may speak wholly unto it It participates with that supreme good to which it is united It carries in it self a great deal of the life of God it is a part of Heaven and the business of the other World But besides the solace which is inseparable from it there is this remarkable property in the passion of love that it strangely disposes us to believe all the kind expressions of our friends and makes us easily receive whatever they say for certain truth Upon which account the love of God will incline us above all other things to entertain every thing that he shall communicate of his mind unto us And there is nothing so great nothing so magnificent declared in the Gospel of his Grace but he that loves God will presently believe it and lay it up in his heart as a singular expression of his divine favour For he feels by the power and force of this affection in his own heart what God is enclined to do for those whom he loves and takes delight in though it seem incredible to other Men. And therefore as it doth not pose his belief who loves God when he hears that the Word was made Flesh for the good of men that the fulness of the God-head dwelt bodily in Jesus that he dyed for sinners and lay'd down his life for the Redemption of Enemies So the Resurrection of Christ from the dead his Ascension to Heaven the exaltation of our Nature in his Person at Gods right hand the Glory and Majesty in which he is said to shine there and in which we are told we shall at last appear together with him are no riddles nor incredible things to him No Love sees him there preparing a place for us making all ready for the joyful Marriage to be celebrated in his glorious Kingdome coming in the Clouds of Heaven to call us up thither and to advance all his Subjects to reign as so many Kings together with him This makes a man presently understand how God should design to reward our poor endeavours those services to which we stand obliged though but weakly performed with an everlasting inheritance How he should compensate our present sufferings which are but for a moment and not worthy to be named with a far more exceeding Eternal weight of Glory Hyperbole's go down easily with this Mans Faith He can believe beyond them all and see what is far beyond that far more exceeding Eternal weight of Glory as the Apostles words import 2 Cor. 4.17 He is assured the love of Heaven will enkindle a new life in our dead ashes He beholds it sublimating this earth to an Heavenly state And can well conceive this thick Clay shining as the Sun and made like to the glorious Body of Christ This Soul also as pure as the light saluting its new born Body and possessed with a mighty love rejoycing for ever in Gods bounteous kindness to it All this it sees nay feels being already filled as St. Paul speaks with all the fulness of God For it feeling First what a vast difference there is between it self now and what it was before when it was pent up in scant and narrow affection to these petty goods here below makes no doubt there may be as wide a difference between what it shall be hereafter and what it is now It presently concludes that the same powerful goodness which roused up and called forth its sleepy thoughts and drowsie desires towards it self can still further awaken and raise all its faculties to a more quick and lively sense or call forth some hidden power and vertue in the Soul which hath as yet no more appeared than those motions which now it feeles did before it was touched by his Almighty hand And Secondly finding its own nature by this touch of the Divine Love made so free and benign so abundant and overflowing in kind affection to others so open-hearted and gracious it concludes that the Almighty goodness not only can but will do more for it and confidently expects to be lifted up to an higher state of bliss proportionable to the superabundant kindness of that most excellent Nature which hath produced already such good inclinations in it It is impossible for a Man to be under the power of love to feel the huge force of its flames to perceive of what a spreading and communicative Nature it is and not conceive very magnificently of the bounty of God and have a faith in him as large and capacious as his love Love God therefore My Friend as much as ever you can with the greatest passion and most ardent affection and you shall find Heaven coming apace into you and taste the good things of the promised World to come You shall not only guess at your future state and make conjectures about it but in some measure know and feel the all-filling joy of our Lord and possess that quiet tranquillity and peace which passeth all understanding For this Divine love is the right sense whereby Heavenly things are apprehended It is that which fits the mind rightly to understand and the will firmly to believe those great and transcendent things which the Scripture reports as the portion of the Saints in light It gives us a sight of things as much differing from all other which we have meerly by dry reasoning and which we spin out by thoughtful Discourses as the sight of a great beauty before our Eyes differs from the description of it which we read in a Book or as the warmth of fire on the hearth doth from that we see in a Picture which cannot loosen and inliven our stark and benummed Joynts And if you would love God I have told you the ready way to it which is by preserving in