History of the Building of the Five New Orphan Houses, 1845–1870 (part 3 of 4)

November 12th. The long looked for, and long prayed for, day had now arrived, when the desire of my heart was granted to me, to be able to open the New Orphan House No. 2, for 400 additional Orphans. Much had I laboured in prayer and active engagements to accomplish what was to be done, previously; and now things were so far advanced, as that the new house was ready for use; and a few days after we began to receive the children into it. How precious this was to me, will be understood by those who, having day by day prayed for a blessing for seven years, and often repeatedly on the same day, at last obtain the desire of their heart. Yet this blessing came not unexpectedly to me, but had been looked for, and had, in the full assurance of faith, been expected in God's own time. In connection with this I also mention, that, for several years previously, yea, years before a stone had been laid for the building, I had daily asked God, that He would be pleased, by His providential government, and by the working of His Holy Spirit, to fit and qualify helpers for the work: and now, when the house was ready, the helpers also were ready, so that, without advertising, they were obtained. Thus these thousands of prayers reaped a precious harvest in this particular also.

Receives more than the £35,000 prayed for

I now relate further how the Lord was pleased to supply me with means, and how at last He gave me the amount needed for accomplishing fully the intended enlargement of the Orphan work, not for 400 only, but for 700 additional Orphans.

January 19th. Received £3,000, which was left to my disposal. I took of it for the Building Fund £600.

February 16th. Received £800, and from another donor £700. Both these donations were left at my disposal, to be used as might appear best to me for the Lord's work. Of the £800 I took therefore for the Building Fund £200. Of the £700 I took for the Building Fund £200.

February 17th. From a servant of the Lord Jesus, who, constrained by the love of Christ, seeks to lay up treasure in heaven, £245.—As far as I am able to judge, I have now all that is required in the way of pecuniary means for the third house also, so that I am able to accomplish the full enlargement of the Orphan work to one thousand Orphans.

Pause, esteemed reader! Nearly seven years had I been, day by day, asking the Lord for the needed means, to carry out the desire of my heart, concerning the thousand Orphans. Not a single day had elapsed since first I began to pray for means, in which I had not been enabled, in the full assurance of faith that it would be granted, to bring my request before God, and generally I had prayed more than once a day concerning this matter. When I began my request for means, viz. to entreat the Lord to give me £35,000, I knew well what difficulty there was in the way of my obtaining this sum, looking at it naturally. I am too calm, too calculating a person, too much in the habit of weighing all the difficulties of a case, to be carried away by excitement or imagination. I knew I had no ground naturally to expect this large sum. For months, therefore, I had not prayed at all for means for this enlargement, but had only asked the Lord to show me very clearly whether it was His will that I should go forward; but, having once come fully to this conclusion, on the grounds stated, I was as certain that the Lord would give me all I needed, as if I had had the money already in hand. When in November, 1845, contrary to all my former desires, I was led, as by an unseen hand, to decide upon leaving the four rented houses, and to build the New Orphan House No. 1 for 300 children, it was considered strange that I should think of enlarging the work from 120 to 300 Orphans, when for years previously I had had almost habitually to wait upon the Lord day by day for daily supplies. Yet so it was, that the Lord gave me all I needed for the Building Fund, although that was no less than £15,055 3s. 2¼d, and I had £776 14s. 3¾d. more than I required. Moreover, all the current expenses were met in the meantime, and we were able to begin housekeeping at the New Orphan House No. 1 with about £500 in hand, whilst, before I had thought about building that large house, we had had very rarely as much as £100 in hand, and very often scarcely 100 pence. So this time, whilst the means for the Building Fund were coming in, I had to meet the current expenses from May 26th, 1851, to February 17th, 1858, being altogether £51,919 19s. 6½d. See, esteemed reader, how unbelief is put to shame, and natural reasoning is confounded.

Up to May 26th, I had received for the intended enlargement of the Orphan work, to be able to accommodate 1,000 Orphans instead of 300, the sum of £35,335 9s. 3d., being actually £335 9s. 3d. more than I had been from the commencement praying for. Let this encourage the reader!

For some time previous to May 26th, I had judged it to be far better to keep the ground belonging to the Orphan Houses free from buildings, and to purchase land for the intended third house.

Regarding this I waited day by day upon God, but for many months it pleased Him to exercise my faith and patience. When more than once I seemed to have obtained my desire, I again appeared further from it than ever. However, I continued to pray and to exercise faith, being fully assured that the Lord's time was not yet come, and that, when it was, He would help. And so it proved.

