D. 1. LImit your sleeping hours . Let them not be as many as brutish Sense demandeth . Let Reason fit their number to your Health and Labour . Your Motion is not by the Rule of Religion , if your Rest be not so , Psa . 139.18 . I awake , that I may be still with thee . So , some Learned read it .

D. 2. Consecrate your waking thoughts . Let your God have those first Fruits . He always Loved the first of all things . The first Fruits , and first Born , under the Law , were his . Present Him with these , every morning . Thoughts are inward Speeches . Let God hear Himself first spoken of by you , still . It will argue that He is your Beloved , and it will make Him more so . Love makes Thoughtful ; and Thoughtfulness makes Love . A Potter is known by his Vessels , and a Heart by its Thoughts ; and of all Thoughts , by its first in the morning , and last at night . My voice shalt thou hear in the morning , O Lord ! Psal . 5.3 .

D. 3. Regulate your Bodily Dresses . Long Dresses bewray large Consciences , if no worse . He that duly prefers his Soul above his Body , would rather go like the wild Indians , than dress like some Londoners . The Hebrew word Beged , signifies Cloathing and Covenant-breaking . God seems to have taught thereby , that the Cloaths on our backs should humble us for the sin of our first Parents and Persons . But if they do not so ; and if outward Adorning be that which employs our early hour , and severe thoughts , it will be dearly paid for in our dying hours , with tormenting thoughts , 1 Pet . 3.3 . Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning .

D. 4. Time well your Closet and Family Worship . They be not the same things in season , and out of season . Let the Word be read ; one verse rather than none ; and Prayer be made ; the shortest , rather than none ; both by your selves alone , and with your Families . If it may be , worship first by your selves . But , needlesly tie not your selves , being God hath not bound you unto such and such hours . Still do , as you verily think is most for Edification , Mat . 6.6 . Enter into thy closet , and when thou hast shut the door , pray to thy Father . Josh . 24.15 . As for me and my House , we will s●●●e the Lord .

D. 5. Sanctifie your worldly Business . Nothing is your Business , but that which God your Master sets you about . Dare not then do any thing , but that whereto you can entitle Him . Nor dare you to do it for any other chief end , but to please Him . When you do WHAT He sets you , and supremely BECAUSE He sets it , and wills that you do it ; knowing and hoping for his Direction in it , and Blessing of it ; you then sanctifie it : Then HOLINESS TO THE LORD is written upon it , whatever it be , 1 Cor . 10.31 . Whether ye Eat or Drink , or WHATSOEVER ye do , do all to the glory of God .

D. 6. Moderate your Pains in your Callings . Pains must be ; Sweat , is required . But by Reason and Religion they must be measured . God's Laws be all Just and Good . Drones that will not work must not eat . He that is a sluggard in his work , is branded as Brother of the Prodigal waster , Prov. 18.9 . Drudges , of whose Labour there is no end , and who bereave their Souls of good ; who use themselves worse than God allows Oxen to be used ; Treading out the Corn , and muzzling themselves ; these are branded by the Spirit of God , as inconsiderate , absurd , and self-destroying fools , Eccles . 4.8 . Diligent hands have the promise of being made rich : That is , Hands that be neither Drones nor Drudges , Prov. 10.4 . The hand of the diligent maketh rich .

D. 7. Strengthen your guards against your strongest Enemies . Sin , is our Enemy ; even One and All. God hates nothing but sin ; and man can be hurt by nothing but sin . Sin's name is Legion ; for it is many . And of the many , there is some one or other in every man , that has more power than all the rest . That gives strength unto all the rest . And , being mortified , all the rest are mortified . There be also beside that KING-sin in their Souls , some kind of PEER-sins , which , of all , next unto the KING-sin , are by far the most dangerous . The KING-sin is ( alway or mostly ) your Temperamental sin ; the sin of your Constitution . The PEER-sins , be the Radical ones , of Sensuality , Unbelief , Hypocrisie ; and the way-laying ones , whereunto Temptations will every day meet us in our Company and Business . You can never have any but a falfe Peace , till you can say , as Psal . 18.23 . I am upright before the Lord , I keep my self from my own iniquity . Doctor Bates , his little Book upon that Text is a Light and Lamp , a Rod , and a Staff .

