“Had little or no resolution for a life of holiness; was ready almost to renounce my hopes of living to God. And O how dark it looked, to think of being unholy for ever! This I could not endure. The cry of my soul was Iniquities prevail against me, but was in some measure revived by a comfortable meditation on God’s eternity, that He never had a beginning. Whence I was led to admire His greatness and power in such a manner, that I stood still and praised the Lord for His own glories and perfections. Though I was (and if I should for ever be) an unholy creature, my soul was comforted to apprehend an eternal, infinite, powerful, and holy God.”

~David Brainerd’s Diary, p.108, July 25 entry, emphasis in bold is mine