The Wonders of Prayer
by
Various
Part 4 out of 7
jaws of the wicked, so they shan't hurt us if we belong to him? Jesus is
always with me; so I'm never alone and never afraid."
HIS MOTHER'S PRAYER.
A poor sailor, leading a most profligate and abandoned life, whose
praying mother followed him like a shadow into and out of his drinking
saloons and gambling houses, at last absented himself from home,
whenever he was in port. Her burden, finally, seemed too great to bear,
and she resolved to make a stronger effort than ever before, to cast it
upon the Lord. As she knelt, with her heart well-nigh bursting with this
desire, she felt a powerful conviction that, at last, she was answered.
For several years the son went on in his wicked career, and the mother
sorrowed that it was so, but her soul was no longer laden with fear; she
felt the assurance of his conversion, sooner or later. Again, for
several years, she never heard of him, and thought him dead; then she
ceased praying for him, and was steadfast in the faith of meeting him in
heaven. But sight was to be given her, as a reward for faith. He
returned, at last, only thirty years of age, but broken down in health,
and worn out by dissipation and hardship. Still unconverted, but, to
satisfy his mother, he consented to remain in the room during a visit of
the missionary of that district; a man with sufficient tact not to make
his efforts obnoxious. He did not tell the young man he was a sinner and
must flee from the wrath to come; he merely presented the _love_ of
Jesus; the love that saved to the very _uttermost_; that waited more
patiently than any earthly friend, and forgave more royally. At first,
he listened indifferently, but, at last, burst into tears, saying, "I
thought I was so bad He didn't want anything to do with me." A long
conversation, and others at intervals followed, and, before his death,
which occurred several months after, his mother's heart was gladdened by
the account of his change, and the knowledge that, in farthest lands,
his thoughts were back with her. The deeper he went in sin, the more
unsatisfactory and abhorrent it became, and he would have turned, long
before, to the Lord, had he believed there was the least hope for him.
When he closed his eyes to earth, a few friends enabled his mother to
give him respectable burial, in the same grave where, years before, his
father was laid.
THE HEART OF STONE RELENTS.
Another consumptive in the neighborhood, was thoroughly an infidel. Mr.
A. visited the house three times a week, and, at last, succeeded in
overcoming his objections to a weekly prayer-meeting in his house. In
his hearing, earnest supplication was always made for him, and, at the
end of four months, the heart of stone relented. He had not, at first,
the courage to appropriate the promises to himself; but one morning very
early he sent for the missionary to reveal the news that he felt all his
sins forgiven, and had "Christ _in_ him, the hope of glory." four months
more he lived to hear witness continually to God's amazing mercy, and
then joyfully expired, declaring himself saved by grace alone.
A DISCOURAGED ONE REVIVED.
Mr. C----, walking home one Saturday afternoon, fell into a discouraged
train of thought because he appeared to have done so little for the
Master that whole week. At that moment a young man took him by the hand
saying--"You do not know me, but I know you. A few weeks ago I was on
the high road to destruction, but now through your instrumentality I am
in the narrow path which leads to everlasting life. I attended your
prayer-meeting one evening in company with a friend of mine. You spoke
with great earnestness, and after we sang the last hymn you remarked,
'How can I bless whom God has cursed? For he declares, If any man love
not the Lord, he shall be accursed.' I cannot describe my sensations.
For several days I could find no peace, but when at last my faith rested
on Jesus, I found that peace which flows like a river; and now, like
Moses, I have chosen rather to suffer affliction with the children of
God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin, for I know if I have to face any
trouble on account of my religion, I can look forward to a glorious
reward."
THE PRISONER LOOSED.
On the third floor of a tenement house, a missionary, Mr. B., found a
comely, intelligent young English woman in great distress. Her heart
seemed wrung by grief. A few kind words of sympathy drew from her the
story of her woe. She came to this country with her husband and three
young children. He was employed as book-keeper in a large mercantile
house; but soon became addicted to drink, and the story is ever the
same; loss of position, poverty, disgrace, suffering and recklessness.
On the day of the missionary's visit, he was in a prison cell, committed
as a vagrant and common drunkard. The wife was bitterly weeping in her
cheerless home, and the children around her fretting with hunger. Mr. B.
was so touched he could scarcely find words with which to console her,
but turned to Isaiah and read, "For thy maker is thy husband; the Lord
of Hosts is his name." "For a small moment have I forsaken thee, but
with great mercies will I gather thee." After his prayer, she felt
calmer, and entreated him to come the next week, on the day her husband
would be released. He complied; found a prepossessing and cultivated
man; and upon telling him how earnestly his wife and himself had prayed
for him, was rejoiced to learn that in that lonesome cell the Spirit of
God had visited him, filled him with a sincere wish to reform the future
and redeem the past. The missionary called again and again, and
witnessed the strong determination of the young man to fight against his
pernicious habit. He was soon employed again in a large house, became a
regular attendant at the Lord's house, and began to pray both publicly
and privately for help from on high. Only a few months, and both husband
and wife united with a church and became teachers in the Sabbath school.
Their own home, once laid waste, again blossomed like the rose.
PRAYING FOR TEA.
On a top floor in a street of tenements lives a colored woman one
hundred and ten years old! Her son, a man over seventy, lost his wife, a
neat, active Christian woman, very suddenly, and his aged mother was
plunged in despairing grief. "Why, why was I left, old and rheumatic and
useless, and Mary, a smart, busy, capable woman taken away without a
minute's warning?" was her continual cry. But the son was left desolate,
and the two rooms were to be kept clean, the meals provided before he
left for his work in the morning, and after his work at night; there was
no one else to do it, and love for him called out new effort. With cane
in one hand she treads the rooms back and forth, performing the
household duties. Eyes undimmed, faculties unimpaired, she _does what
she can_. Upon receiving a call a few months after the death of her
daughter-in-law, she said--"You've brought me a whole pound of that nice
tea! Well, honey, _I asked the Lord for some good tea last night, and I
knowed well enough it would be along some time to-day, cos He never
keeps me waiting long_. I found out why he took Mary instead of me; old
as I was, I wasn't half so fit to go, and he was so full of mercy he let
me stay long enough to see it! You know, honey, I've got no one to talk
over old times with. There ain't none of 'em left that I was young with,
and not many I was old with; but I'm never lonesome, for I'm too busy
thinking of all the Lord's watching and waiting for me. I'm dreadful
little use, but my son couldn't get along very well without me, and then
I tell you I'm so busy thinking, I ain't got any time to be lazy or
lonesome. Good many little things we want, too, and I have to be runnin'
to the Lord for 'em."
"Do they come every time, auntie?", "Every single time, honey! He never
fails, no matter who else does. He knows I don't ask for no nonsense;
only for the things we really need, and he has promised them all the
time." "But, are there not times, auntie, for instance, when your son is
sick, when you cannot see where rent and food is coming from?" "Don't
want to see, honey! What's the use seein'? Believin's the thing!
Believin's better than money." And so, all the revolving months, this
relic of the last century walks by faith in the unseen.
GIVING HER LAST DOLLAR TO THE LORD.
A poor woman, sitting in a little church, heard the minister make an
urgent appeal for money enough to pay a debt of two hundred dollars,
contracted by the church the previous Winter. She had one dollar in her
pocket; half drew it out; thought of the improbability of having any
more for several days; put it back. Thought again, "Trust in the Lord
for more;" drew it wholly out, and deposited it in the basket. The next
morning, a lady called to settle a bill of two dollars, so long unpaid
that it was, long before, set down among the losses.
THE DANISH GIRL'S BLESSING.
A very poor Danish girl, broken down in health, utterly unable longer to
labor for her own support, was provided with the means, and urged to go
to Denmark, as her friend felt sure there was some good in store for her
there, meaning, more definitely, the restoration of her health. She
could not be induced until, thoroughly satisfied by several tokens that
it was the Lord's will, and then she consented.
A devout, humble Christian missionary became acquainted with her soon
after her arrival, and, being struck with the beauty of holiness in
every action and conversation of her life, asked her to marry him, that
he might have the constant satisfaction of rendering her life
comfortable, and finding his own encouragement in her unfailing faith.
His letters are full of his saintly wife, and her signally blessed
efforts in winning people to put their trust where it need fear no
betrayal.
THE SWEDISH GIRL BLESSED.
A Christian Swedish girl, who had, for three years, done the washing of
a certain family, had so interested them by her care of an aged father,
and gained their esteem by her humble piety, that, wishing to go to
Europe for six months, they offered her two rooms in their house for
that time, that she might not only save the labor necessary to pay her
rent, but, also, take charge of their effects. The offer was gladly
accepted, and recognized as a token especially from the Lord.
In times when the father was yet able to work a little, they had
economized to a degree that resulted in saving twenty dollars. It was
laid by for three months' rent, when he should be no longer able to earn
it. That time had come; as yet the money had not been touched; but Satan
sent a wicked woman to hire the next room, and, while the father was
asleep, and his poor daughter at church, she stole it. Their grief was
great, but they reminded the Lord how hardly it was earned, and how
faithful lie had always been to His promises. It can be easily
understood with what emphasis this unexpected offer came to them.
SAVED FROM DROWNING.
A poor German woman rushed frantically through the street and into the
house of a countrywoman, very little better off than herself, declaring
she would drown herself that very night if _no_ one would give her work.
A family on the same floor gave her the use of a very small, bare room
for one week, free of charge; after that, it would be eighty cents per
week rent. Her countrywoman shared with her, such as she had for the
evening and the morning, and after the breakfast, sent for a good,
ever-ready missionary to talk and pray her into a better frame of mind.
He did so, but confirmed and rested her faith on substantial works. He
procured employment for her before the sun set; enough to pay the rent
and get a little common food. Then obtained coal sufficient to last a
couple of months; and so, leading her little by little into light and
hope, drew her into regular attendance at the Mission chapel in her
neighborhood.
THE WIDOW IN "WANT".
A home missionary in Brooklyn, who has an enviable reputation for his
entire consecration to the work of helping the poor, one day when
engaged in his benevolent works, entered a restaurant, kept by a
Christian friend, a man of like spirit with himself, who, in the course
of conversation, related to him the following circumstances,
illustrative of the power of prayer.
He had, on a certain day, cleared a large sum, part of which consisted
of _Mexican dollars_. Returning home in high spirits, he felt as if he
could go to sleep sweetly on this silver pillow. But a thought suddenly
intruded, which gave a new turn to his feelings. It related to a poor
woman in his neighborhood, the widow of a very dear friend of his, whom
he knew to be in want. "Shall I take all this money to myself?" thought
he. "Does not the Providence who gave it to me say, _No! Give some of it
to the widow of your friend_."
