God is the Only True Fountain of Life

But if God is the only true Fountain, those who seek any other fountains will find them "broken cisterns, that can hold no water." When moral beings, in the exercise of their moral option, choose to seek their support and life from any source separate from God himself, they necessarily die. It cannot be otherwise. Created beings, as we have already seen, are necessarily dependent on their Creator. They have no power of making that which is not already made; — no power of absolute origination. It is true they have the power of choice, but they must choose among the things that are. They must either choose God, or that which is not God. If they choose, as their source of life and of supply, that which is not God, they look for help to that which has no help in itself, for life to that which has no life in itself, much less help and life for another. They ask "for bread, and they find a stone;" they ask "for a fish, and they find a serpent." They are compelled to say, in the language of the prodigal son, my father's hired servants "have bread enough and to spare, but I perish with hunger."

Their freedom, invaluable as it is, does not give them the power of doing or of enduring impossibilities, of drinking without water, of eating without food, of receiving while they turn aside and reject the hand of the great Giver.

— A Treatise on Divine Union (1851) Part 1, Chapter 5.

Moral Freedom is the Gift of God

Let it be remembered, ... as a first truth in the doctrines of religious experience, that in all things God is the giver. Among the gifts which thus flow from God, is that high and invaluable one of moral freedom. In the exercise of that moral power, which is involved in the possession of moral freedom, men sometimes speak of it as their own possession, their own power but they cannot, with any propriety, speak of it as a power which is not given. The gift of freedom involves the possibility of walking in the wrong way, but it does not alter the straightness and oneness of the true way. The laws of holy living, although they are and can be fulfilled only by those who are morally free, are, nevertheless, unalterable. Founded in infinite wisdom, they necessarily have theIr permanent principles; and God himself, without a deviation from such wisdom, cannot change them. In the exercise of their moral choice, it is undoubtedly true, that men may endeavor to live in some other way, and to walk in some other path, than that which God has pointed out; but it does not follow from this that there is, or can be, more than one true way. God, in imparting to men the gift of moral freedom, has said to them, Life and death are before you; but he has not said, Ye can find life out of myself. He tells them, emphatically, there is but one Fountain; but having given them the freedom of choice, he announces to them, also, that they may either rest confidingly on his own bosom, and draw nourishment from that eternal fountain of life which is in himself, or may seek, in the exercise of their moral freedom, the nourishment of their spiritual existence from any other supposed source of life, with all the terrible hazards attending it.

— A Treatise on Divine Union (1851) Part 1, Chapter 5.

To Pray Aright is to Receive

The exercises of a sanctified heart are not always the same; but will vary more or less with the occasions, which call them into exercise. The grace of patience is especially appropriate to one occasion; the grace of gratitude to another. And these and all other christian graces come from the same great fountain, viz. God himself; and they will come, with the exception perhaps of very extraordinary cases, all in the same way, and in connection with the same great principles.

If, for instance, I need especial wisdom and prudence, appropriate to a particular trying crisis, I must go to God and ask for it, just as I had done before in relation to the general object of sanctification: FIRST, in the spirit of entire consecration, and SECOND in the exercise of simple faith. And by faith here ... we mean a faith, which, fully believes that God will do, and that, if the present is in his view the appropriate time, he does even NOW accomplish that which he has promised.

I recollect to have heard a Congregational minister assert on some public occasion, that TO PRAY ARIGHT IS TO RECEIVE. This declaration obviously embodies the great principle now under consideration.

Many persons go to God and ask earnestly for the things they need, and which they know it is agreeable to his will to give; but they appear to have no faith that God will hear them, or that he does now hear them, unless they have a sign, a manifestation, a visible outward sight or an inward audible voice, or the definite experience of some preconceived feeling, or something, (it makes but little difference what it is,) which they expect to use and which they do use AS A PROP FOR THEIR FAITH TO REST UPON instead of letting it rest upon the sure and blessed Word of God.

