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ZION’S L A N I) M A H K S
anoe on the third Saturday an:i Sun
day of Noverahor 1870, and joined
the church and was haptized in this
rejoicing state of mind. I remained
led a si'.ort time before I began to
doubt the reality of my experience
of grace, but I have never yet felt
the same condemnation I feit be
fore: sometimes when doubts and
fesrs arl.se and sin besets tne on
every side and I am shut up in pris
on, i exclaim witli John: is this the
(Ihrist or do we Took for another,
is this the evangelical change or
do we look tor another: go and show
»John again those things that are done,
the deasl are restored to life,the blind
rtee, the lame walk: when I am in
riurkue.ss, 1 cry unto Jesus to
brigiiten my evidences, and if I am
ds-:eived to undeceive me: go and tell
John the tilings tliat are done that
Is the things that are done in mv
«wn experience. I vras dead but 1
am restored to life, was blind but i
now see, I was lame but I now walk
in the strength of the Lord, I have a
hope througli my evidences that
rides over all my troubles, and I do
now and then have a bright spot’to
rejoice in, then I can say, bless the
ord Oh! my soul. Renicmber me
;^ur prayers, Oh, ^
parents, but the true cause is “that
the works of God should be made
rnanifeat in him.”—Jobn ix, 3.—
T!ie parents must suffer with the
trouble and thought of their Son's
blindness for more than 20' years, in
order that the works cf God should
be the more strikingly made mani
fest in !iim. Even hard-hearted.
Pharaoh was raised up that the Lord
might ^^show li-is power in liim, and
that the name of the Lord might be
declared throughout all the earth.”
—Eom. viii. 17. There are many
things winch to our weak vision
seem very afdieting and severe, yet
in the end tliey are for our good and
for tiie glory of God. The very op
pression of Phaiaoh against Israel
and Ids stubbornne.ss to-let them go
dindshed an occasion for tlio Lord tf>
manife.st liis sovereign }>o\ver m de
livering his people. In tlie case of
Lazarus’ death we see weeping sis
ters and friends, but the whole mat
ter is “for the glory of God, that the
Son of God might ho glorified'’ Jolm
I. Sorrow mav endure for a
UCKS Co., Pa. )
IPTON, Nov.- 3
Bucks
Southampton
Dear Elder Gold:—As I have
been a reader of your valualJe paper
from the first of June, though not a
subscriber, I feel as though I would
like to wiito a few lines fur it
if you think proper to publish. It
is with great pleasure that I read it,
for it contains the doctrine that I be
lieve, salvation by grace. I feel like
telling you and t!;e readers of your
precious paper, what great things
the Lord has done for poor unwor
thy me. I was born in this State
and raised up under the care of kind
parents. My mother is a member
of the Southampton Church. My
father is not a professor of religion.
From my earliest recollection 1 have
told some ©f his converts that tea
minutes was long enough for them la
get religion, and the reason that it
took some so long,-they did not com*
in the right Way. I was never muck
excited with his preaching until on«
night I sat up against a post that
had a lamp hung ®n it. Just about
the time meeting wuis a going
turn out, the lamp began to di*
away. One of the members went tt»'
turn it up a little but he told him lia
need not, he said be just was think
ing as he sa\y the light grow dim it
the spirit of Christ was leaving those
that were under it, he said it wouldy
tlicre was a queer feebng came over
me, but I could not tell tire cauw.^
I thouglit I would not go there any
more, but I oc’casionaly went there
bloss you in all things you -have
need of and enable you to stand on
/don’s wall and declare the wboh
cxminscl of God in its purity.
1 remain your unworthy brother
iu bonds of the gospel.
DANIEL W. TRASK.
XI.
iiight, but joy cometh
lu tiic inorn-
iROTHEK
Opelika, .Ala
Sept.
Gold:—Your
"-dth, 1872
72 }
very
timely and ajipropriate remarks
in
the TvANDmabks of September 15th,
in reply to sister Spragins, on the
text in Mark ix. 23, has been rea
Our dear sister Spragins has had
0 endure sorrows inexprcssablc, but
dr the end her faith in flie power ui
God is str-'Ugtheued and lias been
mahled to ri.se above every rvoridly
consideration, and look alone at
eternal things. Her great afliictior
lias some coiinec'ion with the very
instructive and comforting thiug.s
which appeam in the last number of
by me with much iutcrest and com
fort. Your views respecting tin
eternal .salvation of infant^, idiot.-
and Imiatius arc substantially tb;
pu'inciples for which tlie Primitive
Baptists have always contended
though some of us are not able to ex
press the subject in as clear and forci
ble a manner a.s you have done.
