The Rescue From The Ville Du Havre, And The Loch Earn.
A remarkable illustration of God's mysterious way is found in connection
with the rescue of some of the passengers of the ill-fated French
steamship, Ville du Havre, which was sunk by a collision with the Loch
Earn, November 22, 1873, on her voyage from New York to France. After
the sinking of the Ville du Havre, with some two hundred of her
passengers, the rest were taken up by the Loch Earn, from which most of
them w
board the Loch Earn, where in consequence of its disabled condition they
seemed again in imminent danger of being lost.
On the 11th of December, while Mr. D.L. Moody was conducting a noonday
prayer-meeting in the city of Edinburgh, Rev. Dr. Andrew Thompson read a
letter from a Christian lady, the mother of one of these imperiled
passengers, which contained the following account:
"After the Trimountain left them, and they had examined their ship, many
a heart failed, and they feared they would never see land again. They
could not navigate the vessel, and were left to the mercy of the winds
and waves, or rather to the care of Him who ruleth wind and waves. Vain
was the help of man. The wind drove them out of the course of ships,
northward. You are aware that two ministers were left on board the Loch
Earn. One, Mr. Cook, a truly godly man, did all he could to encourage
their hearts. Every day, at noon, he gathered them together, and
earnestly, by prayer, strove to lead them to the Savior; and this he
continued to do till they reached England. The day before they were
rescued they knew that very shortly the ship must go down. The wind had
changed, bringing them nearer the track of ships, but they had little
hope of being saved. Mr. Cook told them of his own hope, that death to
him would be eternal life, and he urgently entreated them to put their
trust in 'Him who was mighty to save.' At the same time he told them he
had no doubt they would be rescued, that even then a vessel was speeding
to save them, that God had answered their prayers, that next day as
morning dawned they would see her. That night was one of great anxiety.
"As morning dawned every eye was strained to see the promised ship.
There truly she was, and the British Queen bore down upon them. You may
think that with thankful hearts they left the Loch Earn. One thing is
remarkable--_the officer in charge on board the British Queen had a most
unaccountable feeling that there was something for him to do,_ and
_three times during the night he changed the course of the vessel,
bearing northward_. He told the watch to keep a sharp lookout for a
ship, and immediately on sighting the Loch Earn bore down upon her. At
first he thought she had been abandoned, as she lay helpless in the
trough of the sea, but soon they saw her signal of distress. It seems to
me a remarkable instance of faith on the one side and a guiding
Providence on the other. After they were taken on board the pilot-boat
that brought them into Plymouth, at noon, when they for the last time
joined together in prayer, Mr. Cook read to them the account of Paul's
shipwreck, showing the similarity of their experience. _'What made that
captain change his course against his will?' but the ever present Spirit
of God"_.
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The Heart Of Stone Relents.
Another consumptive in the neighborhood, was thoroughly an infidel. Mr. A. visited the house three times a week, and, at last, succeeded in overcoming his objections to a weekly prayer-meeting in his house. In his hearing, earnest supplication was... The Help Of The Lord In Little Things.
The Rev. Dr. Patton, of Chicago, in receiving many letters from clergymen, received one from Mr. F., a pastor in Massachusetts. In it he speaks of his unsuccessful search for a valuable knife, prized as a present from a friend, which he had lost... The History And Business Successes Of Liberal Givers.
Mr. Nathaniel R. Cobb, a merchant connected with the Baptist church in Boston, in 1821, at the age of twenty-three, drew up and subscribed the following covenant, to which he faithfully adhered till on his death-bed he praised God that by acting a... The Hopeless One Brought Home.
"A pastor related the incident of the conversion of a man who had disgraced his family, and all through drink. All the people in the village where he lived regarded him as a hopeless case. But he was prayed for, and one night in answer to an appea... The Horse Is His.
"The writer was preaching Sundays at a little country church, about 70 miles by rail from the institution where he attended. He went Saturday, returning on Monday. One Saturday the train ran off the track. All day long they worked at the wreck. At... The Hushed Tempest.
The following circumstance is communicated to _The Christian_ by a minister of the editor's acquaintance, as a memorial of God's care for the poor and needy who trust in him: It was about the year 1853, and near the middle of a Canadian Winter, ... The Lame Healed.
Rev. Charles G. Finney, during his life-time, was familiar with the circumstances connected with the remarkable healing of a sick lady in Oberlin, O., the wife of Rev. R.D. Miller, and these facts were vouched for as unquestionably authentic. Mr. ... The Liberal Farmer.
A farmer in one of the retired mountain towns of Massachusetts, began business in 1818, with six hundred dollars in debt. He began with the determination to pay the debt in six years, in equal installments, and to give all his net income if any re... The Life Of His Child Saved.
