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THou shalt use these ejacula∣tions to en∣flame thy mind to the love of God: It is writ∣ten, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and all thy mind, & all thy strength. He that loveth not a∣bideth in death, Matth. 22.37. He who loveth
not his brother, 1. Joh. 3.19. how much more he that loveth not God? Thou therefore com∣mandest me to love, O good God, and threat∣nest death, eternall death, if I love thee not. Is it not torment enough not to love thee, or need we be tied by laws and threats to love thee? Am I so blind as not to know thy mani∣fold blessings and gra∣ces, and immense per∣fections? or rather am
I so stupid and sense∣lesse, that I have no heart to love thee, O thou infinite goodnesse: Thou bottomlesse sea of goodnesse! Thou im∣mense goodnesse it self! And now if love ought to be requited with lo∣ving again, what love is that which can equal∣lize thy love? Thou lovedst me from eter∣nity, before I was, or could gainsay thy love. Thou createdst soul & body and all things else,
which were nothing to thee, for my sake; and conservest them for me to this day. Thou hast given thy Angells charge over me, to keep me in my wayes, even then (ah wretch) when I am sinning against thee. Thou hast prepa∣red for me an exceeding great reward, and hast called me into thy grace that I might inherit it. And when I fell away so oft and lost thy love, yet didst thou call me
back again unto repen∣tance. The cogitation of this is pleasant to my soul: But, O far more sweet (O sweetest Sa∣viour) that thou should∣est daigne to become Man, to suffer so bitter and horrid things, and at last to die upon the Crosse for me; O cruell me! who crucified thee. But that which lies sweetest of all upon my soul, is, That when thou wert about to die, thou ordainest the Sacra∣ment
of thy precious Bo∣dy and Bloud, a wonder∣full token of thy love to∣wards me. And now to make amends for so great benefits, thou re∣quirest onely that I love thee again, O Love! exstasie of love! How doest thou deserve, O thou infinite goodnesse! to be loved of all and a∣bove all created things! So let me love thee therefore, O Jesus! Thou Saviour of lovers, and onely love of all that
are saved. Let the fire of thy love consume me quite, that so I may live and die for love of thy love, as thou vouchsa∣fedst to die for love of mine.
When thou hast thus blown this fire of Di∣vine Love, then let it break forth into these flames: O my God! my infinite goodnesse! I do love thee above all created beings: I love thee with all my heart, with all my mind, and
with all my strength, & am stedfastly purposed to keep all thy righte∣ous commandments, and to conform my self to thy most holy will. And why do I love thee thus? but because thou art infinitely more love∣ly then it is possible thou canst be loved of me: for thy unmeasu∣rable perfections sake, thy incomprehensible power, most unsearch∣able wisdome, for thy unbounded Holinesse
and goodnesse sake, viz. For thine own sake, O Father, Sonne and Ho∣ly Ghost, three persons and one God! I will love thee above all things, who art become all things to me.
2 Frequent this duty often, chiefly when any tentations befall thee; for it helps much thy perseverance in grace.
3 Often looking up towards heaven, thou shalt crave this excel∣lent gift of love to∣ward
God, with this short prayer: O Thou love, which art alwaies flaming and never ex∣stinct, my God Love in∣flame me with the fire of thy love. Ah! too late do I love thee. O Beauty so ancient and so fresh! too too late have I loved thee. Make me to know my self and to know thee, that so I may despise my self, and love thee.
4 Be glad whatsoe∣ver happens to thee, if
thou find that Gods providence would have it so. Reioyce though adversity and afflictions befall thee, and let righ∣teous Jobs song be thine, As the Lord pleased, so is it, Blessed be the Name of the Lord, Job 1.21.
5 Be sorry if any thing happen repugnant to the will of God; if any man sinne and of∣fend God, let this trou∣ble thee. And do thy endeavour to prevent
such deeds, and remove the offence when it is committed, if thou canst
6 If the devil tempt thee with any grievous temptation, pray thus: Thou permittest me to be tempted, O Lord, to try me whether I love thee or not; yet thou wilt not suffer me to be tempted above what I am able; I know that without thy grace, I should contemn thee, O thou universall good∣nesse! and to please that
enemy of Mankind, in∣curre eternall death for a momentany pleasure. But I have sworn and am stedfastly purposed to keep thy righteous judgements. Be thou my helper, O forsake me not, neither despise me.
7 When upon any occasion thou runnest into any danger of a mortall sinne, O let me be torn into a thousand pieces, and rent asunder (shalt thou say) rather
then preferre any thing before the love of God: often objecting to the devil that Christians sentence, I had rather die then be defiled.
8 But if thou chance to fall (wretch that thou art) make all haste to rise again; and by re∣newing thy first love, eschewing evil and do∣ing good, deferre not to reconcile thy self to God, through the me∣rits of Jesus.
9 Be sure thou com∣mit
not the least fault wittingly or willingly for the dearest friends sake: O rather let all friendship fall to the dust, then thy friendship with God should be en∣dangered.
10 Thou shalt pray for all men, and strive to obtain of God truly to know him, love him, worship him, and thou shalt endeavour by all means truly to bring all to the knowledge of him, to love him, and
to worship him.
11 Fail not to be a frequent partaker of his holy Communion, that so thou mayst cleave nearer to him by faith, and more sweetly con∣verse and delight thy self with him in one Spirit.
12 In every creature thou shalt contemplate God, who in the least things is most great. Thou shalt love him in them, and them for his sake. Seest thou the
Sunne? It is God (say) that sendeth forth these beauteous beams, who is the Fountain of all beauty himself, and ten thousand times brighter then the Sun. Is meat set before thee? say, God hath prepared a table for me. And so forth of the rest.