provide for them a portion in heaven, and, by falutary admonitions, to guard them against every thing that may deprive them of it. How abfurd is it to accuftom them to acquire worldly wealth, and to preserve it with a prudent œconomy, nay, perhaps with deteitable meannefs, while they are never informed of that one thing needful, the laying up treasure in heaven, which is the fecuring of everlasting riches.

What more forcibly commands regard and veneration from children; what fecures esteem, refpect, and fidelity, from fervants, more effectually, than to walk in our house with a perfect heart; to stimulate them to virtue by our own example, and to light the flame of devotion in their hearts, by fervent family prayer and thanksgiving. By fo doing, the hearts of our youth burn within them, warmed with a generous ardour for divine things. Their eyes wait upon us for inftruction. Their ears folicit our admonitions, tempered with wifdom, and ripened by experience. Their hearts tremble at our reproofs. Our fervants obey our commands with delight; and, if they are fufceptible of fine impreffions, they will rejoice that they are under the influence of our prayers, under the direction of our prudence, and under our roof as an affylum of heaven.

Would you therefore have your family acquainted with the principles of religion from their infancy, fet before them the practice

of

of it. Would you have them efteemed for their honefty, integrity, and piety, let your own conduct be their living monitor. Would you have them accounted wife, teach them THE FEAR OF GOD: This is the firft element and beginning of all wifdom. Would you with for happiness in your house, and fatisfaction, reflect on the pleasure a parent feels, when his family, along with himself, with one heart, and one voice, are imploring the fame bleffings, expreffing the fame thankfulness, for mercies already received, and praifing the fame God, who is the author of every good and perfect gift. Are you at pains to inftruct them in all that is praife-worthy, remember, that dry precepts will pall their minds; but a conftant practice, in the path of Chriftian duty, will inure them to action, and habit will become in them a fecond nature. Do your

defires for their welfare, fet your thoughts upon excurfions beyond the grave; do you with every one in your fmaller fociety, to join the grand affembly of the fpirits of just men made perfect, that is on high; you muft keep alive in them, by frequency in prayer, an animated piety. A confcientious discharge of family worship, creates an intense and real esteem for virtue; warms and elevates the affections to God in love and gratitude; draws down his best bleffings upon our offspring, and is a fure method to make us daily confole ourselves, that we are of the household of God, and

in due time will be called into his kingdom

and glory.

PUBLIC PRAYER.

ALTHOUGH private and family pray er are excellent means of improving our difpofitions, and cherishing virtue in ourfelves and others, and are exercises highly pleafing to God, and that draw down the bleffings of heaven; yet every well-thinking Chriftian will admit, that great and dif tinguished advantages are derived to men from the practice of public prayer.

The Church is the Houle of God; the place of his immediate refidence on earth. There it is the Father of all Mercies, when he showers down upon his earthly children any public bleffings, commands and expects us to make our public acknowledgments. There it is, that he liberally promifes to reward all thofe who publicly do homage to him, and who declare openly, in the face of the world, that they delight themselves in nothing fo much, as in promoting the glory of God, by regularly attending religious worship, in the places confecrated to the honour of his name. "If two of you," fays Chrift, .fhall agree on earth, as touching any thing that they fhall afk, it fhall be done for them of my Father who is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them *."

Matth. xviii. 19, 20.

Now,

Now, if any two, who are thus piously inclined to ask any thing of God, are so amply to meet with the accomplishment of their wishes, how much more may the multitude of devout worshippers expect that their united prayers will be regard

ed.

In our private houses, or our closets, few befides ourselves are benefited with what we do. In public worship, we give an open and decided teftimony of our piety. By our example, we influence others to a regard to facred and divine things. As in war, the bravery and courage of a few, have an effect upon the multitude of embattled legions, where it is feen, that the gallantry of active leaders, infpires the ardour of victory to every individual, till it enflames every rank and every company, and courage breathes throughout the numerous hoft; fo the force of example is most efficaciously felt among those who are accustomed to meet together in the house of God, the ardent flame of piety catches from foul to foul. By public prayer, piety displays openly her majestic charms. commanding voice is heard amidst the aw-ful affembly of heaven's collected children. Her prayers arife to heaven a mighty cloud of incenfe. The individual sparks of pure devotion, are united to a noble flame of generous worship. The folemnity of the place, the multitude of petitioners, the magnitude of the bleflings implored, create

Her

the

the strongest and most lively impreffions of devotion in the mind that poffibly can be imagined. The foul is overawed into ferious contemplation, its faculties are exercifed in holy and pious refolutions of adherence to virtue. Its affections are ftimulated, by the devotion of others, to rife to fublimity in adoration. The promises of amendment of life and converfation, here become more binding, folemn and facred, by being made publicly in the fight of God, and in the prefence of fo many, and in concert with fuch a venerable affemblage of devout witnesses.

In the Church, the beauty of holiness is openly beheld; there our light shines confpicuous before men, and our profeffion of Christianity, together with our future hopes, are openly avowed. There, as good members of the community to which we belong, we folicit the favour of the Almighty, in promoting the fpiritual interests of the Church univerfal. There we entreat him to avert deserved judgments from the nation to which we belong. We there beg for bleffings to defcend upon our rulers and magiftrates, upon our brethren and fellow Chriftians, whether they worship according to our received opinions, or otherwife. Thus, by public worthip, all denominations of men are difciplined to regard the general interests of fociety; to the love of their country; to refpect magisterial authority; to excrcife univerfal charity;

and