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ther in relation to Almighty God, his service and glory; in relation to others, in all acts of charity and juftice; in relation to ourfelves, in improvements of knowledge, piety, and virtue. 2. Induftriously to lay hold of all thefe opportunities, and not to let them flip, but to apply fuitable actions to fuitable opportunities when they occur. 2. In relation to the Times of our lives; and fo we are faid to redeem our Time. 1. When we conftantly employ our Time, and leave as few vacuities and interftitia in it without employing it. The oppofite to this is idlenefs, or doing nothing. 2. When we employ our Time conftantly in doing fomething that is anfwerable to the value and usefulness of our Time. The oppofites to this are, first, the finful employment of our Time, which is indeed worse than idlenefs: Or, fecondly, the vain, and impertinent, and unprofitable employment of our Time, as Domitian did in the killing of flies. 3. When we employ our Time, not only in things profitable, but in fuch things as are of greatest use and importance; and therefore fuch employments as are of greatest importance and concernment ought to take up the greatest and most confiderable part of our Time; otherwise we are imprudent and irrational in the improvement or redemption of our Time. And therefore this redeeming of our Time is ordinarily called husbanding of our Time, in resemblance of the husbandman's proceeding with his ground. If the husbandman doth not at all till and fow his ground, but is idle; or if he takes much pains in tilling of his ground, and fows nothing but cockle and darnel, or fuch hurtful feeds; or if he fows not that which is hurtful, but fows light or unprofitable corn; or fows that ground with a more ignoble and unufeful grain, which would with more reafon and advantage be employed to a more noble grain, that would yield more profit; or if he fows a fuitable grain, but obferves not his feafon proper for it, that man is an ill husband of his ground: And he that with the like

intervals.

negligence

negligence or imprudence hufbands his Time, is an ill husband of his Time, and doth not redeem it as he is here directed. But of this more in the next.

III. How Time is to be redeemed. The particular methods of hufbanding of Time under both the former relations, viz. in relation to opportunity, and in relation to our Time of life, fhall be promifcuously fet down. Now the actions of our lives may be diftinguished into feveral kinds, and in relation to thofe feveral actions, will the employments of our Times be diverfified. 1. There are actions natural; fuch as are eating, drinking, fleep, motion, reft. 2. Actions civil; as provifion for families, bearing of public offices in times of peace or war; moderate recreations and divertisements; employments in civil vocations, as agriculture, mechanical trades, liberal profeffions. 3. Actions moral; whether relating to ourfelves, as fobriety, temperance, moderation, (which though they are rather habits than actions, and the actions of them rather confift in negatives than pofitives, yet I stile them actions) or relating to others, as acts of juftice, charity, compaffion, liberality. 4 Or laftly, actions religious, relating to Almighty God; as invocation, thanksgiving, inquiring into his works, will, obedience to his law and commands, obferving the folemn seasons of his worship and fervice, and which muft go through and give a tincture to all the reft; a habit of fear of him, love to him, humility and integrity of heart and foul before him; and in fome, a habit of religion towards God in his Son Jefus Chrift, which is the magnum oportet, the one thing neceffary, and over-weighs all the rest upon this account: 1. In refpect of the excellency and fovereignty of the object, Almighty God, to whom we owe our being, and the strength and flower of our fouls. 2. In refpect of the noblenefs of the end thereby, and therein to be attained; for whereas all the reft ferve only to the meridian of this life, the latter hath a profpect to an eternal life. 3. In refpect of the

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noblenefs

noblenefs of the habit itself, which hath an univerfal influence over all the rest of the before-mentioned relations, and advanceth and improveth, and ennobleth them. It would be too long to profecute the methods of redeeming the Time in the particular relation to all these actions in this fleet of paper, therefore in this purfuit of the manner of redeeming the Time, I fhall fet down only thefe generals.

1. We are to neglect no opportunity that occurs to do good; but 1. To watch all opportunities that offer themselves in order thereunto. 2. To feck for them, if they offer not themselves. 3. To use them, and not to let them flip.

2. In the coincidence of opportunities of feveral kinds, and fuiting to feveral actions, to give thofe the prelation that correfpond to the moft worthy actions; and in the coincidence of opportunities for actions of equal moment, to prefer fuch as are most rare, and probably of unlikelihood to occur again, before those that are under a probability of frequent occurrence.