With this impression he retired, as was his habit, quite early, but he
could not sleep. The thought of the needy widow haunted him. "I will go
to-morrow," said he to himself, "and see what I can do for her." But
this good intention proved no opiate to his disturbed mind. "Possibly
she or I may not live to see to-morrow." Something seemed to say _go
now_. He tossed from side to side, but could not sleep. _Go now_ kept
ringing in his ear. So at length the restless man had to dress himself
and go.
At this late hour, not far from eleven, he sallied forth to find the
widow. Seeing a dim light in the upper story where she resided, and
following its lead, he crept softly along on the stairway, until he
reached the room from which a low sound issued. The door was slightly
ajar; through which he could hear the voice of prayer, scarcely audible,
but deeply earnest. He dared hardly stir, lest he should disturb the
praying widow. But he came on an errand, and he must accomplish it. But
how? Recollecting at the moment, that he had in his pocket a few of the
_Mexican dollars_, he gently pushed at the door, and it opened just wide
enough for his purpose. So taking each piece of money between his
fingers, he rolled it in along the carpet, and withdrew as noiselessly
as he had ascended. Returning to his home, he fell asleep and slept
soundly, as well he might, after this act.
The widow at length arose from her knees, and was struck on seeing the
shining money lying about her floor. Where had these pieces of silver
come from? Here was a mystery she could not solve. But she knew it was
from the Lord, and that he had answered her prayer. So with tears of
gratitude, she gave thanks to Him, "whose is the silver and the gold."
Shortly after this event, she attended prayer-meeting, where she felt
constrained to make known this wonderful interposition in answer to
prayer. The Christians present were as much astonished as herself. The
silence which ensued was broken by a brother of that church, who rose
and said, "What this good woman has told you, is strictly true. These
dollars came from the Lord. They came in answer to her prayer." He then
detailed the circumstances before related. "God deputed me to carry this
money, and providentially I am here to night to testify to the fact that
God hears and answers prayer."
It seems, from a subsequent statement, that this widow, owed a certain
sum, that she was obliged to pay immediately, and having nothing in
hand, she was pleading, that night, that her Heavenly Father would send
her the needed amount.
THE SEWING GIRL RELIEVED JUST IN TIME.
A sick Scotch girl was found lying on a narrow bed in a close,
uncomfortable room, her sobs audible to the missionary, when half-way up
the stairs. Her story was short. When about, she earned three dollars
and a half a week, at a business that was killing her. Of that, she paid
three dollars for her board; leaving but the half-dollar for clothing or
incidentals. But now--she had been lying there two weeks; six dollars
were due for board, and still she was unable to rise, and, when she did,
how could she ever pay the back indebtedness?
The woman with whom she lived, was too poor herself to give her the lost
time, and, moreover, was one of the class whom struggle and battle
hardens. The missionary came just in time to quell the poor girl's
fears, and paid her debts; mind and body were set at rest, and, one or
two Christian ladies being made acquainted with the case, attended to
the comforts which hastened her recovery; and, when once more pursuing
her avocation, her "mither's God" seemed very near, not as one afar off.
PRAYING FOR A HOME.
A young Southern girl, who had lost a position through five months'
sickness, and found herself, at last, in the street and penniless,
turned her steps to a daily prayer-meeting. She said her earliest
impressions from her mother were, that the Lord never failed those who
really put their trust in Him. She had sought work for food and shelter,
though destitute of sufficient covering to keep her from trembling with
cold, and, so far, sought in vain; but she was sure it was waiting for
her somewhere, and she thought perhaps God's people could tell her
where. She was right. A sweet-faced lady, who had listened, said she
wanted some young girl who might help her a little when she left for her
summer residence, and she had been waiting to find a child of pious
parents. Bessie went home with her from that very meeting, and, in two
weeks, came back, with bright eyes and warm, good clothing, to say
good-by to the ladies who had spoken to her so kindly, and, in whose
midst, she had found a second mother. They were to leave town the next
day, and she asked permission to come to the meeting once more and tell
what the Lord had done for her.
HOW MUCH GOOD TWO DOLLARS DID.
A lady sent two dollars to a brave-hearted sister--who, by faith alone,
and not by money, had gathered some sick and poor about her, and lived
only by prayer--and a note of apology and half-contempt that it was such
a miserable pittance. She received, in reply, the following little
financial statement:
"My Dear Friend:--Remember the five loaves and two fishes, and listen to
the message of your two dollars. This is the way I expended it:
Corned beef,. . . . . . . . . . . . . $0 80
Chop and egg for sick aunty,. . . . . . 13
Sweet potatoes, . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
White potatoes, . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Cabbage and bread,. . . . . . . . . . . 30
Tea, milk and sugar,. . . . . . . . . . 30
-----
$1 88
The balance bought the coal with which it was cooked, and _fifteen_
people were fed!"
SAVED FROM STARVATION.
On the second floor of a rear house lived a lady well known once as
among the foremost members of a wealthy church. The first blow of
adversity opened a wide passage for a succession of disasters. She
passed through the whole sliding scale, until the missionary found her
in the poor, dilapidated tenement where, for two days and nights, she
had lain in bed to keep warm; or as nearly so as her scanty covering
would admit.
It was Saturday, and the only food she had to keep her alive until
Monday, was two soda biscuits! She had sold everything comfortable in
the way of furniture; all her clothing but one respectable suit for the
street, and the only thing remaining, that pointed to the history of
better days, was a pair of gold eye-glasses, given her by her dying
mother. Within a few months her dire necessity had often pointed to the
glasses; but she could not see without them, nor could she sell the gold
frames unless she had means to have the glass set in commoner ones.
Moreover, the harpies who feed and thrive on the miseries of the poor,
would in no case have given her more than twenty-five cents for them;
and the short respite derived from that amount would not have
compensated for the sacrifice. She had looked at them that morning; felt
that starve she must and would, but that souvenir of her mother should
never leave her. She went back to bed and prayed fervently that the Lord
would show her some way of escape, or take her that day to himself. She
slept an hour or two, and then awakened, strong in the conviction that
he would show her some way before night, and though it was six o'clock
P.M., before the missionary called, no doubt had arisen to trouble her
mind; and as soon as he entered and introduced himself, she said--"You
are a messenger from the Lord, sir; I have been expecting you."
GOD WITH US.
An old woman was taking home' some sewing the night before, and passing
through a narrow and dark street, was knocked down by a runaway horse.
Taken up senseless and unknown, she was carried into the house of a kind
family who sent for a physician. It was not till next morning that she
recovered consciousness, and was able to give her address. A messenger
was at once dispatched to her husband, who was supposed to be wild with
terror. He was truly thankful to hear from human lips of her
whereabouts; but said he knew she was not dead, and he would see her in
the morning; for the Lord had been with him all night and assured him of
it. He had also kept the fire from going out; and now that she would be
brought home in a few hours, he was ready to trust his Father, as he had
been through the night. His hourly friend was Immanuel, God _with_ us;
not God somewhere or other in infinite space.
A VESSEL SAVED.
A vessel was six months making the passage from Liverpool to Bermuda
Island. Fogs enveloped it; winds sent it hither and thither; captain and
mate lost their reckoning, lost their senses; and when, added to the
rest, the vessel sprung a leak, gave up in despair. Crew and passengers
were finally reduced to a few drops of water and one potato a day, and
they merely waited death from starvation or drowning. All but one! One
man; a minister, whose faith and belief in their final escape burned but
brighter and brighter, as the others sank in the gloom of silent
despair. A few days before they made the land, the leakage suddenly
ceased; no one could account for it; but a week after their arrival,
when the vessel had been condemned by the authorities as unsea-worthy,
it was proposed to turn it bottom upward and see what stopped the leak.
God seemed to have performed a miracle for them, when it was discovered
that that end of the vessel was entirely covered with barnacles!
A REMARKABLE PRAYER CONCERNING A REMARKABLE TEXT.
A clergyman, accustomed to preach regularly in his journey through
Fleming Circuit, Kentucky, was preparing on one Saturday for the labors
of the next day. He was then staying at the residence of a family named
Bowers, from which he was to journey the next day five miles to preach
at 11 A.M., at a church called Mt. Olivet. On this Saturday, as he
relates the incident, as soon and as privately as practicable, I pored
over the Bible in quest of a suitable subject for the next day at Mount
Olivet, and strange to tell! not one passage in the whole Book, that
afternoon and night, could I fix upon, as, in my estimation, suitable
for the next day. There was one passage, (two or three clauses of which
I had by some means got fixed in my memory), that early that afternoon
appeared in my mind as though each word was written in CAPITAL LETTERS.
I turned to the whole passage as soon as I could find it; Heb. 6: 4-6;
and read, "For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened,"
etc., etc. I had previously studied that whole subject, as recorded in
the original, and as disposed of by learned Commentators of different
creeds. I had settled in my own mind the import of the passage. But it
seemed unsuitable for me, not then three years old in the ministry, to
attempt the settlement of a theological question, about which the best
and most learned of modern days had differed. I therefore tried to
dismiss it from my mind, and to find some passage more suitable for the
coming morrow. But my constant effort proved unsuccessful; and the said
passage in Hebrews often recurred to my mind. Thus passed my time till I
had to go to bed, resolving to attempt an early settlement of the
growing difficulty next morning. But the morning studies produced no
change in the unsettled state of the question, what shall I preach from
to-day? Thus matters remained until I reached Mount Olivet, and had to
begin service without a text. But I concluded if a suitable text did not
occur while singing, praying and reading some Scripture lesson, rather
than have no text, I would take Heb. 6: 4-6. And, cornered in this
dilemma, so I did, and used it as well as I could.
I then passed around the circuit as usual, and the fourth Saturday
thereafter, I arrived again at Brother Bowers', preached, met the class,
etc. Then, when all the class had left the room except their own family,
Brother and Sister Bowers said to me, each manifesting intense feeling
and interest, "Have you heard of the _strange_ thing that happened when
you were here four weeks ago?" Said I, "No! what was it?" They said,
"Did you see a man sitting in the house while you was preaching to-day?"
describing his dress, looks, etc. I answered, "Yes." Said they, "Did you
see a woman sitting over there," describing her? I said, "Yea." Said
they, "They are husband and wife--their name is--(I have long since
forgotten the name)--they are good members of the Presbyterian church,
their children are members of our class, as you have called their names
every time you have examined us. The man and his wife were here and
heard you four weeks ago--they know our rules, and when those not of our
church were dismissed, they left their children with us, as usual, and
their parents started home. And, as they themselves tell us and others,
as they went along, said the woman to her husband, 'Does not Mr. Akers
preach to-morrow at Mount Olivet?' And he answered, 'I believe he does.'
