=July 5, 1877.= Met at half-past nine in the Bethel. After a profitable season of prayer, reading the Word, testifying, etc., I presented myself at the altar to seek entire sanctification. I enjoyed that blessing ten years ago, but I had all this time repudiated the second work and accounted for the wonderful change that God had wrought in me at that time to my yielding to the call to preach the blessed gospel of Jesus, after being disobedient. I had often been disgusted, too, with the fanaticism I saw mixed with the professors of the second work; it had steeped me with prejudice through and through. Though I could not deny that the experience of these people was in perfect harmony with my own, yet I strongly opposed their views, claiming that God does not do his work by piecemeal, but that he makes a full and complete finish of it at once. I attributed the second experience to the fact that after conversion we are weak infants and not able to carry into action the pure nature that God has given us until we grow to that degree of strength that we can successfully cope with outer temptation, and that holy nature given to us in regeneration reaches a degree of development in strength that it will no more be under subjection to sin in the world around us. Thus, while I did not doubt the truthfulness of their testimony. I thought I comprehended the whole matter and saw the slight mistake, as I supposed, in the basis of their experience. But God having let Father and Mother Keller and the whole family into this glorious experience, with my dear companion, I began to search the Scriptures anew to see if I might not be mistaken myself. I carefully reviewed my conversion and recollected that I sought and asked of God only pardon of my past sins and relief from my past guilt. That in ten years labor, in which some seven hundred souls came to Christ, I never knew one to seek for anything else but pardon for actual transgression; and it is a fact that we do not ask of God that which we have not apprehended the need of, and God does not give until we ask for a thing. Moreover, it is claimed that justification is not a partial but complete work of itself, and sanctification, i. e., purification, another. Since seeing every day the change in my dear wife I thought I was beyond doubt of this second work. But, ah, the devil is rallying his forces against me. Am I making a fool of myself coming out here where I have invited and labored with sinners? My old arguments would come up and I had powerful temptations to settle back upon them and forever repudiate the second work. I obtained no light.