kind that befal man in the world, that befal all the kingdoms of the world, the four great monarchies of it, and all other fubordinate domnions; more x especially in all the mutations that befal the church of God in the world, and all men of all - fects and forts therein, but most especially ourselves. Labour to converfe with that infinite mind, wifdom and understanding that ordains and orders all the changes that befal yourselves. Now our converfing with God in the feveral changes that befal us in the world, is in general by endeavouring to serve the providence of God in every change. The promise of God ferves itself even upon wicked men, and upon all creatures that do leaft underftand it; but a godly man only knows how to ferve the providence of God in the things that befal him: he hath no private, selfish intereft of his own, but counts intereft chearfully and faithfully to ferve the will of God, to be what God would have him to be, to be without that which God would have 7 him to want, and to do what God would have him do. Every wicked foul in the world fets up fome trade for himself, and drives on fome particular self-intereft diftinct from God: but a godly foul counts it his greatest honour and happiness to be nothing in himself, nor for himself, but is wholly at the beck of his creator; and looking upon all his interest as being bound up in God, is folicitous for nothing else but to ferve the will of God in his generation fo the life of holy David is defcribed, Acts xiii. 36. David in his generation having ferved the will of God, i. e. the providence of God, fay the Dutch annotations, tranflating the words in this order. A good man eyeing nothing but the

great

great and blessed God in the world, and knowing that he was not made for himself, but for a higher good, is only ambitious to be subfervient to that infinite and fovereign being; herein imitating his bleffed Saviour, who lived not to do his own will, but the will of him that fent him, Johor 4-34. vi. 36. and again, to seek the glory of him that fent him; John vii. 18. In a word, he looks upon himself, not as in himself, but in God, and labours to become wholly God's, and to live in the world only an inftrument in the hands of him, that worked all things according to the counsel of his own will. That in general, for the converfing with God in all kind of changes in general. Now thefe changes. are reduced to two heads, profperity and adverfity. In the firft of these, it is our duty to converse with God, and not with the creature-comforts, which we do enjoy from him, as one might fhew at large. But I am to speak of the latter, and to fhew how we ought to converfe with God in that; but firft, I muft demonftrate, that it is our duty to do it; which was the third thing I promised, viz. To fhew, that it is the duty of God's people, to study to converfe with him aright in the way of his judgments, in a time of affliction. And here, I hope, I need not be at pains to prove by fcripture, that befides the general business of a Chriftian's life, fome particular and more efpecial behaviours are required of him in an afflicted ftate, all will grant it fure: Befides, by that time I fhall have declared what they are, I fhall not need to prove that they are. Therefore for the present I fhall content myself to give in three or four reasons of it, and so pass on. It is especially the duty of God's people to study

to

to converse with him aright in the time of afAlictions.

1. Because then efpecially it is hard to do it: We are then very apt to be taken off from it, therefore we fhould then especially labour to pursue it, and perform it: we are then in eminent danger to be taken off from it; and that by these means.

1. Our fenfes do fet us on work to converfe with outward means, which, whilft we attend upon too eagerly we neglect and forget God. This might appear by an induction of particular afflictions; but that would be too long. I will only inftance in one or two for explication. The fickness and painedness of the body, calls out the mind to feek after, and converfe with phyficians; bodily wants call us to feek after bodily supplies, and so all kind of diftreffes call out the foul to feek creature-relief. Call upon the fick and languishing patient to call upon, and hang upon divine help, to converfe with God: alas, he hath enough to do to attend upon his pains and pangs; tell him of ease, of recovery and he can hearken to you, for that is the news that he longs to hear. Call upon the poor pined beggar to feek relief of God, to converse with him: alas, he finds such a faintness in his limbs, fuch a gnawing of hunger, such a restlefs appetite within himself, that he can groan out nothing, but, Oh that one would give me bread to eat! In a word, the foul is more naturally addicted to mind its body to which it is joined, than the God that joined it to that body. Hence you may obferve two things by the way, viz.

The

I. The reason why fo few perfons repent in time of ficknefs; the fenfe of fickness drowns the fense of fin.

2. The reason why fo few poor people who are evermore conflicting with the neceffities of the body, do not at all mind the concernments of their fouls: the exigencies and ftraits of the body, do cry louder in their hearts than all the words and works of God. So that as health is the best time for repentance, so it seemeth that the best way to teach the poor, is to relieve them. 2. The corruptions of the heart are then the mot apt to make war against heaven. This is the opinion of him who knows the temper of man too well, Jobi 11. Put forth thine hand against him and he will curfe thee to thy face. And I am perfuaded that the devil acts much by this obfervation; which makes him endeavour all he can to make many good men poor, thinking thereby to make them lefs good; though the wife and merciful God doth wonderfully prevent him. For indeed the foul is fo naturally tender of the body, that it is loth God himself fhould touch it; if he do, it is ready to fret and ftorm, and fly in his face. Converse with God! faith the wicked king, Why this evil is from the Lord; what should I wait upon the Lord any longer! 2 King. vi. 33. There are many corruptions of the foul that are moft ready to clamour against God in the time of affliction, as fear, anger, unbelief, yea, and finful felf-love and creature-love, an affection that can never be taught to converse with God, yet will go crying after him, when he takes away any darling from it, as Phaltiel went crying after his wife; or rather, crying against him,

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as Micah cried against the men of Dan, faying, Ye have taken away my Gods, and are gone away, and what have I more? Judg. xviii. 24.

3. Temptations do then come ftrongest from without. Then it is the devil's time to play his game: what, put up this reproach! what, will you fit down with this lofs! up and revenge thyfelf. He that knows fo well the temper of man's heart fo ready to curfe God when he touches him, Job ii. 5, will not fail to touch the heart, and tempt it to curfe hine indeed, Job ii. 9. Curfe God and die.

The fecond reafon why we ought especially to study to converfe with God in the time of afflictions, is because that is a time wherein we are moft apt to think ourselves excufed from this duty, as if it were allowed us in our extremity to forget God, and mind ourselves only. And that not only in refpect of those bodily ftraits and diftreffes, which I named under the laft head, but in refpect of our own paffions. When the afflicting hand of God is upon us, preffing and grieving of us, and taking our beloved comforts from us, we are apt to indulge our own private and selfish paffions, care, fear, forrow, complainings, &c. Yea, to think we are in fome fenfe allowed to indulge them. How willingly do we fuffer ourselves, to be drawn into a converfe with ourselves, to be contracted as it were into ourselves, and fuffer ourselves to be carried down the ftream of our own paffions, which at other times we should think it were our duty to refift! even as the heart in naturals draws home to it in a time of danger, the blood that was difperfed abroad in the body, as it were to defend itfelf: fo the heart in morals gathers home its powers

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