Said she, '_Well, if I thought he would take a certain text I would like
very much to go and hear him._' Said her husband, '_What text_?' And she
repeated the whole passage in _Hebrews_ 6:4-6. Said her husband, 'Well,
I reckon he will take some subject that will be interesting, and if you
say so we will not go to our own church to-morrow, we will go to Mount
Olivet.' She answered, '_Agreed,_ and I do pray the Lord that he may
take that text.' And she says, she continued to pray all that evening
and next morning, until sitting in the church at Mount Olivet, she heard
_you read out the said text, when she knew the Lord had answered her
prayer_, and she could scarcely help from loud crying of thanks to God."
I then told Brother and Sister Bowers my troubles about that text, as
above stated. The Lord answers prayer.
HOW SHE LEARNED TO LOVE THE BIBLE.
The Rev. Frederick G. Clark thus writes of an answer to prayer, from one
who wanted to love the Bible more:
"Twenty-seven years ago, in the congregation of my first charge, was a
lady whose love for the Bible was something remarkable. In the
confidence of a pastoral visit, she told me of her joy in the divine
word, and also recited the incidents of her experience in this regard.
She had formerly read her Bible as so many do--a chapter now, and a
halfchapter then, without much interest or profit. She was, even then,
most interested in religious things. But her chief sources of spiritual
strength were in such writings as those of Baxter, Payson and Robert
Phillips. It was her custom to read the Bible from duty, and then turn
to these uninspired volumes for the kindling of a higher devotion. For a
good while this satisfied her; but, at length, she came to feel grieved
about it. She thought it a dishonor to God's word that any book should
be as interesting to her as the Bible. She tried to change this, but, at
first, with little success. The Bible was still duty--Baxter was
pleasure and spiritual elevation.
"_At length, she could bear it no longer; so she took the case to God,
with strong crying. She told her Heavenly Father how grieved she was
that any book should rival the Bible in her affections. She asked this
one thing--and she renewed her prayer every day--that her first delight
might be in reading the word of God_. I think it was some time before
she felt that her request was granted. But, at length, the answer to her
prayer was complete and marvelous. A strange light came over the sacred
page. A fascination held her to her Bible. She discovered a depth, a
meaning, a curiosity, a charm, which were all new and most wonderful.
Sometimes, when she had finished reading her Bible for the night, and
had closed the book and had moved towards her bed, she would go back
again and enjoy the luxury of a few more verses.
THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT.
At the age of twenty years, a lady in Winchester, Iowa, began to lose
her health, and in a short time was confined to her bed. And she
writes:--"In addition to this I lost the use of my eyes, and was blind
and helpless, a greater portion of my time for five years.
"I enjoyed the blessing of prayer and trust some six months before
feeling a liberty to pray for the healing of my body; fearing I should
desire it without due submission to God's will. It was with _fear and
trembling_ that I first made known this request. Though my pleadings in
this direction were earnest, and often agonizing, yet I could say with a
fervor as never before, 'Not my will, but thine be done.'
"About the end of November, or early in December, 1873, I realized that
my faith was perfect, that I was ready _now_ to be healed, that my faith
was momentarily waiting on God, resting without a doubt on the promises.
From this time forward my faith remained fixed with but one exception.
During the time between December, 1873, and July, 1874, I was healed to
such an extent that I could walk some, and see more or less every day,
though sometimes with only one of my eyes. A portion of this time I felt
as though in a furnace of fire; but amid the flames I realized the
presence of the Son of God, who said, '_have chosen thee in the furnace
of affliction_.' This for a time seemed an answer to my petition, and so
thought it my life-work to suffer; for a while my faith became inactive,
and I almost ceased praying for my health. Though I felt submissive, yet
somehow I was soon crying, and that most instinctively, 'Thou Son of
David, have mercy on me.' After this, my faith did not waver. Oh, the
lesson of patience I learned in thus _waiting_ on _God's_ good time. And
with what comfort could I present my body an offering to Him, realizing
that as soon as at all possible with His will, I should be healed; I had
an assurance of this, but did not know whether it would be during life,
or accomplished only at death.
"In this manner I waited before God until the morning of the 29th of
July, when, without ecstasy of joy, or extra illumination, came a sense
of the presence of Jesus, and a presentation of this gift, accompanied
with these words: 'Here is the gift for which you have been praying; are
you willing to receive it?'
"I at first felt the incoming of the Divine power at the parts diseased,
steadily driving out the same, until death was swallowed up in victory.
I at once arose from my bed, and proceeded to work about the house, to
the great astonishment of my friends, some of whom thought me wild; but
I continued my work, assuring them that Jesus had healed me. Realizing
the scrutiny and doubt with which I was observed, I said to my father,
'What do you think?' He replied, 'It is supernatural power; no one can
deny it.'
"My healing took place on Wednesday; on Saturday was persuaded to lie
down, which I did, but found the bed was no place for me; thought of
Peter's wife's mother, who 'arose and ministered to them; knew that to
her, strength, as well as health, was instantly given, as in the case of
the palsied man, who rose, took up his bed, and departed. I returned to
my work, backing my experience with those in God's word, and since then
have not lain down during the day time.
"My friends could not realize the completeness of the cure, until I read
a full hour, and that by lamp-light, and until asked to desist, the
first opportunity after being healed.
"A week from this time, I discharged the hired girl, taking charge of
the household work, which I have continued with perfect ease. About four
weeks after my healing, had occasion to walk four miles, which I did
with little or no weariness. Let me add to the praise of God, that I
have no disease whatever. Am able to do more hard work with less
weariness, than at any other period in my life, and faith in the Lord is
the balm that made me whole."
THE WIDOW'S SHOES.
A poor woman--a widow with an invalid son--a member of the church, could
not attend church, or the neighborhood prayer-meetings, for the want of
shoes. She asked the Lord for the shoes. That very day the village
school-master called in to see her son. Meanwhile he noticed that the
boy's mother had very poor shoes. He said nothing, but felt impressed,
and inwardly resolved to purchase the poor woman a pair of shoes
forthwith. He accordingly hired a horse, rode two miles on horseback to
a shoe-store, bought the shoes, and requested them sent to the widow's
cottage without delay. They proved a perfect fit; and that very night
the overjoyed woman hurried to the prayer-meeting to announce that in
answer to prayer the Lord had sent her the shoes.
The young school-master, who, I suspect, was my informant himself, now a
venerable, white-haired man, heard the poor woman's testimony; and his
pillow that night was wet with tears of gratitude and joy because God
had used him thus to bless the poor widow, and to answer her prayers.
A REMARKABLE DREAM.
The late Dr. Whitehead was accustomed to repeat with pleasure' the
following fact: In the year 1764, he was stationed as an itinerant
preacher in Cornwall. He had to preach one evening in a little village
where there was a small Methodist Society. "The friend," said he, "at
whose house we preached, had at that time a daughter, who lived with one
of our people about ten miles off. His wife was gone to attend her
daughter, who was dangerously ill of a fever; and her husband had that
day received a message from her, informing him that his child's life was
despaired of. He earnestly and with tears desired Mr. Whitehead to
recommend his daughter to God in prayer, both before and after
preaching. He did so in the most warm and affectionate manner. Late that
evening, or very early next morning, while the young woman's mother was
sitting by her daughter's bedside (who had been in a strong delirium for
several days), she opened her eyes and hastily addressed her mother
thus: 'O mother! I have been dreaming that I saw a man lifting up his
eyes and hands to heaven, and fervently praying to God for my recovery!
The Lord has heard his prayers, and my fever is gone; and what is far
better, the Lord has spoken peace to my soul, and sealed His pardoning
love on my heart. I know it, I feel it, my dear mother; and His Spirit
bears witness with my spirit, that I am a child of God, and an heir of
glory.' Her mother, thinking that she was still in delirium, desired her
to compose herself, and remain quiet. The daughter replied, 'My dear
mother, I am in no delirium now; I am perfectly in my senses; do help me
to rise, that upon my bended knees I may praise God.' Her mother did so,
and they both praised God with joyful hearts, and from that hour the
young woman recovered so fast, that she was soon able to attend to the
affairs of the family where she lived. She had never seen Mr. Whitehead,
previous to this remarkable time; but some weeks after, she saw him, and
the moment she beheld his face, she fainted away. As soon as she came to
herself, she said, 'Sir, you are the person I saw in my dream, when I
was ill in a violent fever; and I beheld you lift up your hands and eyes
to heaven, and most fervently pray for my recovery and conversion to
God. The Lord, in mercy, heard your prayers, and answered them to the
healing of my wounded spirit, and to the restoration of my body. I have
walked in the light of His countenance from that time to the present,
and I trust I shall do so as long as I live.' How remarkably does this
circumstance illustrate the words of St. James, 'The prayer of faith
shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up, and if he have
committed sins, they shall be forgiven him!'"
"YOU MUST NOT GO."
A remarkable instance of deep impression occasionally made by the Holy
Spirit on the mind of the Rev. William Bramwell during prayer, occurred
in Liverpool. A pious young woman, a member of Society, wished to go to
her friends, then living in Jamaica. She took her passage, had her
luggage taken on board, and expected to sail on the following day.
Having the greatest respect for Mr. Bramwell, she waited upon him, to
take leave and request an interest in his prayers. Before parting, they
knelt down, and he recommended her to the care of God. After he had been
engaged in prayer some time, he suddenly paused, and thus addressed her,
"My dear sister, you must not go to-morrow. God has just told me you
must not go." She was surprised, but he was positive, and prevailed upon
her to postpone her voyage, and assisted her to remove her luggage out
of the vessel. The ship sailed, and in about six weeks intelligence
arrived that the vessel was lost, and all on board had perished.
EVIL AVERTED.
A correspondent of the _Guide to Holiness_ says: "We remember a poor
woman who had had a life of sore vicissitude which she bore with
remarkable Christian cheerfulness; and after a time of the suspension of
trial, a bad prospect came in sight. She resorted to a friend to whom
she confidingly related the threatening evil, and at parting said, 'Oh
pray for us.' The case as it was known was taken immediately that early
morning to the throne of grace and laid out in all its circumstances
with a deeply sympathizing heart, and a consciousness of the past
sufferings of that woman--and as the friend rose from prayer, the answer
was given that the evil was averted, and a new change would come to that
afflicted one.
"That very day a strange deliverance and opening appeared which set that
family at rest from their peculiar trials for the rest of life."
HOW A POOR LITTLE CRIPPLE CONVERTED A VILLAGE.
Mr. D.L. Moody relates the instance of a poor little cripple, whose
prayers were answered to the conversion of _fifty-six people._
"I once knew a little cripple who lay upon her death bed. She had given
herself to God, and was distressed only because she could not labor for
Him actively among the lost. Her clergyman visited her, and hearing her
complaint, told her from her sick bed she could pray; to pray for those
she wished to see turning to God. He told her to write the names down,
and then to pray earnestly; he went away and thought of the subject no
more.
