Her Early Life

“The works of the Lord are great; sought out of all them that have pleasure therein.” Elevated, indeed, is the Christian’s pleasure in “seeking out the great works” of creation. But it is the work of “Redemption,” which mainly attracts his delighted contemplation; as the mirror in which the glory of his God and Saviour is most fully unveiled before him. The “new creation” on the heart of man is one grand division of this perfect work of God; and often does its display of “the beauties of holiness” constrain the world to a reluctant acknowledgment, and excite the Church to joyful adoration — “What hath God wrought!” For not only will the Redeemer’s glory be manifested in his saints at the blissful era of his coming; not only will they then be seen as the “jewels” of his everlasting crown; but even now are they “the glory of his inheritance,” set forth for the conviction of the world, “that they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the Lord hath done this, and that the Holy One of Israel has created it.” It is the object of the following sketch to bring forth to view one of these striking manifestations of Divine power and grace, and to illustrate, in connexion with this memorial, some of those edifying and instructive lessons which it will be seen to present before us. B

Mary Jane Graham was born in London, April 11, 1803. Her father was engaged in a respectable business, from which he retired a few years before his daughter’s death (and chiefly from regard to her delicate health,) to the village of Stoke Fleming, near Dartmouth, Devon. She appears to have been the subject of early religious convictions. At the age of seven she had acquired those habits of secret prayer, which may be considered a favourable mark of Divine influence upon her soul. But we will give the history of this era of her life in her own words. To a friend, who had evinced some incredulity of the genuineness or permanency of early impressions of religion, she thus writes:

March 20, 1827. 1 You appear, my dear friend, to think very early piety too wonderful a thing to be true. It is wonderful, so wonderful that, when David was contemplating the starry firmament, he was drawn for a moment from his meditation on the wonders he there beheld, by the still greater wonder of “God’s ordaining strength out of the mouths of babes and sucklings.” But David’s wonder and yours were of a very different nature; he wondered and adored. Jesus, too, that “man of sorrows,” once “rejoiced in spirit,” because God “had hid these things from the wise and prudent, and revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father; for it seemed good in thy sight.” * Even so, Lord Jesus; in thy rejoicing will I too rejoice; let the world think me a fool or an enthusiast, or beside myself, as they thought Thee.’ The story of ‘Little Henry and his Bearer,’ to which I believe you allude, I have been assured by

Miss, is every word of it true. Do not then bring upon

yourself the dreadful sin of limiting the power of the Holy One of Israel. Jesus has said, Suffer little children to come;” and they will come, if He calls them. As facts are the strongest of all proofs, bear with me a little longer, while I tell you briefly the history of a child, for the truth of which I can vouch. I knew a little girl, about sixteen years and a half ago. She was much like other children, as full of sin and vanity as ever she could hold; and her parents had not as yet taken much pains to talk to her about religion. So she went on in the way of her own evil heart, and thought herself a very good little girl, because she said her prayers every night and morning, and was not more passionate, wilful, and perverse, than most of her young companions. The God of love did not think this sinful child too’young to learn of Jesus. He so ordered it about the time I am speaking of, when she was just seven years old, that she was led by a pious servant into some almshouses belonging to Rowland Hill, who had just been preaching at them. The servant and an aged woman entered into a long conversation together, to which the little girl listened, and wondered what could make them like to talk about such things. But at the close of it, the old woman took the child affectionately by the hand, and said to her, ‘My dear child, make the Lord Jesus your friend now that you are so young; and when you come to be as old as I am, He’ll never leave you nor forsake you.’ God the Spirit sent these simple words to the poor sinful child’s heart. She walked home in silence by her nurse’s side, thinking how she could get Jesus to be her friend. Then she remembered how often she had slighted this dear Saviour; how she had read of Him in the Bible, and been wearied of the subject; how she had heard the minister preach Jesus, and wished the long dry sermon over; how she had said prayers to Him without minding what she said; how she had passed days, weeks, and months, without thinking of Him; how she had loved her play, her books, and her toys, and her play-fellows — all, all better than Jesus. Then the Holy Spirit convinced her of sin. She saw that no one good thing dwelt in her, and that she deserved to be cast away from God for ever. Would Jesus love her now 1 Would he ever forgive her 1 She feared not; but she would try. She would make herself very good, and then, perhaps, Jesus would be her friend. But the more this little girl tried to be good, the more her naughty heart got the better of her; for she was trying in her own strength. She was led to give up trying in that way; and many long nights did she spend in praying “with strong crying and tears” to Jesus, that He would teach her how to get her sins pardoned, and make her fit to have Him for her friend. Let me mention it for the encouragement of those who seek Jesus, that He did not disdain to listen to the prayers of this little child. He put it into her heart to read the Bible, of which, though she understood not all, yet she gathered enough to give her some comfort. One day her attention was fixed on these words, “The Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” Now something that could take away sin was just what this little girl wanted; and she asked her father to tell her who this Lamb of God was. He explained the precious verse. But who can describe the raptures which filled the bosom of this little child, when made to comprehend that the “blood of Jesus cleanseth from all sin.” Now she fled to Jesus indeed. Now she knew that He had loved her, and given himself for her; now the Spirit of God. who often “chooseth the weak and foolish things of the world, to confound the wise and mighty,” “shed abroad the love of God in the heart” of a weak and foolish child, and”

