King's Business - 1921-12

1212

T HE K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S

and devoted representative. Convert­ ed in 1873, Mr. Sayford gave him self to the Y. M. C. A. work a t Lockport, N. Y., following th is w ith sim ilar work in Syracuse, N. Y., from which he resigned to accept a position as S tate Superin­ tend en t of the Y. M. C. A. in Mass­ achusetts and Rhode Island, which posi­ tion he held un til 1884 when he gave himself to general evangelistic work a- mong th e under-graduates of the Ameri­ can colleges, commencing w ith New England and covering th e entire United States, more than th ree hundred col­ leges being included in his itinerary. In 1900 Mr. Sayford accepted the General Secretaryship, of the Evangelis­ tic Association of New England which position he held until the time of his death. Though frequently urged to ac­ cept ordination to th e m inistry, he re­ fused, believing th a t his work would be of a broader character as a humble lay­ man. He was the au tho r of several books and had the degree of A. M. con­ ferred upon him by his alm a mater, Pennsylvania College, a t Gettysburg which college he le ft to serve in the Civil W ar as a second lieutenant, being the youngest officer in his brigade. It was the w riter’s privilege to meet Mr. Sayford at the Y. M. C. A. conven­ tion in Toronto in 1876, and to have for forty-five years friendship and fellow­ ship w ith him. He was a tru e man of God, a lover of th e Word of God and of the souls of men. His inheritance among th e saints in light will be rich and age-abiding. May God multiply his kind. T. C. H. Our world is a world where all must work, Weary, or sad, or worn, F o r the idler gay and th e sm iling shirk • Ever th e re ’s only scorn; But th e re’s a magic secret T h at w in try lives may learn— “ ’Tis loving keeps th e h ea rt light, And makes the spring re tu rn .”

have helped me.” Immediately tu rn to an appropriate passage and a t th e close offer a short prayer. In most cases even w ith th e coldest, you will get, “Thank you,” and many times th is de­ votional act opens up th e way for defi­ nite sp iritual talk, based on God’s Word. W ith th e unconverted it is not so easy, bu t if the object of our visit is- to win them for Christ, the Holy Spirit will prepare th e way and give a n atu ra l opening to ta lk of etern al tru th s. If you are inviting to a Bible class, a sim ­ ple rem ark, such as, “ I suppose you are interested in th e Bible,” is fitting. A worker made th is rem ark one day to a lady who answered, “No, I am not a b it in terested .” It was then easy to tell why so many found it so, and why she ought to be. The next visit re­ sulted in her conversion. If we go out. led by th e Spirit and ta u g h t by th e Spirit, we shall accomplish th a t which we set out to do, win souls for Christ and com fort and edify th e Christian. A Lyceum Supper A young woman learning th a t th ere was a cafeteria a t th e In stitu te came down to get a meal. In fron t of the building she heard some girls say, “We b etter go down. It must be tim e for supper.” The woman, supposing they were on th e ir way to th e cafeteria said, “T h at is what I have come for, too. something to eat,” and went w ith them to th e Lyceum room. When told she m ust get her ticket before going into the dining room, she asked th e price and when she learned it was fifteen cents, she said, “W hat kind of a place have I gotten into, anyhow?” They told her and she had her supper and «tarried for th e meeting. She received more th an food for her physical body for th e Lord fed her soul on the Bread of Life. She accepted the Lord as her personal Saviour and went away satis­ fied in Him. Was it all a happen so? No, a few hours before, some of the workers had kn elt in prayer and asked the Lord to send, in some way or other, girls to th e Lyceum th a t n igh t who were n'ot then planning to come bu t who were needing th e Gospel message. God answers- prayer. GONE HOME In th e passing away of Mr. S. M. Sayford, September 12, at Newton, Mass., th e church has lost a splendid

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