"That we should intend and design God's glory in every action we do, whether it be natural or chosen, is expressed by St. Paul, 'Whether you eat or drink, do all to the glory of God.' Which rule when we observe, every action of nature becomes religious, and every meal is an act of worship, and shall have its reward in its proportion, as well as an act of prayer.
Blessed be that goodness and grace of God, which, out of infinite desire to glorify and save mankind, would make the very works of nature capable of becoming acts of virtue, that all our lifetime we may do him service."
✦ Every Meal an Act of Worship
Taylor begins where he began five days ago — with Paul's instruction from 1 Corinthians 10:31. But now he reveals its full meaning: when we intend God's glory in every action, the action itself becomes religious. The eating becomes worship. The drinking becomes prayer. The natural becomes sacred.
And Taylor marvels at it: Blessed be that goodness and grace of God, which would make the very works of nature capable of becoming acts of virtue. God did not limit worship to the temple or the prayer closet. He opened it to every action — by the grace of intention. The coffee with Roger in the morning — an act of worship. The dishes washed in the motorhome — an act of virtue. The road driven through France — a lifetime of service. 🙏
"Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
"Soit donc que vous mangiez, soit que vous buviez, soit que vous fassiez quelque autre chose, faites tout pour la gloire de Dieu."
1 Corinthiens 10:31 · Louis Segond"This grace is so excellent that it sanctifies the most common action of our life; and yet so necessary that, without it, the very best actions of our devotion are imperfect and vicious.
For he that prays out of custom, or gives alms for praise, or fasts to be accounted religious, is but a Pharisee in his devotion, and a beggar in his alms, and a hypocrite in his fast. But a holy end sanctifies all these and all other actions which can be made holy, and gives distinction to them, and procures acceptance."
✦ The Pharisee and the Pilgrim
Taylor's sword cuts both ways. Holy intention sanctifies the most common action — the dishes, the driving, the eating. But without it, the very best actions of devotion are imperfect. Prayer without intention is custom. Almsgiving without intention is performance. Fasting without intention is theatre.
A Pharisee in his devotion. A beggar in his alms. A hypocrite in his fast. Three devastating labels — and all three describe the person whose actions look right but whose intention is wrong. The action is the body. Without the soul of intention, the body is a dead trunk. 🙏
"For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."
"Car l'Éternel ne considère pas ce que l'homme considère; l'homme regarde à ce qui frappe les yeux, mais l'Éternel regarde au cœur."
1 Samuel 16:7 · Louis SegondThe French says l'Éternel regarde au cœur — the Eternal looks at the heart. Not the action. The heart behind the action. Taylor and Samuel say the same thing: the deed is visible but the intention is what God reads. The Eternal does not count the dishes. He reads the heart that washes them. 🙏
"This was it which distinguished the mourning of David from the exclamation of Saul; the confession of Pharaoh from that of Manasses; the tears of Peter from the repentance of Judas: 'for the praise is not in the deed done, but in the manner of its doing.'
If a man visits his sick friend, and watches at his pillow for charity's sake, and because of his old affection, we approve it; but if he does it in hope of legacy, he is a vulture, and only watches for the carcass. The same things are honest and dishonest: the manner of doing them, and the end of the design, makes the separation."
✦ David and Saul · Peter and Judas
Taylor's parallels are devastating. The same action — different intention — different outcome:
David mourned — and God received it. Saul mourned — and God rejected it. Pharaoh confessed — and it was empty. Manasseh confessed — and it was accepted. Peter wept — and was restored. Judas wept — and was lost. The tears were the same. The hearts were not.
The sick friend illustration makes it vivid: the visitor at the pillow is either a friend or a vulture. Same bed. Same hours. Same watching. But charity at the pillow is love. Legacy at the pillow is predation. The manner of doing and the end of the design — these make the separation. 🙏
Powerful truth: Holy intention is to the actions of a man that which the soul is to the body.
I have a new friend — Jeremy Taylor. Intention... I'll never forget this word. 🙏
"Holy intention is to the actions of a man that which the soul is to the body, or form to its matter, or the root to the tree, or the sun to the world, or the fountain to a river, or the base to a pillar:
for without these the body is a dead trunk, the matter is sluggish, the tree is a block, the world is darkness, the river is quickly dry, the pillar rushes into flatness and a ruin; and the action is sinful, or unprofitable and vain."
