The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1894-01-15

uriuk, anu was converted. Inc nephew
belonged to one OF the old families, and
he had come there TO learn trade. He ex-
~pected to take charge OF large business.
He had a great deal of influence with the
working men of large industry there,
and he was converted. One day he came
with a roll OF names that would go clear
across this hall, asking me to speak to the
working men of the place. That great
work in '73was the result OF that meeting
They packed the church with working
men, and the fire of God broke out among
them and swept on for two years. This
was the result of that woman's taking the
attitude she did. Now there are
good many of the whole
families that are perhaps scoffers, and
in your own immediate circle you will see
men going about and saying, "Look out
what you say and don't throw your in
fiuence on the wrong side" You know
1t is very easy to talk about revivals, but
do you know that there is not denomi-
nation that hasn't sprung out of revivals.
The Episcopal church claims to be.
They come from Pentecost don't they?
would like to know where your Metho-
dists come from il they don't come from
the revival under Wesley. And 80 you can
go right on through all the denominations.
venture to say there is many church in
Providence where four-fifths of the MEM
bers were converted during revivals. I
would like to know how many in this an
dience have been convicted during the time
revivals, when there have been some revival
in your church, (Mr. Moody here asked
the people present who had been convert
ed during revival services to stand. There
was a hearty response.) See! Look at
the number that has risen right here. You
can go into your own church and put the
question just that way and you will find
that the most active and leading class
have been converted during revivals.
There was one place where went to hold
meetings, and a young minister took a
very active part in the work. One day
one of his members came to him and said,
"If you are going to hold your
position In the church, you have
got to be very cautious about the
stand you take" He went to the church
roll and took off the names of those who
had been converted during revivals, and
he found that four-fifths of them had
been brought to Christ during such times.
want to say that the heartiest and
strongest Christians come out of revivals,
and great awakenings, and that is what
we want in Providence. You want a re-
vival in business in your bonds and
stocks. You would like TO see them go up
25 or 80 per cent, but tell you we need a
breath of revival in Christianity. May
God show it to us. believe that is what
we will get IL we are dead in earnest.
There was one place where went we to hold
meetings and 1t was given out in the papers
that We were going to stay thirty days.
Now there was lady who was a member
OF one of the churches, and she said, II
don't want my boy brought under the
influence Of those meetings. j am afraid
that he will be brought into the Y. Nj. G.
A., and they will have him on the streets
selling tracts, and it would be very morti-
flying to me to have my son doing such a
thing as that.p She was ambitious for
her boy. She wanted to get him into the
bon-ton society as we call it. So she
planned to take her only boy out
of the city to be gone for
those thirty days. She told her
pastor why she had taken him.. knew
nothing about it. The meetings went
on and just at my right hand sat that
minister, from the beginning to the end,
until the last meeting, when he was alb
sent. Just as the benediction was pro-
nounced and the people were crowding
out, he came rushing in and said he was
SO sorry he had not been there. al have
just been called on one of the saddest
errands Of my life." He told me that that
woman who had taken her son away from
the influence of those meetings had
brought him back that day in his coffin,
and he had just come from the funeral.
That the mother to her dying day never
forgave herself.
My dear friends, be very careful how you
walk just now. We have been praying
God to revive his work, and il it is His
work you cannot afford to join with the
scoffing, jeering people, and talk against
the work of God.
i remember some years ago seeing a
little notice in the paper, and it made a
great impression upon my mind at the
time. 1t was about father taking his
little child out into the field one day. He
laid down under the shade of the tree and
ell asleep. Before he went to sleep the
child was picking wild flowers and grass
and saying, "pretty, pretty" When he
fell asleep the child wandered around and
away from him, and when he woke up his
first thought was, +" Where is my child 2"
He shouted at the top of his voice, and
running to q hill at some distance he
called, but there was no response Finally
he went to the edge of precipice, and
looking down, he saw the mangled form
of his little child. He took il up and ac-
cused himself of being its murderer.
While he slumbered the child had wan
dered away and been lost. have often
thought that was picture of Gods own
dear children going over worse precipice
than that into drunkards' and gamblers
dens, and they are lost before you
know ii. i firmly believe it is much
easier to keep the cars on the track
than to get them back after they have
once been thrown off. Therefore, / would
like to say to you that there is something
more important than just keeping up the
bonds and stocks for your children. Sup
posing you don't leave them so many
thousands of dollars. Isn't 1t better to
leave them n good Christian character?
Isn't IL good deal better for you to let
business suffer for the next 30 days and