SPIRITUAL PEACE AND COMFORT. 339 stand what I told you before, that as the beginning of grace is in your understanding, so the heart and life of it is in your will ; and the affections and passionate part are but the fruits and branches. If therefore your grace be weak, it is chiefly in an unwillingness to yield to Christ, and his word and Spirit. ' Now, how should an unwilling soul . be made willing? Why, thus : 1. Pray constantly, as you are able, for awilling mind, and yielding, inclinable heart to Christ. 2. Hear constantly those preachers that bend their doc- trine to inform your understanding of the great necessity and ex- cellency of Christ, and grace, andglory; and to persuade the will with the most forcible arguments. A persuading, quickening ministry, that helps to excite your graces, and draw upJour heart to Christ, is more useful than they that spend most of their time to persuade you of your sincerity, and give you comfort. 3. But especially lay out your thoughts more in the most serious consider- ations of those things which tend to breed and feed those particu- lar graces which you would have increased. Objects and moving reasons kept much upon the mind by, serious thoughts, are the great engine appointed both by nature and by grace, to turn about the soul of man. Thoughts are to your soul as taking in the air, and meat and drink, to your body. Objects considered do turn the soul into their own nature. Such as are the things that you most think and considerof, (I mean in pursuance of them,. such will you be yourself. Consideration, frequent serious considera- tion, is God's great instrument to convert the soul, and to confirm it; to get grace, and tokeep it, and increase it. Ifany soul perish for want of grace, it is ten to one it is mainly for want of frequent and serious consideration. That the most of us do languish under such weaknesses, and attain to small degrees of grace, is for want of sober, frequent consideration. We know not how great things this would do, ifit were but faithfullymanaged. This, then, is my advice : when you feel so great a want offaithand love, (for those be the main graces for trial and use,) that you doubt whether you have any or none, lay by those doubting thoughts awhile, and presently go and set yourself to consider of God's truth, good- ness, amiableness, and kind-heartedness to miserable, unworthy sinners'; think what he is in himself, and what he is to you, and what he hath done for you, and what he will do for you if you will but consent. And then think of the vanity ofall the childish pleasures of this world ; how soon and in how sad a case they will leave us ; and what silly, contemptible things they are, in compari- son of the everlasting glory of the saints ! By that time you have warmed your soul a little with such serious:thoughts, you will find your faith and love revive, andbegin to stir and workwithin you ; and then you will feel that you have faith and love. Only re-
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