your mind a constant and lively sense of his infinite love and good will already expressed to you for this will naturally and easily produce a reciprocal love to him and that will make you look for more of his mercy even to Eternal Life This you understand so well that I shall not say a word to you more about it but proceed to the next when I have left a few words with you to say to God A PRAYER O God how great is thy love how excellent is thy loving kindness towards us thy unworthy Creatures To whom thou takest such pleasure in communicating thy blessings that thou dost not stay till we ask them of thee but pourest them down plentifully before and beyond all our desires O the inconceivable depth of that love from whence thy Son Jesus was sent to dwell among us who hath done so much for us that he hath left us nothing to do but to consider and lay to heart thy love which hath so marvelously abounded towards us For all things I know are easie and pleasant to those that love Thee Great Peace have they that love thy Law and nothing shall offend them O possess this heart which opens it self to thy gracious influences
with such a mighty love to thee as may set Thee alway before me and carry forth my Soul in ardent desires after thee and fill me with an humble confidence in thee and make me watchful active and zealous in my duty and never suffer me to distrust thy pitty and indulgence when I unwillingly offend thee and assure me of thy kind intentions in all the cross accidents of this life which are most offensive to me I doubt not O Lord of a power from above continually to attend me now that I feel thy love so strong and powerful in me I believe thou wilt do more for me both here and eternally than heart can conceive O how great things hast thou laid up for those that fear thee O the heighth of that joy which thou hast set before us to encourage us in our Christian race O the comfort of those gracious words which promise us after our short pains and trouble here a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory How pleasant is it to wait for thy Son Jesus from Heaven to give a Crown of righteousness to me and to all those that love his appearing Preserve I beseech thee this holy love and faith most fresh and lively in my heart to my great increase in all the fruits of righteousness which are by Christ Jesus unto thy glory and praise Maintain in me such chearful thoughts of thee that Religion may be my delight as much as it is my duty and I may alway approach unto Thee with a joyful heart being glad to leave the company of all other things to go to thee my God my exceeding joy Reconcile me so perfectly to every other part of my Christian duty that all the actions of an holy life may be but so many motions of hearty love to thee and I may so feel the ease and satisfaction of all well doing as to love and delight the more in thee whose wayes are wayes of pleasantness and all whose paths are Peace I am sensible of the uncertainty of all things else but only of thy love which will inspire me I hope to behave my self worthy of the greatness of it in every state and condition of life O that in prosperity I may think I have an opportunity to show how much I love Thee above the World by exercising humility heavenly-mindedness charity temperance and purity and in adversity how much I love thee more than my self by expressing all patience meekness forgiveness of others chearful submission to Thee and confidence in Thee with thankfulness for all thy past and remaining mercies Be they always acknowledged and never forgotten by me For which end I again consecrate my Soul to be thy holy Temple wherein may dwell continually pious and religious thoughts devout Meditations of Thee and remembrance of thy loving kindness intire love to Thee sending up perpetual Hymnes of Praise and Thanksgiving together with the constant sacrifice of an humble and obedient heart That so I may be filled with the comfort and joy of the Holy Ghost at present and hereafter be admitted into the fellowship of Saints and Angels with them to rejoyce and praise Thee in fulness of love World without end Amen IV. BUT as I would have you exceedingly in love with Religion so I must advise you not to charge your self with too many or too long exercises of Devotion For Honey it self will cloy us and a perpetual scent of Roses may become offensive to us Observe therefore what you can do with ease and a pleasantness of Spirit And when you find your self to be free and forward then you may be the longer and more enlarged in your Devotions But when you are very heavy and straitned then it is not fit to tire your spirits and drag them along with you whither they have no strength to accompany you nor any disposition to comply with your desires Our Body is such a beast and sometimes so dull and restife that if we spur it on to a faster pace it not only quite tires but will have no list to travel any more Whereas if we bait it a while and suffer it to take some repast and give it some rest it will go along with us to the end of our Journey When our spirits are dull already we make them more dull by our restless importunity to do as we would have them As a Child you may have observed when he cannot think of his Lesson the more his Teacher chides and calls upon him the more blockishly he stands and the further it is beat out of his memory so it is very frequently