Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	work_n	world_n	worship_v	36	3	8.1129	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A29505	A treatise of prayer with several useful occasional observations and some larger digressions, concerning the Judaical observation of the Lord's Day, the external worship of God, &c. / by George Bright ...	G. B. (George Bright), d. 1696.	1678 (1678)	Wing B4677; ESTC R1010	210,247	475

to us in any kind when we expresly mind our selves that God seeth and knoweth it How darest thou that hast vile Thoughts Designs Affections Inclinations secret Actions all as well known to God as if they were exposed to the Meridian Sun ask any thing of him or so much as think of him And shouldest thou not fear that he should punish thee for thy Impudence and Dishonour thou doest him 3. An Acknowledgment of the Divine universal Goodness or Righteousness which in effect is all one his always doing that which is for the greatest Perfection and Happiness of all that he hath made considered together This gives us Assurance and consequently emboldens our Desires that every thing that is righteous and just a Condition we are always to remember in our Prayers shall be effected and granted And here we may take notice of the two Branches for so they are of his universal Goodness or Righteousness viz. his Justice properly so called and his Mercy The first is the Method of effecting the Universal Good by permission and in●licting of Evil. The last by bestowing of Good The good use of the former is as hath been said to engage us to all sincerity and purity of Heart when we approach him with our Prayers and Desires For he is so good to the World that when he sees fit he will also certainly punish wicked persons and sinners which may be sometimes by taking away what they have already received and enjoy but much more by the denial of their Petitions for any thing they want And so likewise God s●nercy engageth us to be good if we would have so great a favour from him as the granting our Petitions For God is no more merciful than he is just at random but so as is for the best government of the World or for the greatest good thereof and therefore he is principally so to those who are good to those who obey and serve him God indeed may sometimes see it good to bestow good things upon bad men but it is very little probable that he should give to a bad man any particular good thing because asked by him at any particular time Nay the contrary is far more probable viz. That he should deny and reject his petition as a sign of his just displeasure against him And this the consciences of wicked men very often let them know and make them afraid and ashamed to send up the least desire to God or if they do 't is with a strange faintness and indifferency as if they little hoped it should be accepted and return with success Moreover God's mercy as hath been said of his universal goodness or righteousness gives us particular assurance of his granting our desires for any thing that is good for us if it be just and consistent with or rather part of his universal Goodness or his goodness to the whole World That he is not tyrannical imperious cruel envious to the meanest of his creatures but that every thing which can and ought to be done shall be done for us Now the express belief hereof together with his infinite Wisdom and Power begets in us assured hope and trust for the granting our just Prayers and consequently enlivens and encourages them And in some cases God himself hath told us that it is just for him to hear our Prayers as when we pray for pardon of sin for Christ's sake upon our sincere repentance and for grace to repent Things of so great consequence to us that we need not be much solicitous concerning any other Where we have not the certain assurance of the justice of our desires we must only propose them with reference to the divine wisdom As it is in the case of Health Riches Honour Parts Gifts nay all instances of power or ability to do any thing whatever unless it can any where appear to us that God hath by Revelation or Reason in some particular cases promised them to us And here it may be useful and proper to reflect upon the several ways or instances of God's Mercy as they are also of his Power and Wisdom such as his making sustaining providing for all his Creatures in all respects his affording Means Helps and Assistances of being good and wise and keeping Men from being bad the external ones of Direction Instruction Example the internal of the immediate Influences of his Spirit upon Mens Understandings Consciences Affections Inclinations God's forbearance and long-suffering till Men do repent which may be more especially taken notice of And lastly all or any more particularly as occasion may be the Conveniencies Commodities good things of this Life as Health Strength Plenty good-Name Friends Deliverance from Evils or Dangers all which will still more evidently prove to us and cause us longer to attend to and more clearly to see and more sensibly and strongly to be affected with the divine Mercy and Bounty That indeed the Lord is good to all and his tender mercies are over all his works That he is merciful gracious long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth If God be not good whence are these and all other good things to the World Since God is infinitely powerful and knowing to do what he pleaseth what can be the cause besides his goodness that there is any thing in the World but the extreamest misery Hence consequently our Faith that is our Belief and Trust and then our Desires will be strengthened and emboldned Here too we may make a Reflection upon God's Veracity or his Goodness in performing his Promises which in the Old Testament is very often called by the Names of Faithfulness and Truth We may reflect generally upon God's Goodness in the performance of what he hath said and therefore of his Promises and more especially upon those Promises which concern Persons in our particular cases if it appear there are any he hath any way by Revelation or Reason made known and signified to us Here further we may call to mind the past Instances of God's Mercy and Bounty to us and principally those which are the most like that which we now petition for The Reason is because that which hath been done or come to pass hath more of probability that it may and will be done again than that which hath not Wherefore this also will confirm our Faith and consequently encourage our Desire or Prayer Of this there are many Examples in the Scripture especially in the Psalms But besides this more proper and pertinent use and effect of the express Acknowledgment and Recital of the Divine Perfections and Attributes in Prayer and some few others mentioned we may add here in short only that it causeth us to admire the Divine Perfections to honour and reverence God in the most real and serious manner and in the highest degree we are capable of to love him freely chearfully earnestly ardently with all our souls with all our might all the strength and vigour of our spirits all which is

