The excellency of holy courage in evil times by Jeremiah Burroughs

1. Know a difficult work is a most honourable thing. As if a Captain have some great difficult work to do, that is of great consequence for the good of his country, ⟨p. 149⟩he will not call out every base fellow, but his prime ones, and they count it an honour to be called out. And so if a master of Defence have some difficult work to be done, he doth not call out the lowest in the School, but the chiefest, and it is an honour to him: and if he were called to do only ordinary things, and another were called to do great things, it would be a dishonour to him, and so it might rather be an affliction, for God to call you to do only ordinary things.

1. Know a difficult work is a most honorable thing. As if a Captain have some great difficult work to do, that is of great consequence for the good of his countrie, ⟨p. 149⟩he will not call out every base fellow, but his prime ones, and they count it an honour to be called out. And so if a master of Defence have some difficult work to be done, he doth not call out the lowest in the Schoole, but the chiefest, and it is an honor to him: and if he were called to do onely ordinarie things, and another were called to do great things, it would be a dishonor to him, and so it might rather be an affliction, for God to call you to do only ordinarie things.

2. It is a mighty opportunity for the exercise of Grace: now as the scripture saith, 1. Pet. 1.7. The trial of Grace is more precious than Gold. For the exercise of Grace, Grace it self is for exercise, and so the exercise is better than the grace, and if grace be precious in the habit, it is more precious in the exercise, you should prize one exercise of Grace more excellent then the whole world: People prize grace in the habits; Oh that God would bestow Grace upon them, but they do not set a price upon every gracious act, but come to this, to set a high price upon every act of Grace as well as the habit, and you will not complain of difficult works.