Second Saturday in Lent.

PATIENCE UNDER SICKNESS.

PASSAGE FROM HOLY SCRIPTURE SHEWING AN EXAMPLE OF PATIENCE.

"AND Satan answered the Lord, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life. But put forth Thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse Thee to Thy face.

"And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold he is in thine hand; but save his life.

"So went Satan forth from the presence of the Lord, and smote Job with sore boils, from the sole of his foot unto his crown. And he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal; and he sat down among the ashes.

"Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thy integrity? Curse God and die.

"But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What! shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?

"In all this did not Job sin with his lips.

"Now when Job's three friends heard of this evil that was come upon him, they came every one from his own place; for they had made an appointment togther, to come to mourn with him, and to comfort

PASSAGE SHEWING THE WOE OF IMPATIENCE.

“And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast, and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues from pain, and blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains, and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.”

RULES AGAINST IMPATIENCE IN SICKNESS.

"1. The fittest instrument of esteeming sickness easily tolerable is, to remember that which indeed makes it so; and that is, that God doth minister proper aids and supports to every one of His servants whom He visits with His rod. He knows our needs, He pities our sorrows, He relieves our miseries, He supports our weakness, He bids us ask for help, and He promises to give us all that, and He usually gives us more: and indeed it is observable, that no story tells of any godly man who, living in the fear of God, fell into a violent and unpardoned impatience in his natural sickness, if he used those meansw hich God and His holy Church have appointed.

"2. Prevent the violence and trouble of my spirit by an act of thanksgiving; for which, in the worst of sicknesses, thou canst not want cause, especially if thou rememberest that this pain is not an eternal pain. Bless God for that; and take heed also, lest you so order your affairs, that you pass from hence to an eternal sorrow. If that be hard, this will be intolerable; but as for the present evil, a few days will end it.

"3. Remember that thou art a man, and a Christian; as the covenant of nature hath made it necessary, so

the covenant of grace hath made it to be chosen by thee, to be a suffering person: either you must renounce your religion, or submit to the impositions of God, and thy portion of sufferings.

"4. Resolve to do as much as you can; for certain it is we can suffer very much if we list; and many men have afflicted themselves unreasonably by not being skilful to consider how much their strength and state would permit; and our flesh is nice and imperious, crafty to persuade reason that she hath more necessities than indeed belong to her, and that she demands nothing superfluous. Suffer as much in obedience to God, as you can suffer for necessity or passion, fear or desire.

"5. Propound to your eyes and heart the example of the Holy Jesus upon the cross; He endured more for thee than thou canst either for thyself or Him; and remember, that if we be put to suffer, and do suffer in a good cause, or in a good manner, so that in any sense our sufferings be conformable to His sufferings, or can be capable of being united to His, we shall reign together with Him. The highway of the cross, which the King of sufferings hath trodden before us, is the way to ease, to a kingdom, and to felicity.

"6. The very suffering is a title to an excellent inheritance; for God chastens every son whom He receives; and if we be not chastised, we are bastards, and not sons. And be confident, that although God often sends pardon without correction, yet He never sends correction without pardon, unless it be thy fault; and therefore take every or any affliction as an earnest-penny of thy pardon; and upon condition

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there may be peace with God, let anything be welcome that He can send as its instrument or condition.

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7. Use this as a punishment for thy sins; and so God intends it most commonly, that is certain; if therefore thou submittest to it, thou approvest of the divine judgment; and no man can have cause to complain of anything but himself, if he either believes God to be just, or himself to be a sinner; if he either thinks he hath deserved hell, or that this little may be a means to prevent the greater, and bring him to heaven.

"8. It may be that this may be the last instance, and the last opportunity, that God will give thee to exercise any virtue, to do Him any service, or thyself any advantage; be careful that thou losest not this; for to eternal ages this never shall return again.

"9. Or if thou, peradventure, shalt be restored to health, be careful that, in the day of thy thanksgiving, thou mayest not be ashamed of thyself, for having behaved thyself poorly and weakly upon thy bed.

"10. Few men are so sick, but they believe that they may recover; and we shall seldom see a man lie down with a perfect persuasion that it is his last hour; for many men have been sicker, and yet have recovered; but whether thou dost or no, thou hast a virtue to exercise, which may be a handmaid to thy patience. Ephraditus was sick,-sick unto death; and yet God had mercy upon him. And He hath done so to thousands, to whom He found it useful in the great order of things, and the events of universal providence.

"11. While we hear, or use, or think of these remedies, part of the sickness is gone away, and all of it is passing.

“12. But our patience will be better secured, if we consider that it is not violently tempted by the usual arrests of sickness; for patience is, with reason, demanded while the sickness is tolerable, that is, so long as the evil is not too great; but if it be also eligible, and have in it some degrees of good, our patience will have in it the less difficulty, and the greater necessity."

PRAYER.

Act of Commendation.

"I will seek unto God, and unto God will I commit my cause: Which doth great things and unsearchable, marvellous things without number. To set up on high those that be low; that those which mourn may be exalted to safety. So the poor have hope, and iniquity stoppeth her mouth.

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'Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore I will not despise the chastening of the Almighty for He maketh sore, and bindeth up: He woundeth, and His hands make whole. He shall deliver me in six troubles: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch me.

"I shall come to my grave in a full age, like as a shock of corn cometh in in his season."

PRAYER.

"Oh Lord, I remember Thee upon my bed, and meditate upon Thee in the night watches. Because Thou hast been my help, therefore under the shadow of Thy wings will I rejoice. My soul followeth hard after Thee; for Thy right hand hath upholden me. God restoreth my soul: Thou leadest me in the path of righteousness for Thy name sake. Yea, though I