‘God, for your goodness, give me yourself. For you are enough for me and I may not ask anything that is less, that may be fully worthy of you. And if I ask any thing that is less, I am always wanting. But only in you I have all.’
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It is God’s will that we have three things in our seeking of his gift. The first is, that we seek willingly and busily without sloth, as it may be with his grace gladly and merrily, without unskilfull heaviness and vain sorrow. The second, that we abide with him steadfastly for his love, without complaining and striving against him to our lives’ end, for it shall last only a while. The third is that we trust in him mightily with a fully sure faith, for it is his will that we shall know that he will appear suddenly and blessedfully to all his lovers, for his working is secret, and it will be perceived, and his appearing shall be swift and sudden, and he will be believed, for he is very able, humble and courteous, blessed must he be.
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It is God’s will that we have three things in our seeking of his gift. The first is, that we seek willingly and busily without sloth, as it may be with his grace gladly and merrily, without unskilfull heaviness and vain sorrow. The second, that we abide with him steadfastly for his love, without complaining and striving against him to our lives’ end, for it shall last only a while. The third is that we trust in him mightily with a fully sure faith, for it is his will that we shall know that he will appear suddenly and blessedfully to all his lovers, for his working is secret, and it will be perceived, and his appearing shall be swift and sudden, and he will be believed, for he is very able, humble and courteous, blessed must he be.
After this, I saw God in a point. That is to say in my understanding. But which sight I saw that he is all things. I beheld with advisement, seeing and knowing in that sight, that he does all that is done, be it never so little. And I saw that nothing is done by chance, nor by hazard, but all by the foreseeing of God’s wisdom.
And if it be chance or fortune in the sight of man, our blindness and our lack of foresight is the cause. Therefore, well I know that in sight of our lord God, there is not chance or happenstance. And therefore it needs behoove me to grant that all things that are done, are well done, because our Lord God does all. For in this time, the working of Creation was not showed but of our lord God, in Creation, for he is in the midpoint of all things, and he does all.
‘See, I am God. See, I am in all things. See, I do all things. See, I never left off the works of my hand, nor ever shall, without end. See, I lead all things to the end, to which I ordained them, from without beginning, by the same power, wisdom and love, that I made them with. How should then anything be amiss?’
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And this was shown in these words, ‘Are you well paid’ . By those other words that Christ said, ‘If you are paid, I am paid’. As if he had said, ‘It is joy and liking enough to me, and I ask nothing else of you for my travail, but that I might pay you’ . And it is this he brought to my mind. The property of a glad giver: a glad giver takes but little heed of the thing that he gives, but his desire is in all his intent, to please him and solace him to whom he gives it. And if the receiver takes the gift gladly and thankfully, then the courteous giver sets at nought all his cost and all his travail for joy and delight that he has, for he has so pleased and solaced him whom he loves. Plenteously and fully was this shown.
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Also our Lord showed for prayer, in which showing I saw two conditions in our Lord’s meaning. One is right full prayer. And the other is sure trust. But yet often our trust is not full, for we are not sure that God hears us, we think, because of our unworthiness, and because of that we feel nothing. For we are as barren and as dry often after our prayer, as we were before. And thus in our feeling, our folly is the cause of our weakness. For thus I have felt in myself.
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Also our Lord showed for prayer, in which showing I saw two conditions in our Lord’s meaning. One is right full prayer. And the other is sure trust. But yet often our trust is not full, for we are not sure that God hears us, we think, because of our unworthiness, and because of that we feel nothing. For we are as barren and as dry often after our prayer, as we were before. And thus in our feeling, our folly is the cause of our weakness. For thus I have felt in myself.
And all this brought our Lord suddenly to my mind and showed these words and said ,’I am ground of your seeking. First it is my will that you have it, and I make you to will it. How should it then be that you should not have your seeking of it, since I make you to seek it, and you seek it’ .
And furthermore he wills that we know that this dear worthy soul was preciously knit to him in the making. Which knot is so subtle and so mighty, that it is oned to God, in which oneing it is made endlessly holy. Furthermore, he wills that we know and understand, that all the souls that shall be saved in heaven without end are knitted in this knot, and oned in this oneing, and made holy in this holiness. And for great endless love that God has to all mankind, he makes no departing in love between the blessed soul of Christ and the least soul that shall be saved.
Highly ought we to enjoy that our God dwells in our soul, and much more highly we ought to enjoy that our soul dwells in God. A high understanding it is inwardly to see and to know that God which is our maker, dwells in our soul. And a higher understanding it is and more inwardly to see and to know our soul that is made dwells in God in substance.