SOME Seasonable Considerations TO THE Young Men & Women Who in This DAY of TRIAL Are made willing to offer up themselves, Estates or Liberty, and suffer Reproaches, with other hard Usages in the Streets of this City, and Elsewhere.  
To bear a Testimony for the Life, Light and Truth of Jesus Christ.  
And to all who make a Profession of the same, this in the tender Love of God is written.  
By Mary Forster.  
LONDON: Printed and Sold by Andrew Sowle at the Crooked-Billet in Holloway-Lane, Shoreditch, 1684.   

Some seasonable Considerations to the Young Men and Women, who in this Day of Trial are made willing to offer up themselves, Estates or Liberty to suffer Reproaches and other hard Usages in the Streets of this City, and elsewhere, to bear a Testimony for the Life, Light and Truth of our Lord Jesus Christ, etc.  
FRiends, Consider your Calling, 'tis High, 'tis Holy. 'tis out of the World, its beggarly Rudiments, its false Ways and Worships, its Customs and Fashions, with all the Abominations, Profanations, Sports and Pastimes; Into what? even the glorious Liberty of the Sons of God, to be made conformable unto Christ our Head, to be in him Holy as he is Holy, then to be Heirs with him, joint Heirs with Christ, and to sit with him in the heavenly places; O blessed Exchange! unspeakable Love! What manner of Persons ought we to be? saith the honest Heart; Oh! let none of us walk unworthy of such Mercy, but keep a living sense thereof upon our hearts, continually, watching over our Thoughts, Words and Works, that we in all may glorify the Lord our God, who is worthy to be Loved, Feared, Reverenced and Obeyed, from henceforth and forever.  
The matter chiefly upon my Heart is this, That as there is now a more public Testimony born to God's blessed Truth, than when we had liberty to assemble ourselves together in our Meeting-houses; so now let our care be more to answer our Profession; for we are as a Candle in a Candlestick, not under a Bed or Bushel; yea, as a City set upon a Hill, publicly taken notice of, to be of that number, of them, who dare not omit the Assembling ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but we must confess him before men, who (we know) will not deny us before his heavenly Father; we must bear our Testimony to the blessed Truth he hath made us Partakers of, though in such Hazards: Let this, my dear Friends, engage our Souls to all Circumspection in our Lives and Conversations, that we give no occasion to the Enemy to blaspheme or speak Evil of that holy Profession we are called to hold forth in the midst of a perverse and crooked Generation, amongst whom we ought to shine as Lights, that men seeing our holy chaste Conversation, coupled with fear, may glorify our Father; to this surely every honest Heart cannot but say, Amen, Amen, as saith my Soul.  
Friends, the Enemy of our Souls is busy, both within and without, yea, the Devil still goes about as a roaring Lion, seeking which of us he can devour; and he may suffer us to make a Profession, even in the strictest manner, whilst he endeavours to spoil us of our Possession, he will not disturb us, if he can but draw into looseness or lightness, 'tis possible you may speak the plain Language without interruption, if you will but use it in foolish Talking and idle Jesting; and although you do not appear in the Superfluities of this wanton Age in your Apparel, but in plain Clothing, yet if you do suffer your Hearts to be in the Niceties, Costliness and Curiosities, and let them be as like the World as may be, Lace only excepted (if you can but escape the Reproofs of them who abstain from every appearance of Evil, and hate the Garments spotted with the flesh) than the Soul's Enemy will indulge you therein, and you may for a time possibly, in this day of Trial, come frequently to Meetings, stand in the Streets, bear the gainsaying of Scoffers, and the haling before Magistrates; but if any of you indulge a loose careless Spirit, such make void their Suffering, invalidate their Testimony, and fall short of the Reward and Comfort of the Upright, and so will not hold out to the end. This I write, not to accuse any particular, but do beseech all to stand upon their Watch, that they suffer not this Spirit to prevail in them, or if it have any place in any that makes a Profession of God's pure holy Truth, to give no rest to their Eyes, nor slumber to their Eyelids, till they are turned to the Light of Christ Jesus in their Consciences, and listen to its Reproofs, which now, as heretofore, bears a faithful Witness against every evil Word and Work, and as it is heard, believed in and obeyed, will give strength to overcome all and every thing that is of that Nature.  
Oh, my Friends! press forward in the holy Warfare; for of a truth, Victory may be obtained, if you run well, and continue to the end, you shall have a Crown of Glory.  