a mind to know It is as a thing of great consequence to be advised here That those who educate and look after Children especially Mothers than which they cannot do a more tender Office of Love and Care do cause their Children after rising and before going to bed to utter some short Sentences of Petition and the Lord's Prayer and 't would do well to add the Paraphrase upon it in the Publick Catechism and to learn them betimes to acknowledge and worship their Maker And cannot then they do at least so much and it is like somewhat more themselves And might not all others find as much time as that will come to if they had a mind to it But this especially as I above said may they do whose affairs are known to be at certain times whose affairs are more in their disposal and less indispose them and such especially may they be whose affairs are most within doors and domestick who are not wearied and tired with bodily labour though persons oft do this too more than they need and when they need not What should hinder most persons every day as soon as they rise from retiring a little by themselves and also with their Families so many as their affairs will spare and let them not be spared without considerable necessity praying to God to keep them from all sin and danger that day and all their lives to give them grace and peace the good things of the Soul and of the Body the good things of this Life and that which is to come that they may live well discreetly innocently beneficiently profitably to their Neighbour pleasingly to God comfortably to themselves here with peace and well-grounded repose and joy being prepared for a more perfect and happy Life in Heaven Further that they may have their Sins pardoned true repentance for them instilled obedience and holy resolution excited and confirmed in them that they might love God be grateful to their Friends forbear and forgive and do good to their Enemies even to all encourage Virtue and Goodness check and restrain Vice and ill-doing prudently in their place and calling and with all sincerity for the good of the World That they might not that day be malicious uncharitable selfish proud ambitious envious revengeful vain-glorious wrathful sensual lascivious intemperate drunken prophane by lewd swearing irreverent towards God or commit any other sin they know themselves to be most particularly in danger of That they might be prospered in worldly affairs and delivered from the evils of Body Name Estate as shall seem most fit to God And so in like manner to give thanks for any of the good things they have received I say what should hinder most men generally in some length or other from doing this in the morning and so likewise again at night if they had a mind to it Why may we not apply our minds to these things in a morning first except upon an extraordinary occasion as well as to lascivious objects or worldly affairs or the contrivance it may be of some sin some evil action or other My voice shalt thou hear or hear thou in the morning O Lord in the morning will I direct my Prayer or my self unto thee c. And Evening and Morning and at Noon will I pray and cry aloud Psalm 5. 3. and Psalm 55. Verse 17. saith David These places indeed do not prove he did this always or constantly used these stated times but the first of them proves plainly at least that he did it in the morning sometimes and the second more probably Evening Morning and Noon may be also a synechdochical Expression for praying to God very frequently and at all times when he had occasion And so when it is said seven times a day I will praise thee may be meant only very often and that it is likely by Ejaculatory Praises too or that upon some days he might solemnly perform it just so many times And so that in the Thessalonians ist Epist 5 Chap. 17 Verse Pray without ceasing 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is either meant of Praying for every kind of thing as it follows in the next Verse in every thing give thanks And Philip. 4. Verse 6. In every thing c. or praying very frequently especially Ejaculatory Prayers or praying to the end of our Lives it is a Duty which will never here be needless or to be left off To do thus constantly and frequently would much keep men sober discreet consciencious upright the following day and consequently also fit them for God's Blessing in all their other affairs and consequently make them be joyous and chearful and benignly disposed whereas popping in now and then a Prayer especially before a Sacrament or on a Lord's day times which none that are so much engaged in worldly affairs should omit by any means will do much less good and the Influence soon wear out and be forgot and then most of the Interval they are as bad as ever and never the better Finally We may all take this advisement and remember it that whatever our affairs are and how much-soever they necessarily hinder our thus worshipping of God and this our Duty towards him yet we are to take care this be not with our consent that we are not content there with so as not to watch for an opportunity otherwise to dispose them and not to look upon it as an unhappiness let it not be want of good-will in us by no means but let us be so disposed that we would do it withal our heart and much oftner if we could we believing it manifestly our perfection to be more immediately employed in spiritual things and to converse with God And I little doubt but that he that is so disposed will soon find sometimes or other to perform this his reasonable Duty to God We are to do this too as often as other affairs which are not of greater concernment may permit And in this bodily Life in which we are supposing it ought to be maintained many called little affairs considered without their consequences considered with them are great matters As due times and qualities and quantities of meat drink habitation sleep c. for without these no living our bodies will not be upheld nor sit for Prayer nor any thing either spiritual or corporal to do it to any good purpose And we may contract by ill use of these or want of these many evil dispositions of mind as morosity d●●content too much serupulosity superstition suspicion of our selves and others a belief that every thing that is in us is bad never looking at any thing that is good in us or thinking it is not so fearfulness unactiveness peevishness so that it may be and full oft is of greater concernment to mind these ordinary affairs necessities or conveniencies of this bodily life than directly to pray And if we do all these things with discretion and that we may be more fitted to serve and please