q5. 3 MEMOIRS OE` PERIOD X, My confidence in the Lord was' tried now ; and though I got it. kept up better than ordinary in fuch a cafe, for force time yet at length it was brought to a low ebb, and almoft exhaufted, In this weary time I got a feafonable letter from my friend, chewing, my helpers were fecured for me. So the Lord light- ened my burden, while my ftrength was lets, and alfo gave force new difcovery that it is not in vain to truft him. About eight o'clockat night, another text was given me, namely, Heb. x. 22. Let us draw near with a true heart, in full affurance of faith," &c. And then my heart was taken off the former. I was well guided to this, as purfuant to what I had been upon, finte the man's fudden death at the park-foot, 2 Cor. v. 1. ",We know that," &c. ; and agreeable to what the Lord had been fecretly teaching me, by experience, before. I ftudied the fermon on it to-morrow, which I preached on the Lord's-day. On the Monday we kept the family-faft. I had not recovered my former frame ; but, in reference to our prayers, was helped to believe that word, Matth. vii. 7. " Afk, and it thall be given you", &c. I drove heavily in ftudying the communion-fermon. This day I had a fweet while in confidence on the Lord as my God, grafping the promife over the belly of felt fooliihnefs. Wednefílay, June 1. On the 29thof May the facrament was celebrated here. All the three days there was forne rain; but on the Lord's-day it was exceeding great, and greateft ofall in the time of the tables ; only it was fair weither in the time of the firft two. Yet the 'Lord made it a great day of the gofpel; aff fted his minifters, and the people generally, to very much compofure, though feveral went away for fear of the rifing of the waters. It wasfomewhat difcouragingto me,, in refpeót of the dif- turbance it might create to the people ; but I was helped tofub- mit tortasa trial to them and me. . I cried to the Lord in the morning-prayer, topreferve the people from bodilyhurt; for there was a great wind with the rain ; and I have not yet heard of any that was the worfe of it ; but force whom we fufpe6ted might be the worfe, particularly a woman that had lately been ill of the flux, werewell carried through fafe. Being warned by experience formerly, I was helped to hold off from two rocks I fplit upon at the lait facrament. One was concerning felf-examination : whatever was done in it on the Monday, being the family-faft day, I fet about it on the Saturday's night, got a humbling view of fin, and a fatisfying view of the grace of God in me. The other was the mixing öf my own fpirit with influences from heaven. The dangerfrom this quarter had been frightful to me, and in fecretI had been remarkably carried out in prayer againft it, and for a folid frame of fpirit, and a feeling, of what I was to fpeak. And indeed the Lord heard me, preferving me from that unhallowed mixture in the fermon, in force meafure, and giving an unufual meafure of folid, ferious feeling, in the reft of
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