WAITING ON GOD. 411 lanced and cured by a stroke; for God does not send judgments on his own for judgment's sake, for punish- ment's sake, but always to accomplish some blessed de- sign of grace towards them. And there is no one soul in particular, which shall rightly search itself and con alder its state, but will be able to see Wisdom, grace and care towards itself in all the dispensations of God. And if I would here enter upon the benefits that, through the sanctifying hand of God, redound to believers by af- flictions, calamities, troubles, distresses, temptations and like effects of God's visitations, it would be of use to the souls of men in this case. But this subject has been so often and so well treated that I shall not here insist upon it. I desire only that we should seriously consider how utterly ignorant we are of what is good for us or useful to us in these outward things, and so leave them quietly to God's disposal. 4. We may consider that all these things-about which we are troubled fall directly within the compass of that good word of God's grace, that he will make all things work together for the good of them that love him. Rom. 8: i8. All things that we enjoy, all things that we are deprived of, all that we do, all that we suffer, our losses, troubles, miseries, distresses, which the apos- tle instances in the following verses, they shall all work together for good ; together with one another, and all with and in subordination to the power, grace and wis- dom of God. It may be, we see not how or by what means it shall be effected; but he is infinitely wise and powerful who hath undertaken it, and we know little or nothing of his ways. There is nothing that we have, or enjoy, or desire, but it has turned out to some to their
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