O, the unutterable blindness of the human mind, when left to itself! To look at any thing but the simple declaration of God, and to require anything but that as a ground of belief, is to go directly out of the true path. It is, as it seems to us, deliberately and of choice to throw away those precious gifts which faith imparts. It is made known throughout the Scriptures, deliberately, repeatedly, and with the clearness of a sunbeam, that the life of God in the soul is, and must be, a LIFE OF SIMPLE FAITH. And in the exercise of this faith, accompanied with the indispensable condition of entire consecration, it may be regarded as certain, that, when we pray for those spiritual gifts and exercises which we know to be agreeable to the will of God, we shall not only have them, but if, in God's view the present time is really the appropriate time for them, WE DO HAVE THEM NOW.

We do not say, that the specific blessing for which we ask either comes now or will come hereafter, in precise accordance with our preconceived opinions; but that makes no difference as to the fact. If there is really and absolutely no failure in the consecration and faith, there will be no failure in the fact and promptness of the divine answer. The answer, God's answer and not ours, will certainly come, in accordance with the reality of God' s knowledge and goodness; however, it may fail to come in accordance with the fallibility of our own previous conceptions.

— edited from The Interior or Hidden Life (2nd. edition 1844) Part 1, Chapter 6.

Encouragement

SAY not, 'tis all a dreary way,
With rocks beset, with briars growing,
Where never beams of sunlight stray,
And ne'er a gentle stream is flowing.

Or  if it be, that thou dost go
Through scenes so darksome, wild, and frightful,
Yet there is one who loves thee so,
That he can make e'en this delightful.

Jesus is ever near at hand,
To aid, to guide, and to deliver,
With his own arm, the chosen hand
Which he hath bought, to keep forever.

Then drive away thy doubts and fears,
Nor dread the ills that threat to hurt thee;
For Christ, that saw thee in thy tears,
Hath said, He never will desert thee.

— American Cottage Life (1850).

God the Unfailing Source of Love

OH Thou, who givest the true desire,
THYSELF the only source of love,
Within our humbled hearts inspire
Affections, springing from above,

As transient as the morning dew,
Earth's love imparts its joys in vain,
But those, who drink the fountain true,
The dews of life, thirst not again.

Why then should men with watchful eye
The treasure seek which is not given?
The cisterns of the earth are dry,
Perennial flow the draughts of heaven.

Oh Thou, who givest the true desire,
THYSELF the only source of love,
Within our humbled hearts inspire
Affections, springing from above.

— American Cottage Life (1850).

Give All and Take All

There is in reality, no need, as a preparation for sanctification, of much mental excitement, of protracted sighing and lamentation, of long fastings, and macerations and mighty strugglings of body. It is true, that some of these things may exist to a certain extent, without being altogether profitless. But what we mean to say, is, that they do not appear to be absolutely necessary; and there is sometimes danger, especially when there is a disposition to trust in them, of their being decidedly injurious. The process, as it really takes place, may probably be all embraced in a single sentence. "Give all, and take all." Lay all upon the altar, and believe that God, in accordance with his word, receives it; and always continue in that state of present and entire consecration, and of present and entire faith, and all is done. If God is true, it cannot be otherwise.

And we may properly add here, that the experience of very many persons is found to coincide with this statement. They have labored; they have prayed earnestly, so far as a man can pray without the requisite faith; they have fasted for a great length of time; they have endured physical and mental suffering in various ways, but all without securing the great object of their desires; till at length wearied with this apparently fruitless method of pursuit, they have simply left themselves in the hands of God without reserve; and have believed, in accordance with his own declaration, that he did now accept them. And thus ceasing from their own unavailing efforts, to which perhaps they were secretly but wickedly inclined to attach some personal merit, they have entered, by simple faith alone, into the favor and the rest of God. They are from that moment cut off from the fatal system, which demands a sign or manifestation, either inward or outward, additional to the mere word of God and confirmatory of it, and from all preconceived and self-originated notions of what they should like to have and what they should not like to have; and have become, as already remarked, like little children; willing to let their heavenly Father guide them without imposing upon him any conditions, willing to have much or little, to be wise or to be ignorant, to go or to stay, to sit down or rise up, to speak or be silent, to be honored or dishonored, to be on the mount of joy or in the valley of temptation and sorrow, to be any thing or nothing, just as God wills.

