The excellency of holy courage in evil times by Jeremiah Burroughs

Fourthly, If God have raised your hearts, improve it, we have but a little time, and we have not many opportunities, and therefore we had not need lose any time then, it is not often we have abilities to do for God, and therefore when we have them we should improve them. As a Scholar that hath a weak Body, and is not always fitted for study, if he find himself fitted at any ⟨p. 126⟩time, he is loth to lose one hour of his study then: So with a Merchant or Mariner that lay long for a wind, when it does come, he is greedy of that opportunity: so we are fain to lie long for a wind, we see our duty, and are convinced of it, but we want the breathings, and assistance of Gods Spirit, and wait for a wind, if God do come in seasonably, we had need improve it; if we had improved all those times that were sit, what abundance might we have got by this time? When we are fit for outward employment, we may do more in one hour, than we could have done in ten hours before; at other times they do but bungle, and trouble themselves, and little good comes of it; but when they are fit for work, and the work goes off well, what encouragement is it? And so if we had taken all advantages that we found in our hearts, since we came to the knowledge of Gods ways, what abundance might we have done? Indeed in comparison of that which God is worthy of, though we had spent all our lives in his service, it would have been but little; but in comparison of that we have done, it might have been abundance.

Fourthly, If God have raised your hearts, improve it, we have but a little time, and we have not many opportunities, and therefore we had not need lose any time then, it is not often we have abilities to do for God, and therefore when we have them we should improve them. As a Scholler that hath a weak Body, and is not alwaies fitted for study, if he find himself fitted at any ⟨p. 126⟩time, he is loth to lose one hour of his study then: So with a Merchant or Marriner that lay long for a wind, when it does come, he is greedy of that opportunity: so we are fain to lie long for a wind, we see our duty, and are convinced of it, but we want the breathings, and assistance of Gods Spirit, and wait for a wind, if God do come in seasonably, we had need improve it; if we had improved al those times that were sit, what abundance might we have got by this time? When we are fit for outward imployment, we may do more in one hour, than we could have done in ten hours before; at other times they do but bungle, and trouble themselves, and little good comes of it; but when they are fit for work, and the work goes off well, what encouragement is it? And so if we had taken all advantages that we found in our hearts, since we came to the knowledg of Gods waies, what abundance might we have done? Indeed in comparison of that which God is worthy of, though we had spent al our lives in his service, it would have been but little; but in comparison of that we have done, it might have been abundance.