has usually been laid on FAITH--on that act of the mind which unites
the soul to the Saviour, and makes salvation personal; and it is only
by studying faiths that many have come at last to an indirect and
circuitous acquaintance with Christ. By some such misdirection
Bunyan was misled. In quest of faith he went a long and joyless
journey, and was wearied with the greatness of his way. It was
secretly urged upon his mind, that if he had faith he would be able
to work miracles; and passages of Scripture were borne in upon his
mind, which bespoke the omnipotence of faith. One day, on the road
from Elstow to Bedford, it was suggested to his mind to try some
miracle, and that miracle should be, "to say to the puddles which
were in the horse-pads, 'Be dry,' and to the dry places, 'Be you
puddles.'" However, before doing this, he thought he should go over
the hedge and pray for faith, and then come and speak the word. "But
what if, after you have prayed and tried to do it, nothing happens?"
The dread of this alternative made him postpone the anxious
experiment, and left him still in doubt.

Then he had a sort of waking vision, suggested by what he had seen in
his pious friends at Bedford. "I saw as if they were on the sunny
side of some high mountain, there refreshing themselves with the
pleasant beams of the sun, while I was shivering and shrinking in the
cold, afflicted with frost, snow, and dark clouds. Methought also,
betwixt me and them, I saw a wall that did compass about this
mountain; now through this wall my soul did greatly desire to pass,
concluding that if I could, I would even go into the very midst of
them, and there also comfort myself with the heat of their sun.
About this wall I thought myself to go again and again, still prying
as I went, to see if I could find some gap or passage to enter
therein. But none could I find for some time. At the last I saw, as