Most excellent pastoral direction from the George Swinnock (Works, vol 5, pp. 383-384):
I would advise thee every day to mind prayer, Scripture, watchfulness over thy heart, tongue, and actions, diligence in thy calling, faithfulness in thy relations, and to do good to others as thou hast opportunity.
Hereby thou wilt acknowledge thy dependence on, and subsistence by, the blessed God, to whom thou art bound by millions of obligations; hereby thou wilt procure his protection of thy person, provision for thy family, and benediction on thy calling, and all thine undertakings. And is this ill counsel, to direct thee to the way how to procure his favour, which can sweeten the bitterest condition, and turn the most loathsome prison into a lovely palace, and a hell of misery into a heaven of mercy?
Friend, do I advise thee for thy hurt, when I advise thee daily to walk and converse with the blessed and glorious God? Is not his law worth observing, his glory worth advancing, and his service worth minding, and his love worth accepting, when he can make thee miserable or happy with a word in an instant; when thou and all thou hast are in his hand every moment, to be disposed of for good or evil, altogether at his pleasure; when he can, with the breath of his nostrils, with the blast of his lips, with the glance of his eye, send thee to hell, where the worm never dieth, and the fire never goeth out?
Friend, consider it; is it not good advice to wish thee to sue and seek to him, to pray to and please him, upon whom thine unchangeable felicity or misery dependeth, and who shall judge thee to thine everlasting state of life or death? Is it not good to have the king thy friend? How many pleasures may he do thee? and how many favours may he bestow on thee? But how much better is it to have the King of kings thy friend? What pleasure is there which he cannot do thee? what favour which he cannot bestow on thee? He can give thee earth, heaven, riches, honours, pleasures, life, health, food, raiment, friends, relations, his day, his word, his ordinances, his love, his image, his peace, his joy, his Spirit, his Son, himself, every good, any good, all good.
Oh how blessed is he that hath this God!
Hereby thou wilt acknowledge thy dependence on, and subsistence by, the blessed God, to whom thou art bound by millions of obligations; hereby thou wilt procure his protection of thy person, provision for thy family, and benediction on thy calling, and all thine undertakings. And is this ill counsel, to direct thee to the way how to procure his favour, which can sweeten the bitterest condition, and turn the most loathsome prison into a lovely palace, and a hell of misery into a heaven of mercy?
Friend, do I advise thee for thy hurt, when I advise thee daily to walk and converse with the blessed and glorious God? Is not his law worth observing, his glory worth advancing, and his service worth minding, and his love worth accepting, when he can make thee miserable or happy with a word in an instant; when thou and all thou hast are in his hand every moment, to be disposed of for good or evil, altogether at his pleasure; when he can, with the breath of his nostrils, with the blast of his lips, with the glance of his eye, send thee to hell, where the worm never dieth, and the fire never goeth out?
Friend, consider it; is it not good advice to wish thee to sue and seek to him, to pray to and please him, upon whom thine unchangeable felicity or misery dependeth, and who shall judge thee to thine everlasting state of life or death? Is it not good to have the king thy friend? How many pleasures may he do thee? and how many favours may he bestow on thee? But how much better is it to have the King of kings thy friend? What pleasure is there which he cannot do thee? what favour which he cannot bestow on thee? He can give thee earth, heaven, riches, honours, pleasures, life, health, food, raiment, friends, relations, his day, his word, his ordinances, his love, his image, his peace, his joy, his Spirit, his Son, himself, every good, any good, all good.
Oh how blessed is he that hath this God!