— edited from The Interior or Hidden Life (2nd. edition 1844) Part 1, Chapter 6.

We Receive When Our Faith is Certain

"Therefore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them." Mark 11: 94.

"And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us. And if we know, [that is, have full faith or confidence in him,] that he heareth us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him." 1 John v: 14.

The doctrine of these important passages is this. In consecrating ourselves to God, and in praying sincerely for those things which are agreeable to the will of God, such as our sanctification and those Christian graces which are implied in sanctification, we may be certain that they will be given to us, and that they are now given to us, if we have no doubt in God's word.

The certainty of the result, when the condition on which it depends is fulfilled, viz. a full belief of the truth of the divine declaration, is necessarily involved in the veracity of God; and not as is sometimes supposed, in the mere fact of believing. This is an important distinction. It is God's everlasting TRUTH, and nothing but his truth, which is the real foundation of the great principle involved in these passages.

Nevertheless, it must be admitted, that the result cannot take place without the specific act of faith; because the defect or want of such faith necessarily makes a separation between God and our souls, and especially because the promise of God, which is the true and effective source of the renovating power, is made only upon the condition of the act of faith.

As soon, therefore, as God, in aid of our own unavailing efforts, takes away the remains of unbelief and gives us perfect faith in the promise, which by implication involves perfect faith in all the divine declarations, he necessarily gives us the victory. "As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God even to them THAT BELIEVE ON HIS NAME." From that memorable moment, whether our emotions are more or less strong, and whether we have had special inward signs and manifestations or not, we truly feel the purifying energy. The principle of faith, perhaps after a long inward strife, has become ascendant. We have now assumed a new position. We are now become like little children. It can now be said of us in the significant language of scripture, we are "careful for nothing" living in perfect simplicity of spirit; receiving our daily bread without disquieting thoughts of the morrow; folded and protected in the arms of infinite love.

— edited from The Interior or Hidden Life (2nd edition, 1844). Part 1, Chapter 6.

Believe that All is Accepted

It would seem ... that the sanctification of the heart and all those various blessings which are involved in sanctification, depend, if not exclusively, yet certainly in a great degree, upon two leading principles; FIRST, an entire consecration of ourselves to God, and, SECONDLY, a full and unwavering belief that the consecration is accepted.

In making a consecration to God in the manner which has been indicated, we take a step, which, considered in any point of view, may be regarded as absolutely necessary. It is not enough, however, to offer all. In the same spirit of reliance on God, we must also BELIEVE THAT ALL IS ACCEPTED.

It is the belief that God is faithful to his word; and that, in accordance with his word, he will receive and does now receive all that unreservedly lay themselves upon his altar, which seems especially to secure the presence of a sanctifying efficacy. On the contrary, he who consecrates himself to God, however sincere he may be in the act of consecration, but who greatly dishonors the veracity of God by remaining without the faith of ACCEPTANCE, deprives himself of that mighty power, which faith alone is capable of imparting, and necessarily lies prostrate and exposed to all the dreadful attacks of the adversary.

— edited from The Interior or Hidden Life (2nd edition 1844). Part 1, Chapter 6.

Choked With the Earthly

If earthly plants are permitted to spring up in the heart, how is it possible that the tree of holiness should flourish? With the ground already occupied with earthly products, the roots of sanctification, deprived of the nourishment which should sustain them, necessarily  wither and die. There is not nutriment enough to sustain both. Hence it is that our Savior in his divine wisdom, tells us of those who are choked with the riches, and cares, and pleasures of this life, "and BRING NO FRUIT TO PERFECTION."

— Religious Maxims XXXII.

The Cost of Holiness

The value of a thing is known by what it takes to preserve it, as well as by what it originally cost. Men may steal your diamonds, who would not trouble things of less worth. The cost of holiness was the blood of the Son of God; and greatly does he mistake, who supposes that it can be preserved by any thing short of ETERNAL VIGILANCE.

— Religious Maxims XXXI.