ning he had frequent turns of fainting, and in one of these, when a person mentioned that he was dying, he expressed his belief that he should revive and continue till midnight. At 12 o'clock exactly he breathed his laft, and as we charitably hope, exchanged earth for heaven. cordingly as your works in the body manifeft that you have or have not experienced those influ ences. Permit me then with plainness and folicitude to afk you, is it not of infinite importance that you think of your case without delay? Others experience these opera He had full poffeffion of reason ❘tions and you do not. Others are and speech to the last, and has left "Clafp'd in my heavenly Father's arms, ROM fome obfervations that paffed between us, I had reason to suppose that you confidered me as the writer of the piece in the Evangelical Magazine, No. 2. of Vol. II. respecting the special influences of the fpirit of God. I am ready to acknowledge I was the writerand by the place that I hold in your friendship, I am emboldened to ask you to review it carefully. And I am perfuaded you will find, if the doctrine be true, that it is of unspeakable importance. You will fee those influences to be necessary to prepare you as well as others for heaven-you will fee that you have not yet experienced them, and yet are a dying creature, exposed every moment to pass into eternity, where your reward will be bliss or mifery, ac 1 by them led to a holy life-to work out their salvation with fear and trembling-and you are yet under the dominion of your fins -perhaps never felt much concern about your spiritual state. You read what others have felt, and find nothing of the fame kind in yourself that these things are vastly important, but have had no weight with you. The gospel with all its excellencies lies before you; but you never was pleased with it-you tafte not its falvation; and dying so, you never will. Is there not then fufficient reason to exhort you, with earnestness, to think of your ways to forfake the foolish, and live and go in the way of understanding. A mat.. ter of so much importance, wherein your everlasting well being is so intimately concerned, deferves more than a few moments of confideration. It deferves-it requires hours of retirement and attention. How is it possible that you can rest, till you have experienced those influences which are neceffary to your salvation? You know that all other things of importance must not be trifled with that delays are dangerous-and that you are told by the only Saviour of men, to "ftrive to enter in at the strait gate, for many shall feek to enter in and shall not be able." How awful is the tho't! Perhaps you conceive that you possess a degree of religion, tho' your confcience will witness that you scarcely have fought to enter in at the ftrait gate. And you in a degree hope that you shall arrive to heaven. What prefumption is this! You are, in fact, hoping that God's word will not prove true. How criminal is this! The presumptuous hope of the unregenerate is in itself highly criminal and pregnant with destruction. They are hoping for a way to enter in which God has declared shall not take place ;thus hoping that he will falfify his word. This is the guilt of every one who does not strive to enter in at the strait gate. And is it not heinous? What would you think of the man that was continually wishing and endeavoring that you might prove yourself unfaithful to your folemn declarations? Dear fir-may you, and all in like circumstances, think and tremble. Let me then intreat you to be earneft about your falvation. Give way to those serious impreffions which I have known to begin to rife in you, upon reading the narratives in the Magazine. Do not seek to be rid of them on any account. Apply to your Bible, and to the throne of grace, nor fear to have it known that you are ferious about a cafe for which Jesus did not disdain to come from heaven and die upon the crossa cafe which employs the concern of angels, and to accomplish which the Holy Spirit condescends to take up his abode in the hearts of believers. In the view of God and angels it is of infinite importance, and they, doubtless, give it no more than its just estimation. To trifle with it, is to charge God with folly as well as falsehoodwith placing an unjuft, an infinite eftimation upon a thing so trifling as not to merit your ferious notice. -How full of wickedness is the human heart! But stand and wonder! Jesus says come unto me and I will give you reft. Never, Oh! never let it be faid of you, that at the last you would not come unto Christ that you might have life. Soon the writer of this and yourself will have past the day of hope. We must stand before the judgment bar of that Jesus whom finners re.. ject. And how shall we appear? I write to wake up your attention. Unless you rouse to diligence, how can you escape the wrath to come? May you review that piece and others in the Magazine; and if they contain God's truths it is no matter who wrote them. May you feel them. You are infinitely interested in them. And you have no reason to expect those necessary and facred influences, unless you are in good earnest engaged about them. That you may experience them to a saving degree, and thus become one of the heirs of glory, is the fincere prayer of Your friend, &c. Religious Intelligence. Extract of a letter from a perfon in West-Rutland, Vermont, to a friend in Connecticut, dated Sept. 25th, 1803. "THE awakening here we hope is not at an end yet, but there is not that visible engagednefs which there has been. We have constant additions to the church. More than 100 have joined this year. In Dorset there has been great attention the fummer paft. In Benfon there is a great work now going on. neighbor of mine, who was there the last week, says there appears not to be a careless person in the town. I am informed that about 4 months ago they had a town meeting, and appointed a committee to defire their minifter to leave A the town. Very foon after this, I have been hopefully snatched from the Lord's hand was visible among them." "At Castleton, there isa promifing beginning. Numbers are under deep impressions, and some have obtained hopes." Extract of a letter from a person in to a Clergyman in Connecticut, " It is now about a year fince there first appeared an unufual attention to the things of religion in this place. But nothing very extraordinary took place 'till last spring, when a folemnity, aw ful as judgment, feized the minds the power of Satan and united to Chrift. Forty-three have been added to our communion-twenty-fix are propounded; and there are not less than fixty who have manifested hopes, but have not come forward. There is a marvellous work in Benfon, 40 miles north of this, and in several towns in that vicinity. Also in San gate-and some hopeful begin. nings in Rupert, Manchester, Winhall, &c. These things will no doubt gladden your heart. We much need your prayers that God would not take from us his holy spirit." Extract of a letter from Rev. Sam uel Leonard, one of the Connecticut Miffionaries, dated Poultney, Vermont, O&. 