December 16, 1838. A paper was anonymously placed into the box at Bethesda Chapel containing four pounds ten shillings. In the paper was written, "For the rent of the Orphan Houses from December 10 to December 31, 1838." "O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him!" (Psa. 34:8). The individual who gave this four pounds ten shillings for the rent of the Orphan Houses decided to give regularly, but anonymously, one pound ten shillings every week which was exactly the sum required for the rent of those three houses. Thus the Lord rewarded our obedience.
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December 15. I praise, adore, and magnify the Lord for His love and faithfulness in carrying me from year to year through His service and supplying me with all I need! Without His help and support, I would be completely overpowered in a very short time. With His help I go on and am very happy in my service. I am even in better health now than I was twenty years ago. For the past several years, Bible distribution has become more important to me. The powers of darkness have attempted to rob the Church of the Holy Scriptures. Therefore, I have taken advantage of every opportunity to distribute the Bible throughout the world. Many servants of Christ in various parts of the world have helped me in this work. Through them, thousands of copies of the Bible have been distributed. If you are in the habit of distributing tracts and have never seen fruit, I suggest the following hints for your prayerful consideration: Through prayer and meditation on the Word, become willing to let God have all the glory if any good is accomplished by your service. If you desire honor for yourself, the Lord must put you aside as a vessel unfit for the Master's use. One of the greatest qualifications for usefulness in the service of the Lord is a heart that truly desires to honor Him. Precede all your labors with earnest, diligent prayer. Do not rest on the number of tracts you have given because a million tracts may not lead to the conversion of one single soul. Yet, a blessing beyond calculation may result from one single tract. Expect everything to come from the blessing of the Lord and nothing at all from your own exertions. At the same time, work! Walk through every open door, be ready in season and out of season as if everything depended on your labor. This is one of the great secrets in connection with successful service for the Lord-work as if everything depended on your diligence, and trust in the blessing of the Lord to bring success. This blessing of the Lord, however, should not merely be sought in prayer, but it should also be expected. The result will be that we will surely have it. Suppose, that, for the trial of our faith, this blessing is withheld from our sight for a long time. Or suppose we die before we see much good resulting from our labors. Our labors, if carried on in the right way, will be at last abundantly rewarded, and we will have a rich harvest in the day of Christ. At the beginning of this period there were 300 orphans in the new Orphan House on Ashley Down. During the year 30 orphans were admitted making 330 in all. The total number of orphans who were under our care from April, 1836 to May 26, 1854 was 558. During the past year my faith was tried in a way it had never been before. My beloved daughter, my only child and a believer for several years, became ill. The illness turned to typhus, and there seemed to be no hope for her recovery. But faith. triumphed. My beloved wife and I gave her into the hands of the Lord, and He sustained us both. My soul was in perfect peace, trusting my heavenly Father. She remained very ill for more than two weeks before she began to grow stronger and was moved to Clevedon to recover. Of all the trials of faith I have passed through, this was the greatest. By God's abundant mercy, I Was able to delight myself in God, and He gave me the desire of my heart. God is always faithful to those who trust in Him. December 15. This day was set apart for prayer and thanksgiving regarding the Infant Orphan House, which was opened on November 28. In the morning we had a prayer meeting. In the afternoon, besides prayer and thanksgiving, I addressed the 350 children of our day schools and the orphans. Donations of money, food, clothes, books, and coal were received during the year. Also, we received offers of free medical care and supplies. December 13. My sister-in-law told me that she met a gentleman in London who read the story of the Lord's dealings with me. She told him that I planned to build an Orphan House, and. he, an architect, offered to make the plan and supervise the building gratuitously. He is also a Christian. The fact that this offer comes unsolicited and from a Christian architect especially shows the hand of God. “And to temperance, patience;” that is, to be satisfied with the will of God. If we have this contentment, we shall be able to endure tribulation and suffering, and even bereavement and sickness, satisfied that it is for the best. If we are the children of God, we are but strangers and pilgrims here. This is not our home, we here have no abiding city; therefore we heed not the troubles or difficulties by the way, they will soon pass. Let us therefore aim after showing, by our quiet, patient demeanour, that we are satisfied with God. December 5, 1850. It is now sixteen years and nine months since I began the Scriptural Knowledge Institution for Home and Abroad. This institution was very small in the beginning. Now it is so large that the current expenses are over six thousand pounds a year. The new Orphan House is inhabited by three hundred