"Soon a feeling of religious interest sprang up in the village, and the
churches were crowded nightly. The little cripple heard of the progress
of the revival, and inquired anxiously for the names of the saved. A few
weeks later she died, and among a roll of papers that was found under
her little pillow, was one bearing the names of fifty-six persons, every
one of whom had in the revival been converted. By each name was a little
cross by which the poor crippled saint had checked off the names of the
converts as they had been reported to her."
PLEASE GOD, GIVE US A HOME.
Mr. Moody tells of a beautiful answer to the faith of a little child.
"I remember a child that lived with her parents in a small village. One
day the news came that her father had joined the army (it was the
beginning of our war), and a few days after, the landlord came to demand
the rent. The mother told him she hadn't got it, and that her husband
had gone into the army. He was a hard-hearted wretch, and he stormed,
and said that they must leave the house; he wasn't going to have people
who couldn't pay the rent.
"After he was gone, the mother threw herself into the armchair, and
began to weep bitterly. Her little girl, whom she taught to pray in
faith, (but it is more difficult to practice than to preach,) came up to
her, and said, '_What makes you cry, mamma, I will pray to God to give
us a little home, and won't He_?' What could the mother say? So the
little child went into the next room and began to pray. The door was
open, and the mother could hear every word.
_"'O, God, you have come and taken away father, and mamma has got no
money, and the landlord will turn us out because we can't pay, and we
will have to sit on the door-step, and mamma will catch cold. Give us a
little home_.' Then she waited as if for an answer, and then added,
'_Won't you, please, God_?'
"She came out of that room quite happy, expecting a home to be given
them. The mother felt reproved. God heard the prayer of that little one,
for he touched the heart of the cruel landlord, and she has never paid
any rent since."
God give us the faith of that little child, that we may likewise expect
an answer, "_nothing wavering_."
"OF COURSE HE WILL."
Mr. Moody also gives the story of a little child whose father and mother
had died, and she was taken into another family. The first night she
asked if she could pray, as she used to do.
They said, Oh, yes! So she knelt down, and prayed as her mother taught
her, and when that was ended she added a little prayer of her own: "_Oh,
God, make these people as kind to me as father and mother were_." Then
she paused, and looked up, as if expecting an answer, and added, "_Of
course he will_."
How sweetly simple was that little one's faith; she expected God to
"do," and she got her request.
STRIKING ANSWER.
The following incidents are specially contributed to these pages by Rev.
J.S. Bass, a Home Missionary of Brooklyn, N.Y.:
"While living in Canada, my eldest daughter, then a girl of ten years of
age, rather delicate and of feeble health, had a severe attack of
chorea, "St. Vitus's dance." To those who have had any experience in
this distressing complaint, nothing need be said of the deep affliction
of the household at the sight of our loved one, as all her muscles
appeared to be affected, the face distorted with protrusion of the
tongue, and the continuous involuntary motions by jerks of her limbs.
The ablest medical advice and assistance were employed, and all that the
sympathy of friends and the skill of physicians could do were of no
avail. She grew worse rather than better, and death was looked to as a
happy release to the sufferings of the child, and the anguish of the
parents; as the medical men had given as their opinion that the mind of
the child would become diseased, and if her life were lengthened, it
would be an enfeebled body united to an idiotic mind.
"But God was better to us than our most sanguine hopes far better to us
than our fears.
"In our trouble we thought on God, and asked his help. We knew we had
the prayers of some of God's chosen ones. On a certain Sunday morning I
left my home to fill an appointment in the Wesleyan chapel in the
village of Cooksville, two miles distant. I left with a heavy heart. My
child was distressing to look upon, my wife and her sister were worn out
with watching and fatigue. It was only from a sense of duty that I left
my home that morning. During the sermon God refreshed and encouraged my
heart still to trust in him. After the service, many of the congregation
tarried to inquire of my daughter's condition, among them an aged saint,
Sister Wilson, widow of a Wesleyan preacher, and Sister Galbraith, wife
of the class-leader. Mother Wilson encouraged me to 'hope in God,'
saying 'the sisters of the church have decided to spend to-morrow
morning together in supplication and prayer for you and your family, and
that God would cure Ruth.'
"Monday morning came. Ruth had passed a restless night. Weak and
emaciated, her head was held that a tea-spoonful of water should be
given her. My duties called me away (immediately after breakfast) to a
neighbor's; about noon, a messenger came, in great haste, to call me
home. On entering the sick-chamber, I noticed the trundle-bed empty, and
my little girl, with smiling face, sitting in a chair at the window,
(say eight feet from the bed.) I learned from the child that, while on
the bed, the thought came to her that, if she could only get her feet on
the floor, the Lord would help her to sit up. By an effort, she
succeeded, moving herself to the edge of the bed, put her legs over the
side until her feet touched the floor, and sat up. She then thought, if
she tried, the Lord would help her to stand up, and then to walk; all of
which she accomplished, without any human aid, she being left in the
room alone. The same afternoon she was in the yard playing with her
brothers, quickly gained flesh, recovered strength, with intellect clear
and bright; she lived to the age of twenty-two, never again afflicted
with this disease, or anything like it. At the age of twenty-two, ripe
for heaven, it pleased God to take her to himself.
"The sisters, led by Mother Wilson, waited on God in prayer, and God
fulfilled that day the promise--Isaiah 65:24: 'And it shall come to
pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet
speaking, I will hear.'"
A REMARKABLE CASE.
On the afternoon of Monday, August 20, 1869, I was sent for to visit
Mrs. M., who was reported to be very sick. Arriving at the house, I was
told that "Mrs. M., after a hard day's work, had retired to rest
Saturday night in her usual state of health, that immediately after
getting in bed she had fallen asleep and had not awoke up to this time,
(6 o'clock Monday evening,) that three physicians had been in attendance
for 30 hours, that all their efforts to arouse her were without avail."
In the chamber, Mrs. M. lay in the bed apparently in a troubled sleep,
she was a woman of medium size, about 50 years of age, the mother of a
large family; around her bed stood her husband, four sons and a
daughter, and relatives, about twelve persons in all. The husband and
sons were irreligious, but awed in the presence of this affliction.
I felt, as perhaps I never felt before, my ignorance, my helplessness,
and the necessity of entire dependence on God for guidance and
inspiration, that prayer should be made in accordance with his will.
I knelt at the bedside and held the woman's hand in mine, lifted up my
heart to God and prayed, "If it be thy will and for thy glory, and for
the good of this family, grant that this woman may once more open her
eyes to look upon her children, once more open her lips in counsel and
holy admonition." While thus praying, as I believe, inspired by the
Spirit of God, and with faith in Jesus Christ, I was conscious of a
movement around me, and opening my eyes, I saw Mrs. M. sitting up in
bed. Some of the persons in the room were weeping, others laughing; the
sons came nearer the bed, and asked, "Mother, do you know me? do you
know me?" She called each by name, and beckoned to her daughter, held
her by the hand. I, poor faithless one, was wondering what does this
mean? One of the sons took me by the hand saying, "Oh! Mr. Bass, God
heard and answered that prayer." I sung the hymn, "There is a fountain
filled with blood," Mrs. M. singing to the close, and then, apparently
exhausted, sank back on the pillow, speechless and unconscious. The
physicians were sent for, came, wondered, speculated, administered
medicine, blistered the calves of the legs, and cupped the back of the
neck, but to no purpose. She remained in speechless unconsciousness till
the next afternoon, when, while prayer was being made, she again opened
her eyes, sat up and conversed with her children and friends. In a few
days she resumed her household duties, enjoying a good degree of health
and strength, and faithfully serving God and her generation until it
pleased God to call her home to the rest prepared for the people of God,
three years after the incident, the subject of this paper.
A LITTLE GIRL'S BEAUTIFUL FAITH.
A little German girl, who had never hitherto known the name of the Lord
Jesus, was led to attend a Mission school. It was the custom at the
school, before the little ones received their dinner, to lift their
hands and thank God for their food.
When in course of time she spent her days at home, and her father's
family were gathered around their own table, this little girl said:
"_Pa, we must hold up our hand's and thank God before we eat._ That's
the way we do at the Mission."
So winning was the little one in her ways, the parents yielded at once.
At another time her father was sick and unable to work, and the little
girl said, "_Pa, I'm going to pray that you may get well and go to work
to-morrow morning_."
At four o'clock in the morning she awoke and called out, "_Pa, don't you
feel better_." The father said, "Yes, I am better," and he went to his
work in the morning, although weak and obliged to rest by the way.
There came a time once when he could not get work, and there was no food
in the house for dinner.
This little girl knelt down and asked God to send them their dinner, and
when she rose from her knees, she said, "Now we must wait till the
whistle blows, till 12 o'clock."
At twelve o'clock the whistle blew, and the little girl said, "Get the
table ready, it is coming," and just then in came a neighbor with soup
for their dinner.
THE LORD HELPS TO PAY DEBTS.
The author of this incident is known to the editor of "Remarkable
Providences," and speaking of it says: "_God never gave me exactly what
I wanted. He always gave me more."_
"When I married I was a working man; I had not much money to spare. In
about three months after my marriage, I fell ill, and my illness
continued for more than nine months. At that period I was in great
distress. I owed a sum of money and had no means to pay it. It must be
paid on a certain day, or I must go to jail. I had no food for myself or
wife; and in this distress I went up to my room, and took my Bible. I
got down on my knees and opened it, laid my fingers on several of the
promises, and claimed them as mine. I said, 'Lord, this is thine own
word of promise; I claim thy promises.' I endeavored to lay hold of them
by faith. I wrestled with God for sometime in this way. I got up off my
knees, and walked about some time. I then went to bed, and took my
Bible, and opened it on these words: '_Call upon me in the day of
trouble, and I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me_.'
"I said, 'it is enough, Lord.' I knew deliverance would come, and I
praised God with my whole heart. Whilst in this frame of mind I heard a
knock at the door. I went and opened it and a man handed me a letter. I
turned to look at the letter, and when I looked up again, the man was
gone.
"The letter contained the sum I wanted, and five shillings over. It is
now eighteen years ago. I never knew who sent it. God only knows. Thus
God delivered me out of all my distress. To Him be all the praise."
PRAYING FOR A LOST POCKET-BOOK.
A contributor to _The Christian_ writes as follows:
"A few months since I lost my pocket-book, containing money and papers
of a large amount--more than I felt able to lose--and which I should
feel the loss of, as I was owing at that time about the same amount.
