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from our local church were ready and eager to go. Some were life-work re cruits, some were young people whose faith needed strengthening, and some had not yet come to know Christ in salvation. Surely God wanted them to go to that conference. But there was no transportation. E v e r y One was fighting sleeping sickness, and all cars were needed for other purposes. What was I to do? I had horses, too. Was I to let them die without putting up a fight? There was other urgent ranch work to do. On the one side, my horses and ranch- were at stake; and on the other weTe lost souls, and the Holy Spirit whispering, “These souls are precious in God’s sight.” Then I thought back to the time when I had promised to give every thing to Christ. I had given on faith then, for I had nothing. Was I now to let the very things Qod had given me stand in the w’ay of doing His will?' “Seek ye first the kingdom of God,'and his righteousness;^and all these things shall be added unto yQu” was a verse that had meant much to me as God had given me more and more. Suddenly I knew that if He took it all away now, it would be all right. He would have, something else for me. I had decided. Leaving my ranch in the care of my family and hired help, I took my car and truck, turned my back on the ranch, and set out with the young people for the Bible conference. The neighbors looked after us and shook their heads. “You’re crazy, man,” they had said to me when the word had spread that Rancher Lenz wafts going off to -a Bible conference and leaving his horses, un vaccinated, to die. “Your horses will be half Head before you get back, and there will be nothing you can do then.” pastorate in Paris, the Lord had snatched me away and had planted Joe Flacks in my place—Joe with his deep love for the prophecies of the Word of God and for the dying souls of men—and I came back to the church to find that the people were freshly prepared by the Spirit of God for a great advance. For a time we two were co-pastors of the work in Paris, and never have I worked in sweeter harmony with any other man. It seemed right, then, that when Audrey and I were to be married, some two years later,-our Jewish brother should perform the ceremony. In fact, though the plan was not prearranged, he helped in the purchase of the wed ding dress. The incident reveals two
to startle the members of the church with rousing sermons on tithing, love offerings, and giving by faith. I had my answer. “From now on, Lord,” I said, “my money and my ranch are Yours. You know the very little it is. But it’s Yours.” I began to give, on faith. Many times I gave all I had and was only sorry I didn’t have more. I made pledges by faith when I did not know where the money was to come from. I was experiencing the first taste of joy in giving to God. Änd I was amazed as God began to give memore, so that I had more to give back. It seemed the more we gave, the more we received,i and every day became one of joy in serving Him. Does it pay, materially, to give God one’s all? The answer is definitely no, if we give only for that reason. But when we give all that we are and have, in whatever business we may be in, purely for the love of our Redeemer, God always gives more than \ye do. It may be in increased worldly goods, it may be in other ways, but it is always His best for us. Since I began -to ranch for God, it has pleased Him to entrust me with increased possessions, in the passing years, many of our godless neighbors suffered bankruptcy and left the com munity. But during the same period, God enabled us to buy other farms to annex to our ranch, until now we have about 10,000 acres of owned land, and we lease some 2,000 additional acres. We have some 150 head of cattle, about 1,500 sheep, a carload of hogs, and 600 horses. It is all the Lord’s doing. Without Him I was, and still would be—nothing. Giving all we have to Him has brought us in creased goods, but only that we might have more to give to Him. I believe the only way we can take money to heaven is to make the exchange here on earth through Christian service, that others may find salvation at the foot of the cross where our own re demption was made. I can say with all my heart that God gave us all we have, and any time He wants all or part of my ranch, He shall have it. I can say that because I’ve had the test and know. Th « Lord’s Service, or My Ranch? About five years ago, sleeping sick ness among horses swept Montana, and was s o o n o u t o f all control. Ranchers began frantically vaccinat ing horses in an effort to check the disaster; whole h e r d s were swept away. I had six hundred horses. The reasonable thing was to start vacci nating immediately. • But five hundred miles away in the mountains, our Bible conference was beginning. Twenty-five young people
He Giveth Mere and Mere During the wonderful days spent at the camp, God took all concern for my ranch from my mind, and I saw several of the young people I had brought there, making the all-impor- tant decision to accept Christ. Others, already saved, were richly blessed. ’ As we neared home on our return ■trip, the first thought of my horses crossed my mind. How would I find them? But “ the Lord is not slack concerning his promise.” Though the sleeping sickness had struck right around our ranch, not one of my horses was in fected. I had saved over $600 in vac cination expenres, and I did not lose a horse the whole year! Four weeks later, an event occurred that was, fo me, the final proof that my decision had been right. One of the young gi:*ls who had found Christ at the Bible conference am had come home to live her life in shining wit ness for Him* was accidentally killed. I knew that but for my having decided, that earlier day, in favor of Christ, at what I believed to be a gross neglect of my horses and ranch, she would have died without Christ. Could the world know or give a joy that equaled mine at that hour? As a young man I sat up until the early hours of the morning learning to read, write, spell, and figure, trying to master a way of life in the pro fessional world. Now, at the age of fifty-two, I sit up far into the night,' reading and learning the things of God, and seeking to be more efficient in soul-winning. Ranching for God has paid rich dividends in many ways, but the best is the joy and sweet satisfaction that come as I, read His Word, learn to know His voice, and try to live—and give—by faith. beautiful characteristics: zeal for souls that our Hebrew friend displayed, and perception and sweetness shown in the bride-to-be. It happened this way; In the town of Paris, there had been a devastating fire. Within a few min utes, some 14,000 people were made homeless. Our church suffered some loss, and among other furnishings that needed to be replaced was the piano for the Sunday-school. I was absent from the city at the time, and my co-pastor was to make the purchase in Dallas, some one hundred miles away. He prevailed ; pon our young organist to accompany him on this errand, and to give her advice. When the p i a n o was purchased, there were the wedding things to be chosen. In her happy impulsiveness,
THE BREWER'S BOY - [Continued from Page 258]
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