sadness, and others when we are joyful in the Lord.

6. When we draw near the time of the great feasts, good exercises
should be renewed, and the prayers of holy men more fervently
besought. We ought to make our resolutions from one Feast to
another, as if each were the period of our departure from this
world, and of entering into the eternal feast. So ought we to
prepare ourselves earnestly at solemn seasons, and the more
solemnly to live, and to keep straightest watch upon each holy
observance, as though we were soon to receive the reward of our
labours at the hand of God.

7. And if this be deferred, let us believe ourselves to be as yet
ill-prepared, and unworthy as yet of the glory which shall be
revealed in us at the appointed season; and let us study to
prepare ourselves the better for our end. Blessed is that
servant, as the Evangelist Luke hath it, whom, when the Lord
cometh He shall find watching. Verily I say unto you He will
make him ruler over all that He hath.(2)

(1) Jeremiah x. 23. (2) Luke xii. 43, 44.


CHAPTER XX

Of the love of solitude and silence

Seek a suitable time for thy meditation, and think frequently of
the mercies of God to thee. Leave curious questions. Study such
matters as bring thee sorrow for sin rather than amusement. If