Now the cause is thyself, thy base self, thy sinful
self, and thy unworthy carriages towards God under all the mercy,
patience, and long-suffering that God has bestowed upon thee, and
exercised towards thee. Here thou mayest quarrel, and be revenged,
and spare not, so thou take vengeance in a right way; and thou wilt
do so, when thou takest it by godly sorrow. 1 Cor. 7:10,11.
It is a rare thing to suffer aright, and to have thy spirit in
suffering beat only against God's enemy, sin.
Let them that are God's sufferers pluck up a good heart; let them
not be afraid to trust God with their souls, and with their eternal
concerns. Let them cast all their care upon God, for he careth for
them.
"But I am in the dark." I answer, never stick at that. It is most
bravely done to trust God with the soul in the dark, and to resolve
to serve God for nothing, rather than give out. Not to see and yet
to believe, and to be a follower of the Lamb and yet to be at
uncertainty what we shall have at last, argues love, fear, faith,
and an honest mind, and gives the greatest sign of one that hath
true sincerity in his soul. It was this that made Job and Peter so
famous; and the want of it took away much of the glory of the faith
of Thomas. Wherefore, believe verily that God is ready, willing;
yea, that he looks for and expects that thou, who art a sufferer,
shouldst commit the keeping of thy soul to him as unto a faithful
Creator.
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