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February, 1946
Disappointments His Appointments This incident reveals—among other things—how our wonderful Lord can take circumstances which ordinarily would be disappointing to us, and overrule them to His glory, for our good, and use them for the encourage ment of fellow-believers and the sal vation of precious souls! The natural reaction to finding one’s self shut in—in the manner related— on train, boat, bus, or plane, would be to fuss and fume; to consider the trial a manifestation oD stupidity on one’s part, and a loss of precious time. Or, even worse, one may be in clined to blame the entire unfortunate affair upon others! But when we find ourselves in circumstances the very opposite of our planning, it is our privilege as the children of God, to do as Mr. Rogers did—commit the matter to the Lord, and ask Him to ac complish His.will in the matter. The Word of God commands: “Be careful for nothing Cor in nothing be over anxious]; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understand ing, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:6, 7). We can also learn from this in teresting i n c i d e n t that strange methods of tract distribution may be exceedingly fruitful. Throwing a tract at a pedestrian from a moving auto mobile may seem.to some a crude and wasteful method of “sowing the seed.” But Mr. Rogers and an unsaved man and his Christian wife had occasion to praise God that day for causing an unknown person to throw out of a car window at a certain m o m e n t and place a “Without Money” tract. In all likelihood, the one who thus dis tributed that leaflet will never know until his “labor of love” is reviewed in person by the Lord Jesus just how much that single tract accomplished that day. Whether or not we see or know how much the Lord is blessing our efforts for Him, let us always remember the verse: “Therefore, my beloved breth ren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, al ways abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58). God has said of His Word: “It shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it” (Isa. 55:11). The tract, “ Without Money,” by Mr. Olson, mentioned in this article, may be secured without charge by address ing the a u t h o r at 1691 New York Drive, Altadena, California,
way, for I could get money there. This he agreed to do. We drove into Escondido shortly after nine o’clock. Confident that my wife and friends would be at the Sunday evening c h u r c h service, I directed the driver to the building where the meeting was being held. When we reached the place, I handed him the “Without Money” tract with the suggestion that he read it while I stepped into the b u i l d i n g and secured the necessary funds. The service was being dismissed, so I took one of my friends aside, re lated my experience b r i e f l y and asked for the loan of some money, which he promptly supplied. Then I asked him to accompany me to the car to meet the man who had been so kind to me and to try to win him for the Lord. So he began the con versation by telling the driver about That the literal place of prayer | may itself be a means of escape! from danger was illustrated by the! experience of a number of Sudan | Interior missionaries while being j repatriated during the l a t e war. j Each morning the group met in the | first class stateroom of the wife! of a Church of England bishop, fori Bi b l e reading and prayer. Onei morning while thus engaged, they! were shaken by terrific blasts. They! were being bombed! Afterward they discovered their second class quarters in the rear of the ship in complete ruin. Occu pants of adjoining cabins had been j killed. Although their eaTthly pos-1 sessions were destroyed, God had | [ kept His own safe in the place of j 1prayer. the splendid service he had just at tended. Then, without wasting time, he asked the man if he would like to trust the Saviour. To our amazement, he smilingly answered: “I have already received Him!” “When was that?” I asked. “Just now, while reading this tract” was his reply. After receiving the money, he an nounced: “When I get home, I’m go ing to tell my wife what has happen ed tonight—our home will be a Chris- tion home from now on!” With beaming face, he went on his way rejoicing. Mr. R oa rs ’ face, too, was beaming as he finished his story. THE SECRET PLACE, THE SAFE PLACE Ben Owen
from the grave for our justification. I felt that this tract had been sent to me for some special purpose in this day’s adventure, so I definitely prayed to be given wisdom to pass it on to the right person. Presently another car drove up, and actually stopped for me. I silently thanked the Lord for the ride as I climbed in, and sat beside the driver. He was in a chatty mood, so we con versed about things in general until I found an opportunity to witness for the Lord. However, I detected no re sponse as I gave this man the Gospel in conversation. I was tempted to hand him the tract. If I had possessed more copies, I should have gladly done so. But the Holy Spirit seemed to impress me with the need of keep ing it a while longer. Soon we passed the town of Irvine, whereupon the driver stated: “This is as far as I go on this road.” I stepped out, still retaining the tract, and wondering what was going to happen next. There on the road, I hailed cars and waited. Car after car went by. Evidently the Lord was keeping me for some special contact. After about an hour anS a half, a car finally pulled up alongside of m e ‘ and the driver asked me if I wanted a lift The Miracle I gratefully accepted and again sat beside the driver. He was the only person in the car. Conversation started immediately and I learned that he was going beyond Oceanside on that highway. Darkness was fall ing and I thought unhappily of the twenty miles of. side road which I would have to t r a v e r s e to reach Escondido. Soon an opening came for relating to this man the Gospel story of the love of God and the gift of His Son that "whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlast ing life” (John 3:16). He listened in tently; then he informed me that his wife was a Christian and had often prayed for him. But he said that “ somehow or o t h e r ” religion just didn’t appeal to him. The Lord helped me in my en deavor to present the blessings and joys of the Christian life, as well as the assurance of eternal life and bliss for those who receive Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord. I felt the man’s indifference change to interest. He seemed impressed and grew quite mellow. He even stated: “I would gladly drive you those extra twenty miles, but I really haven’t the money required for the extra gas.” I assured him I would be happy to pay for the gasoline if he would take me all the
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