At last, in September, I obtained 11½ acres of land, quite close to the New Orphan Houses No. 1 and No. 2, and only separated from them by the road. On these 11½ acres of land a house was built. The price for house and land was £3,631 15s., being more money than I should have seen it right to expend on the site, had it not been of the utmost importance that the third house should be quite near the other two, to facilitate the superintendence and direction of the establishment. Thus, at last, this prayer also was answered, concerning which I had been waiting upon God for so many months.

Having now obtained land, and so much, my desire was to make the best use of it, and to build for 400 Orphans, instead of for 300, as I had previously purposed to do. After having had several meetings with the architects, and finding that it was possible to accommodate with comparatively little more expense 450 Orphans, instead of 400, I finally determined on that number, so as to have eventually 1,150 Orphans under my care, instead of 1,000, as for several years previously had been contemplated. The greatness of the number of destitute children, bereaved of both parents by death—together with the greatness of the Lord's blessing, which had during all the many years previously rested upon my service in this way—and the greatness of the Lord's help in giving me assistants and helpers in the work as well as means; and, above all, the deep realization that I have but one life to spend for God on earth, and that that one life is but a brief life:—These were the reasons which led me to this further enlargement. To this determination of a still further enlargement, I came solely in dependence upon the living God for help, though the increase of expense for the Building Fund, on account of the purchase of the land, and accommodation to be built for the additional 150 Orphans, more than had been from the beginning contemplated, would not be less than from £6,000 to £7,500 more than I had originally expected the total of the premises, which were to be erected, would cost; and though, in addition to this, the yearly additional expenditure for the maintenance of these 150 Orphans, beyond the intended number of 1,000, could not be less than £1,800 a year. But none of these difficulties discouraged me.

It will now be interesting to the reader to see how the Lord dealt with me, since I came to this decision. I therefore go on to refer to at least a few of the donations, which came in for the Building Fund after October 29th, 1858.

January 4th. Received £7,000, which, being entirely left at my disposal, I took £4,000 for the Building Fund.

January 6th. From an anonymous donor at Manchester £300, with the very kind promise to send me £000 more, in the course of this year, for the Building Fund.

February 1st. Received £1,700, the application of which being left entirely to myself, I took for the Building Fund £400.—Received likewise this day £1,000, of which I took for the Building Fund £300.

February 8th. From a servant of the Lord Jesus, who, constrained by the love of Christ, seeks to lay up treasure in heaven, £245.

May 26th. Up to this day has been received, towards the enlargement of the Orphan Work, the sum of £41,911 15s. 11d. The plans of the building of No. 3 are all completed, and in a few weeks it is expected that the building will be commenced, God willing.

July 11th. The building of the New Orphan House No. 3 has commenced.—Received from A. B., anonymously, £400.

December 31st.—From Lancashire, £300.

January 1st. From Lancashire £200.

January 31st. Received £3,000, left entirely at my disposal, to be used for the various Objects of the Institution. I took, therefore, £500 for the Building Fund.

May 16th. From a servant of the Lord Jesus, who, constrained by the love of Christ, seeks to lay up treasure in heaven, £270.—May 22nd. Out of a donation of £2,700, left at my disposal, £200 was taken for the Building Fund.

April 9th. Received anonymously, a gold ring set with five diamonds and two sapphires, a gold necklet with locket, a gold locket brooch, a gold pencil case, a gold cross, anchor and heart, a silver vinaigrette, and a pair of silver bracelets.

May 26th. Up to this day had been received for the enlargement of the Orphan work, the sum of £46,660 17s. 3d., so that the amount first prayed for was exceeded by £11,660 17s. 3d. The reader will have, therefore, in this a fresh proof of the blessedness of committing our matters, great and small, temporal and spiritual, into the hands of our Heavenly Father, waiting patiently for the answer to our prayers. We did not obtain the answer to our prayers at once. Thousands of times, many thousands of times, our request had to be repeated before our Heavenly Father, and faith and patience were exercised year after year, before the full answer regarding this matter was granted; but at last our prayers were not only answered to the full, but £11,660 17s. 3d. more was received than had been at first asked for.

The completion of the New Orphan House No. 3 was several months later than had been expected, not on account of anything over which I had control; in this I recognized the hand of God, and therefore felt that it became me to seek to glorify Him by patient submission, being assured, that, as the work was His and not mine, and as He cared far more for the good of the Orphans who were waiting to be admitted than I did, He would allow me, in His own time, the joy and privilege of opening the New House for the reception of these destitute children. And thus it was, after faith and patience had been abundantly exercised, [it was opened on March 12th, 1862.]

