Part 7 (2/2)
Every week, al vision Such things may be called ”superstitious” by incredulous people, but Ito explain or account for it My own feeling is that I would rather be a the superstitious than the incredulous; for I think that the for by their unbelief
A the people who are alive to spiritual realities these remarkable tokens are not suspected or doubted To believe nothing but what you can understand or account for, is to believe nothing at all Cornish people at that time--and they may still be the same--lived in a spiritual atmosphere, at least in their own county; so much so, that I have often heard them complain, when they returned from the ”shi+res,” of the dryness and deadness they felt there I can certainly set my seal to this testimony, and declare that those of us who had visions in Cornwall have not had theive a few specimens, but only one of a kind, for it would fill the volu or import in some of them or not
At one tiation, and preaching was hard, praying for flat, I invited the people to join with me in prayer, that the Lord would shoas the hindrance in the way of the work They prayed with one accord and without consulting one another, almost in the saes; the substance of their petition was, that we , whatever that obstacle ht I drea very desolate and forsaken; there were very few people there, but soon er, who tried to evadenashed his teeth, and as I approached he drew out a knife and held it out before , when he backed towards the door and went out I followed hiate As soon as he was gone, I saw a troop of happy people, all dressed in white, co like so ladness: they went into the church and began to sing The dreaht scene
I went out the next evening, intending to tell it at the school-rooan to do so, I observed that the people sang more freely than usual, and I also noticed that two men who prayed omitted to offer the usual request for hindrances to be removed When I told my dream, a man arose and said, ”I know all about that; there has been one aood man, but instead of this we have discovered that he wasa deal ofthe faith of soone” Sure enough our old happy freedo and singing, and souls were saved
Another ti a little impatient with the people, I took a leaf out of my Scripture-reader's book, and preached a furious ser the sinner to cut hiht I had done it well, and went ho that I no to , a yeoe, and said, ”Master, what d'yer think? I drea in your pulpit, and that you were delighted at it!” A sudden fear fell uponthe door, begged God's forgiveness; and thanking Hiht reain
As eance, instead of preaching the Gospel, I parted with him
Next, let me tell of a vision which refers to others My sister ca, and said, ”Williain his hand I saw hiain anywhere He alking up the road when you met him, shook hands, and returned with hilass door On the hall table there stood a basket containing four beautiful and fragrant fruits You took up the basket and offered it to the visitor, who, putting his hand upon one, said, 'Oh, thank you!' Then touching the three others in order, said, 'That is for mother, and that for sister, and that for --' I could not hear who You may smile,” she continued, ”but I heard that, and saw it all as plainly as I see you now”
I was accustoht no more about it, but went on to speak of other subjects In the course of the afternoon, as I was going out, Ithe road, and took him back with me to the house; there lass door When he had sat some time and had had soman do you mean?I should not wonder if it is,” I replied; ”We will see presently” He see heard before he cae had taken place in us, and so looked again and again to see if he could detect anything different
”Come and see my sister,” I said; to which he assented, and ent across to her house As soon as we entered her rooht” ”What do youhis hand ”Why, I was on board the steaht”
”That entle? and did not Willia man! he looked dreadfully perplexed ”Never mind her,” I said; ”sit down and tell us about your journey”
After we had talked of this and other subjects, we return home I then told hiiven his heart to God He said he had Not being satisfied, I put the question in another form, and yet remained unsatisfied with his answer ”Do you doubt me?”
he asked: ”I will prove it to you” He then went up to his room for a little while, and returned with a paper in his hand, in which was a dedication of hined and sealed I had never seen an instrument of this kind before, and asked if he really believed in it? ”Yes, certainly,” he replied; ”and I mean it, too”
”But,” I said, ”do you not see that faith does not consist in believing what you write, but in what God has written? The Word says that God is ive: you believe you have given; but do you believe that God has taken? He is far ive it; as surely as you have given, so surely He has taken Cannot you see that?”
He replied, ”I knew that there was so about this, but I did not knohat Thank you! thank you!” Then thoughtfully folding up the paper, he went out of the roo for dinner, but he did not appear; and then for tea, but he declined taking any After we had gone to church, he found his way down and followed us there; and when the service was over he returned again to his rooht, and until two o'clock in thewith anxious souls, and returned ho underthere a few reathi he caht now; I am saved” In his hand he held three letters--one to his mother, one to his sister, and the other to a cousin, in which he invited them earnestly to come to Jesus Within the week all four were in our house, praising God for salvation
As the vision indicated, we had nothing to do but hold the basket to him He accepted it, and the fruit for hist other people and characters I ood, respectable man, who had a remarkable drea about Jacob's ladder, and said that ed him to sit down and tell it toin a beautiful house and place, where we had everything provided fer us, and were free to enjoy ourselves as ed to Satan and that ere his guests As such, ere permitted to take our pleasure upon two conditions--one was, that ere not to pray; and the other that ere not to go away We smiled at this, and said it was not likely we should do the for kind; and less likely that we should do the latter, for why should we be such fools as to forego or give up our enjoyht to myself, What a wonderful dreawomen too, besides: many other people, who hold their worldly happiness on this tenure, and of course from the same master
Well, to continue the story of the dream, he said, ”In the course of time we all becaed to get away, but we could not One of us ht back, and reed to pray at a stated tiht, yet the rest , each in his appointed place I had fixed upon a dark corner in a large deserted roooods we did not care to open
Cli over the top of these stores, I landed on the other side, and went to the spot I had chosen I had not prayed long before I heard , 'I'll teach you to pray'
This ly, and pray all the harder; but hearing that he was very near and co after me, I opened my eyes, and to my surprise there was a beautiful silver ladder beforewith hands and feet upon it, and began to climb for dear life 'Ha!' said master, 'I'll teach you to cli underup I expected every ed back, so I climbed all the faster, and looked up to see howway, and there was only a very san to fail o my hold, till I felt the master's sulphurous breath on the back of my neck, which made me rush forward more veheh the hole, then ether, leavingdown below It was aabout, just as the birds do in this world I saw the Lord Hiive Hi time prostrate He said to rant that that hole er, for I have nineteen friends down there in the power of the cruel e enough' So I awoke”
Where there is a will, there is always a way of sos are really tired of Satan's service, they can easily call upon God to deliver them, and He will most surely do so when He sees they are in earnest This drea thehim to the foot of the cross for mercy and salvation
I noticed that in dreams and visions in Cornwall the Lord Jesus very often appears, and the devil also; these are real persons to the Cornish ed
During the suentle his soul, came to stay with us; and this in spite of his avowed prejudice against us and our proceedings I took this as a token of encouragement, for I was sure that the devil would have hindered his coher power He spent his tireat fun of our h I observed that he was very attentive to hear the ser, while ere sitting in the drawing roo it, he burst into tears and cried out, ”I don't knohat to do; I shall be lost for ever!” We ihted at such opportunities of working for the Lord We knelt down to pray, and as we continued to do so, he fell into great distress, and even agony of soul; he literally writhed as if in excessive pain, too great for utterance, and looked as if he was fainting with the struggle We called all the servants into the roo by the side ofhiht across the roo me aside, said, ”The Lord is here Himself” I rose instantly and ether, adoring