FEBRUARY 9
About eleven it came into my mind that this was the very day and hour in which I was taken out of the flames. I stopped and gave a short account of that wonderful Providence.
Journal, 9th February, 1750
I cannot deny that every follower of Christ is in his proportion the light of the world; that whosoever is such can no more be concealed than the sun in the midst of heaven; that, being set as a light in a dark place, his shining out must be the more conspicuous; that to this very end was his light given, that it might shine at least to all that look towards him; and, indeed, that there is one only way of hiding it, which is to put it out. Neither can I deny that it is the indispensable duty of every Christian to impart both light and heat to all who are willing to receive it. I am obliged likewise, unless I lie against the truth, to grant that there is not so contemptible an animal upon earth as one that drones away life, without ever labouring to promote the glory of God and the good of men.
to his father, 1734
