Acquaintance with God

Publishing Committee · Battle Creek, Mich. · Apr 7, 1859

Acquaintance with God.

CERTAINLY the greatest, the noblest pleasure of intelligent creatures must result from their acquaintance with the blessed God, and with their own souls. And oh, how divinely pleasant and entertaining it is to look into our own souls, when we can find all our powers and passions united and engaged in pursuit after. God, our whole soul longing and passionately breathing after a conformity to him, and the full enjoyment of him! Verily, no hours pass away with so much divine pleasure, as those that are spent in communicating with God and our own hearts. How sweet is a spirit of devotion, of seriousness and solemnity; a spirit of gospel simplicity, love, and tenderness! Oh, how desirable and profitable is a spirit of holy watchfulness and godly jealousy over ourselves; when our souls are afraid of nothing so much as that we shall grieve and offend the blessed God, whom at such times we apprehend, or at least hope, to be a father and friend; whom we then love and long to please, rather than to be happy ourselves, or at least we delight to derive our happiness from pleasing and glorifying him. Surely this is a pious temper, worthy of the highest ambition and closest pursuit of intelligent creatures. Oh, how vastly superior is the pleasure, peace, and satisfaction derived from these divine frames, to that which we sometimes seek in things impertinent and trifling!—Sel.