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wear it joyfully, as Thy Livery, and as a Badge of my being thy Care.

Amen.

Again he Praifes God for that which few in this World do think a Blessing, but to too many is one of the moft Afflicting Effects of Sickness.

'I Praife thee, O my Saviour, (fays he,) for thefe pale Looks, this wan Vifage, and for giving me fuch a Face as is not capable to . Rival Thee nor Rob Thee of any Heart of thy Servants, which I fear the naughtiness of my own Heart if thou didst give me other 'Looks, wou'd be apt to abufe to this End: I dare not be fecure of my felf; I willingly accufe my felf to Thee, my Lord, and rejoice and blefs Thee in that thou doft put out of my power to be treacherous to

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In the fame place he purfues his Devotions in the following manner.

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I Praife Thee, O my God, for making me thy Care and for this proof of it, that thou art pleas'd to chaftife me with thy fatherly Rod. Two things I humbly beg of Thee,that thou woud'ft pardon thofe Sins which pro voke thee to deal with me thus contrary to thy Gracious Nature, and that thou woud'st fanctifie thy Rod to me, that it may be effe• &tual to remove my Sins, that thou may'st remove it without danger of my Souls returning to folly. Amen.

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Thefe are fome of Mr. Bonnell's Meditations and Prayers, of Sickness and Pain; nor did his Practice at all, fall fhort of them; for

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that Patience which he fo earnestly pray'd for, he enjoy'd in a measure beyond the greatest part, even of good Men. When he has been in the greatest Anguish, with two very tormenting Distempers, (the Gravel and Cholick) he wou'd often fay; Thy Will O God, thy Will be done with me, and upon me: I have no Will of my own, and rejoice in doing Thy Will. Q what Mercies are thefe Sufferings, if they be the way, God thinks fit to punish my Sins here, in order to fpare me hereafter! How much greater were my Saviour's Sufferings upon the Cross! Did be undergo fuch Agonies for my Sins, and shall not I chearfully fubmit to, and embrace what ever God fees fit to lay upon me! With much more, to the fame purpose, in every fit of Pain. When any Medicine was given him, he wou'd, after begging God's Bleffing, take it; and then wou'd ufually fay; It is better than I deferve, I blefs God for it, and for giving me fuch Affiftances in this Extremity. Oh! how many of his better Servants, want thefe Comforts! Blessed be his Holy Name, for giving them to me.

Nor was he only patient under Bodily Pains, but submissive to the Will, and fatisfied with the Wisdom of God in every Affair of Life, under every Difappointment, Difficulty and Trouble. He confidered that God gives us different Talents, different Capacities and Employments, and will not proportion our Reward to the part he gave us to act, but our Faithfulness in it. To this purpose is the following Meditation upon 1 Sam. 30. 24. And it was fo from that Day forward, that he mads

made it a Statute and an Ordinance for Ifrael unto this day, that as his part is that goeth down to the Battle, fo fhall his part be that tarrieth by the Stuff, they fhall part a like.

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'O Bleffed Son of David, and Captain of our Salvation, under whofe Banner thy Servants fight, and are thy Sworn Soldiers to their Lives End; when I hear some fay thy Yoke is eafie and thy Burden light,and they seem to speak as they think, because they find not much difficulties in Life, but run on in < a happy and even compofure of Health, and of Bufinefs proportion'd to their strength, freed by their circumftances from violent Temptations, and by thy Favour in framing then from ftrong Paffions, (tho' I own and exultingly declare with them, that thy Yoke is indeed an easie Yoke, and thy Service per'fect freedom, and that the keeping thy Com'mandments is its own infinitely abundant

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Reward; yet) I confider that in Warfare'all have not the fame Pofts of Hardship and 'Danger. Some Confront the Enemies and fome must stay by the Stuff What earthly • Commander knows how to fuit these parts exactly to his, Men? But thou, O Lord, doft it with the highest degree of Wisdom, and fitness to thy feveral Soldiers strength and abilities. And because thou givest each his Burden according to his might in niceft Equity, therefore thou hast ordain'd it for a perpetual Law to them, that those that tarry by the Stuff fhall part alike with thofe that confront the Enemy. Both fhare

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alike in thy Favour, both enjoy alike thy 'Love, and both partake alike in thy Glory: Only here is the Difference; not who have had the hardest Posts, but who have behaved themfelves faithfully in the Pofts they had, whether hard or cafie, fhall be rewarded by Thee,

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His Self-De- Such was Mr. Bonnell's Humility, fuch was was his Meeknefs and Patience; and agreeable to thefe, was his Mortification and Self-denial; a Grace which always proceeds from a meek and lowly Spirit. I fhall not here speak of his Mortification in point of Fafting, and the great Severity of his Life; That must be re, ferved for another place. The Mortification here meant, and what Mr. Bonnell conftantly labour'd after, was an unconcern'd Indifference to the World; 'to its Profits and Pleafures, to Honour and Fame; and all the other Idols of Mankind. His great Endeavour was, to gain the entire Maftery of his Will and Affections; and fo to difcipline and tame them, that they might not grow Stubborn and Rebellious. In order to this, his ufual Practice, was to deny himself in fmall matters, to which he found his Inclinations prompted him, that fo they might be under his Government in greater. This Point, he had nicely confider'd; and treats of it in feveral places of his Writings, with his usual Piety and Judgment; as will appear from one or two Meditations upon this Subject.

That denying our felves in particular, and little Inftances of lawful Enjoyments,

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is not (ays be) a fuperftitious and unprofitable Exercife; appears from hence, that God, who is a bountiful Rewarder of a Cup of Cold Water, gives us good Thoughts for it; which flow into our Minds, with a fensibly, more freedom, and affectingness, upon fuch Occa< fion, than at other times. On the contrary, our not complying with fuch a Hint, when C we have a Motion to deny our felves, in fmall things; but yielding to our Appetite, < or Curiofity, and perhaps palliating our doing fo, with faying, that it is a Trifle, not fit to make a Sacrifice of to God, deprives us of good Thoughts, and hardens our Minds 6 against them; unless we recover our felves, ' by being humbled before God, and fortifying our Refolution against the next Encoun

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For tho' this yielding to our Appe.tite, be not a Sin; yet it has fuch a Refemblance, and Image of Sin, that no lover of • God, but ought to have an aversion to it. What is Sin, but giving way to our Appe• tites and Inclinations, against the Checks of our Confcience? The head ftrong vio、 lence of our Wills, carrying away forcibly our Powers and Faculties, to act against our Reason and Understanding. And this agrees fo far with Sin, that it is an Inftance, tho' in a leffer degree, of the head ftrong unruliness of our Will, carrying us on to act; tho' not against our Confciences, because the Matter of it is lawful; yet against the Counsel of our Reason, exhorting us to exercife our felves, in little

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