✦ The Soul of Every Action
Le found the keystone — and named it: powerful truth. Taylor builds six analogies, each one deepening the point:
Soul to the body. Without it — a dead trunk. Root to the tree. Without it — a block. Sun to the world. Without it — darkness. Fountain to a river. Without it — quickly dry. Base to a pillar. Without it — ruin.
Every analogy says the same thing: the visible structure depends on the invisible source. The body needs the soul. The tree needs the root. The river needs the fountain. The action needs the intention. Without holy intention, the finest devotion is a dead trunk — standing but lifeless. With holy intention, the simplest action — washing dishes in a motorhome — is alive with worship. 🙏
"Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly."
"Gardez-vous de pratiquer votre justice devant les hommes, pour en être vus; autrement, vous n'aurez point de récompense auprès de votre Père qui est dans les cieux. Mais quand tu fais l'aumône, que ta main gauche ne sache pas ce que fait ta droite, afin que ton aumône se fasse en secret; et ton Père, qui voit dans le secret, te le rendra."
Matthieu 6:1–4 · Louis Segond✦ Your Father Who Sees in Secret
Jesus teaches the same principle Taylor develops: the intention determines the reward. The charitable deed done to be seen has already received its reward — the applause. The charitable deed done in secret is seen by the Father — and the Father rewards openly.
The French says ton Père, qui voit dans le secret, te le rendra — your Father, who sees in secret, will give it back to you. The secret intention is not hidden from God. It is hidden from men — but seen by the One who looks at the heart. Taylor's Pharisee prays to be seen. Le prays over coffee with Roger — and the Father who sees in secret knows the intention. 🙏
"Holy intention is to the actions of a man that which the soul is to the body."
Jeremy Taylor · Le's new friend · The keystone of five days · The soul of every actionEvery Action Religious
When we intend God's glory, the eating becomes worship, the meal becomes prayer. The works of nature become acts of virtue. All our lifetime — service.
The Heart, Not the Deed
David and Saul both mourned. Peter and Judas both wept. The praise is not in the deed done but in the manner of its doing. God looks at the heart.
Root to the Tree
Holy intention is the soul, the root, the sun, the fountain, the base. Without it — dead trunk, block, darkness, dry river, ruin. With it — worship in every action.
Jeremy Taylor's fifth day — and the keystone of the entire arc. Le named it: a new friend.
The five-day arc complete: Day one — wholly God's (identity). Day two — the arithmetic of a life (inventory). Day three — care of our time (instruction). Day four — do not be idle (warning). Day five — purity of intention (the soul of it all). The arc moves from who we are to what we do to why we do it. And the why is the keystone — without it, the arch falls.
Taylor and Guyon — the same interior way: Guyon's Letters taught the interior life — the secret place, the prayer of the heart, the pure love. Taylor teaches the same from the Anglican tradition: the intention is the interior. The action is the exterior. And the interior determines whether the exterior is worship or waste. Two traditions. One truth. Both read by the same pilgrim on the same road.
The 500 denari soul — Peter, not Judas: Peter wept and was restored. Judas wept and was lost. The tears were the same. The hearts were not. Le's conversion at midnight in Lubbock — the tears of the 500 denari soul — were Peter's tears, not Judas's. The same weeping. The different intention. One turned toward the Savior. The other turned away. The intention made the separation.
Le's new friend: I have a new friend — Jeremy Taylor. Five days on the road together. From Portugal through Spain to France. Written during exile. Read during exile. The exiled bishop and the traveling pilgrim — four centuries apart, one Spirit between them. Taylor earned his place in the library. The Spirit who chose the reading knew the reader.
The dishes — one more time: Yesterday Le said: go wash dishes! Today Taylor says: if the dishes are washed with holy intention, they are worship. If they are washed with resentment, they are chores. Same water. Same plates. Different soul inside the action. Le washes for God's glory and for Roger's care. The Father who sees in secret — sees. And the reward is not the clean plates. The reward is the One who is glorified by the washing. 🙏