When New Year's eve arrived we had a midnight gathering, and dedicated
ourselves afresh to God's service. It was a blessed season, and several
hundreds were there, who, together with myself, were the fruits of the
revival during the previous two months. The new year opened upon us with
fresh manifestations of divine power and larger blessings. I endeavoured
to show the people that the Lord was called Jesus, not that He might
save us from hell or death, but from our sins; and this while we lived
on earth--that our heart and all our members being mortified from all
carnal lusts, we might live to His glory; that Christ's religion was not
intended for a death-bed, but for a happy and effectual Christian
life---a life showing forth the power of His grace.

After the Christmas holidays, our schoolmaster and his wife returned.
They came back full of disdain and prejudice against the work, and even
put themselves out of the way to go from house to house, in order to set
the people against me and my preaching. They said that they could bring
a hundred clergymen to prove that I was wrong; but their efforts had
just the contrary effect to what they expected. It stirred the people to
come more frequently to hear, and contend more zealously for what they
knew to be right. The master was particularly set against "excitement"
and noise. He said, "It was so very much more reverent to be still in
prayer, and orderly in praise; it was not necessary to make such an
unseemly uproar!" I had, however, discovered, long before this time,
that the people who most objected to noise had nothing yet to make a
noise about; and that when they had, they generally made as much or more
noise than others.

If a house is seen to be on fire, people cannot hello making an outcry;
which they do not, when they only read about it. Witnessing a danger
stirs the heart; and when people's eyes are open to see souls in eternal