"On the day of my loss, I had been from home about a mile and a half,
and it was about 9 o'clock _in the evening_, when I returned. And it was
not till then that I ascertained my loss.
"My health was very poor, and the prospect of regaining the lost
pocket-book was quite uncertain; it was so dark that I thought it would
be impossible for me to find it. Consequently I determined to remain
awake during the night, and at 3 o'clock in the morning search for it,
and if possible, find it before any one should pass over the road.
"The seeming impossibility of finding it, and the reflections consequent
upon the loss of the money were so unpleasant to me that I was led to
make it a subject of prayer, fully trusting that in some way God would
so direct that I should come in possession of it. If so, I determined to
give him $25 of it.
"As soon as I had formed this purpose, all that unpleasant feeling left
me, and I did not admit a single doubt but I should get it.
"Accordingly, _at 3 o'clock in the morning_ I made a thorough search,
but could not find it. Yet my faith in God's guiding hand did not fail
me, and I believed that my trust would be realized.
"While I was thus thinking of the certainty of the fulfillment of the
promises of the Gospel to the believer, I was called on by a gentleman,
a leading business man of the place, who came to know if _I had lost
anything_.
"I told him I had lost my pocket-book. He wanted to know how much it
contained. I told him. He said his son had occasion to pass early on
that morning, and had found it in the road, and that in all probability
I should otherwise have lost it, as two men passed by immediately after
it was found.
"Thus God found it and returned it to me."
* * * * *
LIVES OF FAITH AND TRUST
AN EXTRAORDINARY LIFE OF FAITH AND TRUST.
For many centimes there has not been a more remarkable testimony of
unfaltering trust in the faithfulness of God in supplying human wants,
than is found in the life and labor of George Muller and his Orphan
Home, in Bristol, England. His record is one of humility, yet one of
daily dependence upon the providence and the knowledge of God to supply
his daily wants. It has been one of extraordinary trial; yet never, for
a single hour, has God forsaken him. Beginning, in 1834, with absolutely
nothing; giving himself, his earthly all and his family to the Lord, and
asking the Lord's pleasure and blessing upon his work of philanthropy,
he has never, for once, appealed to any individual for aid, for
assistance, for loans; but has relied wholly in prayer to the
Lord--coming with each day's cares and necessities--and the Lord has
ever supplied. He has never borrowed, never been in debt; living only
upon what the Lord has sent--yet in the forty-third year of his life of
faith and trust--he has been able, through the voluntary contributions
which the Lord has prompted the hearts of the people to give, to
accomplish these wonderful results: _Over half a million dollars_ have
been spent in the construction of buildings--_over fifteen thousand
orphans have been cared for and supported--and over one million dollars_
have been received for their support. _Every dollar of which has been
asked for in believing prayer from the Lord_. The record is the most
astounding in the faith of the Christian religion, and the power and
providence of God to answer prayer, that modern times can show.
The orphans' homes have been visited again and again by Christian
clergymen of all denominations, to feel the positive satisfaction and
certainty that all this were indeed the work of prayer, and they have
been abundantly convinced.
The spectacle is indeed a _standing miracle. "A man sheltering, feeding,
clothing, educating, and mailing comfortable and happy, hundreds of poor
orphan children, with no funds of his own, and no possible means of
sustenance, save that which God sent him in answer to prayer_."
An eminent clergyman who for five years had been constantly hearing of
this work of faith, and could hardly believe in its possibility, at last
visited Mr. Muller's home for the purpose of thorough investigation,
exposing it, if it were under false pretenses or mistaken ways of
securing public sympathy, or else with utmost critical search, desired
to become convinced it was indeed supported only by true prayer. He had
reserved for himself, as he says, a wide margin for deductions and
disappointment, but after his search, as "_I left Bristol, I exclaimed
with the queen of Sheba, 'The half had not been told me.' Here I saw,
indeed, seven hundred orphan children fed and provided for, by the hand
of God, in answer to prayer, as literally and truly as Elijah was fed by
ravens with meat which the Lord provided_."
Mr. Muller himself has said in regard to their manner of living:
"_Greater and more manifest nearness of the Lord's presence I have never
had, than when after breakfast, there were no means for dinner, and then
the Lord provided the dinner for more than one hundred persons; and when
after dinner, there were no means for the tea; and yet the Lord provided
the tea; and all this without one single human being having been
informed about our need_."
Thus it will be seen his life is one of daily trial and trust, and he
says, "Our desire therefore, is, not that we may be without trials of
faith, but that the Lord graciously would be pleased to support us in
the trial, that we may not dishonor him by distrust."
The question having been asked of him, "Such a way of living must lead
the mind continually to think whence food, clothes, etc., are to come,
with no benefit for spiritual exercise," he replies: "Our minds are very
little tried about the necessaries of life; just because the care
respecting them is laid upon our Father, who, because we are his
children, not _only allows_ us to do so, _but will have us to do so_.
"It must also be remembered that even if our minds _were_ much tried
about our supplies, yet because we look to the _Lord alone_ for all
these things, we should be brought by our sense of need, into the
presence of our Father for the supply of it, _and that is a blessing_,
and satisfying to the soul."
This humble statement from the experience of one who has tried and
proven the Lord in little things, as well as large, conveys to the
Christian that world of practical instruction which is contained in the
precepts of the Bible, viz: to _encourage all to cast their cares on
God_; and teaches them the lessons of their dependence upon Him for
their daily supplies.
The meaning of the Lord's blessing upon the work of Mr. Muller, is to
make it a standing example and illustration to be adopted in every
Christian home. "_How God supplies our needs, how he rewards faith, how
he cares for those who trust in Him. How he can as well take care of his
children to-day as he did in the days of the Prophets, and how surely he
fulfills his promise, even when the trial brings us to the extremities
of circumstances seemingly impossible_."
Mr. Muller's experience is remarkable, not because the Lord has made his
an exceptional case for the bestowal of blessings, but because of the
_remarkable, unwavering and persevering application of his faith_, by
the man himself.
His faith began with small degrees, and small hopes. It was painfully
tried. But it clung hopefully, and never failed to gain a triumph. Each
trial only increased its tenacity, and brought him greater humility, for
it opened his own heart to a sense of his own powerlessness, and this
faith has grown with work and trial, till its strength is beyond all
precedent.
The lessons which the Lord wishes each one to take from it, is this:
"_Be your faith little or weak, never give it up; apply my promises to
all your needs, and expect their fulfillment. Little things are as
sacred as great things_."
In the journal kept by Mr. Muller during his many years of experience,
he has preserved many incidents of answer to prayer in small matters, of
which we quote the following from his book. "_The Power of Faith and
Prayer_."
1. "One of the orphan boys needed to be apprenticed. I knew of no
suitable believing master who would take an indoor apprentice. I gave
myself to prayer, and brought the matter daily before the Lord. At last,
though I had to pray about the matter from May 21 to September, the Lord
granted my request, and I found a suitable place for him.
2. I asked the Lord that he would be pleased to deliver a certain sister
in the Lord from the great spiritual depression under which she was
suffering, and after three days the Lord granted my request.
3. I asked the Lord daily in his mercy to keep a sister in the Lord from
insanity, who was then apparently on the border of it. I have now to
record his praise, after nearly four years have passed away, that the
Lord has kept her from it.
4. During this year has occurred the conversion of one of the greatest
sinners that I had ever heard of in all my service for the Lord.
Repeatedly I fell on my knees with his wife, and asked the Lord for his
conversion, when she came to me in the deepest distress of soul, on
account of the most barbarous and cruel treatment that she had received
from him in his bitter enmity against her for the Lord's sake. And now
the awful persecutor is converted.
5. It pleased the Lord to try my faith in a way in which before, it had
not been tried. My beloved daughter was taken ill on June 20. This
illness, at first a low fever, turned to typhus, _and July 3 there
seemed no hope of her recovery_.
Now was the trial of faith, but faith triumphed. My wife and I were
enabled to give her up into the hands of the Lord. He sustained us both
exceedingly.
She continued very ill till about July 20, when restoration began. On
August 18, she was so far restored that she could be removed to Clevedon
for change of air. It was then 59 days since she was taken ill.
6. The heating apparatus of our Orphan Home unexpectedly gave out. It
was the commencement of Winter. To repair the leak was a questionable
matter. To put in a new boiler would in all probability take many weeks.
Workmen were sent for to make repairs. But on the day fixed for repairs
a _bleak north wind set in_."
Now came cold weather, the fire must be put out, the repairs could not
be put off. Gladly would I have paid one hundred pounds if thereby the
difficulty could have been overcome, and the children not be exposed to
suffer for many days from living in cold rooms.
At last I determined on falling entirely into the hands of God, who is
very merciful and of tender compassion. I now asked the Lord for two
things, viz.: "That He would be pleased to change the _north wind into a
south wind_, and that he would give the workmen a mind to work.
Well, the memorable day came. The evening before, the bleak north wind
blew still; but on the Wednesday the south wind blew _exactly as I had
prayed_. The weather was so mild that no fire was needed.
About half-past eight in the evening, the principal of the firm whence
the boiler-makers came, arrived to see how the work was going on, and
whether he could in any way speed the matter.
The principal went with me to see his men; to the foreman of whom he
said: "The men will work late this evening, and come very early again
to-morrow."
"_We would rather_," said the leader, "_work all night_."
Then remembered I the second part of my prayer, that God would give the
men a mind to work. By morning the repair was accomplished, the leak was
stopped, and in thirty hours the fire was again in the boiler; _and all
the time the south wind blew so mildly that there was not the least need
of a fire_.
7. In the year 1865, the scarlet fever broke out in several of the
Orphan Homes. In one of which were four hundred girls, and in the other
four hundred and fifty. It appeared among the infants. The cases
increased more and more. But we betook ourselves to God in prayer. Day
by day we called upon Him regarding this trial, and generally two or
three times a day. At last, when the infirmary rooms were filled, and
some other rooms that could be spared for the occasion, to keep the sick
children from the rest, and when we had no other rooms to spare, at
least not without inconvenience, it pleased the Lord to answer our
prayers, and in mercy stay the disease. The disease was very general in
the town of Bristol, and many children died in consequence. _But not one
in the Orphan Home died. All recovered_.
At another date, the whooping-cough also broke out among the four
hundred and fifty girls of our Home, and though many were dying in the
towns of the same disease, yet all in the Orphan Home recovered except
one little girl who had very weak lungs, a constitutional tendency to
consumption.
8. In the early part of one Summer, it was found that we had several
boys ready to be apprenticed, but there were no applications made by
masters for apprentices. This was no small difficulty, as the master
must be also willing to receive the apprentice into his own family. We
again gave ourselves to _prayer_, instead of _advertising_. Some weeks
passed, but the difficulty remained. We continued in prayer, and then
one application was made for an apprentice, and from the time we first
began, we have been able to find places for eighteen boys."
