The Third Rule

The Third Rule.

Be frequent enough, and yet very serious in your family prayers. Very shameful is their neglect, who have prayers in their families but once a day. The Apostle says (Colossians 4:2), Masters, continue in prayer; he speaks with a manifest allusion to the daily offering under the Law of old; which was both morning and evening. We should have morning prayers, and evening prayers, correspondent to the daily sacrifice. And hence, because the sacrifice was doubled on the Sabbath, I have known some pious people, pray four times every Lord's Day with their families. Be sure, twice a day is ordinarily the seldomest and slenderest repetition that our family prayers are to have.

O but we should therein stir up ourselves to take hold on God. When you kneel before the Lord, you should not be rash, hasty, sudden in it; you should not be sleightly in this great exercise of religion. Before we pray, we should think, think seriously, To whom am I to pray? And for what am I to pray? And how soon may I die, and my praying seasons all be over? And before we pray, we should read. Read seriously something of the things which are commanded you of God. The Scriptures are to accompany our prayers. It is said they are to dwell with us. The Bible is to be one of the house. When we betake ourselves to our prayers, we should not let the Bible say, I should have been as one of the family; pray, why was not I called in?