filled her with peace and joy in believing.” She had no one to whom she could talk to of these things. But she held sweet converse with her reconciled God and Father; and gladly would she have quitted this life to go and dwell with Jesus. Since then she has spent nearly seventeen years of mingled happiness and pain. But she has had Jesus for her friend; and He never has, and never will, forsake her. She has forsaken Him more than once for a season, and turned to follow the vain things of the world. But her Shepherd’s eye has been over her in her wanderings, and He has never suffered her quite to<* depart from Him. To this day her vain and treacherous heart is continually leading her to provoke her heavenly Friend. He “visits her transgressions with the rod, and her iniquity with stripes;” but. He has sworn never to “take His loving-kindness from her, nor to suffer His faithfulness to fail.” She is constrained to acknowledge, that during all this time she has never done one thing that could merit God’s favour. Free-grace, free-mercy, are all her song: “It is of the Lord’s mercy she has not long ago been consumed.” She is quite sure she could never have changed her own heart. No; God has begun the good work in her, and he must carry it on; and from first to last, let glory be ascribed to Him, and let her take shame and confusion to herself. At this moment she desires to live, if she may be made the means of converting one sinner to Jesus; but if not, she would rather “depart and be with Christ, which is far better.” She is far from despising earthly blessings. Every morsel she puts into her mouth, the very air she breathes, is made sweet and refreshing by the loving hand that sends it. Once there was a curse on all her earthly blessings. But now “Christ hath redeemed her from the curse of the law, being made a curse for her.” She would give it as her living experience, and leave it when she goes hence as her dying testimony, that there is nothing worth living for except to know Him, and see others come to Him, and wash their guilty souls in the blood of the Lamb. God has given her the blessing of seeing a happy change take place in some of the dear companions of her childhood and youth. She waits upon Him for the salvation of the rest; and there is no one whom she longs after more ardently in the Lord, than that dear and valued friend of her earliest days, to whom this letter is addressed; and to whom she wishes every spiritual blessing, that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, can bestow now and for evermore! Amen and Amen!’

Some apparent discrepancy may be observed between this exquisitely beautiful and natural letter, and her published account of this important crisis.* Her apprehensions of Divine truth, as expressed in her letter, were indeed clear and enlivening far beyond the average spiritual capacity of children. Yet her ’ view of many of the doctrines of Christianity, ’ which she afterwards so fully developed and so richly enjoyed, were at this time ’ very indistinct.’ Doubtless also much of natural feeling and excitement was mingled with these early impressions of religion; while what was of a spiritual character, as she afterwards discovered, was not sufficiently grounded upon that sense of universal guilt and helplessness which prostrates the sinner at the foot of the cross, simply dependant upon a free salvation. This superficial cast of impression, without invalidating the reality of a Divine change, will account for the instability which marked her early course in the ways of God. From her own history we learn that she ’ was enabled to walk with God in sincerity and without any considerable declension during the greater part of her childhood, and the commencement of a riper age.’ After this period, however, ’ more than once,’ as her letter informs us, she ’ forsook’ her Heavenly Friend, ’ turned to follow the vain things of the world,’ and “went on frowardly in the way of her own heart” — “leaning to her own understanding,” and led captive in her own folly.

Of this period future notice will be given. Meanwhile we revert to her early years as spent under the roof of her parents or at school. Her parents considered her virtues as those of every day, and not merely called forth on particular occasions. She was a most amiable, affectionate, and dutiful child, seldom needing correction, tender-hearted when told of her

* Test of Truth. By Mary Jane Graham. This very valuable work has just been republished by J. Whetham, Philadelphia- — Ed, b 2 faults, and by her general kindness of disposition attaching- all the members of the household to herself. She was remarkably free from selfishness; always ready to yield to her companions, even to deprive herself of what she valued. Her little pocket money was generally reserved for some object of distress, or for some token of affection to a friend.

Her quickness of mind was a subject of early observation. Her reading was chiefly obtained by attending to the lessons which were given to her brother, then preparing for school. She was seldom seen without a book in hand, and seemed never so happy as when employing herself in the improvement of her mind. Yet this thoughtful cast of character was by no means tinged with unnatural gloom. In all the harmless games of childhood none of her companions excelled her in playful activity;* while in the midst of her cheerful temperament, it was abundantly evident that the main concern of religion was uppermost in her mind. ‘I recollect,’ her cousin writes, ‘that when we were quite little children, she made some attempt to talk to me about religion; once especially, when we were sitting behind the curtain in the drawing-room at. I did not like the subject, and therefore walked

away and joined my more worldly-minded companions.’

