do nothing of themselves, and are utterly insufficient to glorify their Creator and Redeemer.

While God was so remarkably present among us by his Spirit, there was no book so delighted in as the Bible; especially the book of Psalms, the prophecy of Isaiah, and the New Testainent. Some, by reason of their esteem and love to God's word, have at some times been greatly and wonderfully delighted and affected at the sight of a Bible and then also, there was no time so prized as the Lord's day, and no place in this world so desired as God's house. Our converts then appeared remarkably united in dear affection to one another, and many have expressed much of that spirit of love which they felt toward all mankind; and particularly to those that had been least friendly to them. Never, I believe, was so much done in confessing injuries, and making up differences, as the last year. Persons after their own conversion have commonly expressed an exceeding desire for the conversion of others: some have thought that they should be willing to die for the conversion of any soul, though of one of the meanest of their fellow creatures, or of their worst enemies; and many have indeed been in great distress with desires and longings for it. This work of God had also a good effect to unite the people's affections much to their minister.

There are some persons that I have been acquainted with, but more especially two, that belong to other towns, that have been swallowed up exceedingly with a sense of the awful greatness and majesty of God; and both of them told me to this purpose, that if they in the time of it had had the least fear that they were not at peace with this so great a God, they should instantly have died.

It is to be remarked, that some persons by their conversion seem to be greatly helped as to their doctrinal notions of religion; it was particularly remarkable in one, who having been taken captive in his childhood, was trained up in Canada, in the Popish religion; and some years since re

turned to this his native place, and was in a measure brought off from Popery but seemed very awkward and dull of receiving any true and clear notion of the Protestant scheme, till he was converted; and then he was remarkably altered in this respect.

There is a vast difference, as has been observed, in the degree and also in the particular manner of persons' experiences both at and after conversion; some have grace working more sensibly in one way, others in another. Some speak more fully of a conviction of the justice of God in their condemnation; others more of their consenting to the way of salvation by Christ; some, more of the actings of love to God and Christ: some, more of acts of affiance, in a sweet and assured conviction of the truth and faithfulness of God in his promises: others more of their choosing and resting in God as their whole and everlasting portion, and of their ardent and longing desires after God, to have communion with him; others more of their abhorrence of themselves for their past sins, and earnest longings to live to God's glory for the time to come. Some have their mind fixed more on God; others on Christ, as I have observed before; but it seems evidently to be the same work, the same thing done, the same habitual change wrou ht in the heart; it all tends the same way, and to the same end; and it is plainly the same Spirit that breathes and acts in various persons. There is an endless variety in the particular manner and circumstances in which persons are wrought on; and an opportunity of seeing so much of such a work of God, will show that God is further from confining himself to certain steps and a particular method in his work on souls, than it may be some do imagine. I believe it has occasioned some good people among us, that were before too ready to make their own experiences a rule to others, to be loss censorious and more extended in their charity. The work of God has been glorious in its variety; it has the more displayed the manifoldness and unsearchableness of

the wisdom of God, and wrought more charity among his people.

There is a great difference among those that are converted, as to the degree of hope and satisfaction that they have concerning their own state. Some have a high degree of satisfaction in this matter almost constantly; and yet it is rare that any do enjoy so full an assurance of their interest in Christ, that self-examination should seem needless to them; unless it be at particular seasons, while in the actual enjoyment of some great discovery, that God gives of his glory and rich grace in Christ, to the drawing forth of extraordinary acts of grace. But the greater part, as they sometimes fall into dead frames of spirit, are frequently exercised with scruples and fears concerning their condition.

They generelly have an awful appreliension of the dreadfulness and fatal nature of a false hope; and there has been observable in most a great caution lest in giving an account of their experiences, they should say too much, and use too strong terms: and many, after they related their experiences, have been greatly afflicted with fears lest they have played the hypocrite, and used stronger terms than their case would fairly allow of; and yet could not find how they could correct themselves.

I think that the main ground of the doubts and fears which persons, after their conversion, have been exercised with about their own state, has been that they found so much corruption remaining in their hearts. At first their souls seem to be all alive, their hearts are fixed, and their affections flowing; they seem to live quite above the worid, and meet with but little difficulty in religious exercises; and they are ready to think it will always be so: though they are truly abased under a sense of their vileness by reason of former acts of sin, yet they are not then sufficiently sensible what corruption. still remains in their hearts; and therefore are surprised when they find that they begin to be in dull and dead frames, to be troubled with wandering thoughts in the time of public

and private worship, and to be utterly unable to keep themselves from them; also when they find themselves unaffected at seasons in which they think there is the greatest occasion to be affected; and when they feel worldly dispositions working in them, and it may be pride, and envy, and stirrings of revenge, or some ill spirit towards some person that has injured them, as well as other workings of indwelling sin: Their hearts are almost sunk with the disappointment; and they are ready presently to think that all which they have met with is nothing, and that they are mere hypocrites.

They are ready to argue that if God had indeed done such great things for them as they hoped, such ingratitude is inconsistent with it: they cry out of the hardness and wick edness of their hearts; and say there is so much corruption, that it seems to them impossible that there should be any goodness there; and many of then seem to be much more sensible how corrupt their hearts are than ever they were before they were converted; and some have been too ready to be impressed with fear, that instead of becoming better, they are grown much worse, and make it an argument against the goodness of their state. But in truth the case seems plainly to be, that now they feel the pain of their own wound; they have a watchful eye upon their hearts, that they did not use to have: they take more notice what sin is there, and sin is now more burthensome to them; they strive more against it, and feel more of the strength of it.

They are somewhat surprised that they should in this respect find themselves so different from the idea that they generally had entertained of godly persons; for though grace be indeed of a far more excellent nature than they imagined, yet those that are godly have much less of it, and much more remaining corruption than they thought. They never realized it, that persons were wont to meet with such difficulties after they were once converted. When they are thus exercised with doubts about their state, through the deadness of their frames of spirit, as long as these frames last,

they are commonly unable to satisfy themselves of the truth of their grace, by all their self-examination. When they hear of the signs of grace laid down for them to try themselves by, they are often so clouded, that they do not know how to apply them: they hardly know whether they have such and such things in them or not, and whether they have experienced them or not; that which was sweetest, and best, and most distinguishing in their experiences, they cannot recover a sense or idea of.

But on a return of the influences of the Spirit of God to revive the lively actings of grace, the light breaks through the cloud, and doubting and darkness soon vanish away.

Persons are often revived out of their dead and dark frames, by religious conversation: while they are talking of divine things, or ever they are aware, their souls are carried away into holy exercises with abundant pleasure. And oftentimes while they are relating their past experiences to their Christian brethren, they have a fresh sense of them revived, and the same experiences in a degree again renewed. Sometimes while persons are exercised in mind with several objections against the goodness of their state, they have scriptures, one after another, coming to their minds, to answer their scruples and unravel their difficulties, exceedingly apposite and proper to their circumstances; by which means their darkness is scattered; and often before the bestowment of any new remarkable comforts, especially after long continued deadness and ill frames, there are renewed humblings in a great sense of their own exceeding vileness and unworthiness, as before their first comforts were bestowed.