Friends, Let me expostulate the matter a little with you; I know there is many, that when the Enemy of man's Soul comes to tempt to any gross Sins, can have no entrance, their Souls abhor this or the other Abomination, so as to gross Enormities he may come and have nought in Thousands; but the great danger lies here in little things, and they think their Souls may live in this little Zoar, if they escape the Sins of Sodom, and such like.  
But here's a Snare, here's a Rock that many are split on, taking liberty in little matters, in Decency, till Pride sits in the Chair, in excessive Merriment, which some call Cheerfulness, till it come to such vain and immoderate Laughter as the wise men call Madness, appears in their Conversations; They must not be too demunitive (some will shy) they must be friendly to all, free to discourse with any, and this may be good in its place; but for want of taking up the daily Cross, and not being upon the Watch, they become one with the idle Talker and foolish Jester; and so in many other cases; As, We may be Angry and sin not, which is true; but letting themselves loose, here the Enemy takes an Advantage, and in the Night sows his evil Seed, and the wrathful hasty spirit gets up, grows strong, till that which is tender, meek and lowly in themselves, and others they converse with, is grieved, and groans under the Oppression. And from this Spirit there's no deliverance till they come again to learn of him that's meek and lowly▪ as they did at their first Convincement, when after great and sore Travels they did find rest unto their souls, in him that was meek and lowly.  
And it's at these Breaches, the Enemy being entered, the more grosser and grievous sins enter, and so even the old Iniquity is revived, and the sin that so easily besets gets up again; and by giving way to this vain Imagination, That such small things will not hurt, the foolish Heart comes to be darkened, & the poor Soul that once was raised, comes to be enthralled, and a good Condition to be lost, and it will be harder with such to be restored, than it was for them to be brought into the knowledge of the Truth at the beginning.  
And this also hath been known by sad Experience, when any one hath let in Grief, and joined the Powers of their Souls with it, here the Enemy of man's Peace lays siege, sometimes tempting the poor bewildered soul to despair of the Mercy of the Lord, sometimes to Curse God and die, and sometimes to lay violent hands on itself.  
Oh, my dear Friends! what need is here to stand upon the Watch, to keep in the pure fear of the Lord, even all the day long? for if any Affections or Passion inordinately be suffered to harbour in the Soul, the danger is great.  
And yet further, what hath been said in these foregoing particulars, may be said also of letting in the Worldly Spirit, which none ever knew whilst it had rule in their hearts, but at the entrance thereof, as the Eye of the Mind has been towards the Lord, to be kept and preserved from every Evil that would grieve the good Spirit, or hinder Communion with it, the Lord opens the mysterious workings of this Spirit in the honest Heart, and strengtheneth him with all Diligence to keep the Watch; and here the Soul escapes this Snare, that is so privily laid, that many are ensnared and taken, and call it good Husbandry.  
O remember the great Love of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath commanded his Disciples, To cast all their care upon God, who careth for them, and hath given himself for us, that he might deliver us from this present evil World.  
And let any experienced one, into whose hands this may come, consider, Have you at any time let in the Spirit of Prejudice, (more especially upon the account of Religion) against any Person? Let the cause be right or wrong, yet if once it be let in, and you converse with it, and give liberty to your Thoughts therein, how apt are you to receive any Report that may tend to make the Breach wider? how ready it is for any prejudiced Person to take wrong Measures of right Actions, as thus, If any in the pure Love of God, that thinketh no evil, watch over his Brother for good, or the Ancients in Israel, who are unblameable in their Lives and Conversations, who have (if the word Rule can be born) ruled for God, and are truly worthy of double Honour; if such knowing the Wiles of Satan, as also the Terrors of the Almighty, shall propose good and wholesome Methods to keep all within the Church of Christ sweet and clean, in which the honest hearted rejoice, yet the prejudiced spirit will cry out presently of Lordships, of Laws, Church Canons and Imposition; though at the same time those who were in Christ before them, and by Grace were made Members of that Body of which Christ is the Head, declare to such, That it's but the godly Care of our Brethren to preserve every Member in its place and good Order. Much might be written, but I did only intend to hint at these things, and beg of the Lord they may be enlarged in my soul, as in every honest Heart, as there may be any occasion.  