Reasons for further enlargement of the work

May, 1861. It is now ten years since, as by an unseen hand, I was led to the further enlargement of the Orphan work. The exercise of spirit I passed through, and the reasons which finally led me to that enlargement of the work from 300 to 1,000 Orphans, and which, in 1858, was finally still further extended to 1,150, may be fully seen from page 262 to 271. I have now to inform the reader, that, as ten years ago, so again during the last months, day by day, my spirit has been exercised about a still further enlargement of the Orphan work, so that there should not only be 1,150 destitute children cared for, but 2,000; and that still further premises should be built, as two separate establishments, for 850 more Orphans, being a fourth and fifth Orphan House, in addition to the three already built. The reasons which, after daily prayer for guidance, self-examination, and looking steadfastly at all the many difficulties connected with this further enlargement, have finally decided me, are the following:—

(1) The longer I go on in this service, and the more it becomes known, the greater is the number of destitute children, bereaved of both parents by death, who are applied for to be admitted into the Orphan Houses under my direction. Almost daily, fresh cases are brought before me, and sometimes three or four or more at once; and it is not a rare thing, that in each such case there are three, four, or even more young children. I am, therefore, willing to be yet further the servant of the Lord in this particular work, although I am unworthy, most unworthy, that He should condescend thus to use me.

(2) But that which at first especially was used by the Lord to direct my mind to this further enlargement, was not only the greatness of the number of applications for Orphans in general, but for boys in particular. The reasons which have led me to care for girls to a greater extent with regard to numbers, than for boys, are these: (a) Girls are the weaker sex, and therefore call more particularly for Christian sympathy. (b) If neglected, they are still more exposed to the danger of being utterly ruined, (c) Girls we have employment for, and can keep them without difficulty till they are eighteen years of age, whilst boys need to be apprenticed when fourteen. But I have generally found, that the age from fourteen to eighteen is the most important in young persons, with regard to their spiritual state. They are, if cared for, at that age, generally speaking, more in earnest about the things of God, than when younger. This has been my experience during the past 27 years, though God has made numberless exceptions during the last three years, while His Holy Spirit has been so mightily at work; and we ourselves have had very many children brought to the knowledge of the Lord, before they were fourteen years old.—Because, then, girls are the weaker sex, and are still more exposed than boys to utter ruin if neglected, and we can easily keep them till they are eighteen years of age, I was led more especially to care for them. But now, having to a considerable extent, by the help of God, been enabled to provide for them, I was led to consider whether something more might not be done for boys also, to prevent, if possible, the necessity of refusing the boys of a family, when the girls could be received. I do not mean to say that the whole of the intended enlargement is for boys, yet a part, at least, should be appropriated to them. Though, then, my mind has been, and is still, led more particularly to care for girls, yet the desire to provide for boys also, to a greater extent than hitherto, was that which, in the first instance, particularly led my mind to this further enlargement.

(3) The third reason which has led me to this enlargement is, the entirely inadequate accommodation in the Orphan Institutions already in existence in the United Kingdom. If they were multiplied many times, yet would there be an abundance of destitute Orphans to fill them. But even if there were room in them, which is not the case, still, the existing rules of admission by votes, which are in use in most of them, make it difficult, if not impossible, for the poorest and most destitute persons to avail themselves of them.

(4) In intimate connection with this latter point stands the question, What is to become of the Orphans, who are left destitute, if they cannot be received into Orphan Houses, for want of room, or on account of the voting system? There remain the Unions, it may be answered. Yes; but have you considered, esteemed reader, what the moral and spiritual state of the Unions is? Vice abounds in them, on account of the kind of inmates, who, generally speaking, are found there.* For this reason, and justly so, many of the respectable, and especially the religious poor, cannot bear the idea that their nephews, or nieces, or grandchildren, who are Orphans, should go to a Union. So they would rather keep them, though themselves most poor. But the result is, generally speaking, they can neither provide for them the necessary food, nor proper education; and the end is often an early grave for want of proper food; or a neglected, uncultivated mind and heart. By the help of God, I will seek, therefore, yet further to be the Orphan's friend, and have not only accommodation for 1,150, but for 2,000.

(5) In addition to these reasons, the physical, mental, and spiritual benefit, which many Orphans have derived during a quarter of a century, from being under our care, has weighed especially with me, in seeking, to the utmost of my power, to extend my services still further in this particular.

