OF EARLY RELIGION. 213 him as GOD MY SAVIOUR; and may my spirit rejoice in him, with joy unspeakable and full of glory. While many of the young around me grasp seeming happiness, and find it pain;” court pleasure, and win perdition; may I obtain solid peace, and rest, and happiness in thee. Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon me, and cheer me with thy smile. Give me, O my God, a humble assurance that I am thine: and may I look backward with pleasure on dangers escaped; and praise thee, for bringing me from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to thyself. Number me with thy saints; and by faith may I see Salem's golden towers, and heaven's eternal mansions; may I behold the blood-bought crowns, the palms of victory, and robes of light, designed for those who follow Jesus, and who are faithful unto death. Let me live, rejoicing in him as my guide, my Saviour, my all; and let me die, by the eye of faith discerning him waiting on the heavenly shore, to welcome me to himself, and to introduce me into thy presence,with exceeding joy. And till that solemn moment arrives, when I must exchange time for eternity, O, grant that I may find the ways of early wisdom the ways of true pleasantness, and paths of most solid peace! May my heart be attuned for devotion, my soul be transformed to relish the sacred pleasures, and to delight in the holy exercises of meditation, praise, and prayer. Thus may I have meat to eat, which the world knows not of; pleasures of which they cannot partake; and may it be my meat and drink to do my Father's will. Let me find in thy promises, consolations more valuable than a thousand worlds. In serving and loving thee, in 214 MOTIVES FOR EARLY PIETY, FROM communion with thee, and in anticipating thy kingdom, may I taste, even in this world, some humble foretaste of the joy to be possessed hereafter. Blessed Redeemer, I look to thee. To thee would I come, not merely for life, but for happiness also. May I draw water with joy, from the wells of salvation. Give me to drink from that fountain, of which thou hast said, Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him, shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him, shall be in him a well of water, springing up into everlasting life. May I partake of this water, and thirst no more; but feeling through thy grace, an ever-flowing spring of holy joy in my own soul, may I look with indifference on the boasted delights of a vain world. Whatever happens to me, let not my heart be troubled; but believing in God, and believing in thee, may I find the light afflictions, which are but for a moment, working for me a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. Grant this, O thou most compassionate Saviour, to me, one of the most unworthy of thy creatures, and thine shall be the praise. Amen. CHAPTER XII. THE HAPPY CONCLUSION OF A RELIGIOUS LIFE A "And when the closing scenes prevail, Or passion craves, or pride inspires; THE HAPPY END OF A PIOUS LIFE. And when the painful struggle's o'er, Nor give him less than all thy heart." 215 § 1. It is, my young friend, the peculiar excellence of religion, that its blessings yield most support, when that support is needed most. The humble Christian does not love a forgetful God. They whose strength and prime are devoted to their Maker's glory, will experience his presence and support, when their flesh and heart fail; and when death is at hand, to remove them to the eternal world. If you remember your Creator, in these your blooming days, he will remember this kindness of your youth through all the scenes of your following life, and when you come to lie down and die. Death is approaching; and when all sublunary objects can yield you no support, God would remember that, in you, he had a child conflicting with the last foe; and you might, with pleasure, think "Though unseen by human eye, Though death is naturally dreadful to man, yet many of the young disciples of the Lord have passed, with calm composure, or holy joy, through its dark valley to the realms of everlasting day. § 2. You are called on to imitate those who, through faith and patience, are inheriting the promises. Take then a view of the concluding scene of the life of one, who in his youth became a disciple of the Lord. Think not that in referring you to the apostle Paul's departure, as an 216 DYING TRIUMPH OF THE APOSTLE PAUL. example of holy triumph over death, I refer you to that of too elevated a character. Like you, he was but man. Like you, was once a sinner. The same blood that washed away his sins, may blot out yours. The Saviour who was his all, is willing to be yours. The grace he possessed, you may obtain. The strength, by which he conquered, you may enjoy. The Spirit, that made a temple of his heart, is willing to make one of yours. Though not called with a call miraculous as his, though not employed in labours important as those in which his life was spent, yet you may be dear to his Lord; entitled to the same supports and privileges; and an heir of the same blessings as he. Long had this blessed apostle been, like his Lord, a man of sorrows; and his years had been worn out in labours. At length the end arrived when he might take a farewell to earth; and he did so with a calmness worthy the heir of a better world. His triumphant language was, "I have fought a good fight; I have finished my course; I have kept the faith; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord the righteous Judge shall give me at that day; and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing." ." "I know in whom I have believed; and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day." The world he was about to quit, concerned him no longer. He could smile at its hatred, and pity its happiness. A brighter, a better, and an eternal scene lay before him. We may imagine him looking back on past scenes of suffering and labour; retracing in his thoughts many a weary step, and many a painful hour; and then raptu BLESSEDNESS OF PEACE IN DEATH. 217 rously exclaiming-"This is all over now; my course is finished; the victory is won; my dangers are passed; I have kept the faith. In vain would earth or hell attempt to excite one fear, or raise one doubt within my breast. I know in whom I have trusted. I know that Jesus is my Saviour, and an eternal weight of glory mine. I know that God is my portion; heaven my home, and that a few more days will land me safely there." §3. O my young friend, let me tell you, and tell you seriously, that you must die, and unless you obtain the consolations of religion, must know their importance when too late. Think, then, that thus, in your case, early piety might disarm death of its terrors, and drive away the cloud of gloom that hangs over the grave. Thus might you also leave this world of vanity, assured of an interest in Jesus, and of everlasting rest. O happy, happy they who thus can die! happy they who so peacefully depart in blooming youth, or withering age, from scenes of sorrow, or from scenes of comfort! still happy they, who die blessed in an unseen Saviour's love; and soon to be blessed by a present Saviour's gracious welcome to the abodes of glory! Happy they, beyond all thought and all expression! beyond the power of mortal tongues to tell, or of narrow time to utter! Let the vain world keep its possessions! let the fashionable and the gay enjoy their short-lived gaiety, and quickly-ending pleasure! Let the wealthy exult in their stores, and the noble in their honours! these are not the happy. The solemn death. bed, where the humble, faithful disciple of Jesus has lain, has often afforded a happier spectacle than the most happy |