"My eldest daughter now living fell sick at about five or six months old, and was wasted to a skeleton. She had a doctor to attend her, but she got worse and worse. It seemed as if God intended to bereave us of her, for he brought her even to deat... The Little Boy Who Wanted His Sister To Read The Bible.
Rev. Mr. Spurgeon, of London, tells of the excellent faith of a little boy in one of the schools of Edinburgh, who had attended a prayer-meeting, and at the last said to his teacher who conducted it: "Teacher, I wish my sister could be got to re... The Lord Can Do It.
"In one of the mountainous towns--says _The Christian_--in the north- western part of Connecticut, there lived, some time since, an aged couple who had seen some eighty years of earthly pilgrimage, and who, in their declining days, enjoyed the car... The Lord Delivers From Bodily Sins.
"I had used tobacco from my childhood, and the love and use thereof grew upon me. I became convicted of its sinfulness, went to God and said, '_Destroy the appetite, and give me power over it_. Save me that I may glorify thee as a God of power for o... The Lord Did Not Forget The Potatoes.
"A correspondent of _Arthur's Magazine_ tells of a poor woman who had been washing for us, who said: 'Seems as if the Lord took very direct ways to reach people's feelings sometimes. Now, I was astonished once in my life. I lived away out West, on... The Lord Gave Double What Was Asked For.
"This morning and noon I called upon the Lord in prayer for the means to pay a bill of $100. By three P.M., a check was sent me of $200." ... The Lord Helps To Pay Debts.
The author of this incident is known to the editor of "Remarkable Providences," and speaking of it says: "_God never gave me exactly what I wanted. He always gave me more."_ "When I married I was a working man; I had not much money to spare. In ... The Lord Paid His Debt.
"It was the time of my returning from the north country. I observed that there were some small debts to be discharged. But the hand of God was fast closed; this continued for some time: and for all that time, I watched and observed narrowly. "A... The Lord Paid His Interest.
A most curious answer to prayer occurred in the experience of a home missionary in Brooklyn. It illustrates how God, in his trials of faith to see if His people do really cling to the promises, compels them to march right into the scene of danger,... The Lord Proved True.
"The Lord reigns," another exclaimed, "I have proved that during my long life! It has looked dark very often, and I have been in difficult places, but again and again the Lord has brought me through triumphantly. I have found the promise true." "T... The Lord Takes Away The Custom Of A Liquor Saloon.
At one time, the landlord rented the ground floor to a liquor seller. The loafers going in and out, especially on Sunday, were a great grief to Jennie and her saintly old father. They concluded to take it to the Lord together, and, said the old ma... The Lord Will Provide.
"A city missionary, one Saturday night, was going home with a basket of provisions on his arm. Meeting a policeman, he asked him if there had any families moved in the bounds of his beat during the week. He answered, 'Yes,' and, pointing to a buil... The Lord's Insurance Money.
A tradesman in New York had pledged to give to the Lord a certain portion of his business receipts as fast as they were collected. He called this _The Lord's insurance money_, for, said he, "so long as I give so long will the Lord help me and bles... The Lord's Return For Giving Unto The Poor.
"This afternoon a poor woman, whose history I have known for some time, and who has a sick husband over eighty years of age, called on me, stating that she had only a ten-cent loaf of bread for herself and her husband to eat since Wednesday, and t... The Lost Thimble.
"One day I lost my silver thimble, a gift from my mother when I was a young girl. I prized it _very highly_. I looked everywhere, long and faithfully. The tears would come, at the best, it had been so long a constant companion. I gave up the searc... The Mysterious Leadings Of Providence.
The following incidents are contributed to the book by a prominent clergyman: "A period, ever memorable in the life of the writer, occurred in the Autumn of 1832, while attending a protracted meeting of more than ordinary interest and power, he... The Necessity Of Asking God's Blessing Every Day, Upon Your Daily Work.
"A colporteur in the Wabash valley became quite discouraged and was almost ready to give up his work, on account of the smallness of his sales. On every side, his ears were filled with complaints of 'hard times;' the wheat crop had partially fai... The New Coat That Fitted Exactly.
"A few years since, a young preacher in the State of Massachusetts, who was laboring in a field which yielded no great pecuniary returns, had laid aside the sum of fifteen dollars from his scanty income, with which to purchase himself a coat, of w... The Persecutor's Fate.
Dr. Eugenio Kincaid, the Burman missionary, states, that among the first converts in Ava were two men who had held respectable offices about the palace. Some time after they had been baptized, a neighbor determined to report them to government, an... The Power Of The Holy Spirit
"About two years ago we requested your prayers for the Holy Spirit upon a revival work then in progress in our church." _The Lord answered us_ by giving us _over four score souls."_ ... The Prayer In The Woods.