Her school career commenced soon after she was seven years old. She was however shortly removed, from ill health, and again, about the age often, sent to a school of a different kind. Many of her companions who survived her will probably long preserve the remembrance of her peculiar kindness and gentleness of spirit, combined with her superior powers. One of them remarks her great carefulness to screen, as far as it was lawful to do so, the faults of her fellows, and her anxiety to plead for them when in disgrace: and so powerful was her advocacy, that her preceptress was constrained to remove out of her way, when her judgment compelled her to persevere in her discipline. In all the school difficulties, she was the constant resource, ever ready and willing to assist, without any assumption upon the ground of her acknowledged superiority. One trait of peculiar loveliness was here exhibited, (the spirit of which was marked on various occasions in after life,) in her consideration of any of her companions who from any unfavourable causes might appear to be neglected.

* One of her early friends however remarks, that her games and manner of amusing partook more of imagination and of talent than those of the generality of children.

Those were the objects of her particular notice, and with them she shared all her little indulgences.

Her religious impressions appear to have been cherished by the familiar exhortations of the husband of her preceptress, and by devotional exercises with those of her companions who were living under the practical influence of their Christian instructions. To one of them she proposed to learn every day a portion of Scripture in private, and to repeat it to each other when they retired to rest. At this time she committed to memory the whole of the Prophecy of Isaiah, besides other portions of the sacred Volume.

At the age of twelve her delicate health again occasioned her removal from school. Her illness lasted for about two months, during which time, when confined upon the sofa, she committed to memory the whole Book of Psalms. Indeed her powers of memory were of an extraordinary order. She was much delighted with Milton’s Paradise Lost, and had learnt the greater part, if not the whole, of that magnificent poem. For many successive mornings she repeated to her father most correctly upwards of three hundred lines each morning. Upon her recovery from illness she passed several months with a careful servant by the seaside. So instinctive were her habits of active usefulness, that she employed herself, though only in her thirteenth year, in collecting a few children for the purpose of instruction, and in distributing tracts. In returning home to her parents, she enjoyed with them the rich and responsible privilege of the ministry of the late Rev. Samuel Crowther, Vicar of Christ Church, Newgate Street; an eminent “watchman of Ephraim, now with his God.” Under his faithful and affectionate instruction she was brought to the ordinance of Confirmation about the age of sixteen, and publicly “joined herself to the Lord in a perpetual covenant never to be forgotten.”

These interesting materials of Miss Graham’s early life may suggest a few profitable remarks.

Let Christian parents be excited to an immediate and persevering discharge of their anxious responsibilities. Early impressions are of the highest moment in reference to the future course of their children. Let them be prayed for, expected, cherished. They cannot be too early or too urgent in presenting (after the example of the believing parents of old) the petition of the Angel of the covenant; “How shall we order the child, and how shall we do unto him?” They can scarce-

)y fix the precious seed too soon into the fresh soil. The pure simplicity of the rudiments of the Gospel is specially suited to the dawn of infant intelligence; and well would it be, if our children should never be able to recur in after life to the time when these vital truths were first presented to their minds. The child’s intellect opens faster than is commonly considered. The first impressions often retain a firm and permanent grasp through life. And abundantly has the experience of the Church testified, that early piety is eminent piety,*

It may appear suspicious, that so little shade is discoverable upon the records of Miss Graham’s childhood. But defects cannot be noticed, where they were not observed. Probably our own sphere of observation, if not our immediate circle, is not wholly unfurnished with similar cases, sufficient to preclude an unwarranted incredulity. And indeed these instances often afford the most striking illustrations of the total depravity of the fall. For while Miss Graham was in the estimation of her parents all that their fond hearts could wish, what was she in the sight of God 1 Self-knowledge under Divine teaching soon discovered to her, that under this attractive garb was hid the mighty principle of alienation of heart from God. There was no natural preparation for heavenly influence. It was only a more lovely appearance of the death that reigned within. Her subsequent expressions therefore of self-abhorrence were not the ebullitions of a false humility, or of misguided fanaticism, but the genuine conviction of the Spirit of God upon her heart.

The subject of our history suggests also the importance of an early excitement of the principles of active usefulness. No doubt Miss Graham’s habits of early activity had an important influence in maturing her character for the high privilege of devoting herself to the interests of her fellow creatures. It was Cotton Mather’s practice to endeavour to enlarge the

* ‘Barker’s Parent’s Monitor’ gives an useful digest of information, well calculated to guide the instructor, and to encourage the diligence and patient perseverance of parental faith. The principles of Christian Education are brought out with much simplicity and practical detail in the valuable and well-known works of Mrs. Hoare and Mr. Babington, which cannot be too highly recommended. Perhaps the most full and interesting illustration of these principles will be found in the Biographies of the Henry Family, (Life of P. & M, Henry, and Mrs. Savage) by Mr. Williams, of Shrewsbury.

minds of his children, by engaging them daily in some 1 Essay to do good.’ He encouraged and commended them, when he saw them take pleasure in it, and never failed to show them that a backwardness would subject them to his displeasure. This example cannot be too strongly inculcated. To give to children an object beyond themselves, would tend much to counteract the natural principle of selfishness, so baneful to their personal happiness, and to their intellectual, moral and spiritual improvement.