Secondly, Make a speedy and a thorough1 improvement of all opportunities of grace and mercy, sleep not in Harvest time; trifle not away your Market hours, your golden seasons, you have much work to do in a short time; you have2 a God to honour, a Christ to rest on, a Race to run, a Crown to win, a Hell to escape, a Heaven to obtain; you have weak Graces to strengthen, and strong Corruptions to weaken; you have many Temptations to withstand, and Afflictions to bear; you have many Mercies to improve, and many Services to perform, &c. Therefore take hold on all opportunities and advantages, whereby you may be strengthened and bettered in your noble3 part. Take heed of crying cras, cras, tomorrow, tomorrow, when God saith, to day if you will hear my voice harden not your hearts. Manna must be gathered in the morning, and the orient pearl is generated of the ⟨image 8⟩morning dew. It is a very sad thing for a man to begin to die, before he begins to live. He that neglects a golden opportunity doth but create to himself a great deal of misery, as Saul, and many others, have found by sad experience. He that would to the purpose do a good action, must not neglect his season. The men of Issachar were4 famous in Davids account for wisdom, because they acted seasonably and opportunely. God will repute and write that man a wise man, who knows and observes his seasons of doing. Such there have been, who, by giving a glass of water opportunely, have obtained a Kingdom, as you may see in the story of Thaumastus and King Agrippa. 5Time, saith one, were a good commodity 6in hell, and the traffic of it most gainful, where for one day a man would give ten thousand worlds if he had them. One passing through the streets of Rome, and seeing many of the women playing and delighting themselves with Monkeys and Baboons, and such like things, asked whether they had no children to play and delight themselves with? So when men trifle away their precious ⟨image 8⟩time, and golden opportunities, playing, and toying with this vanity, and that, we may ask, whether these men have no God, no Christ, no Scripture, no Promises, no Blessed Experiences, no hopes of Heavens glories to delight and entertain themselves with?
Secondly, Make a speedy and a thorow1 improvement of all opportunities of grace and mercy, sleep not in Harvest time; trifle not away your Market hours, your golden seasons, you have much work to do in a short time; you have2 a God to honor, a Christ to rest on, a Race to run, a Crown to win, a Hell to escape, a Heaven to obtaine; you have weak Graces to strengthen, and strong Corruptions to weaken; you have many Temptations to withstand, and Afflictions to bear; you have many Mercies to improve, and many Services to perform, &c. Therefore take hold on all opportunities and advantages, whereby you may be strengthened and bettered in your noble3 part. Take heed of crying cras, cras, tomorrow, tomorrow, when God saith, to day if you will hear my voyce harden not your hearts. Manna must be gathered in the morning, and the orient pearle is generated of the ⟨image 8⟩morning dew. It is a very sad thing for a man to begin to die, before he begins to live. He that neglects a golden opportunity doth but create to himself a great deal of misery, as Saul, and many others, have found by sad experience. He that would to the purpose do a good action, must not neglect his season. The men of Issachar were4 famous in Davids account for wisdom, because they acted seasonably and opportunely. God will repute and write that man a wise man, who knows and observes his seasons of doing. Such there have been, who, by giving a glasse of water opportunely, have obtained a Kingdom, as you may see in the story of Thaumastus and King Agrippa. 5Time, saith one, were a good commodity 6in hell, and the traffick of it most gainful, where for one day a man would give ten thousand worlds if he had them. One passing thorow the streets of Rome, and seeing many of the women playing and delighting themselves with Monkies and Baboons, and such like things, asked whether they had no children to play and delight themselves with? So when men triffle away their precious ⟨image 8⟩time, and golden opportunities, playing, and toying with this vanity, and that, we may ask, whether these men have no God, no Christ, no Scripture, no Promises, no Blessed Experiences, no hopes of Heavens glories to delight and entertain themselves with?
- 1Bonus servatius facit bonum bonifacium.
- 2Petrach telleth of one who being invited to dinner the next day, answered, Ego à multis a•nis crastinum non habui, I have not had a morrow for this many years.
- 3Heb. 3-7, 8 A man, faith Luther, lives forty years before he knows himself a fool, and by that time he sees his folly▪ his life is ended, &c.
- 41 Chron. 12. 32
- 5Bernard.
- 6It was the commendations of blessed Hooper that he was spare of diet, sparer of words, and sparest of time,