A friend relates the following incident, as received from the lips of a poor afflicted, crippled orphan boy, whose own experience is a practical illustration of the words: "When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up." P... The Prayer Of A Missionary In Mexico Answered - Saved From Banditti.
"In the Spring of 1872, I was, with my wife and child, in the city of Cadereita, Mexico, where we had been laboring as missionaries, but felt it was our duty to return to the States for a little season, and had been asking God to open up the way f... The Prayer Of Faith.
The family of Mr. James R. Jordan has resided in Lake View, Chicago, since the spring of 1871. They are members of Lincoln Park Congregational Church. The father, Mr. James R. Jordan, died in October, 1882, aged eighty-four years. Through a long s... The Prayer Of Latimer.
The prayers of the martyr, Latimer, were very remarkable for their faith. There were three principal matters for which he prayed: 1. That God would give him grace to stand to his doctrine until death. 2. That God would of His mercy restore His... The Prayer Of The Pilgrims For Rain Answered.
It is well known that many of the good men who were driven from England to America by persecution in the seventeenth century, had to endure great privations. In the Spring of 1623 they planted more corn than ever before; but by the time they had d... The Praying Shoe-maker.
A correspondent of _The American Messenger_ relates this instance of a poor man in the village where he lived, who, with a family of young children and a wife in very feeble health, found it extremely difficult to obtain a livelihood. He was at le... The Praying Shoe-maker.
A shoe-maker being asked how he contrived to give so much, replied that it was easily done by obeying St. Paul's precept in I Cor. 16: 2: "Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him." "I earn... The Prisoner Loosed.
On the third floor of a tenement house, a missionary, Mr. B., found a comely, intelligent young English woman in great distress. Her heart seemed wrung by grief. A few kind words of sympathy drew from her the story of her woe. She came to this cou... The Rescue From The Ville Du Havre, And The Loch Earn.
A remarkable illustration of God's mysterious way is found in connection with the rescue of some of the passengers of the ill-fated French steamship, Ville du Havre, which was sunk by a collision with the Loch Earn, November 22, 1873, on her voyag... The Seven Letters.
The following incident is given by "_The Presbyterian_," on the authority of a private letter from Paris: "At a Bible reunion, held at the house of an English Congregationalist minister, where several colporteurs, teachers and others meet for d... The Sewing Girl Relieved Just In Time.
A sick Scotch girl was found lying on a narrow bed in a close, uncomfortable room, her sobs audible to the missionary, when half-way up the stairs. Her story was short. When about, she earned three dollars and a half a week, at a business that was... The Soul Cured As Well As The Body.
On many occasions she experienced wonderful help from God, who, while performing marvels for the body, which is the least important part, accomplishes what is far greater, even the salvation of souls. "Among others, one named B. T----, went to h... The Stolen Bonds Returned.
The _New York Observer_ relates a remarkable instance of the return of stolen property, which in its extraordinary way can be accounted for only by the control of a Supreme Will, and all in answer to prayer. "On February 16, 1877, United States ... The Storm Made Calm.
At a Sunday morning meeting at Repository Hall, January 25, 1874, a Christian brother, in illustration of the power and faithfulness of God, and his willingness to hear and answer prayer, related these facts in his own experience. An account of th... The Story Of A Wayward Life, Saved By Prayer.
"In the last fourteen years I have stood beside the deathbeds of eight who were near and dear to me, and the last words that each spoke to me as they were leaving the world were, "_Will you not meet me in Heaven_?" I have been a wayward child. Eig... The Swedish Girl Blessed.
A Christian Swedish girl, who had, for three years, done the washing of a certain family, had so interested them by her care of an aged father, and gained their esteem by her humble piety, that, wishing to go to Europe for six months, they offered... The Tavern Keeper Overcome.
Rev. Charles G. Finney relates, in his "Spirit of Prayer," of an acquaintance of his whose faith and importunity in prayer and the answer were very remarkable: "In a town in the northern part of the State of New York, where there was a revival,... The Unbelieving Father Led To Go To Church.
An unbelieving father came home one evening and asked where his little girl was. "She has gone to bed," said his wife. "I'll just go and give her one kiss," said the father, for he loved his little daughter dearly. As he stood at the door of her b... The Wanderer Found.
A mother sent a request for prayer to the Fulton Street prayer-meeting, that she might hear from him who had long ago left home, and wandered far away. She had been praying very earnestly for him, and soon she wrote that she had just heard from hi... The Widow In "want".
A home missionary in Brooklyn, who has an enviable reputation for his entire consecration to the work of helping the poor, one day when engaged in his benevolent works, entered a restaurant, kept by a Christian friend, a man of like spirit with hi... The Widow's Shoes.