(6) In connection with the foregoing reasons stands also the fact, that the Lord has been pleased to give me gift for this work. I do not take credit to myself for this. There is not the least honour due to me on account of it. The germ was first implanted by the Lord, and He caused it to grow and to increase. The gift which He has been pleased to impart, for such service, was used at first, while the work was small; for I began with 30 Orphans. Afterwards were added 36 more, and then after a year again 30 more, and finally after the lapse of several years 30 more. Thus, for above 13 years, the number of Orphans under my care never exceeded 126; but then it grew to 300, with the opening of the New Orphan House No. 1, and with the opening of No. 2 to 700; and now, with God's blessing, it will shortly be 1,150. Thus, with the enlargement of the work, the gift, which the Lord had been pleased to give me, was further and further developed, as the whole work grew up under my sole and immediate direction.

Now, as I said, while there is not the least honour due to me for all this, as God called me for the work, fitted me for it, has sustained me in it, and caused my experience to grow with the work; yet, on the other hand, I feel responsibility laid on me, still further, to the utmost of my power, to make use of this gift and experience, and therefore to enlarge the work, as here proposed.

(7) I am further encouraged to enlarge the work, by the help which the Lord has given me regarding assistants.

(8) The pecuniary help, which the Lord has given me hitherto, is another voice as from Himself to me, to go forward. To pass by the former enlargements of the work, I will only refer to the last great enlargement, first contemplated by me at the end of 1850. The state of the Institution was then such, that the expenditure for all the various Objects thereof amounted to about £6,000 a year. To obtain this sum, year by year, simply by prayer and faith, without regular subscribers, without agents for collecting, without asking any one, without any visible prospect whatever, seemed a large sum indeed, looking at it naturally. But, by this contemplated enlargement, when carried out, the expenses would not be only £6,000, but £15,000 a year. Many were startled by it. And so should I have been, had I simply looked at matters with natural reasoning power; but I looked to the Lord, and to Him alone. I trusted not in circumstances; I trusted not in donors, nor even in donors who gave largely.

And now, how have matters been, and how has the Lord dealt with His servant who trusted in Him? Has He said by His dealings with him, thou hast been presumptuous; or, thou hast expected too much from Me? Nay, the very reverse. Hear, esteemed reader, how I have fared. During the 17 years which had elapsed since the formation of the Institution, before the contemplation of this great enlargement of the Orphan work, the total of the income for the various Objects of the Institution had been £40,000; but since then, during 10 years only, it has been about £150,000. See how unbelief has been put to shame. Thus, by what God has done hitherto, I am encouraged to go forward, to this still greater enlargement, though without any natural prospect whatever of obtaining the means needed. But my hope is in God, and in Him alone. The premises contemplated for 850 more Orphans cannot cost with the ground less than £50,000, especially as a large field for cultivation by the boys will be required. Now, whence shall I get this £50,000, especially when it is considered that, in the mean time, the amount needed for the current expenses will be at least £20,000 year by year? And how, natural reason would say, will you be able to keep up the work, provided you were able to accomplish the building, as then the regular current expenses would amount to about £35,000 a year? I feel the force of all this, looking at it naturally. I am not a fanatic or enthusiast, but, as all who know me are well aware, a calm, cool, quiet, calculating business man; and therefore I should be utterly overwhelmed, looking at it naturally; but as the whole of this work was commenced, and ever has been gone on with, in faith, trusting in the living God alone for everything, so it is also regarding this intended enlargement. I look to the Lord alone for helpers, land, means, and everything else needed. I have pondered the difficulties for months, and have looked steadily at every one of them; but faith in God has put every one of them aside.

(9) But the following consideration operates with me more powerfully than all the previous eight reasons, which I have given, for the contemplated enlargement. When I began the Orphan work in 1835, my chief object was the glory of God, by giving a practical demonstration as to what could be accomplished simply through the instrumentality of prayer and faith, in order thus to benefit the Church of God at large, and to lead a careless world to see the reality of the things of God, by showing them, in this work, that the living God is still, as 4,000 years ago, the living God. This my aim has been abundantly honoured. Multitudes of sinners have been thus converted, multitudes of the children of God in all parts of the world have been benefited by this work, even as I had anticipated. But the larger the work has grown, the greater has been the blessing, bestowed in the very way in which I looked for blessing; for the attention of hundreds of thousands has been drawn to the work; and many tens of thousands have come to see it.

All this leads me to desire further and further to labour on in this way, in order to bring yet greater glory to the name of the Lord. That He may be looked at, magnified, admired, trusted in, relied on at all times, is my aim in this service, and so particularly in this intended enlargement. That it may be seen how much one poor man, simply by trusting in God, can bring about by prayer; and that thus other children of God may be led to carry on the work of God in dependence upon Him, and that children of God may be led increasingly to trust in Him in their individual positions and circumstances, therefore I am led to this further enlargement.

