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March 10th, morning.
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I said in my prosperity, I shall never be moved.
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Let his ships bring home continually rich treasure.
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Let the winds and waves appear to be his servants, to carry his vessels across.
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Across the bosom of the mighty deep.
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Let his fields produce abundantly.
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Let the weather be kind to his crops.
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Let uninterrupted success attend him.
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Let him stand among men as a successful merchant.
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Let him enjoy continued health.
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Allow him with braced nerve and brilliant eye to march through the world and live happily.
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Give him the buoyant spirit.
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Let him have a song perpetually on his lips.
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Let his eye be ever sparkling with joy.
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And the inevitable consequence of such an easy life to any man, even though he may be the
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best Christian who ever breathed, will be presumption.
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Even David said, I shall never be moved.
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And we are not better than David, nor half so good, brother.
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Beware of the smooth places of the way.
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If you are treading them or if the way be rough, thank God for it.
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If God should always rock us in the cradle of prosperity, if we were always enjoying
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good fortune, and there were no clouds in the sky and no bitter drops in the wine of
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this life, we would become intoxicated with pleasure.
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And we would dream that we were standing and stand we should, but it would be upon
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a pinnacle, like the man asleep upon the mast, each moment we would be in jeopardy.
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We bless God then for our afflictions.
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We thank him for our changes.
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We extoll his name for losses of property, for we feel that if he had not chasing us
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in this way, we might have become too secure, continued worldly prosperity as a fiery trial.
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Reflections, though they seem severe, in mercy, oft ascent.