D. 8. Govern your Thoughts and your Words . Let not your Minds or Tongues be unbridled , and run whither they will . You are in your Shops and your Business very often , alone ; Reverence your Conscience , and dare not in the presence of God's Vicegerent to suffer a sinful or useless self discourse . But talk with your selves of great and good Subjects , and with designs of great and good Effects upon your hearts by them . When you are in company , consider your Tongue's need of Government : All its words be Meat or Poison to your Hearers , and your selves : They do still holily make for Edification , or subserviently for Recreation , or contrarily for Corruption , Pro . 24.9 . The THOUGHT of foolishness is sin , Mat . 12.36 . Of every idle WORD that men shall speak , they shall give account in the day of Judgment .

D. 9. Preserve the Prerogative of your King . I mean , of your Love . Your Love of God , of Angels , of Men : That is your Principal Grace ; your Prince . Keep that Prince on horse-back ; let that ride , and reign , and rule you in all you do . Let not any thing lower , move and sway you more , in any of your ways . Remember still it is Love that is the highest improvement of our Faculties , the End of all other Graces , the Excellency in all other Graces . For this is the Word of God given , for this is the Spirit given , for this was his Son given , that we might Love ! Never please your selves therefore with any Quality or any external Duty , without Love , internal Love , animating , enlivening , exalting it , Rom. 13.10 . Love is the fulfilling of the Law .

D. 10. Value highly your Time . Do so really , in more than empty pretence . And do so apparently also . Apparently unto your own Conscience , Family , Friends , Neighbours . Tell all in the Language of Practice , you account them as the worst of Thieves , who rob you of your Time . Say as Mr. Fowler , My Time and Strength is God's , and he shall have it . And , as Mr. Calvin , Christ shall not find me idle . Esteem every small moiety of Time , as you do of Gold . Expend none at all , of it , but in mowing and whetting your Sithe ; in very Duty , and necessary Recreation . Buy a great deal of it ; I mean , part with much vain pleasure , secular profit , fools fav●●● and kindness , and good men's too sometimes , to save your Time . To save it from doing of evil , and from doing of lesser good , when you may do greater . That is indeed , as we are bid , Eph. 5.16 . To Redeem the Time .

D. 11. Exercise Christian Temperance in all your Meals . Brutes , are more temperate in use of food , than many men . And , may I not say , that some unregenerate men are more temperate , than here and there a well reputed Christian appears ? This is a shame . Excess in Meat and Drink , is not the least fruitful sin against Body or Soul . To be abstemious and sparing for Health's sake , is to be as wise as Brute creatures , and some men graceless . Abstinence , for Conscience sake ; of love to God & Christ , to our own Souls and others ; of faithfulness unto our Baptismal Engagement ; this is Christian Temperance , Ezek . 16.49 . Behold this was the sin of Sodom , Pride , FULNESS of BREAD , and abundance of IDLENESS was in her . Sin came in by eating ; remember then Prov. 23.2 . Put a knife to thy throat , if thou be a man given to Appetite . And , Be not desirous of Dainties ; for they are deceitful meat . Rom. 8.13 . If ye live after the flesh , ye shall die .

D. 12. Hasten your Recoveries out of your wilful sins . For sins of unavoidable Infirmity , God threatens not Eternal Plagues , or Temporal Judgments on you . Sincere and constant Humiliation for them , is indeed necessary and natural , to Lovers of God and Christ . But sins that are not of common and insuperable Infirmity , they make fearful breaches of your peace with God , and sore wounds in your Souls . They sadly lessen God's Love of Complacence in you , and your Love and all graces towards God . When you fall into these , dare not to lie one minute in them ; Lament them presently , Confess them presently to God , and ( if need be ) unto man also . Repent , rent your hearts for them , and rent them also from them , without delay . Cry for the Balm of Christ's blood to be presently drop't into your wounds ; and for the clean water of his Spirit to be presently poured on you . Cry mightily for Pardon of them , and Assistance against them . Every minutes delay may cost you so many days , weeks & months dolor & anguish . Chosen delays may make so many Spira's of you , for ought I know , Psa . 32.3 . While I kept silence , i.e. would not confess my sin , my bones waxed old , i.e. I suffered dearly .

D. 13. Examine strictly your Relative Duty . Often say , What Subject am I ? What Fellow-Subject ? What Observer of Magistrates and Ministers ? What Friend am I ? How do I carry it toward my Enemies ? For a Christian can be no one's Enemy ! as far as he is a Christian , he cannot . What Husband or Wife am I ? What Parent or Child am I ? What Master or Servant am I ? What Superior , what Inferior , what Equal am I ? Sincerity or Hypocrisie , is , for the most part , specially seen in these things , 2 Pet . 3.11 . What manner of Persons ought ye to be in all holy Conversations and Godlinesses . Psal . 119.6 . Then shall I not be ashamed when I have respect unto all thy Commandments .

