Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	christian_n	pray_v	prayer_n	1,383	5	6.4846	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A79291	Heart-salve for a wounded soul... Or meditations of comfort for the holy living, and happy dying Christian either in the depths of dark desertion, or in the heighth of heavens glorious union. The second edition, with an addition of an elegie upon an eminent occasion. By Tho. Calvert, minister of the gospel.	Calvert, Thomas, 1606-1679.	1675 (1675)	Wing C323A; ESTC R230932	68,723	208

may not be neglected carnal and sinful means may not be used Better use none but prayer then use all without prayer As carnal and evil helps are to be avoided so let this give an exhortation for direction to the Sovereign means of help in all our necessities and exigencies to betake us unto prayer that even for the time we pray will mitigate and alleviate the evil and in Heavens appointed time will obtain a removal of it The voice of a good heart is that of the Prophets Hos 6 1● Come let us return to the Lord for he hath torn and he will heal us c. Tender before God your troubled spirits lay before him all your sorrows he will be overcome by fervent prayer to lay unto them an equal yea a far more surpassing weight of mercies in giving a gracious deliverance The Prophet knew the vertue of prayer to be so powerful that he falls a wondring why God can be angry with his people that prays Psal 80.4 For how can God be angry with a ●ruly praying heart unless he will be angry with his own Spirit which teaches to pray yea which frames the Petitions his Children put up unto him God cannot be displeased and continue his wrath if there continue in me his Spirit of prayer for then there should be discord 'twixt God the Father and the Holy Spirit when yet they are but one God If we pleaded with the bare spirit of man our Weapons were but Vitrea tela Weapons of Glass Austin as the Father calls Hereticks Arguments quickly broken of no force but being assisted by the Spirit of Grace what shall stand in our way not tribulation not anguish not sorrow of minde not temptations of Devil not malice of men not the failings of our own hearts for he that hath given us his Son to intercede above and his Spirit to intercede below for us and in us how shall he not wtth them give us all things else especially things concerning his Service If God have any marks for his sheep sure this is one that they call upon God and are accustomed in all their needs to shew their rent fleeces their weakness their evils to the eye and ear of the great Shepherd of their Souls by prayer If there be and so carnally foolish as will cavil at and se●m this Heavenly habit of prayer saying Who can shew us any good that comes from it many pray but where is their Cross removed and blessings conferred by it Zcch 12.10 to such this good we can shew that though their deliverance do not appear yet this appears a signe of their adoption and which shall certainly bring them peace at the last when all carnal men shall be accursed Psal 14.4 who have carried this mark of Goats that they loved not to call upon God Besides this good shall certainly come their afflictions are sanctified to them by prayer and a sweet communion and fellowship is maintained 'twixt God and the Soul which is the only Heaven to be had upon earth Verse Here are two errors about prayer would be avoided The first of wicked men who despise small evils and use not to fly to the remedy of prayer but at some sore plunge and last pinch when the Boat has tried all other Oars and cannot be brought safe into the Haven It is not the custom of them that are unaccostomed to Godliness not to betake themselves to prayer till worldly helps are out of joynt and cannot help them Then when worldly means will not delp our decayed estate the last refuge is to call on God When the Apothecaries pots cannot draw them out of the bed of sickness after all prayer chuses God for the Physition Mark 5. When 12 years Physick will do no good then the diseased woman cares not to ask Christ his counsel When death or the utmost end of any evil approaches then doth the worldly spirit turn to God because he cannot work it out himself an evil ordering when God must be put in the second and last place Thus justly doth God suffer men to despise small Crosses till they by neglect of prayer grow vehement and immense like waters from the ankle to the chin Well worth St. Austine who In Confess lib. 9. when his teeth did but ake did flie unto prayer and desired them that were present with him to pray for him and with him whereas we only foolishly ungodlily do desire the prayers of others and fly to our own prayers only when evils are grown great and ripe Be our evils never so small yet they may grow greater unless we take prayer the remedy for prevention Second error is of Godly men who by the greatness of their sins or afflictions are kept and affrighted from prayer as if it were only able to remove lighter burdens nay rather they should be more diligent in prayer by how much more vehement their anguish is If your evil be so great why do you encrease it Expectation of deliverance from the most leaden and heaviest weights is not hopeless unless we be prayerless This is as if some silly one should argue Strong ropes and good tacklings firm Masts and whole Sails are profitable in a calm Sea but in a storm and violent tempest nothing will hold all will be broken with the Win●s yea ●●●●●●less if in our calm or evil●●●●●e● be profitable much more is it necessary when the winds blow the rain fall and the storms beat for this will underprop and stablish a Christian to keep him from falling But against prayer in those cases the Godly deeply afflicted have to shifts Fain would we pray 1 Shift but in our prayers we finde no delight no spiritual rellish in this duty and what shall we get in that if we go about it for which we are so unfit and indisposed so shall we rather provoke God than any way please him This is called driness and barrenness in spiritual exercises yet why should this hinder us be our hearts never so dry and barren this is the way to moisten them It may be through the trouble of our hearts we finde no delight in our devotions John 5. we know the Angel was in the Pool when the waters were stirred and troubled so though we think our troubled tumultuous thoughts unfit to meet and commune with God in prayer yet even then Gods Spirit can move in those troubled waters our unfitness cannot hinder the fitness of Gods Spirit whose best and most prevailing language is troublesome groans and sighs that cannot be exprest Rhm. 8. We may go to God unfit for prayer and yet be marvellously fitted by him that works upon hearts in the very act of prayer Yea surely a prayer which is put to God constrainedly not to please our selves for we find no tast pleasant in it but reemly to obey God because it is his will is very acceptable to him The more humble we are in