I. Admiration of the majesty of God and the divine perfections which we contemplate.
II. Joy and contentment, because God is absolutely perfect in Himself, infinitely good to others, and admirable in all His works.
III. Praise and thanksgiving for His favors and benefits, with a desire of seeing and enjoying Him in order to honor and obey Him.
IV. Zeal of God's glory and the good of souls, wishing that all the world may come to the knowledge and love of their Redeemer.
V. Confidence in the goodness and Providence of God, united with a filial respect, and the fear of being separated fro.m Him by sin, and a sincere regret for having ever incurred His just indignation.
VI. Desire of the heavenly things which we contemplate. Everything on earth ought to appear trifling to us, when we look up to heaven and say with the prophet, "How lovely are Thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts! my soul languisheth and fainteth in the courts of the Lord." (Ps. lxxxiii. 2.) "As the hart panteth after the fountains of water, so my soul panteth after Thee, O God!"" (Ps. xli. 2.)
By entertaining such affections as these, we ought to aim at that happy state in which, "beholding the glory of God with face uncovered, we maybe transformed into the same image from glory to glory, as by the Spirit of the Lord." (2 Cor. iii. 18.) We should thus endeavor to become like to Him, by uniting our wills with His, and by increasing daily more and more in the knowledge and love of Him, until at length passing from this dark pilgrimage of human life, we may arrive at our own bright native country, and enjoy the beatific vision for all eternity.
