I have adopted this practice for many years, and, I truft, have feen happy effects produced by it. In a late short tour, I was pleafed with the manner in which fome fmall publica tions I took with me were received by perfons in many villages. In fome of them I ftopped and introduced the delivery with a fhort addrefs, which I found often had a good effect. I now and then faw a tear start in the eye, and gratitude beam in the countenance. In moft cafes, I exhorted the perfon to whom I prefented a tract, to read it with attention, and pray to God for a bleffing. Vivian's Dialogues appear to me admirably calculated for fuch a purpose, Once in my way to Staffordshire, I paffed a poor man employed in mending the road. I flopt my horfe, and addreffed him affectionately refpecting the great concerns of his foul and eternity. I gave him a fmall tract, begged him to read it, and pray over it, which he promised to do. In a few days I returned that way, and providentially met with the fame poor man. I inquired whether he had read the little book I gave him. He began to weep, and humbly replied, "I have, Sir, and I thank you for it. I have learned what I did not know before, and I hope I fhall never forget it."

The following letter received by a friend from an unknown hand, will be an additional argument in fupport of this plan:

Dear Mr. C.

"I am happy to inform you, that one of the late fmall books which you have diftributed, has fallen into the hands of a poor ignorant man, and alfo informed my judgment very much, and I hope, with the bleffing of Almighty God, it will be the means of doing me fo much good, that through the countless ages of eternity, I fhall have occafion to blefs the name of the Lord Jefus. I do, my dear Sir, with you well with all my heart and foul, and I hope that the Lord Jefus Chrift will ever keep your foul," &c.

An anecdote was related to me, a fhort time fince, by a friend to whom I gave fome religious tracts to deliver to his neighbours. He fays,

"Amongst other perfons to whom I gave your tracts, I gave one to a young woman in the village, who was careless about the best things. She read it, and it was useful to her. A few days afterwards fhe came to me in concern, faying, he had laid the book in her window, and the cafement being open, the fuppofed it had been blown by the wind into the road, and wished to have another, which I gave her. A

short time after this, it appeared that her conjecture was true; the wind had blown the tract into the road, which was picked up by a young woman who was paffing by at the time; and he had reafon to hope the book had been very ufeful to her, by bringing her to attend regularly upon the means of grace, as well as producing a great change in her conduct." How fuitable is the advice of the Apoftle, "To "do good, and to communicate forget not; for with fuch "facrifices God is well pleafed." And how well does this practice accord with the bright example of the benevolent Jefus, who went about doing good. J. E.

THOUGHTS ON SEEKING JESUS WHO WAS CRUCIFIED.

FE

EAR not," faid the Angel to the devout women who had come to the fepulchre, "for I know that ye feek "Jefus who was crucified." To feek a crucified Saviour has been the delightful employment of christians in every age. By this exercife their hearts have been refreshed and ftrengthened, fo that they have held on their way rejoicing.

They who feek Jefus who was crucified, are firmly perfuaded that without an intereft in him, they cannot be faved. So long as a man reckons on all his happiness in this life, it will be his chief, his whole bufinefs, to mind the concerns of his perishing body, He can have no fincere defire for a fpiritual falvation, of which he has never feen the worth and importance. The human mind is fo constituted, that it pursues after any object with an ardour proportioned to the advantages which we expect to gain by poffeffing it. Whilft the finner doth not confider the divine favour as neceffary to true happiness, or vainly endeavours to obtain it by his own goodness and piety, inftead of feeking Jefus who was crucified, he confiders him as "a root fprung out of a "dry ground, having no form nor comelinefs, for which he "fhould be defired. But when the law in its fpirituality enters the confcience, when the man's eyes are opened to behold his complicated guilt and mifery; when like Peter, he feels himself faft finking in the deep waters, and that all efforts of his own for deliverance are unavailing, then he ap plies to Chrift for help, faying, "Save, Lord, or I perish." Saul of Tarfus, previous to his conversion, so far from feek

ing an interest by faith in this crucified Saviour, ftrenuously laboured to extirpate the profeffion of his name from the earth; but no fooner was he perfuaded that there is no falvation in any other, than he instantly built up that which he he had fought to deftroy: he not only preached to others Chrift crucified, as the only ground of falvation to the perifhing foul, but declares concerning him with relation to himfelf, "yea, doubtlefs, I count all things but lofs for the "excellency of the knowledge of Chrift Jefus my Lord; "that I may win Chrift, and be found in him, not having "mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that "which is through the faith of Chrift, the righteousness "which is of God by faith."

Christian, art thou feeking Jefus who was crucified? then thou haft feen thy ruined condition by nature, thou haft been perfuaded that there is no other name given under heaven among men, whereby we can be faved; and thou wilt be making it thy chief and daily concern, to obtain an intereft in him, as the one thing needful for thy happinefs both in time and in eternity.