(10) Much, however, as the nine previous reasons weigh with me, yet they would not decide me, were there not one more. It is this. After having for months pondered the matter, and having looked at it in all its bearings, and with all its difficulties, and then having been finally led, after much prayer, to decide on this enlargement, my mind is at peace. The child who has again and again besought his Heavenly Father not to allow him to be deluded, nor even to make a mistake, is at peace, perfectly at peace, concerning this decision; and has thus the assurance that the decision come to, after much prayer during weeks and months, is the leading of the Holy Spirit; and therefore purposes to go forward, assuredly believing that he will not be confounded, for he trusts in God. Many and great may be his difficulties; thousands and tens of thousands of prayers may have to ascend to God, before the full answer may be obtained; much exercise of faith and patience may be required; but, in the end, it will again be seen, that His servant, who trusts in Him, has not been confounded.

The Christian reader will now feel interested in learning how the Lord was pleased to deal with me, in reference to this contemplated enlargement of the Orphan work; and I refer, therefore, to some of the donations which came in towards this object, and shall, periodically, give the totals which were received.

July 17th. From a servant of the Lord Jesus, who, constrained by the love of Christ, seeks to lay up treasure in heaven, £30.

August 15th. The first letter I opened contained an order from Chelmsford for £100, for "The Orphan Institution," the application of which was left to my discretion. I took, therefore, this £100 for the Building Fund, as God's answer to my prayers.

November 15th. Received £150 from a donor who sent only a week since £150.

Large Donations

January 11th. I had again had my usual long season for prayer this evening for all the various Objects of the Institution, and a variety of subjects in connection with them, as also for individuals for whom I daily pray, and amidst other things, also asked the Lord again for means for the Building Fund, when, about half an hour afterwards, I found at my house a cheque for £2,000, with the following lines: "I enclose cheque, value £2,000, which accept with my best love and the expression of my heartfelt thankfulness to God for the privilege of being fellow-helper in the work of caring for Orphans. I would like it to be applied towards the building you propose (D.V.) erecting. I shall consider as though I had £1,000 in each building; but you are at liberty to use the whole for the first, if you wish. Inasmuch as it is done to the Lord, I know it is well spent."

January 14th. Received £2,000 left at my disposal, of which £800 was placed to the Building Fund.

January 28th. Received £2,500, the disposal of which being left to me, I took £1,000 for the Building Fund.—February 8th. From a servant of the Lord Jesus, who, constrained by the love of Christ, seeks to lay up treasure in heaven, £290.

May 26th. The total amount received for this contemplated enlargement of the Orphan work, from May 26th, 1861, to May 26th, 1862, is £6,598 11s. 5½d.

September 3rd. From Upper Norwood, £300. Almost daily fresh cases come before me of a distressing character, so that I long to be able to provide more accommodation for Orphans, and especially for boys, as we have not been able to hold out any hope for even the twentieth part of the boys, who, within the last three years, have been applied for.

January 15th. From Hong Kong £25.—January 28th. Received also £1,200, of which, being left entirely at my disposal, I took £400 for the Building Fund.

February 2nd. From Moulmein, Burmah, 50 rupees.—February 10th. Received £1,000, of which, being left at my disposal, I took £400 for the Building Fund.—February 18th. From a servant of the Lord Jesus, who, constrained by the love of Christ, seeks to lay up treasure in heaven, £145.

July 31st. During the last two months and five days only £161 11s. 4d. has been received towards the Building Fund. At this rate, it would be a very long time before I should be able to take active measures towards the contemplated enlargement of the Orphan work. But I am not discouraged.

August 12th. From a ship-owner, who, instead of insuring his vessels, gives the amount, which he would have to pay, to the work of God, £50.—August 14th. Received £90, with the following letter:—

Dear Sir,

"Enclosed you will find a cheque for ninety pounds for the Building Fund, from a friend of mine, who is giving a seventh of his property to the support of the cause of Christ.

"Yours in the Lord, ——."

