After his ejectment [from his church], Watson preached occasionally whenever he could do so with safety. Fines and imprisonments were insufficient to close the mouths of the witnesses of Jesus. In barns, kitchens, outhouses, or dells and woods, the faithful few gathered to hear the message of eternal life. Those little secret assemblies were doubtless charming occasions for devout minds; the word of the Lord was precious in those days. Bread eaten in secret is proverbially sweet, and the word of God in persecution is peculiarly delightful. Little can we realize the joyful anticipation which preceded the appointed meetings, or the lingering memories which clung to them long after they were over.
Charles Spurgeon's introduction to Thomas Watson's A Body of Divinity (Banner of Truth Trust 2008), x.