resisting temptation; and by means of it we can seek divine aid in the midst of the greatest emergencies.

TIMES OF PRAYER.

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is a very

But to maintain this incessant spirit of prayer difficult work. It requires unwearied care and watchfulness, labor and perseverance. Yet no Christian can thrive without it.

2. Observe stated and regular seasons of prayer. Some make so much of the foregoing, as to neglect all audible and formal prayer. This is evidently unscriptural. Our Savior directs us to enter into our closet, and, when we have shut the door, to pray to our Father who is in secret. And to this precept he has added the sanction of his own example. In the course of his history, we find him often retiring to solitary places, to pour out his soul in prayer. Other examples are also recorded in Scripture. David says, "Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray." And again, "Seven times a day do I praise thee." It was the habitual practice of Daniel to kneel down in his chamber, and pray three times a day. But this practice is so natural, and so agreeable to Christian feeling, that no argument seems necessary to persuade those who have any piety to observe it. It has been the delight of the saints in all ages to retire alone, and hold communion with God.

No very definite rule can be given, as to the particular time of prayer. There is a peculiar propriety in visiting the throne of grace in the morning, to offer up the thanksgiving of our hearts for preservation, and to seek grace for the day; and also in the evening, to express our gratitude for the mercies we have enjoyed, to confess the sins we have committed, seek for pardon, and commit ourselves to the care of a covenant-keep

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TIMES OF PRAYER.

ing God, when we retire to rest. It is also very suitable, when we suspend our worldly employments in the middle of the day to refresh our bodies, to renew our visit to the fountain of life, that our souls may also be replenished. The twilight of the evening is likewise a favorable season for devotional exercises. But it is of the greatest importance that every one should set apart stated and regular seasons, every day, for private devotion. This is necessary in order to secure the end-to "pray without ceasing;" which means that we should pray, not occasionally, as we happen to feel disposed, but habitually. These seasons should be regarded as engagements with God; and when unavoidably interrupted, the first time at our command should be observed instead of the regular season. But, when our souls delight in communion with God, we shall be disposed, in addition to these regular and stated seasons, to retire often to pour out our hearts before him, and receive fresh communications of his grace. This we need, to prevent our hearts from coming under the power of sensible objects, and clinging to earth.

For devotional exercises, we should select those times and seasons when we usually find our minds vigorous and our feelings lively. As the morning is, in many respects, most favorable, it is well to spend as much time as we can in the closet before engaging in the employments of the day. An hour spent in reading God's word, and in prayer and praise, early in the morning, will give a heavenly tone to the feelings; which, by proper watchfulness, and frequent

SUBJECTS OF PRAYER.

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draughts at the same fountain, may be carried through all the pursuits of the day.

As already remarked, our Lord, in the pattern left us, has given a very prominent place to the petition, "THY KINGDOM COME. This is a large petition. It includes all the instrumentalities which the church is putting forth for the enlargement of her borders and the salvation of the world. All these ought to be distinctly and separately remembered; and not, as is often the case, be crowded into one general petition, at the close of our morning and evening prayers. General truths do not much affect the heart; and therefore we need to particularize, in order to interest our feelings. I would therefore recommend the arrangement of these subjects under general heads for every day of the week, and then divide the subjects which come under these heads, so as to remember one or more of them at stated seasons, through the day, separate from your own personal devotions. Thus you will always have your mind fixed upon one or two objects; and you will have time to enlarge, so as to remember every particular relating to them. This, if faithfully pursued, will give you a deeper interest in every benevolent effort.

3. Observe special seasons of prayer. Before engaging in any important matter, make it a subject of special prayer. For this you have the example of the blessed Jesus. When he was baptized, before entering upon his ministry, he prayed. Before choosing his twelve apostles, he went out into a mountain, and spent a whole night in prayer. The Old Testament