orphans, and a total of three hundred and thirty-five persons are connected with it. My work is abundant. Despite this, I am thinking about laboring more than ever in serving poor orphans. This matter has been on my mind for the last ten days, and I have begun to pray about it. I am considering the construction of another Orphan House, large enough for seven hundred orphans, so that I might be able to care for a total of one thousand orphans. I have received two hundred and seven orphans within the last sixteen months and now have seventy-eight waiting for admission. Most other charitable institutions for orphans make the admission of a destitute orphan very difficult, if not impossible, if they do not have an influential person to sponsor them. In our case, nothing is needed but application to me. The poorest person, without influence, without friends, without any expense, no matter where he lives or which denomination he is affiliated with, may be admitted. Since it is difficult for poor people to get their orphan relatives admitted into ordinary establishments, I feel called to be the friend of the orphan. The experience I have had in this service for fifteen years calls me to make use of my knowledge to the utmost of my power. No member of a committee or president of a society could possibly have the same experience unless he personally had been engaged in such a work for a number of years, as I have been. If seven hundred more young souls could be brought under regular godly training, what blessed service that would be for the Kingdom of Christ! I began this work to show the world and the Church that God in heaven hears and answers prayer. This is better accomplished the larger the work is, provided I obtain the means simply through prayer and faith. But thoughts of another character have occurred to me. I already have an abundance of work. My dear wife is also very busy. Nearly all of her time is occupied, directly or indirectly, with the orphans. Am I taking on too much for my bodily strength and my mental powers by thinking about another Orphan House? Am I going beyond the measure of my faith in thinking about enlarging the work? Is this a delusion of Satan, an attempt to cast me down from my place of usefulness by making me go beyond y capabilities? Is it a snare to puff me up in pride by attempting to build a large Orphan House? I can only pray that the Lord would not allow Satan to gain an advantage over me. By the grace of God, my heart says, "Lord, if I could be sure that it is Your will that I go forward in this matter, I would do so cheerfully. On the other hand, if I could be sure that these are vain, foolish, proud thoughts and are not from You, I would forget the whole idea." My hope is in God. He will help me and teach me. Based on His former dealings with me, however, it would not be surprising if He called me to enlarge work in this way. Lord, please teach me Your will in this matter. December 5, 1835. This Scripture came alive to me today: "Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it" (Psa. 81:10). I was led to apply it to the orphan house and asked the Lord for a building, one thousand pounds, and suitable individuals to take care of the children. December 2. Brother Craik and I have talked about the orphan house. I wanted him to show me any hidden corruption of my heart or any other scriptural reason against engaging in it. The only reason I could doubt that it is of God for me to begin this work is the numerous responsibilities which I have already. But if the matter is of God, He will, in due time, send suitable individuals so that comparatively little of my time will be taken up in this service. Brother Craik greatly encouraged me in the work. Today I took the first step in the matter and announced a public meeting on December 9. The brethren want to hear my thoughts concerning the orphan house, and I want to know the Lord's will more clearly. November 30, 1836. On account of many pressing engagements, I have not prayed about the funds for some time. But being in great need, I was led to earnestly seek the Lord. In answer to this petition, a brother gave me ten pounds. He had it in his heart for several months to give this sum, but had been kept from it, not having the means. Now, in our time of great need, the Lord furnished him with the means, he used it to help us. In addition to this ten pounds, I received a letter with five pounds from a sister whom I never saw. She wrote, "It has been on my mind lately to send you some money, and I feel as if there must be some need. I, therefore, send you five pounds, all I have in the house at this moment." November 21. Not even a single halfpenny was left in the three houses. Nevertheless, we had a good dinner, and by sharing our bread, we made it through this day also. When I left the brothers and sisters after prayer, I told them we must wait for help and see how the Lord would deliver us this time. I was sure of help, but we were indeed in another serious situation. When I left the meeting, I felt that I needed more exercise so I walked home a longer way. About twenty yards from my house, I met a brother who walked back with me. After a little conversation, he gave me ten pounds to provide the poor saints with coal, blankets, and warm clothing. He also gave five pounds for the orphans and five pounds for the other needs of the Scriptural Knowledge Institution. The brother had come to see me twice while I was away at the Orphan House. Had I been one half minute later, I would have missed him. But the Lord knew our need, and therefore allowed me to meet him. |
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