Look on this presence of God as your main concernment? 1This is that which the Prophet calls for in the words of the Text; so the Psalmist, there are many that say, who will show us any good? Lord lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us. Psal. 4. Let other ⟨p. 33⟩men make what enquiries they please, look for good, for rest, for peace in what they best fancy; Acquiesce you in this, that the light of Gods countenance, a pledge of his presence with you, is that alone which you are to enquire after. I remember since the beginning of these last wonderful days, how often we have thought our selves utterly ruined; if such alterations come, we are undone; if such men dye, fall off, oppose, there is little hope of the carrying on the work wherein we are engaged. If such shakings, such divisions befall us, our ruin is at hand; If we break with such, and such foreign Nations, what hope remaineth: But alas we have found by experience, that our Affairs have turned on none of these things; our prosperity hath been built on none of those principles: such desertions, as we feared, have happened; such Alterations, such divisions have befallen us; we have been sometime almost reduced to Gideons number; such breaches with foreign Nations have ensued; one party, that was with us have gone off, and asked, what will ye now do? And then another party hath gone off, and asked us what will ye do now? And no sooner do any fall off, but instantly they expect, and foretell destruction to them that do abide; as though they were God and not man, or as though God were bound to follow them with his presence in all their passions, in all their wanderings. It would I confess be more desirable unto me than life it self, to see all those, at least who stick to the Cause of God in its greatest difficulties, and trials, and then when it Ceased to be carried on in the ordinary paths of Nations, United again in the same common interest; to see their passions, and prejudices cured, ⟨p. 34⟩and their persons returned to their former usefulness: but this is that which is the result of all this discourse. It is not this, or that thing, or any thing what ever; but the presence of God alone with a people, that is their life, their preservation, their protection and prosperity. If our strength had lain in any thing else in this world, our light had gone out long ago, and it had departed from us:
Look on this presence of God as your main concernment? 1This is that which the Prophet calls for in the words of the Text; so the Psalmist, there are many that say, who will shew us any good? Lord lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us. Psal. 4. Let other ⟨p. 33⟩men make what enquiries they please, look for good, for rest, for peace in what they best fancy; Acquiesce you in this, that the light of Gods countenance, a pledge of his presence with you, is that alone which you are to enquire after. I remember since the beginning of these last wonderful dayes, how often we have thought our selves utterly ruin'd; if such alterations come, we are undone; if such men dye, fall off, oppose, there is little hope of the carrying on the work wherein we are ingaged. If such shakings, such divisions befall us, our ruine is at hand; If we breake with such, and such forraign Nations, what hope remaineth: But alass we have found by experience, that our Affairs have turned on none of these things; our prosperity hath been built on none of those principles: such desertions, as we feared, have happened; such Alterations, such divisions have befallen us; we have been sometime almost reduced to Gideons number; such breaches with forragin Nations have ensued; one party, that was with us have gone off, and asked, what will ye now do? And then another party hath gone off, and asked us what will ye doe now? And no sooner do any fall off, but instantly they expect, and foretell destruction to them that do abide; as though they were God and not man, or as though God were bound to follow them with his presence in all their passions, in all their wandrings. It would I confess be more desirable unto me than life it self, to see all those, at least who stick to the Cause of God in its greatest difficulties, and trialls, and then when it Ceased to be carried on in the ordinary paths of Nations, Ʋnited again in the same common interest; to see their passions, and prejudices cured, ⟨p. 34⟩and their persons returned to their former usefulness: but this is that which is the result of all this discourse. It is not this, or that thing, or any thing what ever; but the presence of God alone with a people, that is their life, their preservation, their protection and prosperitie. If our strength had laine in any thing else in this world, our light had gone out long agoe, and it had departed from us:
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