“Her final hour brought glory to her God.”
In point of gospel principles, she was always at a point: but at times sorely troubled about an interest in Christ, by reason of the cloud that cometh betwixt. But every fresh smile from the Saviour, every sweet word dropped into her mind. Frequently reading the word and precious hymns, the visits of God’s dear people and humble prayer relieved her again.
The last visit I paid her, I perceived she was near home. Not being able to speak for a time, I feared she would speak no more: but after waiting a little while, (as a proof of what her mind was fixed upon) she exclaimed, with peculiar solemnity, “By thine agony and bloody sweat, by thy cross and passion, by thy precious death and burial, by thy glorious resurrection and ascension, good Lord deliver me!” Here, on this rock her faith was built in life, and firm in death. A friend asked her if she was happy. After pausing, she said, “Happy, happy! I know that Christ died for sinners, and it is there I am fixed.” She requested the twelfth chapter of Isaiah to be read to her. While reading, she said, “How precious!” and begged to hear it again. At the last verse, “Cry out and shout thou inhabitant of Zion,” she said, “Do so, do so; for our God is a great God.” Soon after this, she repeated, in a very peculiar manner, the whole of Mr. Hart’s hymn:
“Christ is the friend of sinners, be that forgotten never.”
On this she commented as she went on, in a most striking manner. One thing she observed: “Oh, it is easy to say we are sinners, but hard to feel it. Yes it is the righteousness of Christ that I must appear in before God—nothing but the work of a precious Christ wherein I can stand justified before God, and whether I sink or swim I am fixed there.” She then wished to hear the eighth chapter of Acts; and coming to the fifth verse, she seemed delighted. “Philip went down to Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.” “He did not tell them some great nobleman was coming to bestow great riches upon them; but he went simply to preach Christ to poor sinners.” She then repeated the sweet verses: “Not all the blood of beasts, &c.” She begged the prayers of the Church when they met; and often asked if she had been remembered by them. To those around her, she said, “Oh, do beg of the Lord to cut the thread, for I long to be with him.” Then she said:
“The holy triumphs of my soul,
Shall death itself out-brave;
Leave dull mortality behind,
And fly beyond the grave.”
One of her dear daughters telling her, she would soon be with her dear Jesus, she said, “do you think I shall, you have told me so so many times—Oh, why is he so long coming.” Soon after, finding herself very low, nature sinking, and feeling she was going, she said to her daughter: “Are yon alone? call up the rest of the family:” and while standing around her, they witnessed her struggle. But recovering, she burst into tears. “Come back again! dear Lord! I thought that I was going! how long, Lord.” She requested a gentleman to fetch a doctor, merely to let her know, by her pulse, the pleasing news, that she was near her end. On being informed she was near, she was more composed. At one time, she exclaimed: “As the hart panteth after the water-brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O, God.—I want to drink at the fountain.” Lifting up her hands, as if filled with increased joy, she said; “Too much, dear Lord—dear Jesus, I want to embrace thee, as thou dost embrace me.” She begged they would lift her poor suffering arm out of bed, that she might embrace her dear Jesus. Some sweet verses were spoken to her, on the soul’s entrance into glory. She said: “Jesus said unto the woman, ‘Go, and sin no more.’” “Now,” said she, “is the time for that; those words used once to distress me; but Christ the Heavenly Lamb takes all our sins away—that is where I rest.” One of her daughters said, “Upon the rock still, mother?” She answered: “None but Jesus!—look up to the Lord for me.—Why are his chariot wheels so long in coming?” Just before her departure, she said to her husband, waving her hand: “All is well.” Mr. King and Mr. Borrows coming into the room—one of them observed, that though she had lost her sight, what a mercy that the light and holy fire in the tabernacle, should never go out—nor never be put out. On hearing these words, she waved her hand; and presently, without a sigh, she breathed her last.
And blessed are the dead which thus die in the Lord: all the Lord’s people die safe—all die in faith. They all die in peace and friendship with God and conscience. But this is meeting death, and finishing the warfare in militant glory. May the dear family, who were kind, affectionate, and perpetually attentive to her, experience the like grace in death—sweetly sleep in Jesus; and whatever may be their fears in life—Oh, that their end may be blessed.
“Shudder not to pass the stream,
Rest with all thy care on him;
Him whose dying love and power,
Still’d its tossing, hush’d its roar.
Safe is the expanding wave,
Gentle as a summer’s eve;
Not an object of his care
Ever suffered shipwreck there.”
And while we thus record the riches of sovereign grace, as experienced in life and death, by our dear departed friend, we must not, we cannot, forget the memory of departed worth. Again, another friend in the Lord, a lover of his truth, a respectable member of the church, Mrs. Walton, who sat just before Mrs. Turner, in the chapel; a debtor to grace indeed; she was the daughter of a most respectable and pious deacon of a church, who was much esteemed for his piety and usefulness—beloved of his God, and by those who knew him—and after a life of usefulness in the church, was suddenly called home to a grace-provided glory. While at chapel, he had joined in singing the hymn before the sermon; the minister gave out his text—“Oh come taste and see that the Lord is gracious; blessed is the man that trusteth in him,”—when he was seized with death, and shortly after expired; to the grief of his family, the church, and the neighbourhood. Our departed friend was of course religiously educated, which is no small mercy impressed by grace; at a very early period of her life, the Lord led her to see her own state, as a sinner before God, and gradually drew her mind into a spiritual acquaintance with divine truth—led her soul to the glorious person, and finished work of Christ, as her refuge, surety, atonement, righteousness, and advocate—here she often found rest and peace—these important truths were the very delight of her soul, when she thought, read, conversed, or heard of them—she loved the truth, as it is in Jesus, nor would she attend any place of worship where she thought the Minister was shy of any precious doctrine of the gospel—she was decided, though far from being disputatious; and as grace made her so, the Lord fulfilled his promise in her soul’s experience—“Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee in the hour of temptation, and if any man love me, and keep my words, I also will love him” (manifestatively); but like almost all the family of God, she often experienced much lowness, dejection, fear, unbelief, and doubtings; sweetly revived again, the graces of the holy spirit gained the victory over these sad corruptions of the human heart. Sinking and rising, rising and sinking in mind, was her experience till victorious grace gained the conquest in death. For