THE CONSUMPTIVE'S HOME.
In the United States there is a Parallel Record to George Mailer's Life
of Faith and Trust, found in the history of the Consumptive's Home of
Boston, Mass. It was established twelve years since by Doctor Cullis,
who in the ardor of his faith and trust gave himself to the work of the
Lord, by ministering in _Jesus' Name_, to the poor consumptives who were
unable to provide for themselves. Doctor Cullis is a man of humility,
and devoted to his life work, and has been most abundantly blessed by
the Lord in his field. To the honor and glory of our Heavenly Father, he
has never been forsaken by Him.
The Institution began twelve years ago, in small quarters. Now it
embraces a very large gathering of useful enterprises: _A Consumptive's
Home, Children's Home, Grove Hall Church, Tract Repository, a Training
College_, and a _Cancer Home_. The means provided have all been sent by
the Lord, who has prompted the hearts of good people to send to it their
voluntary contributions.
There is no financial fund, endowment, or pecuniary provision whatever
existing for the support of the Home. No individuals have made any
agreement for its support; there is no trade or occupation used or
connected with it, whereby to obtain any remuneration. There has never
been any appeal to man for assistance, no subscriptions ever taken, no
contributions solicited, either publicly or privately; there are no
agencies or connections to receive funds from any religious society for
procuring charitable relief.
The supplies for the carrying on of this work, during these twelve
years, have been wholly _in answer to believing prayer, to the Lord_.
They have fulfilled faithfully the Lord's commands, "_Cast all your
cares on Him, for he careth for you_." They have also pleaded in faith,
without a doubt, "_Anything ye shall ask the Father in my name, I will
do it_." And they have asked and received, and the Provider has never
yet failed them.
During the twelve years' time there has been sent to the Consumptive's
Home, without any solicitation whatever, but in answer to believing
prayer and faith and trust in God's providence, a sum no less than
_three hundred and sixty thousand dollars, and over fifteen hundred
patients have been gratuitously cared for_. No one has been urged,
asked, or even hinted to contribute to it. Each morning, noon and night
prayer has been offered to send means to provide for their daily wants,
and the Great Shepherd has sent the supplies.
During these twelve years, the experiences of Doctor Cullis, the
founder, have been most remarkable in the frequent answers to prayer in
minute details of life, and especially in healing. There are so many
such cases, that there is no possible room to doubt. There have often
been moments, yes, days of distress and intense trial, when, with not a
single penny on hand, it seemed as if failure had come; but faith could
not let the promise go, neither was it possible for them to believe that
He who could do so much, would forsake so good a work, which was
undertaken only in obedience to the guidance and direction of the Lord;
and God has always brought deliverance, and honored them and brought
glory to his own name.
In the daily history of these struggles and trials and triumphs of
faith, are found many surprising incidents, a few of which we relate.
A BAD DEBT PAID.
"To-day a bill was paid of $31, which I had given up as good for
nothing. A long time ago I gave it to the Lord in prayer, and promised
Him if it was ever canceled that it should be His."
HELP IN NEED.
"The sums received for several days had been small. One day as the
Doctor was in prayer for his needs, he received a note from a lady
asking him to call at her house, naming the day and the hour. At the
time appointed he called, and found the lady sick in consumption, near
to death. She said she had some money which she wished to dispose of
before her death. She placed in his hand a _five hundred dollar note_.
It was her last gift. She had received it from the hand of the Lord, and
she returned it to Him again."
PRAYING FOR STOVES.
"This afternoon, knowing the necessity of stoves for some of the upper
rooms, as the weather is quite cool, I went to the Lord, in prayer, and
told him of our need, praying Him in one way to supply us.
"I then went down town to a friend, to look at stoves and inquire the
price, when he said, 'that's all right, I shall not charge anything,'
and said he would see that they were put up. This man knew nothing of
our great need; he had never visited the Home, knew but little about it,
and not a word did he know of the state of my purse. "The Lord inclined
the man's heart to give the stoves."
PRAYING FOR A FURNACE.
"I am earnestly praying for the means to purchase a furnace, for we
cannot receive patients into the new Home until it can be warmed. I am
looking to the Lord, and He will help."
_Seven days later_. "A gentleman has this day ordered a furnace to be
put in, with fourteen tons of coal at his expense. I will here say that
his attention was not called to our need, but he asked how the house was
to be warmed; he then learned of our want, and ordered as above. Truly,
'Whosoever believeth in Him shall not be confounded.'"
THE LORD'S RETURN FOR GIVING UNTO THE POOR.
"This afternoon a poor woman, whose history I have known for some time,
and who has a sick husband over eighty years of age, called on me,
stating that she had only a ten-cent loaf of bread for herself and her
husband to eat since Wednesday, and to-day is Saturday.
"Notwithstanding my own need, I felt that I could not withhold from one
in greater straits than myself, so in Christ's name, I gave her enough
to procure necessary food for a few days. The Lord did not forget it,
but this evening has returned the amount with bountiful interest. For
the turn I gave Him, He has sent me $40. _'There is that scattereth yet
increaseth_.'"
A WATCH GIVEN TO THE LORD--HOW THE LORD RETURNS A BETTER ONE.
"Last year, during a season of great need, I sold my watch; yesterday,
the Lord returned it by a gift of a much better one from a friend, who
had purchased it abroad, knowing nothing of my need, thus proving, 'He
that soweth bountifully, shall reap also bountifully.'"
THE LORD GAVE DOUBLE WHAT WAS ASKED FOR.
"This morning and noon I called upon the Lord in prayer for the means to
pay a bill of $100. By three P.M., a check was sent me of $200."
BLESSINGS AMID CALAMITIES.
"The roof of one of our houses having caught fire from a spark from a
neighbor's chimney, it was mostly destroyed; some of the furniture, and
the whole home badly damaged by water. All hearts thanked the Lord the
circumstances were no worse. In the midst of our calamity, blessings
surrounded us. An unknown donor sends in 20 tons of coal. For weeks I
have been praying for the means to purchase our Winter fuel, and now the
Lord has inclined the heart of an unknown friend to supply our need."
A REMARKABLE PROMISE.
At one period in the history of the Consumptive's Home, a sum of three
thousand dollars placed in the safe, and reserved to be used for payment
on the purchase of a new building was stolen, and there was not left a
single dollar; every penny was gone.
Nothing daunted, again going to the Lord, and pleading the Lord's own
promise, "_If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask
what ye will and it shall be done unto you_." The request was made in
prayer for the three thousand dollars, and the promise of the amount was
definitely made to be paid out a certain day.
The day came. Before it had arrived, the Lord had sent the three
thousand dollars with unusual contributions, and both the promises of
the Lord and that of his children were kept.
The ordinary business man would have said it was foolishness for a poor
man, with not a penny in the world, all his means stolen from him, to
positively promise on a certain day the next month, to pay so large a
sum, exactly the same as was stolen.
The skeptic would have said, "All foolish to plead before an unseen God,
and ask for such a sum. You will never get it. Why didn't your God
prevent your money from being stolen. If your Bible is true, he ought to
have protected you from loss."
The answer to all these is thus: The Doctor did trust in the promise of
an unseen God, whom he had tested in the past many hundred times, and
who had always been faithful in keeping his promises, and his faith knew
that his God would not suffer his own work to fail nor suffer reproach.
Still further to silence the skeptic, let it be said that after the
robbery became known, the sympathy for the institution became so much
greater, that the contributions voluntarily sent in consequence thereof
replaced the three thousand dollars within thirty days, and produced far
more in excess, to go towards other needs. Thus an adversity became a
blessing. The Lord uses sorrow to produce good.
A WOMAN DELIVERED FROM THE HABIT OF DRINKING.
"I visited a family for whom I have felt a deep interest for weeks past.
The father had been out of employment some time, and they have lacked
food and clothing. Much of their trouble has been caused by the
intemperance of the mother. Her husband has borne long and patiently
with her, and although she would for a long time leave off drinking, it
was only to fall again still lower. While furnishing them with clothing,
and assisting them in other ways, I besought the mother to give her
heart to Jesus, knowing that he could keep her from falling. She became,
a constant attendant at our meetings. Says "_Jesus has taken her love
for drink all away_." One of her little ones, who is just beginning to
talk, said the other day, "Mamma, you don't drink now." They are a happy
family, and their home is greatly changed.
PRAYER FOR PURCHASERS.
When removal to the new Home was determined upon, there still remained
five of the old buildings on hand to be disposed of. This too was taken
to the Lord in prayer that he might send purchasers.
One building was sold in October, and the remaining four in November.
When it is considered that a portion was property usually very difficult
of sale, and that no advertisement of it had been made, no other means
than prayer resorted to, it must be convincing to all that there must be
"one who knoweth all things," who hears and helps in financial as well
as in spiritual necessities.
ASKING FOR LARGE GIFTS.
Upon the 26th of September the record of the Home was as follows: "There
is due on the first of next month, $2,450 interest on our property, and
we are now within four days of the time, with not a dollar towards it.
For several days I have been asking that amount of the Lord."
Now here was a man depending wholly upon _chance gifts_ for the
livelihood of several hundred people, with a debt of over two thousand
dollars to pay in four days. His occupation and work were such that no
one could even possibly think of making any loans, as there was no
security. Neither was it the principle or the practice of the Home ever
to solicit a dollar. What was to be done? _It was taken to the Lord in
prayer_, and all waited the result.
Was it at all probable that so large a sum of money could be sent in so
short a time by any one or any number of persons?
That evening a letter from the probate office at Exeter, N. H., was
received by Dr. Cullis, informing them of the death of a citizen of
Portsmouth, with a bequest to the Home of _five thousand dollars_. The
Lord answered their prayer the same day and sent _double what was asked
for_.
A SEVERE TUMOR HEALED.
During the year 1872, there was under the professional care of Dr.
Cullis, at the Consumptive's Home, a Christian lady with a tumor which
confined her almost continuously to her bed in severe suffering. All
remedies were unavailing, and the only human hope was the knife; but
feeling in my own heart the power of the promise, I one morning sat down
by her bedside, and taking up the Bible, I read aloud, God's promise to
his believing children. "_And the prayer of faith shall save the sick,
and the Lord shall raise him up: and if he have committed sins, they
shall be forgiven him_."
I then asked her if she would trust the Lord to remove this tumor and
restore her to health and to her missionary work. She replied, "I am
willing to trust the Lord for it."
I then knelt and anointed her with oil in the name of the Lord, asking
Him to fulfill his own word. Soon after I left she got up and walked
three miles. From that time the tumor rapidly lessened until all trace
of it at length disappeared.
