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LETTER II.

My dear Child,

Old Jewry, Oct. 22, 1779.

You may well expect to hear from me; but you will hardly expect a long letter, if you remember what little leisure I have in London. Almost every day loads me with debt, and brings me letters which I am not able to answer; but my dear Betsy must not be forgotten. We have been here a fortnight and upwards; the Lord gave us a pleasant and safe journey. Your mamma has been, upon the whole, comfortably well; and as you know we are at Dr. ****’ "s, I need not tell you that we are situated as much to our minds as can be, in the midst of so much noise and smoke. But here I can have no garden; no pretty walks amongst trees and fields; no birds but such as are prisoners in iron cages, so that I pity them, for all their singing.

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But the same sun that shines at Nis often to be seen at London; and the Lord Jesus, like the sun, is in all places at once. Go where we will, we are not far from him, if

we have but eyes to see him, and hearts to perceive him. My dear child, when you look at the sun, I wish it may lead your thoughts to him who made it, and who placed it in the firmament, not only to give us light, but to be the brightest, noblest, emblem of himself: there is but one sun, and there needs not another; so there is but one Saviour; but he is complete and all-sufficient, the sun of righteousness, the fountain of life and comfort; his beams, wherever they reach, bring healing, strength, peace, and joy to the soul. Pray to him, my dear, to shine forth, and reveal himself to you. O, how different is he from all that you have ever seen with your bodily eyes! he is the sun of the soul, and he can make you as sensible of his presence as you are of the sunshine at noon-day; and when once you obtain a clear sight of him, a thousand little things, which have hitherto engaged your attention, will, in a manner, disappear.

As by the light of op'ning day,
The stars are all conceal'd;
So earthly beauties fade away,
When Jesus is reveal'd.

I entreat, I charge you, to ask him every day

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to show himself to you. Think of him as being always with you; about your path by day, about your bed by night, nearer to you than any object you can see, though you see him not; whether you are sitting or walking, in company or alone. People often consider God as if he saw them from a great distance : but this is wrong; for though he be in heaven, the heaven of heavens cannot contain him; he is as much with us as with the angels; in him we live, and move, and have our being; as we live in the air which surrounds us, and is within us, so that it cannot be separated from us a moment. And whatever thoughts you can obtain of God from the Scripture, as great, holy, wise, and good, endeavour to apply them all to Jesus Christ, who once died upon the cross, for he is the true God and eternal life, with whom you have to do; and though he be the King of kings and Lord of lords, and rules over all; he is so condescending and compas sionate, that he will hear and answer the prayer of a child. Seek him, and you shall find him; whatever else you seek, you may be disappointed, but he is never sought in vain.

Your very affectionate.

LETTER III.

My dear Child,

I

Charles Square, Hoxton, April 8, 1780,

HAVE heard of you several times since I received your letter, which I wished to answer before. I would be thankful that you are well, and I hope you are happy, that is, in the common sense of the word; for, strictly speaking, happiness is not to be found here. I hope, however, you are cheerful, thankful, and, in some degree, satisfied with your lot; and, in order to this, I would wish you to look round you, and see how many children are sick, while you are well; poor and desti-tute, while you are provided, not only with the necessaries, but the comforts of life. How many, again, are exposed to hard and unkind treatment, whereas you are noticed and caressed, and have kind friends abroad and at home. Once more, consider how many are brought up in ignorance and wickedness, have nothing but evil examples, and it is to be feared will go

from bad to worse as they grow up; while you have the advantage of good education and good examples, and are placed where you can hear the precious Gospel, by which the Lord gives faith and salvation to them that seek him. Then ask yourself how it is, or why you are better off than they? And I hope there is something within you that will tell you, whatever the reason may be, it is not because you are better in yourself, or deserve better things than others. Your heart is no better; you likewise are a sinner; you were born with a sinful disposition, and, though you are a child, you have sinned against the Lord; so that had he been strict to mark what is amiss, he might justly have cut you off long ago. The reason why you are so favoured, must be the Lord's mercy and goodness. He pitied you when you did not know how to pity yourself; and in his providence he removed you from a place where you would probably have remained igHorant of Him, and he placed you under our care, and made you dear to us, that we might feel a pleasure in doing every thing in our power to promote your welfare. And I hope that you and we shall have reason to thank him that you came to us. The days are grow

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