“How far God may make use of the imagination in awakening some persons under these, and similar circumstances, I cannot pretend to determine. Or, whether this exercise be from a divine influence, I shall leave others to judge. But this I must say, that its effects hitherto bespeak it to be such; nor can it, as I see, be accounted for in any rational way, but from the influence of some spirit either good or evil. The woman I am sure never heard divine things in the manner in which she now viewed them; and it would seem strange that she should get such a rational notion of them from the mere working of her own fancy, without some superior, or at least foreign aid. Yet I must say, I have looked upon it as one of the glories of this work of grace among the Indians, and a special evidence of its being from a divine influence, that there has, till now, been no appearance of such things, no visionary notions, trances, and imaginations, intermixed with those rational convictions of sin, and solid consolations, of which numbers have been made the subjects. And might I have had my desire, there had been no appearance of any thing of this nature at all. _Dec. 28._ “Discoursed to my people in the catechetical method on which I lately entered. In the improvement of my discourse, wherein I was comparing man’s present with his primitive state, and showing from what he had fallen, and the miseries in which he is now involved, and to which he is exposed in his natural estate; and pressing sinners to take a view of their deplorable circumstances without Christ, as also to strive that they might obtain an interest in him; the Lord, I trust, granted a remarkable influence of his blessed Spirit to accompany what was spoken; and a great concern appeared in the assembly. Many were melted into tears and sobs; and the impressions made upon them seemed deep and heart-affecting. In particular, there were two or three persons who appeared to be brought to the last exercises of a preparatory work, and reduced almost to extremity; being in a great measure convinced of the impossibility of their helping themselves, or of mending their own hearts; and seemed to be upon the point of giving up all hope in themselves, and of venturing upon Christ, as poor, helpless, and undone. Yet they were in distress and anguish because they saw no safety in so doing, unless they could do something toward saving themselves. One of these persons was the very aged woman above-mentioned, who now appeared ‘weary and heavy laden’ with a sense of her sin and misery, and her perishing need of an interest in Christ.