The Christians daily sacrifice duly offer'd, or, A practical discourse teaching the right performance of prayer by Lancelot Addison.

CHAP. I. Of the true Notion of Prayer.

NOT to spend time about the Grammatical meaning of the Words by which Prayer in all Languages is signified, I shall briefly set down what Prayer is, and what it does imply.

Now Prayer, according to S. Austin (in Psal. 85.) is, A speaking to God; When you read the Scripture, saith the Fa∣ther, God speaks to you, but when you Pray, you speak to him. From which words Drexelius took occasion to define Prayer, The Conversation and Discourse of the soul with God. Which is agreeable to the Notion of this Duty in Job 15.4. for (as Drusius observes) the Hebrew Word there used for Prayer, signifies to have a Familiar Converse with the Almighty. And the Greek Fathers speak of it in the same sense, when they call it 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, a familiar talking with, or,

unto God. For in it you unbosom your self, and open your heart and mind unto him, as a man would do unto his Friend in whom he most confides.

Some of the Antients, speaking Rhe∣torically of Prayer, call it a Chain of gold hanging down from heaven to draw men up thither, and to bring them into the more immediate presence of God, and to an intimate access to the Fountain of all Goodness. And it is suppos'd to make such a Change in us, as if it plac'd us on Mount Tabor, to enjoy a kind of Transfiguration of the Soul; which by the means of Prayer, as in a Glass, be∣holds the glory of the Lord, and is changed into the same Image from glory to glory.

The eye of the Soul by the help of Prayer (as truly as the eye of the Body feeds it self with the beauty of the fields) does refresh and recreate it self with the Excellencies of God, and the Perfections of the Holy Jesus. From whom it receives whatever it can de∣sire, and through whom it avoids what∣ever it has cause to fear. In Prayer

(saith Albertus Magnus) the soul is car∣ried to the source and spring of all help and comfort, bounty and goodness It brings a man (saith he) to know God, and knowing to love him; and loving, to seek him; and in seeking to take pains; and in taking pains, to find him.

But these and the like sayings of the Antients, concerning Prayer, serve rather to express the Worth and the Effects of it, than to declare its Nature any farther than that from such like expressions we may reasonably infer that, Prayer implies a great deal more than telling over a few Beads (as is the way of some) or, the bare reciting so many words or sen∣tences form'd and compos'd into that which we call a Prayer (which is to be fear'd is the case of many.) A man may say a thousand of these, and that too with great outward seriousness and com∣posure, and yet be far from that which is truly and properly to be called Praying. For nothing deservedly bears that name wherein there is not an ele∣vation of the soul, and a lifting up of the heart to God, as to the Original

of our being; with a fervent desire to be made like unto him. So that you cannot be truly said to pray, unless the Soul so far gets loose from the entangle∣ments of the world and the body, as not only to look up to the place from whence it came, but to make some sort of approaches towards it, and to him who dwelleth there, and who is the Author of its being, and the proper Ob∣ject of its love. There must be an ear∣nest endeavour to be united to God, to become one with him, to partake of his Divine nature, or at least to bear as much of his image and likeness, with respect to holiness and purity, as we can. In the Act of Praying (if we do it as we ought) we make an oblation of our souls and bodies to the Eternal Being, and declare our dependence up∣on his infinite Goodness, and an entire subjection to his Infinite Power. We so place our selves to advantage before the throne of his Divine Majesty, as to have the dimness of our Understandings en∣lighten'd by the brightness of heavenly light, and our minds (cold and dead

as they are) made warm and enliven'd by the beams of the Everlasting Sun. Our actions in the mean time are here∣by to be so influenc'd as for the future to be conform'd to the excellent model and pattern set us by Christ himself, so as to become fit objects of Divine Love and Compassion. It is to him, to the Holy Jesus, and to the treading in his foot-steps, we are so closely to apply our selves, as that it may beget in us a strong desire to be joyn'd unto him, and to be one with him, not enduring the thoughts of ever being separated from him. This is what either Prayer should produce in every pious soul, or what we ought to wish it might, and which it will, when it is in its due perfection, and when we have been sufficiently ex∣ercis'd in its practice.

It's true, such flights and raptures, such fervours and transports, (as some may be suppos'd to have in their De∣votion) such a near intercourse with God, as prayer in its perfection implies, ought not to be look'd upon as the only sign of praying as we ought, or

praying to any purpose. The want of this indeed is to be imputed to the weight of those Corruptions wherewith the soul is clogg'd and press'd down, and kept from being elevated to the contemplation of the transcendent beau∣ty and adorable excellencies of the Di∣vine Nature. But then a great deal of this (so long as we continue cloth'd with Flesh) is what we cannot help. And seeing wandring of thoughts, coolness of affection, want of attention, and some∣times no small defects in outward beha∣viour (arguing too much inward sloth and negligence) may in a great mea∣sure be owing to Infirmity, or Inad∣vertency, God will no doubt accept of our sincere endeavour and desire that the soul should keep upon the wing, and do its part in all respects whilst we are upon our knees, our hands lift up to heaven, and our mouths uttering our Petitions in the most decent Ex∣pressions we can think of, and with profound humility and resignation to the will of God to grant what he thinks fit: shewing all the dependence

upon his goodness and favour that we are able to express. If there be thus much observ'd by us toward praying as we ought, we need not despair of being heard for want of more, that is, for want of praying like a Saint, or feeling in our selves the Holy Ardours which are peculiar to some men. But still a sincere desire and endeavour to come up to the height and perfection of this Heavenly exercise, is no more than what is of the very essence of Prayer, and without which we cannot promise to our selves any great benefit from our performance of it.

And thus much being said in general of the nature of Prayer (whereof more may be met with in the sequel of this Discourse) it may not be amiss to en∣force the Duty by acquainting you with the necessity of Prayer; and to shew that it is what God has at all times ex∣pected, and which has accordingly been paid him in all Ages of the World, and the consequence has shown God's ap∣probation thereof.