Page images
PDF
EPUB

Gompany of pilgrims, steering to Canaan's happy land.

If then you have reason to think you are one of the number, take heed and shun every devious step, and every crooked path, and labor to be deep in penitence and humility, looking continually to Jesus. Remember you have no inherent power, by which you can fight the Christian warfare; but you need fresh and constant supplies, and must be always a beggar at the throne of grace. Use great caution; be circumspect; avoid all known sin; enter not into temptation; be fervent, persevering and constant in your supplications to Heaven, and do all with a single eye to the glory of God, and in the name of the Lord Jesus.

As I know not the state of your mind, I have touched upon a variety of subjects, and you will probably find some things applicable. If I have been to harsh and severe, forgive me. This letter has been written in great haste, part of it in the silent hours of night, when sleep had closed almost every eye; which must apologize for its imperfections, and the badness of the writing. If you can read it, and find one word conducive to your good, I shall think it an ample, compensation; and may the glory be all given to Him who deserves it. Please to write very soon the feelings of your heart. Most affectionate regards to all my dear Bradford friends, particularly those with whom you reside. Yours, &c.

FANNY WOODBURY.

Letter to Miss B. P. of Danvers.

Beverly, Oct. 23, 1815. Saturday eve.

My dear Betsy,

As the evening drew its sable curtains over our western horizon, I thought my heart rejoiced, and I could say to all my terrestrial employments and pursuits, as Abraham said to his servants, "Abide ye here, while I go yonder and worship." How sweet it is to leave the world behind, to forget we are inhabitants of this comfortless clime, and with an eye of faith pierce the intercepting veil of mortality, and range the fields of ether; and placing our selves before the throne of the Eternal, min. gle with the spirits of the just, and with rapturous wonder and sweetest melody, rehearse the glories of almighty grace, and make heav en's high arches reverberate with our songs of praise, Such mental and devotional excur sions make palatable the bitter waters of Marab, lighten every cross, sweeten every trial, and smooth the rugged road which leads to heaven. After such favored seasons, how invulnerable are our hearts to the allurements of an insidious world, to the solicitation of sinful pleasures, and to all the wiles of a subtle adversary; and how are we almost ready to bound over the intervening years of our pilgrimage, and cry, "Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly." But ah, how soon do we descend from the summit we had gained, lose the heavenly relish, and become accessible to the grovelling charms of this sinful state!

What an inconsistent creature is man! Who, that hears a Christian converse on the glories of heaven, on the beauties of Immanuel, on the

wonders of redeeming love, would not imagine him insensible to human grandeur, honor and applause, regardless of reproaches, calumnies and frowns, and proof against temptation? But this very person you may see the next moment, ambitious of the honor that comes from man, seeking after distinctions and emoluments with avidity, complying with the voice of the tempter, and thoughtless of his God and his duty, as if this were his home and his portion. So foolish, deceitful and unstable is the heart of man, and so essentially necessary is the grace of Omnipotence, the quickening, enlivening influences of the Holy Spirit, we have continual need to look to Heaven for help, and say to God with the Psalmist, "Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe." We have no inherent power to stand our ground, or take one step forward in the path of duty, independent of the assisting grace of God. The work of

Salvation from first to last is the work of that uncreated Power, which spake the earth out of nothing, and man from earth; and no power inferior to that, can new-create any of our lapsed race; nor, after grace is infused into the heart, maintain its life. The same almighty arm, which snatched the sinner from the burning Jake, must be constantly exerted to keep and uphold him, till he arrives at his journey's end, and on the peaceful banks of deliverance swells the chorus of heaven.

The precious, precious religion of the cross is the only one that can meliorate the obliquities of nature, subjugate the turbulent passions of the mind, purily and sanctify the heart, and diffuse peace, harmony and love through the

soul; alleviate and support under trials, destroy the sting of death, and open the gate of the New Jerusalem. "Here is firm footing, here is solid rock; all is sea besides."

FANNY WOODBURY,

Letter to Miss M. S. of Chelmsford.

Beverly, Oct. 29, 1813.

As I again direct my thoughts to Chelmsford, my heart solicitously inquires into the concerns of my beloved fellow-pilgrim there, and tenders its most ardent and affectionate wishes for her progress in the Christian race. May smiling Heaven shed lustre on the mar row path, strew its rugged way with Eden's blooming flowers, and Eschol's pleasant grapes, and giid its closing step with the full rays of an immortal Sun. May this find you, my dear sister, not like Martha of old, cumbered with the affairs of this vanishing world, but, like gentle Mary, at the feet of your beloved Redeemer, imbibing his spirit, and drinking his instructions, and solacing your self under the banner of his love, devoutly trust, you are steering your course to the hill of Zion, O may you accelerate your pace, and climb, with more than mortai speed, the steep ascent. Let not your heart faint because of the way It is indeed a way ungrateful to carnal sloth and security, formidable to pride, ambition and lust a way beset with snares, stratagems and difficulties, troubled with numerous potent and malicious enemies, and lined with sorrows and tears. But it is the way Heaven has marked out It is sanconed by the Captain of our saivation, crim

If, as I

soned with the blood of the martyrs, traversed by all the redeemed in glory, and now trodden by every saint on earth. It is perfumed with the merits of Jesus, smoothed with watchfulness and prayer, sweetened with the promises of the gospel, illumined with the light of heaven, and terminates in Paradise. O my friend,it is a good way. The longer you walk in it, the better you will love it; the happier and the easier you will go on.

But you will recollect that the arm of the Lord is your strength, and that you cannot take one step, nor even stand the ground you have gained, but by the special assistance of almighty grace. O how often do we stumble and fall through self-dependence, self-love, and selfsufficiency, and thereby grieve the blessed Jesus, and bring leanness into our souls; and surely, if superior power did not raise us, we should there remain, wallowing in the slough of despond, and sinking deeper and deeper in the mire, or reaching the city of destruction, take our station there, with wrath impending over our guilty heads. But blessed be God, that he has engaged to perfect the work which he begins, and that by a mighty power and stretched-out arm, he will bring all his soldiers from the field of battle with songs of victory on their lips, and triumphant joy in their hearts. A true Christian may fall frequently-may fall grievously, but shall never fall finally. O no. The grace, the love, the power, the faithfulness of Jesus are engaged to bring every new-born soul home to glory in defiance of all the hosts of hell.

Come then, my dear fellow-traveller, forget

« PreviousContinue »