Selected quad for the lemma: life_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
life_n	stretch_v	very_a	wither_a	20	3	15.9558	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A29703	The privie key of heaven, or, Twenty arguments for closet-prayer in a select discourse on that subject with the resolution of several considerable questions : the main objections also against closet-prayer are here answered ... with twenty special lessons ... that we are to learn by that severe rod, the pestilence that now rageth in the midst of us / by Thomas Brooks.	Brooks, Thomas, 1608-1680.	1665 (1665)	Wing B4961; ESTC R24146	207,234	605

with Hannah thou can'st but weep out a prayer or with Moses stammer out a prayer or with Hezekiah chatter out a prayer yet do as well as thou can'st and thou shalt find acceptance with God 2 Cor. 8. 12. For if there be first a willing mind it is accepted according to that a man hath and not according to that he hath not The Publicans prayer had not much Rhetorick or eloquence in it God be merciful to me a sinner and yet God accepted it He Luke 18. 13. prayed much though he spake little and God did not turn a deafe ear upon him That God that once accepted a handfull of meale Lev. 2. 1 2. Chap. 6. 15. Luke 21 3. for a sacrifice and a gripe of Goats hair for an oblation and the poor widows two mites as if they had been two millions will certainly accept of what thou art able to do though thou dost fall short yea much short of what thou oughtest to doe Lord saith Luther thou commandest me to pray I cannot pray as I would yet I will obey for though my prayer be not acceptable yet thine own commandement is acceptable to thee If weak Christians would but put forth in prayer that little strength they have God would quickly renew their spiritual strength he would certainly carry them on from strength to strength he would Isa 49. 29 30 31. Psal 84. 7. still by secret assistances and secret influences help them on in their heavenly trade As a loving indulgent Father will take his little Child in his armes and carry him on in his way home ward when his strength begins to fail him and he can walk no further and the way proves dirty slippery or uneven So doth God by his Hos 11. 3. I taught Ephram also to go as a nurse doth the infant taking them by their arm When Gods poor Children come to a fowl way or a rough place he takes them up in his own arms and helps them over the quagmire of Crosses and the difficulties of duties and over all that straitness and narrowness and weakness o● spirit that doth attend them in their closet performances 'T is observable that when the King of Israel was to shoot the Arrow 2 Kings 13. 16. he did put his hand upon the Bow and Elisha did put his hand upon the Kings hand So when we go into our Closets we are to put up our hand and then the Spirit of God likewise will put his hand upon our hand he will put his strength to our streng●h or rather to our weakness Rom. 8. 26. Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities lifts with us or helpeth together The Greek word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doth properly signifie such a help as when another man of strength and ability steppeth in to sustain the burden that lieth upon our shoulders be it a logg or a piece of timber setting his shoulders under it to lift up and bear part of it with us or to help us as the nurse helpeth her little child upholding it by the sleeve When a poor Christian sets himself to closet prayer or to mourn or to believe or to obey c. then the Spirit comes in with new help and new influences and new assistances and so carryes him on in all these noble services That child that doth but stammer at first in time will speak plainly and fluently O how many Christians are there that now can pray with much freedom liberty and fluency who at first could only sigh out a prayer or stammer out a prayer or weep out a prayer Thou saiest thou canst not pray but didst thou but stir up thy self to obey that command Matth. 6. 6. as well as thou canst thou dost not know but that a power may go forth with the command that may enable thee to act suitable to the command In Matth 9. 1 9. Christ bid the Palsie man rise and walk Take up thy bed and go unto thine house The Palsie man might have objected Alas I am carried by four I am not able to stir a limb much less to rise but least of all to take up my bed and walk c. Oh but he rouseth up himself as well as he could and a power went forth with the command that enabled him to do what was commanded So Matth. 12. 10 14 There was a poor man that had a withered hand and Christ commands him to stretch forth his hand he might have replied My hand is withered and if I might have as many worlds as there be men in the world to stretch it forth I could not stretch it forth yea if my very life if my very salvation did lie upon stretching forth my withered arm I could not stretch it forth Oh but he throws by all such plea's and complies with Christ's command as well as he could and a power went forth and healed his hand O sirs if you would but pray in your closets as well as you can you do not know but that such power and virtue might flow from Christ into your hearts as might carry you on in your closet duties beyond expectation even to admiration others have found it so and why not you why not you Well remember that God is no curious nor critical observer of the incongruous expressions that falls from his poor children when they are in their closet duties he is such a father as is very well pleased with the broken expressions and divine stammerings of his people when they are in a corner 'T is not a flood of words nor studied notions nor seraphical expressions nor elegant phrases in prayer that takes the ear or that delights the heart of God or that opens the gates of glory or that brings down the best of blessings upon the soul but uprightness holiness heavenlyness spiritualness and brokenness of heart these are the things that make a conquest upon God and that turns most to the souls account But Fifthly Thou sayst thou canst not pray but if thou art a child of God thou hast the Spirit of God and the Spirit of God is a Spirit of prayer and supplication That all the Children of God have the Spirit of God is most evident in the blessed Scriptures Take these for a taste Zach. 12. 10. I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and supplication Psal 51. 11. Take not thy holy Spirit from me Rom. 8. 15. Ye have received the spirit of Adoption whereby we cry Abba Father 1 Cor. 2. 12. We have received not the Spirit of the world but the spirit which is of God that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God 1 Thes 4. 8. Who hath given unto us his holy spirit 1 John 3. 2● Hereby we know that he abideth in us by the Spirit which he hath given us Chap. 4. 13. Hereby we know that we dwell in him and he in us because he hath

