ONE Monday morning, some years ago, there was a telegraphist at work in the west of England. The young man was in deep anxiety about his soul’s salvation. He had been awakened by God’s Spirit, and he was an anxious, troubled man. He knew he was not right. He longed to know Christ as his Saviour.
On the Sunday previous he had gone to three separate places of worship in deep desire that he might hear something to set his anxiety at rest. He got nothing. Monday morning came, after a sleepless night caused by soul-anxiety, and he went to his duties.
Feeling that he would. go mad if he did. not get relief and forgiveness, he was in the act of prayer to God when he heard the peculiar tick-tick that let him know his station was called for.
He went to his instrument, took out his pencil and wrote down the name and address of the sender of the message, and then the name and address of the addressee. Then came the message:—
Repeating the message, he cried, “Thank God, I am saved: I have got it: I see it!”
Telling a friend afterwards, he said, “That ‘LAMB OF GOD,’ that ‘REDEMPTION,’ that ‘BLOOD,’ that ‘RICHES OF HIS GRACE,’ went right down into my poor heart, and no one in the whole world could have had greater joy than I had that Monday morning.”
God caused that telegram to be the means of bringing peace to that young man. What did he do then? He wanted to see to whom the telegram was sent; so, instead of giving it to the telegraph boy to deliver, he went himself with it, so that he might see who was the recipient of the message.
He carried the telegram to a house not far off, and to the young girl who opened the door he said he had a telegram for So-and-so. “Ah! that’s for me,” said the girl. She read it, and found peace also.
Asked the meaning of the telegram, she said she had been anxious about her soul for a fortnight. Her master was not a Christian, but his brother, who was a decided Christian, had been staying at the house for some time. Through his reading of the Scriptures with the family in the mornings and evenings the servant girl had become quite anxious.
In her distress of soul on Sunday afternoon, she made bold to write to her master’s brother, telling him that she was very anxious about her soul, and begging him to kindly write, and tell her what to do to be saved. The Christian man sent the telegram instead of writing. Why? Because God wanted to give the young man peace. God is good. “God is love.” “God is light.” God loves to bless.
And why, think you, is this copy of The Gospel Messenger placed in your hands? Why is it that your eyes are scanning these lines? Because God wants to bless you. Let Him have His blessed way with you here and now.
W. T. P. W.