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 bless me, and in some way he will
give me the means to give, so it is no money lost. Rather it is a
blessing to my heart to keep it open in gratitude, a blessing to dispose
of it
favor with me."
The results of his experience were blessed indeed, as he said, "I never
realized before how closely the Lord is connected with all my interests,
and how he helps me in all my business plans. Things happen constantly
which show me constantly that some one who knows more than I is
benefiting me--protecting me. Bad debts have been paid which I did not
expect. Errand boys, just getting into sly and bad habits, have been
discovered ere their thefts had proceeded far. As I needed competent
help in my business, it has come just as it was wanted. When customers
were failing, somehow their debts to me were paid, although they failed
to pay others. A severe fire came to my office and apparently seemed to
have swept all my valuables away. But it was stopped at just the right
moment, and not one thing valuable was lost. The insurance companies
paid me enough to replace every damage, and the office was renewed
better than before. The Lord sends me business enough to pay for my
debts, yet others are dull. _I cannot tell why it is, except that I
always pray for my business, and ask the Lord to bless it for the good
of others_, and that the means which come from it may be used for his
cause. When I stop giving, business stops coming. When I stop praying
specially for it, perplexities arise. As long as I pray for it, it all
moves easily, and I have no care or trouble. The Lord is my Banker, my
Helper, my Insurer, my Deliverer, my Patron, and my Blessed Savior of
temporal things as well as spiritual."
More
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The Enemies Of A God Fearing Nation.
"An answer to prayer," says Le Clerc, "may be seen by what happened on the coast of Holland in the year 1672. The Dutch expected an attack from their enemies by sea, and public prayers were ordered for their deliverance. It came to pass that when ... The Faith Life Of Mr. Zeller.
After the death of Dorothea Trudel, the work at Maennedorf, instituted by her, has been furthered and carried on by Mr. Samuel Zeller, who had been her associate. He has published two reports, which contain many instances of answers to prayer, sho... The Faith Of A Little Child.
An incident most beautiful was told in the Fulton Street prayer meeting by a converted Jew. "Journeying in the cars, I was attracted by two little girls, Jewesses. I asked them if they loved Jesus. To my surprise, they said they did. I found th... The Faith Of Dorothea Trudel.
The life of Dorothea Trudel has afforded some remarkable instances of answer to prayer; during the years 1850 to 1860, at the Swiss village of Maennedorf, near the Lake of Zurich, and that of Molltingen, were seen and witnessed, cases of cure in r... The Five-dollar Gold Piece.
"'A friend,' says a venerable clergyman, Rev. Mr. H----, 'at a time when gold was scarce, made me a present of a five-dollar gold piece. I resolved not to spend it, and for a long time carried it in my pocket as a token of friendship. In riding ab... The God Who Supplied Elijah By A Raven Supplied Me With Fish.
One of the most beautiful instances ever known, which almost identically repeats the Bible over again, especially in the instance of Elijah as he was fed in an unseen way by the hand of God, is given in the life of Mr. Huntington. He was wholly un... The Great Physician.
"Nearly five years ago, after a decline of almost two years, I was brought very near to the grave. Medical aid availed nothing. I was fearfully emaciated, and my death was daily expected. A devoted mother and a sister, who had watched over me tend... The Greatest Of Physicians.
Miss X. of Brooklyn, had suffered long and severely from a distressing tumor. One physician after another had plied his skill, but to no purpose; even the celebrated Doctor Simms of New York, corroborated their verdict, that there was no help for ... The Hardest Heart Yields At Last.
"Several years since your prayers were solicited in behalf of one who seemed given over to hardness of heart and reprobacy of mind. Since that time there has been some reform in his life. God only knows how far those prayers have been answered in ... The Healing Of Mary Theobald.
The following incident is related by her pastor, at Woburn, Mass., who, for three and a half years, was well acquainted with her physical condition, and who testified, in _The Congregationalist_, that no medicine, or physician's aid or advice, was... The Heart Of A Clergyman Turned From Thoughts Of Ambition.
"I sent a request to you for a young man, who was called, and eminently fitted for the ministry, but was tempted, by ambition, not to listen to the divine call, and obstacles had hedged his way somewhat. After I requested your prayers in his behal... 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...