and his prevailing by praying Prayers and tears are not only very pleasing to God but also very prevalent with God And thus you see that this great instance of Jacob speaks out aloud the prevalency of private prayer See another instance of this in David Psal 6. 6 8 9. I am weary groanings all the night make I my bed to swim I water my couch with my tears These are all excessive figurative speeches to set forth the greatness of his sorrow and the multitude of his tears David in his retirement makes the place of his sin viz. his Bed to be the place of his repentance David sins privately upon his bed and David mourns privately upon his bed Every place which we have polluted by sin we should sanctifie and water with our tears Vers 8. Depart from me all ye workers of iniquity for the Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping As blood hath a voice and as the rod hath a voice so tears have a voice tears have tongues and tears can speak There is no noise to that that tears in secret make in the ears of God A prudent indulgent Father can better pick out the wants and necessities of his Children by their secret tears than by their loud complaints by their weeping than by their words and do you think that God can't do as much Tears are not alwayes Mutes Cry aloud saith one not with thy tongue but with thy eyes Lam. 2. 18. not with thy words but with thy tears for that is the prayer that maketh the most forcible entry into the ears of the great God of Heaven Penitent tears are undeniable Ambassadors that never return from the Throne of Grace without a gracious answer Tears are a kind of silent prayers which though they say nothing yet they obtain pardon and though they plead not a mans cause yet they obtain mercy at the hands of God As you see in that great instance of Peter who though he said nothing that we read of yet weeping bitterly he obtained mercy Mat. 26. 75. I have read of Augustine who coming as a Visitant to the house of a sick man he saw the room full of friends and kindred who were all silent yet all weeping the Wife sobbing the Children sighing the Kinsfolk lamenting all mourning whereupon Augustine uttered this short ejaculatory Prayer Lord What prayer dost thou hear if not these Vers 9. The Lord hath heard my supplication the Lord will receive my prayer God sometimes answers his people before they pray Isa 65. 24. And it shall come to passe that before they call I will answer And sometimes while they are praying so it follows in the same verse And while they are yet speaking I will hear So Isa 30. 19. He will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry when he shall hear it he will answer thee And sometimes after they have prayed as the experiences of all Christians can testifie Sometimes God neither hears nor receives a prayer and this is the common case and lot of the wicked Prov. 1. 28. Job 27. 9. Isa 1. 15. Sometimes God hears the prayers of his people but doth not presently answer them as in that case of Paul 2 Cor. 12. 7 8 9. And sometimes God both hears and receives the prayers of his people as here he did Davids Now in this instance of David as in a glasse you may run and read the prevalency of private prayer and of secret tears You may take another instance of this in Jonah Jonah 2. 1 2 3 5 7 10. Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fishes belly and said I cried by reason of my affliction unto the Lord and he heard me out of the belly of Hell cried I and thou heardest my voice For thou had'st cast me into the deep into the midst of the seas and the floods compassed me about all thy billows and thy waves passed over me The waters compassed me about even to the soul the depth closed me round about the weeds were wrapt about my head When my soul fainted within me I remembred the Lord and my prayer came in unto thee into thy holy Temple And the Lord spake unto the fish and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land When Jonah was all alone and in the midst of many dangers and deaths when he was in the Whales belly yea in the belly of Hell so called because horrid and hideous deep and dismal yet then private prayer fetches him from thence Let a mans dangers be never so many nor never so great yet secret prayer hath a certain omnipotency in it that wil deliver him out of them all In multiplied afflictions private prayer is most prevalent with God In the very midst of drowning secret prayer will keep both head and heart above water Upon Jonahs private prayer God sends forth his Mandamus and the Fish serves Jonah for a ship to sail safe to shore When the case is even desperate yet then private prayer can do much with God Private prayer is of that power that it can open the doors of Leviathan as you see in this great instance which yet is reckoned as a thing not feasible Job 41. 14. Another instance of the prevalency of private prayer you have in that 2 Kings 4. 32 33 34 35. And when Elisha was come into the house behold the child was dead and laid upon his bed He went in therefore and shut the door upon them twain and prayer unto the Lord. Privacy is a good help to fervency in prayer And he went up and lay upon the child and put his mouth upon his mouth and his eyes upon his eyes and his hands upon his hands and he stretched himself upon the child and the flesh of the child waxed warm Then he returned and walked in the house to and fro and went up and stretched himself upon him and the child neesed seven times and the child opened his eyes Oh the power the prevalency the omnipotency of private prayer that raises the dead to Life And the same effect had the private prayer of Elijah in raising the widows Son of Zarephath to life 1 Kings 17. 18 ult The great prevalency of Moses his Private prayers you may read in the following Scriptures Num. 11. 1 2. And when the people complained it displeased the Lord and the Lord heard it and his anger was kindled and the fire of the Lord burnt among them and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the Camp And the people cried unto Moses and when Moses prayed unto the Lord the fire was quenched Moses by private prayer rules and over-rules with God he was so potent with God in private prayer that he could have what he would of God So Num. 21. 7 8 9. Psal 106. 23. Exo. 32. 9 10 11 12 13 14. Exo. 14. 15 16 17. The same you may see in Nehemiah Neh. 1. 11. compared with Neh. 2. 4 5