September 3rd. From Birmingham £100. From Essex £100, with £100 for the Orphans, and the following letter:—

Beloved Brother in Christ,

"I have to fulfil what has long been on my mind, but I lacked opportunity. A dear sister of mine, both in the flesh and in the Lord, died nearly 11 years since, leaving me, by her Will, 10 acres of pasture land; but I was to pay to surviving relatives £200, an annuity to a faithful servant, and £200 to you, for the benefit of the Orphan Establishment. At that time I had no funds to fall back upon; but, by a hard struggle, I managed to pay the money which could be lawfully demanded of me, and have kept up the annuity to this time. When the Will came into the hands of the Proctor, he immediately decided that the £200 to the Institution would be null and void, owing to the Mortmain Act. This suited me well at the time, for reasons already stated, having exhausted what little money I had, in paying other lawful demands; but I thought, probably there would come a day when I might manage to pay the other. Up to this year, however, I have never had £200 I could call my own; but in May last an aged relative died, leaving me the residue of her property, after paying more than 20 legacies. Having nearly paid them all, I have felt at liberty to-day to send you the £200, which my dear sister intended you to have, more than 10 years since, and it will be some relief or comfort to my mind to know you have received it safely. I think it might be taken £100 for the Orphans, and £100 for the Building Fund, unless you like to divide it differently."

I have given this letter on account of the grace manifested by the Christian donor, who, without being in the least bound to do so, pays the £200 the first moment he can, that thus he might carry out the intention of that godly sister of his, who more than ten years since entered into her rest.

November 18th. From a servant of the Lord Jesus, who, constrained by the love of Christ, seeks to lay up treasure in heaven, £50.—December 2nd. From Birmingham £100.

Exhortation to perseverance in prayer

Thus I saw the close of another year, with reference to this part of the work. The full answer to my daily prayers was far from being realized; yet there was abundant encouragement granted by the Lord, to continue in prayer. But suppose, even, that far less had come in than was received, still, after having come to the conclusion, upon scriptural ground, and after much prayer and self-examination, as stated at full length before, I ought to have gone on without wavering, in the exercise of faith and patience concerning this Object; and thus all the children of God, when once satisfied that anything which they bring before God in prayer is according to His will, ought to continue in believing, expecting, persevering prayer, until the blessing is granted. Thus am I myself now (viz. in 1864) waiting upon God for certain blessings, for which I have daily besought Him for 19 years and 6 months, without one day's intermission. Still the full answer is not yet given concerning the conversion of certain individuals, though, in the meantime, I have received many thousands of answers to prayer. I have also prayed daily, without intermission, for the conversion of other individuals about ten years, for others six or seven years, for others four, three, and two years, for others about eighteen months; and still the answer is not yet granted, concerning these persons: whilst, in the meantime, many thousands of my prayers have been answered, and also souls converted, for whom I had been praying. I lay particular stress upon this, for the benefit of a certain class of readers, who may suppose that I need only to ask God, and receive at once; or that I might pray concerning anything, and the answer would surely come. One can only expect to obtain answers to prayers which are according to the mind of God; and even then, patience and faith may be exercised for many years, even as mine are exercised, in the matter to which I have referred; and yet am I daily continuing in prayer, and expecting the answer, and so certainly expecting the answer that I have often thanked God that He will surely give it, though now for 19 years and 6 months faith and patience have thus been exercised. Be encouraged, dear Christian reader, with fresh earnestness to give yourself to prayer, if you can only be sure that you ask for things which are for the glory of God.

January 2nd. From Birmingham £100.—January 30th. Above eight months have passed away since May 26th, 1863, and though generally daily donations have been received towards the Building Fund, yet the total amount received during these eight months amounts only to £2,018. Were I to reason, naturally, under such circumstances, I should be greatly discouraged; for it would take about seventeen years, after this rate, before the whole £50,000 which is required for the Building Fund would be obtained. That which comforts me is the consideration that God can give in a short time not only larger sums, but even by one donation the whole amount which is required. I therefore, without the least discouragement, continue my supplications, being assured that the Lord will, in His own time and way, give me the whole amount needed.

Gift of £2,200

February 24th. Received £2,200, which being kindly left at my disposal, I took £1,100 for the Building Fund.

February 26th. From a Christian Merchant £20, with £50 for the Orphans, £10 for Missions, £10 for the Bible Fund, £5 for the Tract Fund, and £5 for myself, with the following interesting communication:—"You will notice, dear brother, that I am sending you much more than hitherto. I some time ago made the resolution to increase my contribution for the Lord's work, on a percentage, increasing with increased receipts, following the examples named in your Reports; and the Lord so blessed me last year that I have had to ascend four steps in the scale I had laid down at a time when I little thought I should ever use the higher amounts. I merely notice this for your comfort, as you may like to know it as the result of reading your Reports."