They who feek Jefus who was crucified, difcern him to be a Saviour in every respect fuited to their perifhing condition. A man fruggling with fome heavy calamity will derive fmall confolation from help being offered to him, if this do not appear adequate to his particular emergency; but if one interpofes fully able to afford the defired relief, his offer will be joyfully embraced. The guilty foul, trembling under apprehenfions of God's wrath and curfe, will not apply to Chrift for deliverance, until he be fully fatisfied that he is able and willing to afford him that relief which his miferable cafe requires. It is neceffary therefore that the Holy Ghoft exhibit to us in the glafs of the Gospel, the excellence and fuitableness of Chrift crucified for removing our guilt and mifery, before we betake ourselves to him as our only hope and refuge.

When we confider the infinite worth of his facrifice, which hath made a complete atonement for fin; when we behold his infinite power, which is able to fave to the uttermoft, and his infinite mercy which welcomes all, without making any exception, faying, "whofoever will, let him "take of the waters of life freely," it will not appear wonder. ful that his people fhould give him the chief place in their hearts, and count him "all their falvation and all their "defire." What is there that I want, faith the believing foul, which is not to be found in Jefus who was crucified? Am I, a guilty creature, expofed to divine wrath? then he

bare my fins in his own body on the tree.

Am I enflaved by the lufts and corruptions of my heart? My old man is crucified with him, that the body of fin might be destroyed, that henceforth I fhould not ferve fin. Am I miferable, and ready to perish? then he who gave himself to be crucified for me, will affuredly be my comfort in life, my hope in death, and my portion for ever. Whom have I in heaven, O Jefus, but thee? and there is none in all the earth whom I defire befides thee.

They who feek Jefus who was crucified, will diligently obferve thofe divine inftitutions by which Chrift hath promifed to manifeft himself to the foul. Where he hath been found by others, there we should feek him. Have fome of his difciples found him in the clofet? Let us feek him by earneft and frequent prayer. Have fome found him in the public affemblies of his people? Let us go up to the gates of Zion that we may fee his power and glory in the fanctuary. Have others found him at his own table, where he hath been made known to them in the breaking of bread? Let us neglect no opportunity of commemorating his death; that while we partake of the fymbols of his broken body and fhed blood, Jefus Chrift may be evidently fet forth before our eyes as crucified among us. The devout Pfalmift fet a high value on divine inftitutions. "My foul," faith he, "longeth, yea even fainteth for the courts of the Lord:" but his defires do not terminate in the external acts of divine worship, for he adds, "my heart and my flesh crieth "out for the living God."

All that the hypocrite or nominal christian regards, is the outward ordinance. If he hear the word preached in an acceptable manner; if he fit as frequently at the Lord's ta ble as others in the fame church fellowship, his foul faith, It is enough, and Chrift's abfence is neither felt nor lamented. But the fincere chriftian will bear me witness, that it is his chief happiness in waiting on the Lord when he enjoys fellowship with him; and his chief affliction when he cannot find him whom his foul loveth. Though an angel from heaven fhould preach the gospel, this man will not be fatiffied, if he cannot hear Chrift's voice in it; and though the moft eminent apoftle should difpenfe the facred elements of bread and wine, thefe will have no relish to his tafte, if his foul doth not feed by faith on the crucified Redeemer's flesh as meat indeed, and on his blood as drink indeed. Happy the foul who is thus employed in feeking Jefus who was crucified. The natural man's eye is not fatisfied with seeing, nor his ear with hearing; whatever be his enjoyments, still his

craving heart continually crieth, Give, give. But they who feek the Lord fhall not want any good thing. He will give them grace and glory; he will grant their requests; he will fatisfy every defire of their hearts; he will beftow bleffings upon them exceeding abundantly above all they can ask or think. FIFENSIS.

Mr. Editor,

WHILE

VILLAGE PREACHING.

HILE we can never be fufficiently thankful for the bleffed Gofpel of our Lord and Saviour Jefus Christ, which is confeffedly the glory of our land, we cannot but at the fame time lament that fo great and ineftimable a bleffing should not be more univerfally diffused. It cannot but be matter of deep concern to all who have the interest of Zion at heart, that fo few, comparatively speaking, are brought to hear, even with the outward ear, the diftinct found of the Gofpel trumpet. Hence that grofs ignorance of even the first principles of chriftianity which fo univerfally prevails; and, in connexion with ignorance, that diffolutenefs of manners, that contempt for every thing facred, which marks the conduct of the unthinking multitude. And hence motives have been derived by all thofe into whofe minds the Lord has been pleafed to fhine by his new-creating power, to give them the light of the knowledge of the glory of God as it fhines in the perfon of Jefus Chrift, for devifing the most probable means of counter-acting this alarming state of things. With this view, in dependance on the grace of God, village preaching has been adopted, village fermons have been written, and evangelical tracts difperfed, the utility of which has been abundantly evinced by the most unanswerable arguments. Perhaps nothing remains to be faid on the propriety of adopting every mean in our power for the spread of evangelical truth. It may not, however, be unacceptable to the reader, to fee the neceffity of fuch attempts exemplified in two dialogues, which literally took place between the writer and two perfons he met with, during a short walk into the country.

Strolling round a country church-yard, and lamenting the ignorance of thofe who had infcribed the tombs of their de