Oh Friends! I am deeply grieved in the Consideration of these things, and its the cry of my soul to the God of all Grace, Arise, O Lord, and rebuke this gainsaying Spirit; Arise thou mighty God, whose Fan is in thy hand, and thoroughly purge thy Floor; O bring down into thy pure fear (which makes and keeps the heart clean) every one that makes a Profession of thy pure holy Truth.  
And now to conclude with that which was principally upon my heart in the beginning, in which let me expostulate again with any or every honest Heart, into whose hands this may come, that hath but known or experienced any thing of the Power of God to make clean the Vessel, and that hath been convinced of the Evil of their Ways, Words and Works, and in the Light, Strength and Power of God hath been made able to judge down every appearance of Evil in themselves, that hath not had Holiness to the Lord stamped thereon. Oh! why should any such turn again to Folly, and build again those things they once pulled down, or allow themselves in any thing now, which heretofore they durst not live in the Practice of?  
Friends, Truth is unchangeably pure, and that which it appears against to day, it will not allow to morrow: Therefore, I beseech you in the Love of God, try and examine, Durst I take a false Liberty in the day of my Espousal? Why should I do so now? Are not my Obligations greater now than ever, now I can say, My Maker is my Husband, & he provideth all things necessary for my Spiritual as well as Temporal Well-being, and if I do not depart from him, he hath promised, He will never leave me nor forsake me? Why then should I allow any Evil Spirit to lodge within me, any accursed thing to approach his Temple, to hinder me in my near Approaches unto him? Why should I suffer a wild, wanton airy Spirit to get up, that will unavoidably make me vain in my Conversation, seeing I could not be redeemed therefrom by Silver nor Gold, or any corruptible thing, but with the precious Blood of Jesus Christ? Shall I trample under Foot the Blood of Christ? or shall my light unsavoury Words and Actions cause any to say, It is an unholy thing? Shall I deny my Redemption, and my Redeemer (even to all them that behold) by my vain Conversation? God forbid.  
Or, if at any time there hath been a neglect, the Watch has not been kept, nor the Prayer offered, but as it were for a little time, the Soul forgetting that it was cleansed, entereth into the Temptation, and toucheth with the unsanctified thing, yet as the Heart abides honest, the pure holy Fear will spring again in such a Breast, and that Man or Woman will soon see from whence they are fallen, and will cry, with David, Restore me, O Lord, to my former Condition; take not thy holy Spirit from me; set thou a Watch before my Mouth, that I offend not with my Tongue: O Lord, keep the Door of my Lips, etc. This is the care of the Upright, that whether in Eating or Drinking, in Speaking or in Silence, all might be done to the Praise and Glory of God.  
Friends, we above all the Families of the Earth, bear our Testimonies to Christ's Appearance in spirit, and to that Grace which hath appeared to all men, teaching us (who have received it) to deny Ungodliness and worldly Lusts, and to live Soberly, Godly and Righteously in this present World. And shall we allow ourselves in any thing that is justly reprovable? God forbid; I will set a Watch over my Thoughts, saith the honest Heart, for my God knoweth them afar off; and I must give an account for every idle Word; I will watch over my Eyes, for my Lord hath said, Whosoever looketh upon a Woman and lusteth after her, hath committed Adultery with her already in his Heart; and the Apostle James saith, Whosoever seemeth to be Religious, and bridleth not his Tongue, that man's Religion is vain. And Oh! that all my Works might witness the Lord at hand, seeing they must follow me after Death. [Here is Heart-work indeed] blessed is he who worketh out his Salvation with Fear and Trembling; such shall be safe, and no evil Tidings can make them afraid; such shall hold out in all Trials, for they are builded upon a sure Foundation, Jesus Christ himself being the chief Corner Stone.  
Friends, This is a Day wherein Satan desires, yea, doth indeed winnow all Professions, blessed is that Person and that People who partake of the benefit of our Lords praying, for he hath prayed, That their Faith fail not; and him the Father heareth always; blessed are they who watch and keep their Garments unspotted, their Conversation will be such as will adorn the Gospel.  
Now unto God only wise, who comforts his People with his Rod and with his Staff, he who knows our frame, and will not suffer any who fear his Name to be tempted above what they are able to bear, and in the fittest Season will deliver Jacob out of all his Troubles, To him be all Power, Might, Majesty, with Dominion and holy Praises given and ascribed from this time henceforth and forever, saith my Soul.  
MARY FORSTER.  
THE END.   

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