Читать книгу The Life of Rev. David Brainerd, Chiefly Extracted from His Diary онлайн

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Oct. 21.—“Had a very deep sense of the vanity of the world, most of the day; had little more regard to it, than if I had been to go into eternity the next hour. Through divine goodness, I felt very serious and solemn. O I love to live on the brink of eternity, in my views and meditations! This gives me a sweet, awful and reverential sense and apprehension of God and divine things, when I see myself as it were, standing before the judgment seat of Christ.

Oct. 22.—“Uncommonly weaned from the world to-day: my soul delighted to be a “stranger and pilgrim on the earth;” I felt a disposition in me never to have any thing to do with this world. The character given of some of the ancient people of God, in Heb. 11:13, was very pleasing to me, “They confessed that they were pilgrims and strangers on the earth,” by their daily practice; and O that I could always do so! Spent some time in a pleasant grove, in prayer and meditation. O it is sweet to be thus weaned from friends, and from myself, and dead to the present world, that so I may live wholly to and upon the blessed God! Saw myself little, low and vile as I am in myself. In the afternoon preached at Bethlehem,Bethlehem, from Deut. 8:2. God helped me to speak to the hearts of dear Christians. Blessed be the Lord for this season: I trust they and I shall rejoice on this account,account, to all eternity. Dear Mr. Bellamy came in while I was making the first prayer, (having returned home from a journey,) and after meeting we walked away together, and spent the evening in sweetly conversing on divine things, and praying together, with tender love to each other, and retired to rest with our hearts in a serious spiritual frame.