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spirit_n father_n holy_a see_v 7,891 5 3.8652 3 false
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A05259 The mothers blessing. Or The godly counsaile of a gentle-woman not long since deceased, left behind her for her children containing many good exhortations, and godly admonitions, profitable for all parents to leaue as a legacy to their children, but especially for those, who by reason of their young yeeres stand most in need of instruction. By Mris. Dorothy Leigh. Leigh, Dorothy. 1616 (1616) STC 15402; ESTC S113606 65,870 296

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applying the promises of God to himselfe hath great cause to feare that his heart is not true and right before God And therfore if thou canst not pray priuately or feelest thy selfe cold in prayer for to helpe thy selfe thus thou shalt do CHAP. 17. Helpes against the former lets EVery morning so soone as thou canst for the sooner the better before the world get hold on thee either with profit or pleasure for these are the diuels baytes or before thou feedest thy bodie for the body is a great deal more subiect to the Spirit when it is not pampered nor fed at it owne will then I say goe into some priuate place and fall downe on thy face as the Publican did and see thy selfe a farre off and say God bee mercifull to mee a sinner O Lord I acknowledge that I cannot pray pardon mee deare Father for Iesus Christs sake and quicken mee with thy holy Spirit giue me faith to call vpon thee and I beseech thee graciously to remēber thy promise which sayeth Come vnto me all yee that labour and be heauy laden and I will ease you Oh Lord I am loaden with my sinnes and against all reason they keep me from seeking pardon for them and grace to shunne them Good Father for Christs sake remooue my sins far from mee and giue me faith in thy Sonne which may assure mee that thou doest accept of me as of thy seruant in him And though I bee most vnworthy in my selfe yet by thy promises in Christ which shall neuer faile I pray thee accept mee Furthermore for the better stirring thee vp to pray reade some Chapter of the Testament as namely the 6. of Mathew or some other wherein thou mayest heare the promises of GOD in Christ to strengthen thy faith Take heede of idlenesse and slothfulnes which is a great hinderance I know that all sinnes are hinderances to prayer but idlenesse and following the world either for profite or pleasure are wonderfull mighty ones CHAP. 18. To pray often NEuer make account of thy selfe as a diligēt seruant of God if thou doest not twise a day at the least come priuately to God and acknowledge thy infimities and confesse that thou canst not pray and desire GOD to giue thee grace to doe it faithfully When thou feelest a motion to pray doe not ouer-slip it for any cause in the world for thou knowest not what graces or blessings GOD meanes to bestow vpon thee at that time for it is the Spirit of God calling thee and therefore finde no delayes but goe for the nature of man of it selfe will neuer be stirred to priuate prayer But howsoeuer thou doest be thou Master or bee thou seruant bee thou at home abroad or in what condition or place soeuer thou bee doe not sleepe at night till thou hast humbled thy selfe before God on thy knees in prayer for night is a time when the world leaues a man as it were for a while and when the world leaues him the diuell hath not so much power ouer him for the world is a great Instrument for the diuell to worke by Therefore when the world is asleepe as it were the diuels power is weakened and then bee sure thou prayest to God to deliuer thee from the diuell and from the world The world is like Pharaoh which by no meanes would suffer the children of Israel to goe to serue the Lord so doth the world if it know that thou goest to serue God it will bring thee backe againe if it bee possible and therefore it is best to pray priuatly though thou doe it but weakely for within a while this weake prayer wil strēgthen greatly thy faith Pray when the world is asleepe for assoone as it is awake it will cry and call on thee as Pharaoh did on the Israelites to attend it it will bring thee more worke still as hee did to them And as that Tyrant told the Israelites that they should goe and serue their God but when the time came hee would not let them but stil found imploimēt for them euen so will the world doe by any that will beleeue it it will promise At such a time thou shalt goe serue God and When such a thing is done thou shalt go pray but when the time commeth it will finde more worke for him still and will not let him goe Pharaoh is the very figure of the diuell and the diuell calleth himselfe the god of this world And if the diuell hath to do with this world as no doubt but hee hath then it is certaine that the world will neuer giue vs leaue to serue God Our owne nature is as the nature of the Israelites for they had rather haue tarried with Pharaoh who was the very image of the diuell and haue been his slaues stil then to haue gone thorow the red-sea and the wildernes to the promised land of Canaan which was the figure of heauen and euen so had wee rather bee slaues and drudges to the world which will take all from vs and cast vs to the Diuell as Pharaoh would haue done by the children of Israel then we will leaue the world and all his baites and goe to our God euery day and humble our selues at his foote and confesse our selues to bee weake in faith and acknowledge our frailtie and call earnestly for the helpe of God to ouercome the world for vs and to strengthen vs by his power against the diuell the world and our owne frailty and wicked fleshly lusts and yet except we doe call continually to God for his grace and helpe we can no more ouercome these then the children of Israel could ouercome Pharaoh or goe thorow the red sea without drowning for it was God that ouercame Pharaoh for them and also all their enemies deliuered them out of the red sea and so it must be God that must ouercome the Diuell and all thy enemies in the world and deliuer thee that thou sinke not in the sea of thy owne sinnes CHAP. 20. Not to neglect priuate Prayer WHerefore I desire you and euery one of yours to the worlds end that whatsoeuer seruice of God you omit you doe not neglect priuate prayer for many may heare the Word of God as Adam did and disobey it presently after some heare the Word of of God as Adam did after his fall and had rather bee further off as hee had then But priuate prayer is to offer thy selfe and thy seruice to God confessing thy own imperfections and to call to God for his assistance Now when a sinner by himselfe calleth his owne wayes to remembrance and confesseth his particular sinnes then he seeth what sinne his owne nature is most subiect vnto and prayeth earnestly against that sinne wherwith he is most infected and confesseth his owne weaknesse and wondreth at himselfe that hee is not able to ouercome that one sinne as well as some other sinnes of as great force The reason is this the