4th, 1803. "REV. SIR, of almost all claffes of people in the fociety. Since that time we have witnessed a scene truly aftonishing and glorious! The mighty Redeemer has rode forth conquering and to conquer. Almighty power and grace have been glorioufly triumphant. Such a day I never before witnessed. The friends of Jefus have been all life andengagedness. Thro' the most busy season of the year, they have pretty uniformly attended a religious meeting every day in the week. Their hearts and their mouths have been full. To them indeed it has been a remarkably refreshing time. The work has been diftinguishingly still and reg. ular. Nothing that an enemy could call enthusiastic, has appeared. Persons of almost every age have been fubjects of the work; but the principal harvest | Last sabbath we received fourteen has been from among the youth. In one family, fix young perfons "WITH pleasure I. affume my pen to give you some account of the state of religion in this quarter. The awakening at Benfon, a town about eighteen miles north of this, is very powerful indeed. There is scarcely a family in the town that escapes the shower. In the north part of the State the wilderness appears to bloffom. God is pouring out his spirit in fome towns and awakening finners to attend to the great concerns of eternity. Poultney is not wholly left. God is here manifesting himself to be fuperior to the craftiness of Satan, and the pride and stubborness of the human heart. into the church, and fome more are to be examined next week." Donations to the Missionary Society of Connecticut. O8. 25th. A female friend of Miffions, being a part of a fortunate ticket, 27th. A friend of Miffions, appropriated to the purchase of books. Nine doz. Teftaments from several friends of Miffions, DC. 2 12 11 16 31 50 THE Connecticut Evangelical Magazine. [PUBLISHED ACCORDING TO ACT OF CONGRESS.] VOL. IV.] JANUARY, 1804. A REVIEW of times past, and contemplations on future prospects, humbly attempted for general instruction, and to excite pious meditations, Sq.: or the Editors' NEW-YEAR'S GIFT, to their gen- | erous readers. (Contin. from Vol. III. p. 249.) A [No. 7. respect to themselves. No one can determine that he shall not be the first who shall be called to mourn for the lofs of his dearest enjoyments, or whose days shall be numbered and finished. For man also knoweth not his time. The eternal happiness or mifery of every man beyond the grave, gra depends wholly on the manner in which he employs the fleeting, precarious moments appointed to him upon the earth. Every day and hour will either increase his treasure in heaven and eternally enhance the glory and blessedness of his future reward, or add to the magnitude of his guilt, and for NOTHER year is gone. Yes, irrecoverably gone. Millions are gone with it to the grave, and to judgment. All the living, folemn thought! have been wafted on one year nearer to eternity and their final doom. With millions this will be the last year. Great numbers will live but a small part of it. Every portion | ever increase the feverity of his of time, each month, and day, and hour, is pregnant with great events. There is not a minute in which there are not more perfons exchanging worlds, and going to judgment, than there are seconds in it.* All begin their new year, with an entire uncertainty what will be the events of it with According to the common estimate of mortality, about thirty five, or thirty fix millions die annually; and about seventy or eighty every minute, VOL. IV. No. 7. punishment. In this view how should every mind be impressed with the propriety and force of that apoftolic injunction; See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wife, redeeming the time, because the days are evilt? The words import, that the wisdom of man confifteth in the redemption and right use of time, and that to embezzle, or mifimprove it is the most egregious folly. But what † Ephef. v. 15, 16. is time? What is it to redeem time? May not an answer to these inquiries lead us to fuch a view of times past and times to come as shall furnish us with meditations suitable for the New Year's day? Meditations calculated to make us wife and useful while we live, and honorable and blessed when time with us shall be no more ? TIME in a general sense is the measure of the earthly creation in its present manner of existence. When the Creator faid, Let there be light and there was light; and the evening and the morning were the first day, time began. When the trump of God shall found, the dead arife, and the earth and the works that are therein shall be burnt up, time will be no more. The elect will be gathered in, and the mystery of God finished. The duration of time, probably, will be, between seven and eight thousand years. About 2,514 elapsed before the giving of the law at mount Sinai. From that time to the birth of Christ, was about 1,486 years, making in the whole 4,000 years. The term from the advent of our Saviour, to the millennium, or thousand years of light, purity and peace to the church, is generally computed from the prophetic representations at 2,000 years more. This glorious Sabbath of a thousand years will make the complete term of 7000 years. It is written, After that fatan must be loofed for a little feafon, and shall go out to deceive the nations, which are in the four quarters of the earth: and to gather them together, to compass the camp of the faints about. Chrift is then represented as coming to the complete deliverance of the church, the total overthrow * Revelation xx. 7, 8. of his enemies, and to the judgment of the world. This, according to the common course of providence, may be accomplished in a few centuries. As the divine Spirit hath termed it, a little feafon, and as no events are affigned to it, but the sudden and great apoftacy, and the gathering together of the wicked to compass the camp of the faints about, and the holy city, it is reasonable to believe, that the time will be short. THE whole duration of time, be it longer or shorter, is laid out to a moment, in the divine purpofe, with all its different periods and events. He hath appointed the time of the rife, duration, and fall of kingdoms and empires, the countries in which they were to flourish, and the time, place and circumstances of every man's exiftence. And hath made of one blood, all nations of men, for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation. He hath laid out all the great periods of time: That from the the creation to the deluge; from that to the giving of the law; and thence to the coming of the Messiah. He determined the period from the incarnation of the Saviour unto the rife of Mahomet, and the man of fin; in which he would support the church under the heathen beast; and the 1260 years of the reign of the man of fin, that monster of iniquity, who exalteth himself above all that is called God. He devised and laid out the thousand years, which is to be a glorious Sabbath of reft and joy to the church, the judgment of the great day, and all the smaller periods of which those * Acts xvii. 26. |