Prayer for Deliverance from fpiritual Darkness, Lord of my Life, my Joy, my Peace! Wednesday, August 29, 1787. As the Hart panteth after the Water Brooks, fo panteth my Soul after thee, O GOD; hide not thou thy Face from me, thou haft been my Help hitherto, leave me not, neither forfake me, Q GOD of my Salvation. My Soul is very forrowful, lift thou upon me the Light of thy Countenance. For thy Prefence is defirable, and would conftitute a Dungeon a Palace; but thine Abfence would make a Palace, a Hell. From whence does my Joys arife at the Thought, of entering the eternal Courts of Blifs? But, that I may have thy Presence, and be Ever with thee; what would Heaven be to me without GOD? I could have no Enjoyment, even there, without JESUS! for JESUS! is the Source of all my Happiness. LORD I have found thee faithful to thy Word, I have waited upon thee, and my Strength is again renewed; O grant me the Bleilings of the New Covenant, write thy Law in my Heart - Give E 2 me me a new Heart O LORD, and renew a right Spirit within me. O LORD conform me to the Image of my ADORABLE MASTER, for I delight in him. He is my eternal Felicity. Thursday, August 30, 1787. Thou art my GOD, therefore will I praise thee; the LORD liveth, and bleffed be my ROCK, and let the GOD OF MY SALVA TION, be exalted. Thou art my GOD, and I delight in thy Ways, for thou haft dealt very favourably with me, and led me in pleafing Paths. Though the LORD in his Wifdom, has hid his Face from me for a little, yet he still remains the fame; and it was my FATHER's Love that constrained him to correct me; I can fee now the End he had in it, to humble my Soul before him; oh what a tender Father I have; he will by no Means afflict, unless it is for my Welfare, therefore when he feems to frown, it may be juftly called, a Bleffing in Disguise. The LORD is my Portion, he is my STRONG ROCK, and HOUSE OF DEFENCE, he is my CASTLE, and DELIVERER: oh the Riches of his Mercy! he witheld not his Son, his only Son! JESUS! the Son of his Love. And this JESUS! is mine, he is my beloved, and my all-fufficient Friend! in him, I have Wisdom, Righteoufnefs, San&tification, and Redemption, oh the Value of his Grace! one Spark Spark of Divine Grace, is worth more than ten Thousand Worlds. Oh the Value of JESUS! let thofe, who are building their Happiness upon their Riches and Honours, enjoy them, it will be but for a fhort Time; I envy them not. I have a Treasure that will never Ferish, JESUS! is an everlafting Portion. Irenounce the Vanities, of this World, for there is no Pleasure in them. I choose the PEARL of great Price; my JESUS! my All! Oh the boundless inconceivable, Love of the LORD JESUS! this has been a Time of refreshing from the Prefence of the LORD, he has led me into his banqueting Houfe, and his Banner over me was Love. I have not trufted the LORD in Vain, no, he is faithful: and has fully anfwered my Expectation. My Soul be joyful in GOD, for he has done great Things for thee: while I live, will I praife the Lord, yea as long as I have a being I will fing Praises to the LORD, for he has been my Strength in Weakness, he has been my never-failing Friend, therefore will I ever truf in him. Friday, August 31, 1787. Surely I have abundant Reafon to blefs the LORD! for he is continually diftributing his Mercies to me: this Day have found the LORD prefent with me, and have been enabled to re joice joice in him! O LORD enable me ever to keep an Eye fingly fixed to thy Glory; but how apt am I to ftray from thee, yet O LORD thou art my Keeper; oh! let thy Clemency keep me from wandering from theė. Saturday, September 1, 1787. Salvation belongeth unto GOD! and thou O LORD! art the GOD of my Salvation, therefore I will reft fatisfied; and when Sense fails, I will truft in thy Name. I am not Worthy of the leaft of thy Mercies, and have it to lament that fo little of this Day has been devoted to thee: but thou art a God merciful and gracious, par doning Iniquity, Tranfgreffion and Sin. Í have Nothing to plead in Behalf of myfelf, for I am a finful Creature: but thou O LORD art full of Compaffion. Lord's Day, September 2, 1787. I am the LORD ALMIGHTY! in this Character the LORD has revealed himfelf to me this Morning; he has revealed himself as Almighty to deliver me from approaching Trials, are Men, and Devils combined together for the Deftruction of my Soul, are they trying their utmost to destroy my Body. What can they do? The LORD JEHOVAH! is Almighty! I will not fear an Arm of Flesh while I have thofe precious Words applied to me, I am the LORD ALMIGHTY! even to deliver thee. Bleffed be GOD I have traced the Goings of my GOD in the Sanctuary this Morning, I have fat under his Shadow, and his Fruit has been fweet to my Tafte. How changeable am I, how dull, how ftupid, and lifeless, is there one of the Lord's People like me, I am a Wonder to myself. But I will truft in the LORD. He is unchangeable. I have again found the LORD prefent with me, but oh how fhort was the Vifit, It was but a tranfient Glimpse of my LORD: but he ftill re mains mine. My Father, my Portion and my All! Wednesday, September 5, 1787. Jefus is yet alive! O my Soul take Comfort from this, although Temptations and Trials, from within and without may caft thee down yet they can never deftroy thee for thou haft a Friend in Heaven: JESUS is yet alive, and because he lives, I fhall live alfo. JESUS! indeed is preious, his Name is like a reviving Cordial, O may I be enabled firmly to rely and truft in him. Lord's |