come to perfection, and to love Him whom thou hast taken thee to.
If it do thee good and profit to thee, thank GOD, and pray for me. The
grace of JESUS Christ be with thee, and keep thee. Amen.

Here endeth "The Form of Perfect Living."

FOOTNOTES:

[3] The text is imperfect here.

[4] Two MSS. substitute "arms" for "mirth."

Our Daily Work.

(A Mirror of Discipline.)

Our Daily Work.

(A Mirror of Discipline.)

Three things are needful to every man; to increase his reward, through
GOD'S grace helping, Who shall lead him. The first; that man be in
honest work, without losing of his time. The second; that he do his work
with a freedom of spirit, in place and in time, as work falls to each.
The third; that his outward bearing, wheresoever he come, be so honest
and fair, that praise is (given) to GOD, a stirring up of good to all
who see him, as the Apostle bids: _Omnia in vobis honesti et secundum
ordinem fiant_, that is "That ye do: be it done honestly and in order."

FIRST PART OF THE BOOK.

At the first: man shall look that he lose not his short time, nor spend
it wrongly, nor in idleness let it pass away. GOD has lent man his time,
to serve GOD in, and to gather grace with good works, to buy heaven
with. Not only this short time flies from us, but also the time of our
life, as the wise man says: "Our life-time passes away." And S. Gregory
says:--"Our life is like a man in a ship; sit he, stand he, sleep he,
wake he, ever he gets thitherward where the ship is driving with the
force of the weather. So we, in this short time, whatsoever we do, we
drive ever to our end." And our enemy, Death, follows us ever at our
back, with a sharp spear to stick us through, therefore says Seneca,
"life flies, death follows." And S. Augustine says "Life is nothing else
but a swift running to death." Therefore, there is naught to tell by,
how long man lives: save how well. Yet this short life is uncertain:
wherefore says Job:--"I know not how long I may endure, and whether
after a short space my Maker may take me away." And S. Gregory says: "I
wot not the time I shall dwell, nor when I shall be taken hence and led
to doom." And S. Jerome says:--"Nothing so much beguiles man, as that he
knows not the time of his life, that to him is uncertain." And yet hopes
he for long life for himself, as if he might, at his will, drive Death
back. Thus was the rich man deceived of whom speaks the Gospel of S.
Luke