\ , 104 BfEMOIRS. OF PERIOD. 'VII, a probationer, I thought I would have gladly embraced an occa. Pion of. Confidering that night thegate of the public,I thought all ranks of perfons, minifters as well as others, were out of the way. And that fame night I learned, that the Lord had dire& ed to hit the fores of fore at the preceding weekly fermon, fo that they thought force had told me : in the which I perceived the divine condu &. On Saturday, the 3d, it was long ere I could fall on a text for Churnfide, where I was to preach. And when I was fixed in that point, my ftudies thereon went on heavily, infomuch that having made but little progrefs therein, I behoved to go away towards that place. At night, being there, my ftudies fucceeded better withme ; and I was enlarged in my meditations thereon. On the Lord's day, I was more helped in preaching than in pray. er ; wherein I found myfelf under a great reftraint. When a- lone, I was not fo confuted in my uptakings of Chrift and religion, as in fore other times of defertion. Yea, according to my doc- trine that day, no lefs than Chrift could, fatisfy me : I taw his fupereminent excellency, and the emptinefs of all things betides him ; and my foul was in Tome fort.lifted up in the ways of the Lord. But how to reconcile that with the reftraint upon me in prayer, I knew not. But certainly there may be an enlargement in afeétion, where there is a ftraitening in words, Pfal. vi. 3. and lxxvii. 4. ; Rom. viii. 26. On the Tuefday I vifited at Lint. laws a godly friend, then a widow, who (hewed me how helpful the fermon at Edrom, O. 15. 1699, on Lam. iii. 2?. hadbeen to her in heraflli&ed flate which called to my mind that word, Who will hearken and hear for the time to come ?" If'. xlii, 23. After this I returned to the prefbytery at Churnfide, where at the preceding diet, upon occafion of requiring a probationer's fubfcription, I had obferved, that the formula we of that prefby- tery had to fubfcribe, was avery unfit one, being that which was calculated by the affembly for thofe of the Epifcopal way who were to be received into minifterial communion. This was then feconded by Mr James Ramfay, who further propofed that there should be a new formula made. And indeed, in prefbyterial management of matters of the greateft weight, Mr Ramfay and I feldom differed in thofe ,days : but at this diet, the motion was fo oppofed by fore, that nothing was concluded. However, I declared, how I thought the formula above faid, which we had figned, might be prejudicial to the intereft of the church in after times. Having returned home that night, I fpent the next day moftly in reading, frequently looking upward to heaven ; but (till thought I was made to go halting, for my ingratitude for the di- vine kindnefs on the Sabbathwas eight days before. But at night, going to bed, I was helped to pour out my complaint into hisbo- fom. Gr; Thurfday morning, the 8th, my frame continued; but I unhappily betook myfelf to reading, putting off nay ftudies
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