344
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
June 1928
and effectual doors constantly swung open, and seldom had we known days so full of happy service. Not with enchanting stories of missionary romance did we seek to arouse the people’s interest, but with the sterner facts of missionary sufferings blended with incidents of the power o f the Gospel and the triumphs o f God’s grace. This tes timony was blessed in a remarkable way.- Permission was given to the students, whenever their classes would allow, to visit us in our own room, and before long numbers were inquiring about missionary work in China. Our one room had become a veritable mission center. At that time the mission had no center nearer than Philadelphia, three thousand miles away, so it was decided that, in conjunc tion with Dr. Torrey and Dr. Farr (members of the China Inland Mission Council for North America), all appli cations should be dealt with by us; we were busier than ever but supremely happy. Out o f the many who wished to preach the Gospel in China, twelve young people were chosen (four men and eight women), and when our ac ceptance of them was approved by the Mission Executive in Philadelphia, they were admitted to the Mission fellow ship by Dr. Frost, the Home Director. T he A rrival in C h in a On November, 7, 1918, we all arrived in Shanghai. This was the Lord’s doing, and it was marvelous in our eyes. Why do we not trust Him more? Lines Quoted by Dr. Morgan I n a L ecture to S tudents on F ebruary 3 rd A lowly Man—-He takes my sins, and bears the heavy load; A lowly Man—H e takes my hand and leads me up the road; , And when I know this lowly Man is my Creator, God! Oh, this hath solved me much dark speech, and loosed tongues that were dumb ! For all creation round me now a Gospel hath become. And what had seemed to me before mere wild confused Babel, Is now a pre-tongued Pentecost, proclaiming Christ is able! The thunders, in the crashing skies, announce it as ■ they roll;; ': The lightnings, on the black storm-wall, write it in vivid scroll; And stars repeat it, down the dark, in mystic jeweled, light; The Urim and the Thummim, on the breastplate o f the night; And strong Orion shouts to me, what slumbered in old fable, And echoes from eternal night-vaults answer, Able! Able! And comet cresting bended heavens, waves echo to the word, Like waving white plume, in the star-mailed hel met o f the Lord; For all creation its evangel utters forth abroad Into mine ear, when now -I know my Saviour, Christ, is God.
This was the largest band of new workers from North America since 1890, when Mr. Hudson Taylor per sonally led out the first party from that Continent. The scene on arrival at the China Inland Mission compound in Shanghai will long live in the memory of those who wit nessed it, as we formed a circle in front o f the main en trance to the Mission Home and sang the chorus begin ning “ How Good is the God We Adore.” It was one thing to get back to China, but quite an other matter to find a suitable niche in which to work. I had been the missionary superintendent of a provincial district for fourteen years, but now, whilst there were spheres of service where acceptable work might be done even by one with my limitation, I felt that the old posi tion could not be taken up again. I resigned the Super- intendentship, but, at the request of the General Director, retained my seat on the China Council o f the Mission. The question now was, What next? Once more we were at the parting of the ways, and it was far from easy to decide what the next step should be. There was only one thing to do—wait and watch. Had not the Lord chosen the path for us when we set our faces to return to China, and now would He fail us in the land ? Once again in a very special way absolute surrender was made, and we were willing to go anywhere and to do anything, even to fill a very wee niche. For years we had longed for a Gospel Hall to be open ed in a more central part of that large and populous city o f Yangchow, and as others agreed that Yangchow was the place for us, we consented to begin new work with that end in view. Our ambitions did not mount higher than to have a small preaching hall on one of the business thor oughfares, but God was to do the choosing, and we waited for Him. What God did is the second of the signs follow ing, to demonstrate that our return to China was alto gether His choice, and it has been marvelous to all. T he G ôspel P reaching C enter Not a street preaching room but an extensive Gospel plant was God’s choice for us. We went through fire and through water, but were brought out at last into a large place. T o get even à small room in that district for preaching the Gospel seemed absolutely impossible, but “ faith laughs at thé impossible an:d says it shall be done,” and so it was. More than six years before, during the Chinese Revolu tion, General Hsu Pau-san (popularly known as “ The Tiger” ) conceived the idea of erecting for us, in the cen tral part of the city, a Gospel Hall to seat one thousand people; but in May, 1913, he was assassinated and the plan fell through; God’s time was not yet. More than once efforts had been made to secure a place for preaching pur poses near the heart of the city, but all to no purpose. Just about the date of our arrival in Shanghai (November 7, 1938), and more than one month before we actually re turned to Yangchow, a big fire broke out on the main retail business thoroughfare of the city, by which forty houses were burned down. Some of the owners had not the cap ital for rebuilding, and thus several building sites were in the market. Prompt action and a quick deal on the part of our building contractor immediately on our arrival from Shanghai secured one for us, and the boundary stones bearing in Chinese the words “ China Inland Mission” were in position at each corner of the lot before the man on the street knew that we were even on the lookout. The lot was small but exceeded our expectations, and the fund which the Lord had already provided before we left Los Angeles was sufficient for the purchase-money and the
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