God Paid The Rent - Answer To Prayer.
A poor Christian family were in distress. The husband, during a long and
painful sickness, had borne his trials for months with cheerful
Christian resignation; "but, on this day," said a City Missionary, "I
found them, for the first time, in tears. The cause I soon learned was
the want of means to pay the rent of their little home, which would come
due on the following Monday, and must be paid then, or they would have
o leave and go they knew not where. The amount needed, _fifteen
dollars_, and the amount in hand but _fifty cents;_ the future all dark,
and no hope of recovery from sickness, and no hope of being able to meet
their expenses--it might be of a long sickness and want--what could I do
for them? If theirs had been the only case of like wants that day, I no
doubt could have gone to a few friends and have collected the amount.
But that would not do them the good I felt they needed. But I felt sure
of a better way to get it, and lead them to trust in the Lord, and
glorify God and not man.
"On the wall, at the foot of the sick man's bed, I had hung, but a short
time previous, one of those precious silent comforters, a scroll of
Scripture texts, printed in large type, and a different prayer for every
day in the month. On the page before us for _that day_, after calling
their attention to it, I read the following words: '_And all things
whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer believing, ye shall receive_.' Matt.
21:22. 'Again I say unto you, _that if two of you shall agree on earth
as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them_.
Matt. 18:9; remarking, 'Are not those precious promises? Your fears,
dear brother and sister, are that you will not be able to pay the rent
on Monday, and may be turned out into the street, unless you get the
means to pay the rent; are they not?' 'That is so,' said they. 'There
are two ways: one, to try to get some one to lend you the amount until
you can pay, if the landlord will not wait; another, to go and beg for
it.' I have learned a better way, and wish I could lead you to do the
same. Do as David did. Have you ever gone to the Lord as directed above,
and found in Him, as David did, a very present help in time of trouble?
Would not your faith and confidence in God's word and in his kind,
overruling providence be more strengthened, if, in going to Him now and
making known your present troubles and wants, He should in a way,
without your making known your wants to any other person, on Monday
enable you to pay all?' The answer was, 'We should.'
"After prayer and encouragement to do so, I left them, with the promise
to call the following Tuesday. Doing so, I was met at the door by the
wife with a countenance full of joy. '_Oh, brother, we could not wait
until you came, to tell you the wonderful answer to our prayer_. On
Monday, _the very day_ that we had to pay the rent, one gentleman came
and handed my husband _five dollars_, and early in the morning Mrs.
F---- called and handed me _ten dollars_, making in all _just fifteen
dollars_, the amount we needed; was it not wonderful? Oh, how good the
Lord is!' The same week another called and gave them an order for fifty
dollars more, so that they were able to pay up all their debts, and the
sudden joy soon led to a speedy restoration to health, and the husband
is now one of the most active Christian workers and teachers in a
mission school, and the wife and daughter are also trying to do all they
can to lead others to trust in Jesus."