RELATED BY HIMSELF.
An Extract
“FROM a child I knew myself to be a sinner, but for a year or two I felt myself one. I knew that if I died I must go to hell; but these convictions came and went off again, and. my prayer was, ‘O God, create in me a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within me.'
“I used to feel that I never could be saved, that it was impossible, for that nobody had such a heart as I had. I used to make resolutions to serve God, but I found that, like the early cloud and the morning dew, they passed away.
“While under these convictions, I had two narrow escapes from drowning. On one of these occasions I was bathing one morning, unknown to my parents, in a deep part of the river Douglas, in Lancashire, when I sank, and I had all the horrors of death by drowning. I felt I was going to hell. Then I was mercifully rescued by my cousin swimming to me, and drawing me to the bank. There, while I lay gasping for breath, I felt such love to God, my very soul seemed full of love and gratitude, and I thought I would love and serve Him all my days; but this was, I believe, all nature, for I knew nothing of God in Christ, and when I recovered, all my love and joy evaporated like smoke, leaving not a trace behind.
“This I take to be like the stony-ground hearer; it had nothing to do with the pardon of sins; but my prayer continued to be, Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.' Alter this, I was ill for some months, and one day my mother was reading aloud to me the sixth chapter of John. I took no notice of what she read till she cape to the thirty-seventh verse, All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out.' The latter part of the verse darted through my mind like a flash of lightning. Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.'
I thought, is it possible? what murderers, and thieves, and liars! But it kept coming again and. again. When night came, I went to bed, and kneeled down, and pleaded it over with God. What, murderers, and thieves, and liars! and it kept coming, in no wise cast out,' and I pleaded again and again, what in no wise;' what, the vilest! and then the dear Lord seemed to show it all to me; and I had a view of Christ on the cross, as if I could actually see Him hanging there, with the eyes of my mind, as clear as if it were with my bodily eyes, and the word kept coming again and again, ‘Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out and all my sins were instantaneously removed.
They were all gone; all my sins swept away, and I looked to see if there were none left; no—all swept away! I was so fall of joy and gladness as I could be. In the morning when I awoke, I thought it was a dream. I rubbed my eyes to see whether it was so; no, it was a reality. The same joy was there, and I hugged my pillow and the bed clothes, feeling I had Christ in my arms; it was all things new. I was then not quite fourteen years of age. I think I wanted one month to my birthday.”