FAITH CURED HER.
This incident was related by the lady herself in a public meeting in
Boston, where it was heard by the sorrowing wife of an afflicted
husband, whose statement is as follows:
"I was first confined to my house with a violent cold. I lost my voice
completely, suffered with pain in my lungs and expectorated almost
constantly. I grew worse every day, and in a week called in a physician.
On examination he found my lungs diseased. I also had fever. With all
his care my cough grew worse, and night sweats set in; a few weeks later
my wife was told by the Doctor that my lungs were badly ulcerated, and
that my case being hopeless, it was not worth while for him to attend
longer; also that she must NOT be surprised if I should pass away
suddenly. I then tried some highly recommended medicine, which seemed
only to increase my disease.
"When I became so weak as to be nearly helpless, Dr. Cullis was called
in. He sounded my lungs and gave the same verdict, saying my only hope
for recovery was in the Lord. Diarrhea also set in, and my feet began to
swell."
This statement will show his perfect helplessness.
After the return of his wife from the above meeting, he read over and
over the precious promises of God, and became more and more convinced of
the power of faith. Believing that "_He is faithful that promised_" he
sent for Dr. Cullis to come and pray with him.
"Dr. C. prayed, anointed me with oil, and in the name of the Lord Jesus,
commanded me to be healed. Instantly my whole being was thrilled with an
unknown power, from the top of my head to the soles of my feet. From the
moment I believed, the _work was done_. My lungs, so long diseased,
breathed with new vigor, and I returned thanks to God for the results of
faith. Since that memorable night I have taken no medicine, and my
health has been constantly improving, so _that I am feeling better now
than I did before my sickness_."
Two years after he was seen by Dr. Cullis, and continued in perfect
health, and engaged in active business.
CURED OF CANCER.
A lady came to the Consumptive's Home with a cancer in the cheek, which
had attained the size of a filbert. It had a very red and angry
appearance. After prayer for her healing she went into the country, when
some one remarked, 'E. thinks that faith will cure her, but _that_ is
something that will have to be burned out or cut out.' Her friends tried
to induce the use of various applications, all of which she firmly
refused. She returned home in eight weeks, entirely cured. Her friends
acknowledged, '_Faith did do good after all_.'
CURED OF NEURALGIA.
A lady of East Cambridge writes, "For nineteen years I have been
afflicted with neuralgia; added to this, of late years a combination of
diseases has rendered life an intolerable burden, and baffled the skill
of every physician to whom I have applied. By the prayer of faith I have
been healed, both body and soul, and made to rejoice continually. I can
now say I am entirely well, and engaged in arduous work--often among the
sick, losing whole nights of rest."
CURED OF SPINE DISEASE.
Dr. Cullis thus speaks of a signal answer to his prayer. "While at the
home of L.R. in England, I was asked to pray with his daughter, who had
spinal curvature. Subsequently L.R. writes, 'We. are full of
thankfulness and praise about E. She is quite well and strong, and does
everything like her sisters. She has such perfect faith that the Lord
had healed her, that she at once put away the board and said she should
never lie upon it again, and on the following Sunday she walked four
miles in a hot sun, and sat for two hours on a bench without a back. As
far as we can judge, she is quite well in every respect. For fifteen
months before she had been a constant cause of anxiety to us--never
walked or attended to study.'"
AN INJURED LEG RESTORED TO PROPER LENGTH.
"Some months ago a young lady called, requesting to be prayed for. She
simply told me that some years ago she was run over and her hip badly
injured. I asked her if she could trust the Lord for healing. She
replied, 'Yes.' I prayed, with her, and she went home.
"I learned after a day or two, that she was perfectly cured, and
obtained from her these facts: Some six years before, she was run over
by a hack, and her hip so injured that she was confined to her bed for
six months. She then got up with a permanent lameness, one limb being
shorter than the other. In two or three instances since, she has been
confined to her bed for three months at a time. She now walks perfectly,
both limbs being of the same length. She says of herself, 'I can leap
and run as well as any other person, and my heart overruns with praise
and thanksgiving to God.'"
A LOST VOICE REGAINED.
"Some nine months since a lady showed signs of indisposition, and soon
was attacked by a cough. Change of air was prescribed, but after a lapse
of some weeks she returned to her home, in no way improved. Physicians
were consulted, her lungs found to be much irritated and pulse low. Soon
all appetite left her, a hoarseness succeeded, resulting in entire loss
of voice.
"There was little desire to eat, as everything taken into the stomach
caused great distress. Months succeeded; nothing could be gained from
medical treatment. I felt that I must trust all to God. I seemed to feel
that God would heal me. I read in his Bible, 'The prayer of _faith shall
save the sick_.' I accepted it at once, I felt sure that it was for me.
I was led to visit Boston and see Doctor Cullis. I stated all the
circumstances of my illness, and was asked if I could trust God to heal
me? I replied, 'Yes, I am sure the Lord is able and willing.'
"'We knelt in prayer; _in a moment, as it were, my. voice came to me, I
was able to talk with ease_, and from that time nothing that I have
eaten has given me any distress. The Lord's promises are sure, and He
has filled my soul with joy and praise.'"
In speaking of the many cases of cures in answer to prayer, Doctor
Cullis says: "I have noticed that in some cases the cure has been
instantaneous; others I have prayed with two or three times, or even
more. My explanation is, as far as I have been able to observe, that
there has been oftentimes a question or lack of faith on the part of the
patient; for some seem to come, not in faith, but as a matter of
_experiment. God's word says it is the prayer of faith that shall save
the sick._"
From this it will be noticed that the _faith is that of the patient,_
and the more strongly it is fixed on God and the promise, the surer the
answer.
It is but justice to say, that in no case has there ever been the
thought or the assumption, by Doctor Cullis himself, of having _any
divinely conferred power_ to heal all that come to him, or for whom he
may pray. No such power would ever be given to any human creature by our
Lord. It is the Lord himself who works the wonder--but solely because of
the faith of sufferers who have sought the addition of the prayer of one
who is stronger in faith and prayer than its own. Each must wait upon
God, and must have faith without a doubt, and perfect willingness to
trust all to Him, and continue to expect the blessing.
It should be noticed, also, that all who have come pleading the prayer
of faith, and asking the Lord for relief, have either then, or before,
_pledged themselves to the service of the Lord_, and have desired the
good gifts they seek, that they may more efficiently work for His own
honor and glory, and the good of others.
When such a desire for healing is united with the desire and the promise
to work in future for the Lord, His own kingdom and glory, the Lord is
pleased with it, and His promise is made sure to those who come in
faith.
It is needless to say that those who come for prayer, with the desire
only for _experiment_, and also those who are _withholding their lives
or pledges of devotion to Him, need never expect an answer_.
CURED OF ST. VITAS' DANCE.
"Very early in childhood, I was seized with a nervous trouble, something
like St. Vitus' Dance. As I grew older it did not pass off, but settled
into a disease of the muscles. It became a terrible affliction. It was
usually under my control, but I could not endure protracted work of any
kind, or unusual fatigue; I had consulted, in various cities, the best
physicians, but they pronounced it incurable. All that could be done was
to be careful of overwork and excitement. It must have been twenty-five
years since I was first taken.
"Doctor Cullis asked me if I could give my body to the Lord to be
healed; I felt that I could truly say 'Yes.' He then, in a simple
manner, prayed that the Lord would restore strength of nerve and muscle.
I went home, touched and improved by the comforting words. At the end of
the week I was startled at the recollection that I had felt hardly
anything of my trouble. My nerves began to feel as if they were held
with a grasp of iron. The muscles refused to move as before at every
inclination. For two weeks this painful tension lasted. Then I felt a
gradual relaxation, and found that I was strong like other people. I
tested myself in the severest way--walked, wrote and lifted--after each
exertion I could enjoy perfect rest. The mystery of the miracles was
explained to me. This power of God manifested in the past, is manifest
to us still. Faith can grasp and use it. Close beside us stands a
_living Christ_."
HIP DISEASE CURED.
A lady from Brooklyn, N.Y., came to the Consumptive's Home for prayer
cure.
"She had a diseased hip, and _had used crutches for twenty years_. Often
the hip joint would slip from its socket, so that it was impossible for
her to walk without crutches. She now writes, 'My lameness was
incurable, and God interposed in my behalf, in answer to your prayer. I
have been able to walk for five months without the crutches I have used
for over twenty years.'"
A BAD DEBT PAID.
A correspondent of Doctor Cullis, who was unable to collect a debt from
a refractory and worthless debtor, promised to give it to the Lord, if
it was ever paid. The following is his letter:
"Perhaps you remember that the writer, some months ago, asked you to
pray that some money which had been due him a long time, and which to
all human appearance was never to be paid, might by God's interposition
be paid in full. Enclosed, find the full amount, $25, which was paid a
few days since. All glory to Him, who _never, never fails_."
CONSUMPTION INSTANTLY HEALED.
"At a meeting in the Chapel of the Consumptive's Home, held March 7,
1876, public prayer was offered for a young man in Florida, who was
apparently gone in consumption; an interested friend had previously
written him that prayer would be offered for him at that time.
"Not long after she received letters from him, stating that at _that
same hour_ he too had joined in supplication, and _was instantly
healed_. He says that while before the Lord, pleading his promise, his
voice and strength were taken away for a time. Then he began to praise
the Lord, and to feel, 'tis done,' and it was done, and tells of the
wonderful change, his ability to talk and sing, with no difficulty
whatever."
CURED OF CATARRH.
"I have been afflicted with catarrh for over twenty years. I had
consulted many physicians and used many remedies--all failed to help me.
In the Spring of 1874, I grew so much worse that life became a burden; I
suffered from dizziness and great prostration; I was urged to go to you
for faith cure. This was no new thing to me; I believed in it, yet found
it difficult to exercise faith for myself.
"My daughter went to see you, as I was then unable to go. I looked to
God, and believed from that very moment. My whole soul and body seemed
thrilled, and I began to gain strength immediately.
"In a few days I was able to go to your _Home_. You prayed simply that
God would take all disease from me. I have been entirely well from that
time; not only cured of catarrh, but tumors on my limbs were entirely
removed. I desire to give God the praise; I bless him that He does
forgive our transgressions and heal our diseases."
These instances are only a very few out of many, that have occurred, too
numerous for repetition here. It must be admitted, that God has most
signally blessed the faith of the inmates of the Consumptive's Home,
answered their prayer for others. In nearly all the cases of healing
which have occurred, the sufferers have failed in all other means, and
in their extremity have depended wholly in faith in God.
In speaking of them, Doctor Cullis says: "We do not give these instances
of the healing of the body, dear friends of Jesus, as in any degree
paramount to the healing of the soul; but that as the dear children of
God, we may claim all our privileges, and enjoy the knowledge of our
fullness of possession in Him who declares" _all things are, yours_."