3. We are to be very careful to leave no baulks or interfperfions of idlenefs in our lives. Thofe men that have most employment, and of the moft conftant nature, cannot choose but have certain interftitia between the varieties of bufinefs, which may be fitted with employments fuitable to their length or qualities; and it becomes a good hufband of his Time, to have fome defignations and deftinations of bufineffes that may be fuitableto the nature, quality, feafons, and mora3 of those vacant interftitia. An induftrious husbandman, tradefman, fcholar, will never want business fitted for occafional vacancies and horæ fubfeciva4. Gellius' Noctes Attice have left us an experiment of it. And a Chriftian, even as fuch, hath ready employment for occafional interftices, reading, praying; the crumbs and fragments of Time would be furnished with their fuitable employments; 'tis precious, and therefore let none of it be loft.

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* scatterings. 9 occasions. 4 leisure hours.
4. Much

4. Much Time might be faved and redeemed in retrenching the unneceffary expences thereof in our ordinary fleep, attiring and dreffing ourfelves, and the length of our meals, as breakfasts, dinners, fuppers; which efpecially in this latter age, and among people of the better fort, are protracted to an immoderate and exceffive length. There is little lefs than ten or twelve hours every day spent in these refections and their appendencies, which might be fairly reduced to much lefs.

5. Take heed of entertaining vain thoughts, which are a very great confumption of Time, and are very incident to melancholy and fanciful perfons, whom I have known to fit the greatest part of feveral days in projecting what they would do if they had such estates, honours or places, and fuch kind of unprofitable and vain meditations; which humour is much improved in them that lie long in bed in a morning.

6. Beware of too much recreation. Some bodily exercife is neceffary, for fedentary men especially; but let it not be too frequent, nor too long. Gaming, taverns, and plays, as they are pernicious, and corrupt youth; fo if they had no other fault, yet they are justly to be declined in refpect of their exceffive expence of time, and habituating men to idleness and vain thoughts, and disturbing paflions and fymptoms when they are paft, as well as while they are ufed. Let no recreations of any long continuance be used in the morning, for they hazard the lofs or difcompofure of the whole day

after.

7. Vifits made or received, are for the most part an intolerable confumption of time, unless prudently ordered; and they are for the moft part fpent in vain and impertinent difcourfes. 1. Let them not be ufed in the morning. 2. If the vifits be made to, or by perfons of impertinence, let them be fhort, and at fuch times as may be beft fpared from what is more ufeful or neceffary, viz. at meals, or prefently after. S. But if the perfons to be vifited, are men of wisdom, learning too much indulged by.

' refreshments.

or eminence of parts, the vifits may be longer, but yet fo as the time may be profitably spent in useful difcourse, which carries with it as well profit and advantage as civility and refpect.

8. Be obftinately conftant to your devotions at certain fet times, and be sure to spend the Lord's day entirely in those religious duties proper for it; and let nothing but an inevitable neceflity divert you from it. For, 1. It is the best and most profitable spent time; it is in order to the great end of your being in this world. 2. It is in order to your everlasting happiness; in comparison of which, all other bufineffes of this life are idle and vain; it is that which will give you the greatest comfort in your life, in your fickness, in your death; and he is a fool that provides not for that which will most certainly come. 3. It is the most reasonable tribute imaginable unto that God, that lends you your Time, and you are bound to pay it under all the obligations of duty and gratitude: And, 4. It is that which will fanctify and profper all the reft of your Time, and your fecular employments. I am not apt to be fuperftitious, but this I have certainly and infallibly found to be true, that by my deportment in my duty towards God in the times devoted to his service, especially on the Lord's Day, I could make a certain conjecture of my fuccefs in my fecular occafions the reft of the week after: If I were loofe and negligent in the former, the latter never fucceeded well; if ftrict, and confcientious, and watchful in the former, I was fuccessful and profperous in the latter 1.

9. Be induftrious and faithful in your calling. The merciful God hath not only indulged unto us a far greater portion of Time for our ordinary occafions, than he hath referved to himself, but alfo enjoins and requires our industry and diligence in it. And remember that you obferve that induftry and diligence, not only as civil means to acquire a competency for

This remark cannot be too strongly recommended to the notice of the man of business.

yourself

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