Soul Care (2)

We should set ourselves to have most care of that which God cares most for. That which he breathed into us at first, set his own image upon, gave so great a price for, and values above all the world besides. Will all our study be to satisfy the desires of the flesh, and neglect the soul?
Is it not a vanity to prefer the casket before the jewel, the shell before the pearl, the gilded potsherd before the treasure? Is it not much more vanity to prefer the outward condition before the inward? The soul is that which Satan and his has most spite at, for in troubling our bodies or estates, he aims at the vexation of our souls. As with Job, his aim was to abuse that power God had given him over his children, body, and goods, to cause Job, by a disquieted spirit, to blaspheme God. It is an ill method to begin our care in other things, and neglect the soul, as Ahithophel, who set his house in order, when he should have set his soul in order first (2 Sam. 17:23). Wisdom begins at the right end. See that all be well within, and then all troubles from without cannot much annoy us.
Grace will teach us to reason in this way—God has given my enemies power over my liberty and condition, but will they have power and liberty over my spirit? It is that which Satan most seeks for; but never yield. By not yielding a godly man will become more than a conqueror; when in appearance he is conquered, his spirit prevails, and is undaunted. A Christian is not subdued until his spirit is subdued. This torments the proud, worldly ones, to see godly men enjoy a calm and resolute frame of mind in the midst of troubles; when their enemies are more troubled in troubling them than they are in being troubled by them.

Devotional Readings taken from Puritan Richard Sibbes 'Refreshment for the Soul.'
The Soul's Conflict with Itself, Works, vol. 1, pp. 150-51
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