with the natural spirits of every one of us They are so oppressed and stupid at certain seasons that if we labour to set them in motion it doth but dispose them the more to stand stock-still But if we let them alone and for that time leave them they will be like the same Child who in a short time comes to himself and is able to say his Lesson perfectly They will go whither we would have them and perhaps run before us We must do then with our selves as one that is weak and going up an high and steep Hill When he feels his Legs begin to fail him and complain that they are weary he rests a while and sits him down to recruit himself And it will not be long before he hear his mind calling on him to try if he hath not gathered some new strength with which he marches a little further according as it will carry him And if he hath any cordial spirits in his Pocket a little taste of them may much revive him in this languishing condition Yea the pleasant prospect of the Fields round about him and the various Objects that gratefully entertain his eyes if he cast them on every side will be a fit divertisement for his mind to turn it from thinking of his weariness Thus I say My Friend it is adviseable for you to do rest your self a while and make a pause when you perceive your spirits begin to flag Break your Devotions into little parts and take not the Journey you have set your self all at once When your mind tels you that now you are better able or prompts you to try your strength then up again and go forward And between whiles turn your mind aside to something or other that is wont to please you much Think of some good Friend of the many fair accommodations that God hath afforded you of the pleasant Meadows as I may call them and the still Waters by which he leads you or betake your self to some Divine promise and take a taste of the love of God contained therein which is as a Cordial to chear and refresh the Spirits or run to the extract or quintessence that you have drawn as I shall direct you anon out of former Meditations and some of these its possible may make you quite forget that you were faint and weary And truly for the most
Soul therefore I say again an unmoveable belief of Christs great and precious promises and present them to your heart that it may be affected with them and value them according to their worth Then you will not be unwilling to do nor backward to suffer any thing that he would have you This will give you a great spirit and courage and joy in both You will take a great pleasure in godliness which hath such a recompense of reward Nay all the afflictions of this present time will seem inconsiderable in compare with the glory that shall be revealed Can any heart think much to abstain a while from sinful pleasures when he believes nay tastes the pleasures he shall shortly enjoy at Gods right hand Will not any covetous desires be content to be denied when you see it is for a Kingdom and a Crown of Life Of what should a Soul be ambitious beside whose desires are pitcht upon so noble a good as honour glory and immortality with Christ Who would not watch and pray unweariedly that he may come to this Celestial Rest with the People of God Can there be any higher pleasure than to lift up our mind to our heavenly Country and to think of the happiness which there expects us In what can we better spend our time than in meditating of the great love of God which hath prepared such excellent things for those that love him It is a good thing sure to give thanks unto the Lord and to sing praises unto his high and holy Name There can be no more delicious life than this which will conclude in his everlasting praises And suppose we must sometime take up a cross where is the mischief of it what should render it intolerable if we look at Jesus who for the joy that was set before him endured the Cross and despising the shame is set down at the right hand of the Throne of God From thence he stretches forth his hands to call us there his Armes are open to embrace us and there he would gladly see us Out of that glorious place he holds forth a crown of life to us saying Follow me and let none of these things dismay you Behold the Majesty wherein I am enthroned see the glory to which I am promoted Do not faint in your mind nor be weary of well-doing but press on towards the mark for the prize of the high-calling of God in me your Saviour There is nothing sure can hinder us or pull us back unless we cease to look at Jesus and turn away our Eares from hearkning to his gracious voice For do you not see what power a worldly faith hath over Mens hearts How fast one rides to take possession of an Estate of which he hears he is left the Heir How another sailes through dreadful dangers because he believes he shall arrive at a rich Country which will send him home laden with precious Commodities at the last Why should we think then the Christian Faith is less powerful or fancy that we are in truth indued with it unless our belief of the other World have the same effects Let it lay its commands upon all the powers of our Soul and engage them to do their several works Let it excite our minds and our wills and our affections and our endeavours to a constant pursuit of these Heavenly enjoyments that we may know indeed that we believe to the saveing of the Soul Look upon that faith which was built on weaker grounds and lesser evidences