Wesley Corpus

To Philothea Briggs Source: The Letters of John Wesley (1772) Author: John Wesley --- WHITBY, Saturday, June 20, 1772. MY DEAR PHILLY,--About this day se'nnight I expect to be at York; this day fortnight at Keighley, Yorkshire; this day three weeks at Leeds; and the two following Saturdays at Epworth, near Thorne, Yorkshire. I like you should think as I think, because it is a token that you love me; and every proof of this gives me a very sensible pleasure. Love me, if you can, as long as I live. It is of admirable use to bear the weaknesses, nay and even faults, of the real children of God. And the temptations to anger which rise herefrom are often more profitable than any other. Yet surely for the present they are not joyous but grievous; afterwards comes the peaceable fruit. You shall have exactly as much pain and as much disappointment as will be most for your profit, and just sufficient to Keep you dead to all below, Only Christ resolved to know. Never make it matter of reasoning that you have not either a larger or a smaller share of suffering. You shall have exactly what is best both as to kind, degree, and time. Oh what a blessing is it to be in His hand who 'doeth all things well'! Of all gossiping, religious gossiping is the worst; it adds hypocrisy to uncharitableness, and effectually does the work of the devil in the name of the Lord. The leaders in every Society may do much towards driving it out from among the Methodists. Let them in the band or class observe (1) 'Now we are to talk of no absent persons, but simply of God and our own souls'; (2) 'Let the rule of our conversation here be the rule of all our conversation. Let us observe it (unless in some necessarily exempt cases) at all times and in all places.' If this be frequently inculcated, it will have an excellent effect.