we have been deceiving ourselves, it will be far better to discover it now, than when it is too late to rectify mistakes too late to repent, and work out our salvation. O let us, with the greatest diligence, attend to the one thing needful, and so number our fleeting days as to apply our hearts to true wisdom. Soon our mortal years will be ended; and then we shall commence an eternal round of joy or wo. And in eternity we shall reap the reward of our doings on earth. We shall feel the effects of our present conduct, when time has finished his appointed course, when the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll, when creation shall lie in mighty ruins, and when one vast eternity shall be all in all. Nay, we shall be sensible of their influence, as long as our existence endures.

O then how important it is, that we should awake from sleep, and sow to the Spirit, that we may of the Spirit reap life everlasting. Now is the accepted time, and now is the day of salvation. To-morrow we may be where all is immutable and eternal. O could we realize these considerations as we ought, what solemnity and awe would fill our minds; how jealous should we be over ourselves, how afraid of deception, how watchful against sin and Satan, how engaged in duty, how constant and ar dent in prayer, how earnest to approve ourselves to the Searcher of hearts. Let us then forsake our sins, and penitently return to the Lord; for our souls are infinitely precious; time is short, and eternity is near. May we both be made holy in heart and life, that we may glorify God on earth, and at death have an entrance ministered to us into that kingdom which consists in righteousness, peace, and eternal joy. O my friend, rest not unless you are created anew in Christ, &c.

LETTER TO MRS S. E. D. OF BEVERLY.

MY DEAR Mrs D.

Beverly Sept. 1814.

THE present is indeed a day of darkness, of thick darkness, illumined but with a few glimmering rays of cheering light. Our national iniquities are exceedingly numerous and aggravated, so that God in just judgment' has poured out his wrath upon us, to show us that it is an evil and bitter thing to forsake him. And if these afflictions might lead us to consider our ways, mourn with godly sorrow over our sins, and penitently return unto the Rock of our salvation, then we might hope that the Lord would spare us, defend and protect us, and favour us with his gracious smiles. But, alas! our pride, ambition, and vanity, have arisen to a greater height; and we seem to grow more hardened under divine rebukes. Much do we need a spirit of humility, of amity, and of dependence on the Almighty, and a thorough universal reformation, that again we may enjoy those blessings we once possessed, but which we so wickedly abused and forfeited. O may the saints of the Most High seek the good of Jerusalem, and pray and labour for her prosperity, till her brightness go forth as a lamp that burneth, and her rising glory fill the earth. The glorious appearing and power of Emanuel shall destroy the man of sin, subdue every enemy of his church, and cause the ransomed to travel the road that leads to the celestial Zion, with gladness and songs of joy. The day of the millennium is not far distant. Already with eager expectations we look for its dawn; and our bosoms glow with delight, when we contemplate what glory it will bring to God, what happiness to man. The desolations, persecutions, and afflictions of the church, and the miseries and sins. of a wretched world, will soon come to an end. The

happy saints will soon take the kingdom, and possess it for ever; while the King of saints shall display the banners of his cross through this wide earth, and all the numerous tribes of heathen nations of the world shall bow in homage at his feet. The church shall dry her tears, bid adieu to her sorrows, and shine in her beautiful garments, the joy of many generations. Hosannas to the name of Jesus shall fall from the mouths of babes; and every lip shall sing in cheerful strains the praises of the King of kings. O my sister, what a glorious period is just at hand, even at the door! And amidst all these calamities and commotions, when errors come in like a flood, and temptations to apostasy are on every side, how important it is that Christians should hold fast that which they have, and be ever abounding in the work of the Lord! How closely should they walk with God, that they may derive from him all those supplies of grace and strength which they need in the discharge of their various duties! Their faith and patience must be tried; but they will endure every trial, and in the end be more than conquerors over all their enemies. The Lord God of Israel is their inheritance, their refuge, and their salvation, and all his perfections are pledged to secure their complete redemption, and the final triumph of his cause over all the earth.

If we, my dear friend, can repose our trust in Jehovah, we need not despond though there be great distress and perplexities among the nations; though all nature be con vulsed and rent in dreadful anarchy. Amidst the most tremendous revolutions we may rejoice, and joy in the God of our salvation. O may we be favoured with holy confidence in him, that we may not hang our harps upon the willows, nor go mourning all the day long. It becomes Christians to rejoice in the Lord, that they may show to others that religion is not a melancholy thing,

as many are prone to believe. And the Lord is pleased, when he sees his children abound in grateful joy and praise, united with penitence and humility.

My dear, dear sister, take comfort, and still hope in your covenant God; for he is a Rock upon which you may stand securely in time and to eternity. He has been your helper in six troubles, and in seven, and he will be your refuge forever; giving you abundant reason still to sing of his mercy, faithfulness, and loving kindness. The soul that leans on him shall never be dismayed nor confounded; but shall go from strength to strength in this desart land, and hereafter appear in the Zion above, to join the innumerable company around the throne in songs of ceaseless praise. May this be the pri vilege of my dear sister, and her unworthy Fanny. O may grace, free grace, make us meet for the blessedness of the redeemed above; and when time shall close with us, introduce us to that city not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. And to grace shall be all the glory.

May the Lord bless you and yours with showers of the richest blessings. When you commune with God, sometimes think of me, &c.

LETTER TO MRS L. B. OF SALEM.

MY DEAR MRS B.

Beverly, Sept. 11, 1814.

I AM happy to acknowledge the receipt of a few lines from you last evening, by which I understand the intention of your sisters to devote to prayer a part of the hour from two to three, when from one to two is not practicable. I rejoice that you have agreed to meet in spirit at the throne of grace; and I think the time you specify the best which could be selected, more especially on account

of its nearness to ours. I shall often, in imagination, vi sit your retirements, and participate with you in the heavenly solace of communion with God; while my warmest wishes shall ascend in unison with yours, that our supplications may be these of humble faith and sincerity, that they may meet with the divine acceptance through the mediation of our adorable Emanuel. "Praying breath shall not be spent in vain.”

Blessed are those who sigh and cry in secret places for the abominations which abound in our guilty land; for their tears and moans shall be a sweet memorial before God of their detestation of sin, and of their ardent love. to the souls of sinners. And though the Almighty may pour out his fury unceasingly upon our much loved country, yet his dear children are safely hid in his pavilion; and shall surely find him a present help in time of trouble. He is a resting place, where we may sweetly repose our souls when heavy laden with a sense of indwelling iniquity, and burdened with oppressive wo. He presides over our convulsed world; overrules all events for the. good of his church, and the glory of his name, and with a regard to that auspicious period when all shall know him from the least to the greatest, and the beauty of Zion shine conspicuously over this benighted earth. When shall the millennial morn shed its cheering splendour among the nations, and the Day Star from on high lighten the heathen tribes to the mount of glory? O when shall the lapsed millions of our race fasten every hope of bliss on the cross of Calvary, and unite in one vast harmonious chorus of praise to the Lamb? O for the long expected era, when all the ends of the earth shall rejoice in the salvation of God, be filled with the happy subjects of redeeming grace, and reflect the image of that upper world, where holiness, peace, and happiness display their heavenly charms, and songs of joy drop with divine melody