Many of the children of God lose in a great measure the privilege, and also the blessing to their own souls, of communicating to the Lord's work, and to the necessities of the poor, for want of a regular habit of giving.

February 29th. I have not been allowed to have a shadow of doubt as to whether God can or will give me the means; but day by day, in the full assurance of faith, I renew my requests before God; and generally day by day the amount of the Building Fund is to a greater or less degree increased. I then give thanks, and ask for more: and as the days come I look out for answers to my prayers. During the month of February alone, there came in £2,815. Thus the Lord showed that, when He is pleased to work, it is not necessary that a very long period should elapse, but that by a few donations, yea, by one, if He pleased, He could give me the whole amount yet needed. I therefore went on, day by day, renewing my requests, with thanksgiving for what He had given me already.

March 1st. From a servant of the Lord Jesus, who, constrained by the love of Christ, seeks to lay up treasure in heaven, £148.

April 2nd. From Birmingham £100.—May 3rd. From Birmingham £100.

May 26th. From a servant of the Lord Jesus, who, constrained by the love of Christ, seeks to lay up treasure in heaven, £120. On May 26th, 1864, there was in hand for the Building Fund £19,321 7s. 1½d. towards the £50,000 required. I do not mean to wait till I have the whole £50,000 needed for the contemplated enlargement, but to take steps towards the erection of No. 4, if God will, when there shall be about £25,000 in hand, that is, when I shall have about £5,700 more than I have now.

June 2nd. From Birmingham, £100.—July 5th. From Birmingham £100.—August 3rd. From Birmingham £100.—August 19th. From Greenock £100.—September 2nd. From Birmingham £100. From J. C. £50.—September 17th. "From the estate of the late Miss C. H., through her brother T. H., Esq.," £1,000. T. H., Esq., desires to spend the property of his departed sister, as he considers she would approve of, were she still living, and therefore sends this £1,000 for the Building Fund.—Day by day I am waiting upon the Lord for means to be able to take active steps in this part of the work, and I need not say, therefore, how seasonable and precious this donation was. But I confidently expect, in the Lord's time and way, the whole amount yet needed.

October 3rd. From Birmingham £100.—October 14th. From a shipowner, instead of insuring his vessels, £100, with £100 for Missions. —November 2nd. From Birmingham £100.

November 3rd. From Cambridge £25 10s. From Clifton £31 10s. Received also £5,000 for the Building Fund, from a donor who desires neither his name nor residence to be known.

Gift of £5,000

Do you rejoice with me, dear reader, in the receipt of this last donation? Does the greatness of the amount surprise you? Do you think it strange and marvellous, that I should receive such a large sum in one donation? Well, the donation indeed filled my heart with inexpressible delight, because it was the fruit of thousands of prayers, and it brought me a decided step nearer the time, when all prayers will be fully answered with regard to the New Orphan Houses No. 4 and No. 5, as they have been fully answered regarding No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3; but while my heart was filled with joy and gratitude, I remained calm, perfectly calm, without the least excitement. Nor was I in the least surprised at the greatness of the donation, for I look out for answers to my prayers, and I expect much from that bountiful heart, which spared not the Lord Jesus. If £10,000, yea, £20,000, had been given to me at once, it would not have surprised me. Nor was it marvellous in my eyes, to receive so much at once; for God has power as ever to give largely; and He has still some of His children on earth who are so happy in Himself, and who so lay hold on eternal life, that they can afford to give up a good portion of the possessions of this life, and, if called upon to do so, even all they possess in this world, in order to do good.

I had determined to do nothing until I had the full half of the sum needed for the two houses, but now, having above £2,000 beyond the half, I felt, after again seeking counsel from God, quite happy, in taking steps for the purchase of land.

Difficulties in purchasing land

My eyes had been for years directed to a beautiful piece of land, only separated by the turnpike-road from the ground on which the New Orphan House No. 3 is erected. The land is about eighteen acres, with a small house and out-houses built on one end thereof. Hundreds of times had I prayed, within the last years, that God for Jesus' sake would count me worthy to be allowed to erect on this ground two more Orphan Houses; and hundreds of times I had with a prayerful eye looked on this land, yea, as it were, bedewed it with my prayers. I might have bought it years ago; but that would have been going before the Lord. I had money enough in hand to have paid for it years ago; but I desired patiently, submissively, to wait God's own time, and for Him to mark it clearly and distinctly that His time was come, and that I took the step according to His will; for whatever I might apparently accomplish, if the work were mine, and not the Lord's, I could expect no blessing. But now the Lord's mind was clearly and distinctly made manifest. I had enough money in hand to pay for the land and to build one house, and therefore I went forward, after having still asked the Lord for guidance, and being assured that it was His will I should take active steps.