and darker promises See how it wrought in Abraham Isaac and Jacob and in the rest of the ancient Patriarchs whose belief of the Word of God made them forsake their own Countries quit all their Possessions when he required it live as Pilgrims and strangers in the Earth and depend meerly on the love and care of his never failing providence By faith they slighted the pleasures of Kings Courts the Honour of a Throne and the Riches of Egypt By Faith they wrought Righteousness subdued Kingdomes stopped the mouths of Lyons indured all reproaches and afflictions would not accept of deliverance and life it self that they might obtain a better Resurrection Now since the Christian Belief relies upon better Promises a clearer Revelation and stronger grounds of hope by the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead what a shame will it be if we do nothing worthy the name of Men much less of the Disciples of Christ and of the Sons of God To what cause can it be imputed but because there is no Faith in the Earth or it rests only in the brain and floats in the imagination but never descends to touch the heart and affections Bring it down then My Friend and stir up your self to a serious and affectionate belief of the life to come Spare no pains to consider and lay to heart that which is the greatest comfort of your life all the glorious things which you read of in the Gospel of Gods grace which Christ hath sealed by his blood and God confirmed by his Resurrection and hath been attested by signs and wonders of the Holy Ghost and by the Life and Death of a number of great Souls who have followed Jesus even to his Cross and declared their belief of those things by sacrificing all that was dear unto them here to win his favour in another World Look often upon their constancy upon their zeal upon their contempt of Riches and Pleasures and Life it self when it came in competition with the will of Christ for whose sake they rejoyced that they were accounted worthy to suffer especially since he had assured them their present troubles should work for them a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory And then in imitation of them you will put on their resolution and lifting up your Eyes to Heaven will be moved to speak to this effect O blessed God how much am I beholden to thee that thou hast shewed me such things as these How much am I beholden to thee that thou hast inclined my heart to make them my choice I would not be as I was before for all the World Away you frivolous temptations you vain delights you unprofitable labours Never renew your importunities for I will not hearken I tell you I will not listen to you any more I am resolved to proceed in this holy course to the end of my days You will but make me meditate the more and pray the more and lay to heart the more the love of my God I shall but fix my Eyes the more stedfastly on that blessed place where Jesus my Saviour is at Gods right hand At his will I hold my riches my honours yea and my life also Let him dispose of them as he pleases And let it please the Lord of life and glory to accept of this most hearty oblation which I make of all I have unto him Let it please him to strengthen me in my holy resolutions to open my eyes that I
may still see more of that wonderful love which he hath discovered in his Gospel and to accompany me with his grace till I arrive at his heavenly Court O let his good Spirit breath upon me and carry away my Soul in holy desires towards him Let it guide my course through this troublesome Sea wherein I am tossed Let it shine upon me and prosper my endeavours Let it bring me safely to a quiet haven in Eternal Rest and Peace These pious aspirations you may still pursue at the end of these Meditations in some such Prayer as this A PRAYER I Praise Thee I magnify thy wise and mighty Goodness O Lord who hast made this great World the Heavens and the Earth with all things contained therein to the everlasting honour of thy Name I thank Thee with all my Soul for bringing me into it and for advancing me so much above the rest of thy Creatures here below that I see the glory of thy Majesty shining every where and hear thy Name proclaimed and praised by all thy works of wonder But above all I acknowledg thy bounty with the most admiring thoughts and the devoutest affections of my heart for sending Jesus Christ upon Earth to open unto us the Kingdom of Heaven and to show us the glories of another World O the exceeding greatness of that love which gave him to dye for us and rewarded all his sufferings with a blessed Resurrection and then translated him to Heaven and appointed Him Heir of all things and setled his Throne for ever and ever on the right hand of thy Majesty on high From thence he hath sent the Holy Ghost to be witness of the fulness of his Royal Power and Love and hath shown himself sometime in Majesty and Glory above the Sun when it shineth in its strength that we might hope in thee for the like Resurrection to a glorious immortality in the Heavens No tongue can utter nor heart conceive what Honour Glory and Peace what joy and gladness of heart thou hast prepared there for those that love Thee But blessed for ever blessed be the riches of thy grace whereby I understand so much as to feel most earnest longings in my Soul after a fuller sense of that which thou hast made me taste and relish beyond all the pleasures of