understanding, to the acknowledgment of the mystery of God, even of the Father, and of Chrift.

Deal with thy fervants according to thy mercy, and teach us thy ftatutes; we are thy fervants, give us understanding, that we may know thy teftimonies. Let our cry come before thee, O Lord, give us understanding, according to thy word, that good understanding which they have to do thy commandments, whofe praise endureth for ever.

2. To lead us into, and keep us in the way of truth, and, if in any thing we are in an error, to rectify our mistake.

Let the fpirit of truth guide us into all truth, and caufe us to understand wherein we have erred.

That which we see not, teach thou us, and enable us fo to prove all things, as to hold fast that which is good.

Lord, grant that we may not be as children, toffed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the fleight of men, but fpeaking the truth, in love, may grow up into Christ, in all things, who is the head.

Lord, give us fo to do thy will, as that we may know of the doctrine,, whether it be of God; and fo know the truth, as that the truth may make us free, may make us free indeed.

Enable us, we pray thee, to hold fast the form of found words, which we have heard, in faith and love, which is in Chrift Jefus, and to continue in the things which we have learnt and been affured of.. 3. To help our memories, that the truths of God be ready to us, whenever we have occafion to

may

use them.

Lord, let thy fpirit teach us all things, and bring all things to our remembrance, whatfoever thou haft faid unto us, that the word of Chrift may dwell richly in us, in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.

F

Lord, grant that we may give a more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, leaft at any time we let them flip, and may keep in memory what hath been preached to us, and may not believe in vain.

Lord, make us ready and mighty in the fcriptures, that we may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works, and being well inftructed into the kingdom of heaven, may, as the good houtholder, bring out of our treasure things new and old.

4. To direct our confciences, to fhew us the way of our duty, and to make us wife, knowing, judici. ous Chriftians.

Lord, give us a wife and an understanding heart, that wifdom which in all cafes is profitable to direct; that wisdom of the prudent which is to understand his way.

This we pray, that our love may abound yet more and more in knowledge, and in all judgment, that we may difcern things that differ, and may approve things that are excellent: That we may be fincere, and without offence, unto the day of Chrift, and may be filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jefus Chrift, unto the glory and praife of God.

O that we may be filled with the knowledge of thy will, in all wifdom and fpiritual underftanding: That we may walk worthy of the Lord unto all-pleafing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God,

!

Teach us thy way, O God, and lead us in a plain path, becaufe of our obfervers.

When we know not what to do, our eyes are up unto thee; then let us hear the word behind us, faying, This is the way, walk in it, that we turn not to the right hand, or to the left.

Order our fteps in thy word, and let no iniquity have dominion over us.

5. To fanctify our nature, to plant in us all holy principles and difpofitions, and to encrease every grace in us.

The very God of peace fanctify us, wholly, and we pray God our whole spirit, and foul, and body, may be preferved, blameless, unto the coming of our Lord Jefus Chrift; for faithful is he that called us, who alfo will do it.

Create in us a clean heart, O God, and renew a right fpirit within us: Caft us not away from thy prefence, and take not thy holy fpirit away from us; Restore unto us the joy of thy falvation, and uphold us with thy free spirit.

Write thy law in our hearts, and put it in our inward part, that we may be the epiftles of Chrift, written by the fpirit of the living God, not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart, that the law of our God being in our heart, none of our fteps may flide, and we may delight to do thy will, O God, may delight in the law of God, after the inward man.

O that we may obey from the heart that form of doctrine into which we defire to be delivered, as into a mold, that our whole fouls may be leavened by it; and that we may not be conformed to this world, but transformed by the renewing of our mind; may not fashion ourselves after our former lufts, in our ignorance, but, as obedient children, may be holy in all manner of converfation, as he which hath called us is holy.

1. We must pray for faith.

Unto us (Lord) let it be given to believe; for the faith by which we are faved is not of ourselves, it is the gift of God.

Lord, increase our faith, and perfect what is lacking in it, that we may be ftrong in faith, giving glory to God.

Lord, give us fo to be crucified with Chrift, as that the life we now live in the flesh, we may live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved us, and g gave himself for us; and fo to bear about with us continually the dying of the Lord Jefus, as that the life alfo of Jefus may be manifested in our mortal bodies.

As we have received Chrift Jefus the Lord, enable us fo to walk in him, rooted and built up in him, and cftablished in the faith, as we have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.

Let every word of thine profit us, being mixed with faith, by which we receive thy teftimony, and fet to our feal, that God is true.

We befeech thee work in us that faith, which is the fubftance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not feen, by which we may look above the things that are feen, that are temporal, and may look at the things that are not feen, that are eternal.

Enable us by faith to fet the Lord always before us, and to have our eyes ever towards him, that we may act in every thing as feeing him that is invifible, and having a refpect to the recompence of reward. Let our hearts be purified by faith, and let it be our victory overcoming the world. And let us be kept from fainting, by believing that we fhall fee the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

2. We must pray for the fear of God.

Lord, work in us that fear of thee, which is the beginning of wisdom, which is the inftruction of wifdom, and which is a fountain of life, to depart from the fnares of death.

Unite our hearts to fear thy name, that we may keep thy commandments, which is the whole of

man,

O put thy fear into our hearts, that we may never depart from thee. Let us all be devoted to thy fear: And let us be in the fear of the Lord every day, and all the day long..

3. We must pray that the love of God and Christ may be rooted in us; and, in order thereunto, that the love of the world may be rooted out of us.

Give us grace, we befeech thee, to love thee the Lord our God with all our heart and foul, and mind and might, which is the first and great commandment; to fet our love upon thee, and to delight our

felves always in thee; and therein we fhall have the

defire of our heart.

Circumcife our hearts to love thee the Lord our God with all our heart, and with all our foul, that we may live.

O that the love of God may be shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghoft.

O that Jefus Chrift may be very precious to us, as he is to all that believe, that he may be in our ac count the chiefelt of ten thousand, and altogether lovely, and that he may be our beloved and our friend: That though we have not feen him, yet we may love him; and, though now we fee him not, yet believing, we may rejoice, with joy unfpeakable, and full of glory.

Let the love of Chrift to us constrain us to live not to ourselves, but to him that died for us, and rofe again.

And, Lord, grant that we may not love the world, nor the things that are in the world, because if any man love the world, the love of the father is not in him; that we may fet our affections on things above, and not on things that are on the earth.

4. We must pray that our confciences may be always tender, and that we may live a life of repen

tance.

Lord, take away the ftoney heart out of our flesh, and give us a heart of flesh.

Make us afraid of all appearances of evil, and careful not to give Satan advantage, against us, as being not ignorant of his devices.

Lord, give us the happinefs which they have that fear always, that when we think we ftand, we may take heed leaft we fall.'

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5. We must pray to God to work in us charity and brotherly love.

Lord, put upon us that charity which is the bond of perfectnefs, that we may keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace, and may live in love