The gospel meeting was over. The preacher invited any who would like to talk to him to remain behind. Among those who stayed was a young man about thirty years old. His face was intelligent; his body appeared strong, but a dark cloud seemed to hang over him.
The preacher went to him and said, “Can you tell me the heart of your trouble? Tell me your problems and I will do what I can to help you.”
“Well, sir,” was the reply, “I suppose you will consider my case desperate. I am an unbeliever—an atheist.”
“But there are some things you believe. You believe the Bible to be the Word of God?”
“No, I do not.”
“You believe Jesus Christ to be the Son of God?”
“No.”
“Well, at least you believe in a God?”
“There may be a God. I can’t say that I believe there is, but there may be. I do not know.”
“Then why are you here? I do not see what you want with me if you do not believe in the Bible, nor in Christ, neither are you sure that there is a God.”
“I wandered in here tonight expecting to hear some fine music. I heard only the congregation singing, but curiosity led me to stay and hear what you had to say. The one impression I got from your sermon was that you believe in something, and that you are happy in that belief. If you can show me the way to believe in anything and how to get happiness in believing, I wish you would. Tell me something to read.”
“You have been reading too much already; that is part of your problem. You are full of the misleading writings of the skeptics. I would have you read only the Bible—the Word of God.”
“But what is the use, when I don’t believe it to be the Word of God?”
Opening his Bible, the preacher read from the gospel of John: “Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of Me. ( John 5:3939Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. (John 5:39).) Now that means that one who honestly searches the Bible will find that it contains the witness to its own divine origin and inspiration, and the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
“Well, I’ll read the Bible, but what else?”
The preacher turned to Matthew 6:66But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. (Matthew 6:6) and read: “Enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. If you sincerely pray to God, He will reveal Himself to you.”
“But what use is it to pray to God if I don’t believe there is a God?”
“Go and pray: ‘O God (if there be a God), save my soul (if I have a soul).’ He will not disregard any genuine effort to draw near to Him.”
“Anything more?”
“Is that all?”
“That is all. Will you promise to do these things?”
They both knelt down, and the preacher prayed earnestly for the young man. They separated, but the preacher continued to pray often for him.
Two weeks later at the close of an evening service the young man came again to the preacher. This time his face was shining with happiness.
“I have found God and Christ,” he exclaimed, “and now I am a happy man!”