this Life O raise and inlarge my Spirit unto clearer more comprehensive thoughts of that supreme blessedness Thou who entertainest all thy Creatures with so much liberality who causest thy Sun to shine upon the good and the bad and the showers of Heaven to fall on the just and the unjust deny not to satisfie the pious desires of a Soul in whom thou hast excited an ardent thirst after its proper and eternal good But inlighten the eyes of my understanding that I may know more and more what is the hope of thy Heavenly calling and what the riches of the glory of thy Inheritance in the Saints and what the exceeding greatness of thy power to us-ward who believe according to the working of thy mighty power which wrought in Christ when thou raisedst him from th dead and set him at thy own righâ— hand in the heavenly places O life up my mind to that high and holy place where thou dwellest and where Jesus is inthroned and where the Angels and Saints continually behold and praise with joyful hearts the Majesty of thy glory and where our Lord hath promised all the faithful shall live and reign with him for ever Help me to climb up daily by all thy Creatures on which thou hast set such marks of thy Greatness Wisdome and Goodness to the contemplation of that Celestial Bliss And possess me with such a constant sense and desire of it that nothing here may ingage my heart which will indispose me for the happy company and society of the blessed Assist me good Lord by such Meditations as these to discern more and more the incomparable and surpassing greatness of that felicity which thy Royal bounty will bestow upon our advanced spirits and bodies in the world of rewards and recompences Affect my heart more powerfully with it and fill me with love and joy unspeakable and full of glory when I turn my eyes towards it Stir me up thereby to prepare my self with diligence and care by a lively resemblance of the Lord Jesus for the day of his appearing and to wait with patience for that blessed Hope when I shall not see as now through a Glass darkly but face to face and be made compleatly like him by seeing him as he is Enable me always to live upon this Hope and according to it that growing in all goodness by a chearful obedience to his holy commands I may be found of him in peace and be so happy as to hear at last those gracious words of his Well done good and faithful Servant enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. Amen III. I Need say no more to excite one of your vertue to the frequent exercise of such Meditations as these which are no less delightful than they are useful Let me next unto this advise you to study the truest notions of God and of Religion the love of which is the way to that transcendent bliss and happiness of which I have spoken As you must believe things unseen and perswade your self thoroughly that they are so it is necessary you should inform your mind aright what they are And in particular look upon Religion as a most pleasant thing and represent it to your self with a face as fair and beautiful as you can If it seem cloudy dark and melancholy it will make you to be of the same complexion But if it have a lovely and chearful aspect it will encline you always to smile upon it The poor Norwegian whom stories tell of was afraid to touch Roses when he first saw them for fear they should burn his Fingers He much wondered to see that Trees as he thought should put forth flames and blossomes of Fire before which he held up his hands to warm himself not daring to approach any nearer But as he you may be sure was happily undeceived when he came not only to touch but likewise to smell those innocent Flowers which seemed to burn in his eyes so will it be with us when we come rightly to understand and feel the pleasure that Religion gives us which at first sight before we come acquainted with it looks as if it intended to make us Martyrs but not to crown us with any joys or contentments As the Martyr said of the real fire wherein he was covered that it seemed to him as if it were a Bed of Roses so shall we say of true Religion which we are afraid will scorch us and prove too hot for us Its flames are but the flames of love and it makes us not lye down in sorrow but in the most comfortable sense of the tender love of our dearest Lord. Think with your self therefore
of immoderate love of dying things to enjoy them innocently and chearfully to do good with them heartily and to envy no Man's greater prosperity to suffer evil and to take the loss of them patiently to admire that mercy which still prolongs so frail a life as mine is and especially to admire the gracious terms of thy holy Gospel which for our short labours or sufferings here hath promised us the reward of an endless life in a better place Dispose me likewise to be willing to leave this World and to be always in a readiness for my departure that I may never be surprised with sudden Death nor obey thy summons with an heavy heart but freely resign my spirit unto Thee who gavest it O how much do I desire the continuance of these holy thoughts and inclinations that so I may have such a love to this world as is consistent with my hope of Heaven and be so busied in earthly affairs that my heart may be there where my treasure is and be tyed to my friends in such affection that we may not be eternally divorced And the nearer I draw to that eternal World