Spiritual desertions discovered and remedied. Being the substance of divers sermons preached for the…

2. What shall we do when these are lost? we have been assured that they may so be; and to what a measure th•• privation may arrive, God only know• ▪ and it is our duty to be laying in for a wet day. A Christian ought to be provided to be able to hold out in a storm, as well as to flourish in a calm: though he wants the comfort, yet he should keep his resolution, and say as he, Job 13 15. although he slay me, I will trust in him, how this is to be done, will come to be pointed at in a following Use: here only in general let me offer thus much▪ viz. let us not only boast, though there is great reason to boast, in the comforts of Gods presence with us, but let us labour to be acquainted wi•h our grounds ⟨p. 84⟩of Assurance; that it is undoubtedly the light of his countenance that we do at present enjoy, and that there is no mistake in it. If we find our hearts raised, and possibly ravished, with inward apprehensions of Gods love to us, let us not only exercise our joy and delight about it, but let us now take a distinct view of that which may evidence it to be real, and not a delusion; if we only please our selves with our present feeling, and search not to be acquainted with the foundation of it, when it goeth off again, and we have lost it, we shall be utterly at a loss, and not know how to answer the accusations of a misgiving heart which will charge us for having boasted of a false gift. If we argue only from the comforts themselves, because we feel our hearts warmed and refreshed by them, when they have left us, our arguings will then fail us; and this is one main reason why many are cast down as low, upon such a turn, as they were before exalted: Whereas, though the sense of the comfort be gone, yet the reasons of it, if they were solid, will abide: and if they were once true, they are so for e•er; and may be called to remembrance ⟨p. 85⟩for our support, in the darkest hours of Gods withdrawing, this improvement did the Psalmist make of such experiences,