Shall we in any manner, of smallest or largest import, limit the love
and power of God, who deigneth out of the highest heaven to declare,"
_The Lord thinketh upon me_." As an earthly parent separates no part of
the well-being of his child from his watchful care, so doth our Heavenly
Father not only "_forgive all our iniquities_," but "_healeth all our
diseases." Let us not confine faith operation to the saving of the soul,
while God's word is full of previous promise for the saving, keeping,
and healing of the body_.
"_For I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy
wounds, saith the Lord_."
A MOTHER'S FAITH--THE LIFE OF BEATE PAULUS.
In a sketch of the life of Beate Paulus, the wife of a German minister
who lived on the borders of the Black Forest, are several incidents
which illustrate the power of living faith, and the providence of a
prayer-hearing God.
Though destitute of wealth, she much desired to educate her children,
and five of her six boys were placed in school, while she struggled, and
prayed, and toiled,--not only in the house, but out of doors,--to
provide for their necessities.
"On one occasion," writes one of her children, "shortly before harvest,
the fields stood thick with corn, and our mother had already calculated
that their produce would suffice to meet all claims for the year. She
was standing at the window casting the matter over in her mind, with
great satisfaction, when her attention was suddenly caught by some
heavy, black clouds with white borders, drifting at a great rate across
the Summer sky. 'It is a hail-storm!' she exclaimed in dismay, and
quickly throwing up the window, she leaned out. Her eyes rested upon a
frightful mass of wild storm-clouds, covering the western horizon, and
approaching with rapid fury.
"'O God!' she cried, 'there comes an awful tempest, and what _is_ to
become of my corn?' The black masses rolled nearer and nearer, while the
ominous rushing movement that precedes a storm, began to rock the sultry
air, and the dreaded hail-stones fell with violence. Half beside herself
with anxiety about those fields lying at the eastern end of the valley,
she now lifted her hands heavenward, and wringing them in terror, cried:
'Dear Father in heaven, what art thou doing? Thou knowest I cannot
manage to pay for my boys at school, without the produce of those
fields! Oh! turn Thy hand, and do not let the hail blast my hopes!'
Scarcely, however, had these words crossed her lips when she started,
for it seemed to her as if a voice had whispered in her ear,' Is my arm
shortened that it cannot help thee in other ways?' Abashed, she shrank
into a quiet corner, and there entreated God to forgive her want of
faith. In the meantime the storm passed. And now various neighbors
hurried in, proclaiming that the whole valley lay thickly covered with
hail-stones, _down to the very edge of the parsonage fields, but the
latter_ had been quite spared. The storm had reached their border, and
then suddenly taking another direction into the next valley. Moreover,
that the whole village was in amazement, declaring that God had wrought
a miracle for the sake of our mother, whom he loved. She listened,
silently adoring the goodness of the Lord, and vowing that henceforth
her confidence should be only in Him."
At another time she found herself unable to pay the expenses of the
children's schooling, and the repeated demands for money were rendered
more grievous by the reproaches of her husband, who charged her with
attempting impossibilities, and told her that her self-will would
involve them in disgrace. She, however, professed her unwavering
confidence that the Lord would soon interpose for their relief, while
his answer was: "We shall see; time will show."
In the midst of these trying circumstances, as her husband was one day
sitting in his study, absorbed in meditation, the postman brought three
letters from different towns where the boys were at school, each
declaring that unless the dues were promptly settled, the lads would be
dismissed. The father read the letters with growing excitement, and
spreading them out upon the table before his wife as she entered the
room, exclaimed: "There, look at them, and pay our debt with your faith!
I have no money, nor can I tell where to go for any."
"Seizing the papers, she rapidly glanced through them, with a very grave
face, but then answered firmly, 'It is all right; the business shall be
settled. For He who says, "The gold and silver is mine," will find it an
easy thing to provide these sums.' Saying which she hastily left the
room.
"Our father readily supposed she intended making her way to a certain
rich friend who had helped us before. He was mistaken, for this time her
steps turned in a different direction. We had in the parsonage an upper
loft, shut off by a trap-door from the lower one, and over this door it
was that she now knelt down, and began to deal with Him in whose
strength she had undertaken the work of her children's education. She
spread before Him those letters from the study table, and told Him of
her husband's half scoffing taunt. She also reminded Him how her life
had been redeemed from the very gates of death, for the children's sake,
and then declared that she could not believe that He meant to forsake
her at this juncture; she was willing to be the _second_ whom He might
forsake, but she was determined not to be the _first_.
"In the meanwhile, her husband waited down stairs, and night came on;
but she did not appear. Supper was ready, and yet she stayed in the
loft. Then the eldest girl, her namesake Beate, ran up to call her; but
the answer was, 'Take your supper without me, it is not time for me to
eat.' Late in the evening, the little messenger was again dispatched,
but returned with the reply: 'Go to bed; the time has not come for me to
rest.' A third time, at breakfast next morning, the girl called her
mother. 'Leave me alone,' she said; 'I do not need breakfast; when I am
ready I shall come.' Thus the hours sped on, and down stairs her husband
and the children began to feel frightened, not daring, however, to
disturb her any more. At last the door opened, and she entered, her face
beaming with a wonderful light. The little daughter thought that
something extraordinary must have happened; and running to her mother
with open arms, asked eagerly: 'What is it? Did an angel from heaven
bring the money?' 'No, my child,' was the smiling answer, 'but now I am
sure that it will come.' She had hardly spoken, when a maid in peasant
costume entered, saying: 'The master of the Linden Inn sends to ask
whether the Frau Pastorin can spare time to see him?' 'Ah, I know what
he wants,' answered our mother. 'My best regards, and I will come at
once.' Whereupon she started, and mine host, looking out of his window,
saw her from afar, and came forward to welcome her with the words: 'O
Madame, how glad I am you have come!' Then leading her into his back
parlor he said; 'I cannot tell how it is, but the whole of this last
night I could not sleep for thinking of you. For some time I have had
several hundred _gulden_ lying in that chest, and all night long I was
haunted by the thought that you needed this money, and that I ought to
give it to you. If that be the case, there it is--take it; and do not
trouble about repaying me. Should you be able to make it up again, well
and good--if not, never mind.' On this my mother said: 'Yes, I do most
certainly need it, my kind friend; for all last night I too was awake,
crying to God for help. Yesterday there came three letters, telling us
that all our boys would he dismissed unless the money for their board is
cleared at once.'
"'Is it really so?' exclaimed the innkeeper, who was a noble-hearted and
spiritual Christian man. 'How strange and wonderful! Now I am doubly
glad I asked you to come!' Then opening the chest, he produced three
weighty packets, and handed them to her with a prayer that God's
blessing might rest upon the gift. She accepted it with the simple
words: 'May God make good to you this service of Christian sympathy; for
you have acted as the steward of One who has promised not even to leave
the giving of a cup of cold water unrewarded.'
"Husband and children were eagerly awaiting her at home, and those three
dismal letters still lay open on the table, when the mother, who had
quitted that study in such deep emotion the day before, stepped up to
her husband, radiant with joy. On each letter, she laid a roll of money
and then cried: 'Look, there it is! And now believe that faith in God is
no empty madness!'"
THE PERSECUTOR'S FATE.
Dr. Eugenio Kincaid, the Burman missionary, states, that among the first
converts in Ava were two men who had held respectable offices about the
palace. Some time after they had been baptized, a neighbor determined to
report them to government, and drew up a paper setting forth that these
two men had forsaken the customs and religion of their fathers, were
worshiping the foreigner's God, and went every Sunday to the teacher's
house; with other similar charges. He presented the paper to the
neighbors of the two disciples, taking their names as witnesses, and
saving that he should go and present the accusation on the next day.
The two Christians heard of it, and went to Mr. Kincaid in great alarm,
to consult as to what they should do. They said if they were accused to
government, the mildest sentence they could expect would be imprisonment
for life at hard labor, and perhaps they would be killed. Kincaid told
them that they could not flee from Ava, if they would; that he saw
nothing he could do for them, and all that they could do was to trust in
God to protect them, and deliver them from the power of their enemies.
They also prayed, and soon left Kincaid, saying that they felt more
calm, and could leave the matter with God.
That night the persecutor was attacked by a dreadful disease in the
bowels, which so distressed him that he roared like a madman; and his
friends, which is too often the case with the heathen, left him to
suffer and die alone. The two Christians whom he would have ruined then
went and took care of him till he died, two or three days after his
attack. The whole affair was well known in the neighborhood, and from
that time not a dog dared move his tongue against the Christians of Ava.
Is there no evidence in this of a special providence, and that God
listens to the prayers of persecuted and distressed children?
THE CAPTAIN AND THE QUADRANT.
A godly man, the master of an American ship, during one voyage found his
ship bemisted for days, and he became rather anxious respecting her
safety. He went down to his cabin and prayed. The thought struck him, if
he had with confidence committed his soul to God, he might certainly
commit his ship to Him; and so, accordingly, he gave all into the hands
of God, and felt at perfect peace; but still he prayed, that if He would
be pleased to give a cloudless sky at twelve o'clock, he should like to
take an observation to ascertain their real position, and whether they
were on the right course.
He came on deck at eleven o'clock, with the quadrant under his coat. As
it was thick drizzling, the men looked at him with amazement. He went to
his cabin, prayed, and came up. There seemed still to be no hope. Again
he went down and prayed, and again he appeared on deck with his quadrant
in his hand. It was now ten minutes to twelve o'clock, and still there
was no appearance of a change; but he stood on the deck, waiting upon
the Lord, when, in a few minutes, the mist seemed to be folded up and
rolled away as by an omnipotent and invisible hand; the sun shown
clearly from the blue vault of heaven, and there stood the man of prayer
with the quadrant in his hand, but so awe-struck did he feel, and so
"dreadful" was that place, that he could scarcely take advantage of the
answer to his prayer. He, however, succeeded, although with trembling
hands, and found, to his comfort, that all was well. But no sooner had
he finished taking the observation than the mist rolled back over the
heavens, and it began to drizzle as before.
This story of prayer was received from the lips of the good Captain
Crossby, who was so useful in the Ardrossan awakening; and he himself
was the man who prayed and waited upon his God with the quadrant in his
hand.
THE FAITH OF DOROTHEA TRUDEL.
The life of Dorothea Trudel has afforded some remarkable instances of
answer to prayer; during the years 1850 to 1860, at the Swiss village of
Maennedorf, near the Lake of Zurich, and that of Molltingen, were seen
and witnessed, cases of cure in response to unyielding faith in the
promises of the Lord.
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