A94156:1027
The Christian-man's calling: or, A treatise of making religion ones business. Wherein the nature…
The Christian-man's calling: or, A treatise of making religion ones business. Wherein the nature and necessity of it is discovered. : As also the Christian directed how he may perform it in [brace] religious duties, natural actions, his particular vocation, his family directions, and his own recreations. / By George Swinnock ...
London: printed for T.P., 1662
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Be thou a fruitful mother to conceive and bring forth new creatures, though thou conceivest with sorrow, and bringest forth with much pain, and thy labours at last should cost thee thy life.
I desire that I may be tenderly affected to all the souls in my charge, 5as knowing their worth, and believing of what concernment their unchangeable estates are in the other world; Lord what melting bowels should I have towards them, when I consider that every one of them must dye within a few days, and either live in Heaven, or fry in Hell to all eternity! My Saviour was a faithful and merciful High Priest; he had compassion on the multitude, when they had nothing to eat, and would not send them away empty, least they should faint in the wilderness. O that I had but that pity for the souls, which he had to the bodies of men! Nature will help me to pity a body without a soul; why should not grace teach me to pity a soul without a God? Lord when I behold wounded, bleeding, dying souls, let mine eyes affect my heart with sorrow, that both mine eyes and heart may be up to thee, with the greatest importunity for a blessing upon my most diligent endeavours for their recovery. Make me so tender and affectionate a ⟨p. 505⟩mother, that I may patiently bear with the frowardness, and willingly go through with the burden of instructing my children. Though others nurse children for the love of wages, let me nurse mine for the wages of love. Let all my actions towards them flow from sincere affection to them, and not only my counsel and comforts, but even my rod of reproof, like Jonathans, be dipped in this honey. When I am rebuking them cuttingly, and frighting them from sin with the fear of the unquenchable fire, let all my bitter pills be given in this sweet syrup of love, that they may know and acknowledge my greatest anger against their sins to proceed from a tender respect and love to their immortal souls.
I desire that I may be tenderly affected to all the souls in my charge,