The works of God are often dark
and mys'orious to our natural com
prehension. We cannot see the
whole chain of God’s purpose, nor
bow one thing depends upon another
to manifest the glory of God. In
tlie case of the son that was horn
blind, the Jews thought as natural
ists now think that it was owing to
u t‘f the
the Landmaprs. But I did not
desi>-h to write a long letter and
must close. I am quite feeble and
have been during tiie past siuirmer,
feeblo in mind as well as body. I
hope the brethren will continue to
bear with rny wcaknes.s and infirmi
ties, and in fifithfu!ne.‘5S rejirove and
rebuke if necessaiT. I shall not be
£1^
some Etuural deleet or eiu
otfended for their kindness.
Brother Gobi, 1 sent yon a some
what lengthy letter on P.slams 8-1:2,
near two months ago, but as it has
not yet been j'uUidied; I siiiipose it
failed to reach you, or else you have
thouglit proper to supjiress its pub- ^
lication, if so please return it to me.
All will be right,
W. M. MITCHELL.
The a!?ove letter gliould have b«en
published eanier.
resolved to become a Ckri-stain but
I thought it was time enough for
that when I become a man, and now
1 have reached the years of man
hood and find that I have gone from
bad to worse, and have to exclaim “0
wretched man that I am who shall
deliver roe from tlns-boily of sin and
death. When I was about eleven
years of age, I went to live with a
nciglibo-ur of ours, lie was an
Ohl School Baptist; 1 thought he
was a good roan and 1 wanted to be
good too, so^ I began to pray as 1
thought. I prayed night and morn
ing hut my ])rayors were not heard.
Oh how many promises I made that
I would do if the Lord would only
save me, but to r»y surprise I found
myself getting worse and worse, so I
concluded I would quit trying to be
good. I lived there about six
months, then I went to- live with
my uncle, they were not members
but regular attenders of the South
ampton Church exeejxt my uncle,
he did not go anvwhei'e very often, so
I had to drive for them; this I did
not like very much, for it made us
late home and kept me busy to get
ready for Sunday School, J used to
get out of going to meeting as
often as I could. I lived tliere un
til I was seventeen years old. Since
then I have been going from place
to place. I generally went to Davis-
ville ,=0 called Church, for I thought
it was the right kind, for they preach
ed a conditional salvation, they told
me that if I would only be faithful
the Lord would do the rest, tmt I
have no desire to join their Church,
but they thought that 1 would, for i
attended their meetings more regu
lar than any of their members, but i
only went to see who would go for
ward
On tlic second Sunday in June, I
thought I would go to Seuthnmpten'
as rny cou.^iu ami two others were go
ing to be baptised,' after the baptiata-
was over I went into the meeting
hoi>se and sat in the very back seat
for I did uot care for the fidks to ee*
me there, fur I luated the very nam*-
ofthem, but when tlis' minister took
'diis text, though I can’t tell where it
was or what it was, stdl lie casigEit a
gliraps of me and it seemed ta
he did not take his eye off once. Oi,
how he to!(f- my very thoughts and
ieelings so
concluded that I would
go the next Sunday, audit Si’emeid-
that he prfstehed oul}’ to poor me, I
eontinuod to go there and I must
coiife.ss, that if there i.s a people on
this earth that I love it is t^,e Old
Bai'tists. Oh mv clear frieml havu’t
I the greatest reas-m to rejoice and
be thankful that the Imrd prsserved
rae fron> their' anxious bench, or
from joining their Church. But
God w»rks everything after thecoBri-
se! of life own wkil, thanks be to kt*-
name that he does. I feel sometime
as tliGugh I was a lamb eutside of
tlie fold, and if I am 1 know that i
am safe, for Christ sa-ys, my shefp-
hear my voice and I give unto tlicm
eternal life, and no man cun pluck
them out of my hand, for my father
which gave them me, is greater than
all, but my friend I don’t want to
deceiv-2 you, for I tlntik my sir*
alone were enough to crucify ou- Sa
viour, but I know full well that if rny
sins \vere not punished in Christ tI®T
must be punished in me, and ifpuu-
ished in me, they vvili sink me to hell
forever, Iwt my prayer now •ia'Lord
ho merciful to me ii sinner, no not *
sinner but the chief of sinners. 0^
what great privilege I have to wlurfe
'Ihcir Minister Mr. Cunard; some of the saints }>-ave, I have fh*