him till they feele the spirit of God working in their hearts and that will stirre them to continuall praier But the wicked want faith to goe in the name of Christ and this is the cause there are so many wicked praiers in the world for they that make them haue no faith in Christ and without him they haue no promise to be heard and therefore wanting faith to come to Christ they goe to the Saints to pray for them and yet the Saints did neuer promise them so to doe neither doe they know whether the Saints heare them or no. Againe some pray in latine when they doe not vnderderstand what they say nor what they pray for but the holy Ghost saith Pray with the spirit and pray with the vnderstanding also Why say they God knowes our harts we pray with the heart God knowes indeede that their hearts are vaine and foolish because they doe not pray with vnderstanding and therefore they haue no promise to be heard yet they will haue a paire of beades and tell how many prayers they say though they cannot tell what they say I dare vndertake a parret might pray as well they doe if it could speake all the words They pray while they liue that they may goe to purgatory and when they die they giue much goods to others to pray that they may come out of purgatorie againe these are most vaine praiers neuer warranted by the word of God They pray also to our Ladie to helpe them much as the Israelites praied to the Queene of heauen and as the Israelites praiers were accepted so are theirs But I pray God for Christs sake that you nor none of yours may make such praiers And I pray God to blesse his whole Church that their praiers may bee right and faithfull for prayer is the key which openeth vnto vertue Oh Lord let not our praiers be turned into sinne for then the gates of thy mercy shall bee shut against vs. Wherefore wee humbly beseech thee giue vs the spirit of truth that we may pray rightly which if we doe wee must needs search the scriptures see there how Christ teacheth his Disciples to pray When ye pray pray on this manner Our Father which art in heauen c. And whatsoeuer praier is not on this manner is wicked and vngodly And yet here you see there is neither praying to Saints nor Angels neither praying for the dead nor to the dead and therefore all such praiers are wicked and are the ouerthrow of those that vse them But Christ saith When thou prayest enter into thy chamber and when thou hast shut thy doore pray vnto thy father in secret and thy father which seeth in secret will reward thee openly vse no vaine repetitions as the heathen doe for they thinke to bee heard for their much babling but whatsoeuer yee aske the father in my name that will hee giue you Aske and you shall haue seeke and you shall finde knocke and it shal be opened vnto you If your children aske you bread will ye giue them a stone or if they aske you fish will you giue them a serpent If ye which are euill can giue your children good gifts how much more shall your heauenly father giue the holy Ghost vnto them that aske it And this was a great mercy in Christ not onely to bid vs pray but also to promise that whatsoeuer we aske the Father in his name wee should haue it and hee appealeth to our consciences how wee would deale with our children if they aske vs any thing and giueth vs warning wee should vse no vaine babbling and telleth vs wee should aske in one word the holie Ghost without the which wee are miserable wretches which if we haue we inioy all happines and peace for hee must bee our Comforter and bring vs vnto Christ and hee will bring vs vnto his Father Christ also willeth vs to aske the Spirit of truth because hee will inlighten vs and shew vs the way of all happinesse and because our faith should be strengthened to aske the holy Ghost hee also promised vs to send him to teach vs all things and bring all things to our remēbrance without which we are like a house which is built faire on the outside but there are no windowes to shew any light at all into it and then the house is good for nothing because there remaines nothing but darknes in it euen so darke is to earth of Adam which we are made of that though wee seeme neuer so faire on the outside yet if wee haue not the holy Ghost within vs we can neuer see to finde the way to Christ and then it is vnpossible to come vnto the Father and so consequently wee must needs perish for Christ saith No man commeth to the Father but by mee And heere you see that those that put their trust in Saints to pray for them haue no promise to be heard and it shewes that they are not inlightned by the holie Ghost to see the way to Christ and they themselues will confesse thet they dare not goe to Christ which sheweth that they haue no faith to beleeue his promises nor will to obey his Word For Christ saith Come vnto mee all yee that labour and are ladē I wil ease you Here you see that he leaues out none but cal's all sinners vnto him and promiseth that he will ease them I humbly beseech God to giue you and euerie of you to the worlds end grace to pray to God for the holy Ghost And I pray you let me request you to pray to God continually to inlighten you with the holie Spirit that the holie Ghost may bring you to Christ so Christ to bring you to his Father and then shall you raigne with them for euer and euer world without end Which God grant for Christs sake our only Mediatour and aduocate CHAP. 31. The benefit of the holy Ghost SEeing some pray not at all and others pray falsely doe yee often and earnestlie pray for the holie Ghost for I will tell you what hee will doe hee will inlighten you and vnite you to Christ and giue you grace to rule ouer all your affections and make you able to bee masters of your selues where on the contrarie side they which haue not the holie Ghost written within them are mastered and ruled by their owne filthy affections and so become seruants to them but if yee haue the holie Spirit yee shall bee able to say to your selues as the master saith to his seruants Thou shalt doe this and Thou shalt doe that Thou shalt not sweare nor blaspheme thy God Thou shalt not drinke and swill like a beast neither shalt thou come in companie among such c. Reason thus I will ouercome thee by Gods grace thou earthen potsheard which broughtest mee nothing and wouldst thou now confound all these excellent graces which it hath pleased the