ftill encouraged to increase the number of them.

Thirdly, A conftant performance of this duty of thanksgiving, will very much ferve to confirm and enlarge our love to God. When we shall frequently, twice a day at leaft, call to mind the numerous instances of God's mercy and loving-kindness towards us, we shall foon find what St. John faith to be true, that God is love; and the more firmly we are perfuaded of God's love to us, the more strong and vigorous will our love be to him. For we cannot help loving him, who, we ftedfastly believe, has always loved us with love unspeakable, and always ftudied our true good and intereft. Nature itself teaches us this leffon, that we should love those who love us; and therefore if we act agreeably to our natures, our love to God will most certainly flow from a true sense of his love to us. And this, a constant recollection of God's favours and benefits, and a hearty thanksgiving for them, will very strongly imprint upon our minds.

Fourthly and lastly, A frequent and regular performance of this duty, will be an excellent preparative for heaven. There many

many of our other duties will cease; reading will there be at an end, for we shall have no need of instruction, but shall be perfect in knowledge like God himself: There will be no need of self-examination; because, when we once come thither, we fhall always keep in one right and constant way: nor will confeffion of fins be needful there, where there is no fuch thing as fin; but praise and thanksgiving will be the work of eternity. Our tongues fhall never cease to tell of God's praise, and to fhew forth all his loving-kindnesses with gladnefs. There shall be no end of his praise and our thanks, but they shall be our hap

ру and delightful employment for ever and ever. So that, if we would train up our felves for heaven, we cannot take a better course, than frequently to accustom our felves to praise and thank God here on earth, and fo to begin that noble work here which will be carried on by us hereafter, though in a much more perfect manner, to all eternity. Praise the Lord therefore, O my foul, and offer up continual facrifices of thanksgiving to him here on earth, that thou may'ft be well tuned and VOL. III. fitted

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fitted for that blefs'd employment of the faints in heaven.

I have nothing more to add on this fubject, but only to inform the pious reader, that he will meet with excellent forms of thanksgiving, in that most admirable book which I have directed him to for his prayers, The Whole Duty of Man.

CHAP.

CHAP. VII.

Of MEDITATION.

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HAT fpare time you have left, after the performance of the foregoing duties, I would advise you to employ in religious meditation, that is, in thinking ferioufly upon fomething which may tend to your fpiritual good and edification.

Thus, for inftance, I would have you. every morning confider with your felf, how you are like to spend the following day; what company you fhall be engaged in; what business employed about; what temptations to fin you fhall moft probably meet with, and what opportunities of doing good may be in all likelihood offered to you and in a word, what evil you are most in danger of, and what good you are most likely to be capable of doing. And accordingly frame your defigns for the regulation of your life for that day;

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day; ftudy with your felf how you may beft avoid thofe evils which are most like

ly to befet you, and embrace those opportunities of doing good, which in all probability will be offered to you. Fore-arm your mind against the affaults of the approaching evil, and prepare it with greedinefs to lay hold on the good.

After this, if your time will give you leave, it will be useful for you to reflect upon the portion of fcripture that you have read that morning, to consider serioufly with your felf, whether you rightly understood what you read; and if you did, what you found in it that might serve either for inftruction or reproof to you, what encouragements to virtue and diffuafive from vice; and in fhort, what that may be any way of advantage to you in relation to your spiritual concerns. Confider alfo, how you have performed your other duties that morning; and wherein foever you find your felf to have been wanting, be sure to remember your failing, that fo you may correct it the next time.

At night thou may'ft call to mind the particular mercies of the day paft, and make these the subject of thy meditation :

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