In a town in Asia, thousands of miles away from the so. called “Home Land,” there lived a family who desired to spread among the heathen population about them, the unsearchable riches of Christ. The family consisted of the grandmother, husband and wife, and five small children. The two oldest children knew the Lord as their Saviour, and morning by morning, at half past 6 o’clock they met with their father to pray together for the grace needed for each day, and for the salvation of precious souls about them.
The Lord had been working among the native children in this town, and several had openly confessed that they were sinners and that the Lord Jesus was their Saviour, but in this house there was still one dear little girl, who, though she had never been taught to bow down to idols as the little children about her, was nevertheless still a stranger to Him who said, “Suffer the little children to come unto Me and forbid them not for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” Morning by morning the two older children prayed for their little sister Emily. They longed that she, too, might know as they did, the forgiveness of her sins, and how precious their Saviour, the Lord Jesus was. One day all three children took a walk with their father to a cemetery, and seeing the graves, the father explained to his little daughters how God bad raised Jesus up from the dead the third day after He was crucified.
The time came when this parent had to go seven thousand miles away to his old home in America, and was absent many months. It took twenty-six days for him to get a letter from his loved ones, and our young readers may imagine how often he looked for the postman, to see if he had anything from that distant land. One day a letter came from the mother, which gave that far away father much joy. Here is an extract from it:
“The mail is in, and I shall get a letter from you before night, but I want to tell you something right away which will make you very happy. Little Emily, of her own accord, has confessed the Lord very sweetly and simply, and then threw herself into my arms and burst into tears, and when I asked her what she was crying for, she said, ‘Because I am so happy.’ Isabel has had many talks with Emily, and this morning, after prayer, unknown to me, she had been talking to her about her soul, and Emily had said how bad she was, and that she wanted to be a Christian. Isabel went over the gospel with her, and it was after this that she came upstairs and told me how Isabel had been talking to her, and how bad she was. ‘But I am a Christian now Mamma,’ she said, ‘and I am so glad,’ and then she burst into tears. She has exclaimed several times since how happy she is.”
So their prayers have been answered. Enclosed in the same envelope came a letter from Emily’s brother, a boy of seven years. He says, “Since yesterday Emily has been a Christian, and she said to Mamma that she was bad. She says she wants to be baptized and she wants Sunday to come soon, so that she can hear more about the Lord Jesus. We are so happy that Emily is a Christian. Do you like the verse I sent you? I prayed that nothing would happen to you while coming home on the train.” The father’s heart overflowed with joy, but the Lord’s joy was much deeper as He folded the new-born lamb to His bosom. The confession of Emily was read in a large meeting in New York, and the Lord used it to reach the heart of a middle-aged woman, who, hearing Emily’s words of how bad she was, was convinced of her own badness and her own need of a Saviour. A few days afterward, she found Emily’s Saviour, and is now a happy Christian, too.
Dear children, do not refrain from confessing Jesus as your Saviour. His name is a never-failing seed. Let little Emily’s history be an encouragement to you, for Jesus says, “Whoever shall confess Me before men, him will I also confess before My Father which is in heaven.” Matt. 10:3232Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 10:32).
ML 06/28/1903