D. 14. Repeat every Evening your double use of the WORD and PRAYER . I mean in your Closet and Family . Dare not for the gain of a Kingdom to omit it , of choice . Nor to perform it without greatest Seriousness , Willingness and Thankfulness . Psal . 55.17 . Evening and Morning , and at Noon will I pray and cry aloud , and he shall hear my voice .

D. 15. Repair every days Losses , and be chary of every days Gains . I mean your extraordinary ones . The Womb of one day brings forth huge Hindrances of Duty to God , to your selves , and to your Families . Ill Persons or Things obstruct your Solemnities . When they do so , consider and consult , and strain hard to make it up the next day . Read , Pray , Meditate , &c. so much the more . Another day brings forth huge Helps . A Lecture , a Fast , or Publick Thanksgiving , a Funeral Sermon , a meeting with some Servants of God of extraordinary Talents ; apt to Teach , and forward so to do . When such a day comes , lay up , and lock up your Spiritual Gains . Rost what you take , as Solomon speaks ; keep , feed on it , enjoy it . Eph. 5.16 . Redeeming the time , because the days are evil . John second Epistle ver. 8. Look to your selves that we lose not those things that we have wrought , but may receive a full reward .

D. 16. Improve both of the Holy Sacraments . Most lamentably these are neglected among us ! The God of all Grace , that hath condescended to extremity in the ordaining of them , awaken Ministers and People to better use of them ! On Gods part they are Signs and Seils , on our part they are Bonds and Badges . Baptism and he Lords Supper , are the utmost confirmations God giveth us of his Promise to be our God ; and the utmost we give of our Engagement to be his . Forget not this , nor vainly remember it . Plead with God for your Souls , his Signed , Sealed Promises unto you ; to the expulsion of Distrust . And plead with your Souls for God , your Sacramental Bonds given unto him , and Badges of being his put upon you ; to the Conquest of Disobedience . Sacramental Obligation is the chief Store-house and Magazine to draw Armour from , in an Hour of Temptation . There is none like it . Rom. 6.1 , 2 , 3. What shall we say then ? shall we continue in sin , that grace may abound ? God forbid , How shall we that are dead to sin , live any longer therein ? Know ye not , that so many of us as were Baptized into Jesus Christ , were Baptized into his death ? 1 Pet . 3.21 . The like figure whereunto , even Baptism , doth also now save us , ( not the putting away of the filth of the Flesh ; but the answer of a good Conscience toward God ) by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ . 1 Cor . 10.16 , and 21. The Cup of Blessing which we bless , is it not the Communion of the Blood of Christ ? The Bread which we break , is it not the Communion of the Body of Christ ? Ye cannot drink the Cup of the Lord , and the Cup of Devils ; ye cannot be partakers of the Lords Table , and of the Table of Devils .

D. 17. Hear your selves daily your Catechism . I mean , the Summary of Religion , unto which you have attained . There be several set down in Mr. Burgess's Three Questions Resolved . I advise all , once a day to go over that which they have Learned , and can Remember . Let grown Christians ask and answer themselves , how they do in their Hearts BELIEVE each Article of the Apostles Creed ; how they PRAY each Petition of the Lords Prayer ; how they PRACTISE each Commandment of both Tables ; how they are ENCOURAGED and ENGAGED unto all three ; unto the Life of Holy Faith , Prayer and Practice , I mean , by their Holy Baptism and the Lords Table . Rom. 2.21 . Thou which teachest another , teachest thou not thy self ? Psal . 4.4 . Commune with your own Heart . Psal . 16.7 . My Reins instruct me .

D. 18. Command your last Thoughts to be fit to be your last . When you compose you to sleep , suppose that you may die in that sleep . And if so , the God unto whom you must go in that death , is fit to be thought of in the entrance to it . If not , it will be sweet in the Morning to review last thoughts of him at Night . Yea , and those Thoughts of Faith and Love , and Trust , at Night , will be generative of more of the same Spirit and Goodness in the Morning . Psal . 63.6 . I remember thee on my Bed , and meditate of thee in the Night Watches .