John Dillon

“ Only keep my heart filled with thy love, and open my mouth to shew thy praise. O that the few days I have on this side of eternity, may be filled up with holy praise and adoration, telling to all around, how good, how gracious, how kind, how long-suffering, how merciful, how full of compassion thou art ”

“ Now the constant cry of my heart was, "What must I do to be saved?” And as soon as I got better, I went to church every day: but when ever the commandments were read in the communion service, I was cut to the heart, and at the end of each, my cry was, "Guilty, O God! I am the man! But have mercy upon me, and I will never do so any more.”
I continued thus for about eight or ten days: when on Friday, Oct. 11, 1757, in the forenoon the Curate read (the second lesson) the 15th of St. Luke. From the beginning of the chapter I found that cloud which was on my soul begin to give way. ”

“ The temptation was the heavier, because I had no man to open my mind to. But the Lord was with me in my temptation, and gave me the consolation of his Spirit ; which tho’ not continuing long at a time, yet gently refreshed my soul. ”

“ Wesley came to Limerick, where the regiment I was in then lay, just before the ground for the Preaching-house was taken. Under his first sermon, on, Now is the day of salvation, I was stirred up more than ever. I said, if I can only believe, I shall obtain the prize : but found, the utter impossibility of doing this of myself. However the strong desire continued in my heart, with earnest prayer for it. Before Mr. Wesley left Limerick, he told the society, if they could procure ground for building, while he was at Cork and send him word, he would come back, and spend four days with them. ”

“ Yet a few of us were enabled to overtake them ; tho’ when we came out of the field, the strongest company in our regiment could muster only eleven out of seventy men. Yet I continued in open rebellion against God, till the war broke out again. ”