A poor woman--a widow with an invalid son--a member of the church, could not attend church, or the neighborhood prayer-meetings, for the want of shoes. She asked the Lord for the shoes. That very day the village school-master called in to see her ... The Widow's Tree
Not many years ago a violent storm, with wind and thunder, spread devastation all through the valley of Yellow Creek, Georgia. For a mile in width, trees were uprooted, barns and fences were prostrated, and all the lands were desolated. Right i... The Widow's Wood And Flour.--the Unbelieving Ones Made Speechless.
The following instance is known to _The Christian_ as true, and to a remarkable degree indicates how thoroughly God knows our minutest needs, and how effectively He makes those who ever reproach his name ashamed of their unbelief. "A friend and... The Wonderful Cure Of Mrs. Sherman.
Although there are so many cases of healing in answer to prayer, yet the incident of the healing of Mrs. Sherman is so minute, and resulted in such a radical change of the physical constitution, that it is necessary to relate it in full detail. It... The Wonderful Power Of Faith And Trust In The Lord To Deliver Wholly
... The Wonders Of A Single Prayer.
The Rev. Dr. Edwin F. Hatfield, of New York City, well known and eminent among the clergymen of the Presbyterian church, is personally acquainted with the following instance of a remarkable case in answer to prayer. From the mother of the daughter... Trust In The Lord.
"A pious woman, who was reduced to extreme poverty and deserted by her intemperate husband, was taken sick, and lay several days without physical power to provide food for her two little children. She had directed them where to find the little tha... Trusting In God's Promises.
"It was a fierce, wild night in March, and the blustering wind was blowing, accompanied by the sharp, sleety snow. It was very desolate without, but still more desolate within the home I am going to describe to you. The room was large and almost b... Two Hundred Dollars Needed And Given At The Last Moment.
"At the time of her husband's death, there were _two hundred dollars_ due an institute, for board and tuition of their two little boys. His death was the flood-gate opened, which let in a successive torrent of perplexities, losses, dilemmas, delay... Under Garments In Answer To Prayer.
Among the students in the Theological Seminary at Princeton, N.J., in 1860, was my intimate friend L----. He was at the time poorly clad, but was a devoted Christian, and is at present a successful foreign missionary. One day when on the Semina... Unexpected Relief.
Henry Badgerow was a man about seventy years of age at the time of the incident, and a resident of Steuben county, State of New York. This was in the year about A.D. 1830-31. He had been for many years an invalid-- so much so that he couldn't walk... Up From The Lowest Depths.
"One year ago I wrote you respecting prayer for my husband. He has since been reclaimed from the lowest depths of a drunkard's life, and is now a member of the Christian church. Thanks be to God, the giver of all good." ... Victories Over Bad Habits, Tobacco, Opium, Etc.
The Rev. W.H. Boole, a city missionary in New York City, has been witness in his ministries, of many cases of complete deliverance from bad habits, and appetites, solely by believing prayer. Many are contained in a little tract written by him, "Th... Was A Perfect Slave To Liquor.
"Please return _thanks_ to our kind Heavenly Father for this answer to prayer. All last Winter requests were sent in for a gentleman, a perfect slave to liquor. Those prayers were answered, and he is attending church regularly, striving to do what... Was It Instantaneous?
"Yes, as respects tobacco; he became convicted of its sinfulness by a voice saying, 'That is not the way to glorify God: stop, and stop now.' And from that moment he says he has never used it, neither does he in any way like the smell, or even the... What The Little Children May Do.
At family prayer, little Mary, one evening when all was silent, looked anxiously in the face of her back-sliding father, who had ceased to pray in his family, and said to him with quivering lips, "Pa, is God dead?" "No, my child--why do you ask ... Why He Failed.
A prominent business man failed in the Spring of 1877. He had been for years a prominent and consistent member of a Christian church. He had even supported a church once almost entirely. Nothing was known against his character, _but he failed; he ... Why, Sir, I Begged.
A little boy, one of the Sunday school children in Jamaica, called upon the missionary and stated that he had lately been very ill, and in his sickness often wished his minister had been present to pray with him. "But, Thomas," said the missiona... Will The Lord Deliver From Bad Habits Of Tobacco, Rum, Liquor,
... Wonderful Conversion Of A Roman Catholic.
A frame dwelling in an alley, two rooms on the first floor, in the smaller one a bed-ridden old colored man, who had fought the battle of life for ninety years, fifteen of them on his bed, with eyes so dimmed by age that he could not even read; an... Wonderful Ways Of The Lord In Guiding His People.
Our missionaries move amidst the reality of scenes which religious fiction vainly strives to equal. Remarkable proofs of genuine and vivid piety, triumphs of patience and grace, lifting their possessors above the most painful and distressing circu...