A Visit To Friends.
"I will hold thee by thy right hand, saying unto thee, fear
not, I will help thee."
"Once I held in my hand an open letter, containing an invitation to
visit friends I had never seen. My heart bounded with pleasure at
thought of the journey, and the pleasant visit to follow; but, on second
thought, it almost stood still--where could I get money and proper
clothing? Several weeks passed
n thought. I could see no way, and so I
wrote my friends I could not come at present; but, in my heart, I could
not give it up. My parents were visiting in the far West, and I had no
one to advise me; so, up in my little room, night after night, I made it
a point to tell the Lord about it; and soon it seemed as easy and right
as though I were talking to a friend. One day, my brother-in-law said he
would pay my expenses to and fro. I thanked him, and took fresh courage,
and still kept on praying. Then the same good brother gave me money for
a dress; then a friend furnished other articles, and soon, I was en
route for the quaint old city by the sea. Every step was accomplished by
the simple way of prayer; and, when I slept, late that night, in a cosy
room at the Methodist parsonage in N.B., I could look back over the last
few weeks, and thank God for the _power of prayer_. But the best of it
all was the lesson I had learned--one which I shall never forget, while
memory holds her magic power--to carry _everything_ to God in prayer; to
trust him in every matter, however small; and this is the whole secret
of the power that lies in prayer."
"I found another lady visitor at my friend's and we were to share the
same bed. This was a little trial; I had to ask the Lord to give me
patience--and He did. One night, I was very restless and nervous; I
could not sleep. I knew I was disturbing my friend--soon she said,
'Annie, I am going to ask the Lord to come and put you to sleep. Now,
lay still, and in five minutes you will be all right'. I did so, also
breathing the words, 'Give me sleep, dear Saviour.' The room seemed to
be full of a soft, soothing influence, and I fell asleep. Once only in
the night I awoke, but soon went asleep. When I awoke in the morning,
rested and refreshed, Tillie, who was dressing near me, looked up with
her pleasant smile and said, 'Annie, how wonderful it was. You were
asleep in less than five minutes. It seemed as though Jesus stood close
by your side; I could _almost see_ Him, I felt so clearly His presence.
He is here now, Annie; can't you feel Him near? He was very good to you
last night.' Yes, indeed, I felt the influence of His presence, and, all
day, whenever I entered the room, I felt it, and it seemed as though I
must tread softly, it was so like holy ground. This feeling lasted
through my stay, and, last Winter, while again visiting the home of my
friends, it all came back to me again. This beautiful influence has ever
kept with me, and I never close my eyes in sleep until I say, 'Oh, Lord,
breathe upon me the sweet spirit of sleep.' However weary, sick or
nervous I may be, I feel that the soothing power will come; and, with my
hand in His, I rest peacefully, at last."