much of the Faults, Follies, Defects, Imperfections, and Blemishes of the Creature fo exceffively beloved; fùrvey all thefe at large, fet them in a clear Light, write them down for your frequent Review, fix them in your Memory, and dwell upon them. Never indulge yourfelf in thinking of the agreeable or tempting Qualities of it, at leaft without a due Guard and Balance on the other Side. This will help to wean the Heart by degrees.

4. Practife voluntary Self-denial, and abfent yourself both in Body and Mind from whatsoever you love to Excefs, as far as Duty permits. Set a Guard upon your Eyes and Ears, upon your Senfes and your Thoughts, and avoid every thing that would bring to your Mind the Object of your immoderate Love. This Direction, if well practifed, will by degrees introduce an Indifference and Moderation of Affection, when you find that you can live without the tempting Object.

5. Watch against too great a Relish of Delight in the Things you love exceffively, whether they be Meats, Drinks, Bufineffes,

Bufineffes, Recreations, Company, Children, Friends or Kindred; an Abatement of Pleasure will abate the Exceffes of Love.

6. Set up the Love of God fupreme in your Heart, and keep it fo. This Principle of divine Love will grow jealous if any meaner Love rife too high, and become its Rival, or make too near Approaches to its Seat and Throne. A fovereign Love to God will limit and moderate all inferior Love.

7. Confider that immoderate Love to any Creature fills the Heart with endless Anxieties and Vexations, with restless Jealoufies and Difquietudes about it; while the Soul is perpetually toft, as it were, on an Ocean of Hopes and Fears, rifing and finking with every Blaft of Wind. And then the Sorrow of parting with it is like tearing our Flefh from the Bones, or the rending afunder of the Heartftrings. What dreadful Preparations hath exceffive Love made for killing Heartakes, and overwhelming Agonies of Sorrow?

8. Remember that exceffive Love to the Creatures hath often provoked a jea

lous

lous God to embitter them to us terribly by remarkable Providences, or to cut them off fuddenly in his Anger. Our God is a jealous God, and he will deftroy his Rivals. The way to keep our Comforts, is to love them with Moderation.

9. Confider that the fewer ftrong Affections, and the lefs Engagements of Heart you have to mortal Creatures, the eafier will it be to leave this World, and enter into the World of Spirits. Death is far more painful and terrible to fuch a Soul which must not only leave the Body behind it, but a Multitude of other Things to which it is too fondly attached. We must all endure this parting Stroke: Let us endeavour then to make it as eafy as poffible, by keeping our Affections loose to all Things beneath God and Heaven.

SECT. XXI.

Rules to overcome unreasonable Fears.

FEAR is a powerful and useful Paf

fion, to guard us from Mischief and Mifery, to haften our avoidance of every Danger, to drive us to our Refuge, and

to

to restrain us from every Thing which has a Tendency to bring the Evil or Mischief upon us.

The Anger of God is the most proper Object of our Fear, as we are finful Creatures: Nor can Sinners fear the Anger of God too much, until they have complied with the appointed Methods of his Grace. There is alfo a Reverence and holy Fear due to the Majefty of God, even when we have obtained the most folid Hopes of his Mercy: We must always fear to fin against God, and keep up a holy Jealoufy of all Temptations to fin. All this is called Religious Fear.

There are feveral Things alfo in the Natural Life that we have just Reason to fear in fome degree; fuch as Lions, Bears, and other hurtful Animals; Men of Violence, Difeafes, and Death. And there are many Things in the moral and civil Life which become proper Objects for the Paffion of Fear, fuch as the Anger of our Parents and Superiors, and the Practice of those Things which expofe us to juft Infamy or Punishment among Men.

But

But the Fear which I fpeak of in this Place is an unjust and unreasonable Fear of any Creature whatsoever, or of any Occurrences of Life: It is a timorous Spirit, which fubjects the whole Nature to the Power and Tyranny of the Paffion of Fear, beyond all reasonable Grounds: As for Inftance, a Fear of being alone, or in the dark; a perpetual Fear of evil Accidents by Fire or Water, or wicked Men; a difquieting Fear of Ghofts and Apparitions; of little inconfiderable Animals, fuch as Spiders, Frogs, or Worms; unreasonable and anxious Fears of the Lofs of Eftate or Friends; Fear of Poverty or Calamity of any kind, whereby we are too often reftrained from our prefent Duty, and our Lives are made very uncomfortable. All manner of Fear becomes irregular when it rifes to an exceffive degree, and is fuperior to the Danger. Now to arm ourselves against this Tyrant-Paffion let us make ufe of the following Directions.

1. Abate your Love to your Flesh, and this mortal Life, and to all Things that belong to it; then you will not be so much afraid to lose them. Lay up

your