O that I may be the more pure and separated from all worldly mixtures and the clearer sight and prospect I may have of my happiness and attain the greater assurance of thy love and be the fuller of joy in hope of thy glory Pitty my present weakness increase my strength help me not only to resist but to overcome all temptations enable me to discharge the duties of my several relations prepare me for all varieties of conditions that in prosperity I may not forget Thee nor imagine in adversity that thou forgettest me but in all I may be the same and have the same thoughts of thee love to thee and delight in Thee till I come to an unchangeable goodness and happiness with the Lord Jesus Amen XVI BUT if you be so much discomposed at any time that you cannot get your thoughts close to this business nor find any relief in any of the foregoing counsels I must then in the last place send you to a never failing remedy which is to Exercise a great deal of patience towards your self I am so well assured of your goodness and that my judgment is not herein blinded by my affection to you that I dare conclude with this Advice Be content to be dull sometime and able to do nothing as you would and yet do not think the worse of your self for it But if it do stir up any suspicions in your mind of you do not know what fault yet never bluster at your self but with a calm and gentle spirit suffer this distemper Look upon your self as sick and think that it is not good now to stir any humours And therefore strive not too much neither with your self do not distrust this counsel when you are thus melancholy for that will but cast you more into it You will be the sooner eased if you do as well as you can and add not a greater load to your spirit by your own fretful thoughts at this untoward indisposition You must consider that our Bodies being a part of this World will be obnoxious to those changes which are in things adjacent to them And that your Soul being united to your Body cannot but feel its vicissitudes Just as when the House smoaks the Inhabitant is offended unless he can step out of Doors Consider also that the same work is not required of a weak and of a stronger Person The Nemalim and the Gemalim as the Jews speaks must not be alike loaded that is the Ants cannot carry such a Burden as the Camels You must thank God it is no worse with you and that you have not quite forgot Him Thank him I say that you have any use of patience and that you are not under an absolute stupidity Remember likewise that it will be better with you As long as there is the same Sun in Heaven the Clouds will be dispersed and we shall have fair days as well as foul and as long as our Lord lives and changes not there will be a brighter season and we shall be warm as well as cold Think likewise how unworthy the best of us is to live always under the Sun-beames And that as there are many Countrys more North 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 gland who in the depth of our Winter are in a long and dismal Night so there are many Souls who are in a colder case and more remote from the Sun of righteousness than yours is But however think that after you have done what you can it is the will of God that you should be as you are And if this dulness please him it need not displease you Remember also that he is not perfect in patience who can bear with others but not with himself And again that there is good reason you should bear with your self because accidentally this dulness will breed a greater activity when you come out of it Both out of justice that you may make some recompence for that drowsiness and out of gratitude to him by whose goodness you were delivered from it For Nature you know instructs us to be very kind to those who have helpt us ou◠of a very great distress and it is not easie to blot their readiness to relieve us out of our memories And besides it is manifest there are some kinds of dulness and indisposition which arise from the meer necessity of Nature With which we can no more reasonably quarrel than we do because it rains or snows when we would have it fair weather Can it be expected for instance that a Woman with Child should be so vigorous as she was wont She must be content perhaps to spend that time in vomiting which once she did in praying It must not put her to pain in this case that she cannot read or think so long or with so much delight or with such clearness of understanding as formerly she could but she must comply with her condition and considering no more can be done in such circumstances believe that God requires no more There is as much reason to be troubled because she hath not Wings to fly or cannot walk now as fast up her stairs as when she had no burden as to chide her self that she cannot be so earnest so long so chearful as formerly in the performance of Holy Duties There are many cases like to this in which there is no more caution necessary but to see that too much care of our ease and indulgence to our present infirmity which must at such a time be liberally allowed do not tempt us to be negligent in that which it is in our power to perform We may often retire to God in shorter thoughts and affectionate longings and pantings after him and thereby keeping our hearts in a glowing temper we may prevent that chilness and laziness which otherwise might creep upon us and make us imagine our selves less