" He then fervently prayed that the Lord would save his
never dying soul. It is believed, that whilst his many sins of omission
and commission were brought vividly before his view, by the unflattering
witness, he was made very fully sensible that the great work of salvation
rests between the soul of man and his Creator, and that "no man can
redeem his brother, or give to God a ransom for him." Through the night,
he was mostly engaged in prayer, with uplifted hands invoking for mercy
and forgiveness.
Some time before his death, the great conflict of mind he had been under,
appeared to subside, and to be succeeded by a sweet calm, and he
intimated to his wife, that he felt comfortable and satisfied. Till
within half an hour of the close, prayer continued flowing from his lips,
the last audible sounds being an appeal to the Lord; and but a few
minutes before he ceased to breathe, a conscious look at his dear wife,
seemed to say, "all is peace;" and it was granted to her exercised spirit
to believe, that the unshackled soul when released, was received into a
mansion of rest, through the mercy and merits of his Lord and Saviour. In
reference to that impressive hour this dear relative writes,--"Oh! how
many times that solemn night, did I long that all the world could feel
the great necessity, whilst in health and strength, so to live, as to be
prepared for that awful hour, which sooner or later must come upon us
all; it is a very dangerous thing to put off the work of the soul's
salvation to a deathbed, or to depend upon mercy being extended as at
the eleventh hour, for it may not then be found.
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