"Thus God himself consoles his own praying people, while man ought to be very cautious, if not silent, where the Scriptures are silent, as it respects the final state of another, whose heart we cannot know, nor what God may have wrought in it. God hath set bounds to our faith, which can nowhere find solid ground to fix upon but in his own written promise. Yet, as I said above, he has set no bounds to his own mercy, and he has made provision for its boundless flow, as far as he shall please to extend it, through the atonement and merits of his own Son, 'who is able to save to the uttermost all who come unto God by him,' Now, my dear friend, you have my ideas of our situation; if they be correct, I pray that our compassionate Father may comfort you by them; if otherwise, may he pardon what is amiss, and lead you, my dear friend C----, and myself, to such consolation as he himself will own as the work of his Spirit, and save us from the enemy and our own spirit. "Since writing the foregoing, I feel afraid of what I have said; it is dangerous seeking comfort where the Scriptures are silent; yet while we plead with God to be preserved from error, and try to be still before him, he will save us from the subtlety of the serpent, as well as from the rage of the lion. I am, with love, "Your sympathizing friend, "ISABELLA GRAHAM." "ROCKAWAY, September 10, 1811. "I have been here four Sabbaths. The first I spent at home, the weather not permitting our going abroad; the second I spent at a prayer-meeting with the Methodist brethren; the third we rode to Hempstead, where I heard two plain gospel sermons from Mr. C----, Presbyterian minister; and the last I attended at the Episcopal church, same place; heard a good plain gospel sermon from Mr. H----, and witnessed the dispensation of the Lord's supper. "To sing the praises of our redeeming God, and to lift up my heart in prayer with my fellow-sinners, in the comfortable hope that there are other living souls praising and praying with me, refreshes me: to hear the word of God read, and to be led to meditate upon it, however simple and common the exposition, also refreshes me. I am generally led to pray much for minister and people; to consider myself as one with them in Christ. However weak his natural powers, however few or small his talents, if I have reason to think that he is taught of God that which flesh and blood cannot teach, I desire to esteem him highly for his work's sake. I thank God for the meanest and weakest of such: I believe they never labor in vain. 'Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings,' in talents as well as in years, God will perfect praise.