The first thing I did was, to see the agent and to ask him whether the land was for sale. He replied that it was, but that it was let till March 25th, 1867. He said that he would write for the price. Here a great difficulty at once presented itself, that the land was let for two years and four months longer, whilst it appeared desirable that I should be able to take possession of it in about six months, viz., as soon as the conveyance could be made out, and the plans be ready for the New Orphan House No. 4, and arrangements be made with contractors. But I was not discouraged by this difficulty; for I expected, through prayer, to make happy and satisfactory arrangements with the tenant, being willing to give him a fair compensation for leaving before his time had expired. But, before I had time to see about this, two other great difficulties presented themselves: the one was, that the owner asked £7,000 for the land, which I judged to be considerably more than its value; and the other, that I heard that the Bristol Water Works Company intended to make an additional reservoir for their water, on this very land, and to get an Act of Parliament passed to that effect.

Pause here for a few moments, esteemed reader. You have seen how the Lord brought me so far, with regard to pecuniary means, that I felt now warranted to go forward; and I may further add, that I was brought to this point as the result of thousands of times praying regarding this object; and that there were, also, many hundreds of children waiting for admission; and yet, after the Lord Himself so manifestly had appeared on our behalf, by the donation of £5,000, He allows this apparent death-blow to come upon the whole. But thus I have found it hundreds of times since I have known the Lord.

The difficulties, which He is pleased to allow to arise, are only allowed, under such circumstances, for the exercise of our faith and patience; and more prayer, more patience, and the exercise of faith, will remove the difficulties. Now, as I knew the Lord, these difficulties were no insurmountable difficulties to me, for I put my trust in Him, according to that word: "The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And they that know Thy name will put their trust in Thee: for Thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek Thee."

I gave myself, therefore, earnestly to prayer concerning all these three special difficulties which had arisen regarding the land. I prayed several times daily about the matter, and used the following means.

(1) I saw the Committee of the Water Works Company regarding their intended reservoir on the land which I was about to purchase, and stated to them what I had seen in print concerning their intentions. They courteously stated to me, that only a small portion of the land would be required, not enough to interfere with my purpose; and that, if it could be avoided, even this small portion should not be taken.

(2) This settled, I now saw the tenant, for I desired, as a Christian, that if this land were bought, it should be done under amicable circumstances with regard to him. At the first interview, I stated my intentions to him, at the same time expressing my desire that the matter should be settled pleasantly with regard to himself. He said that he would consider the matter, and desired a few days for that purpose. After a week I saw him again, and he then kindly stated, that, as the land was wanted for such an object, he would not stand in the way; but that, as he had laid out a good deal on the house and land, he expected a compensation for leaving it, before his time was up. As I, of course, was quite willing to give a fair and reasonable compensation, I considered this a very precious answer to prayer.

(3) I now entered upon the third difficulty, the price of the land. I knew well how much the land was worth to the Orphan Institution; but its value to the Institution was not the market value. I gave myself, therefore, day by day, to prayer, that the Lord would constrain the owner to accept a considerably lower sum than he had asked; I also pointed out to him why it was not worth as much as he asked. At last he consented to take £5,500 instead of £7,000, and I accepted the offer. All being now settled, I proceeded to have the land conveyed to the same trustees who stood trustees for No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3.

I have thus minutely dwelt on these various matters for the encouragement of the reader, that he may not be discouraged by difficulties, however great and many and varied, but give himself to prayer, trusting in the Lord for help, yea, expecting help, which, in His own time and way, He will surely grant.

January 3rd. From Birmingham £100.—January 17th. From Devonshire £64.—January 27th. From China £7 15s. 2d.

May 26th. The total income for this Object during the past year, was £11,033 17s. 3½d.; this with the £19,321 7s. 1½d in hand on May 26th, 1864, makes £30,355 4s. 5d.

As soon as the conveyance was actually made, the land paid for, and the deeds were in my possession, which took place on March 9th, 1865, I proceeded to the plans for No. 4, when it was found that serious disadvantages and a considerable additional cost would be connected with building only one house at a time, instead of the two at one time—or, at least, commencing them together with as little interval as possible. Therefore, greatly as I longed that the building should commence soon, it appeared to me desirable yet patiently to wait the Lord's time for some more money, whereby I should be enabled to begin both houses at the same time. From what has been stated about the income, the reader will have seen, that out of the fifty thousand pounds needed for the two houses, above thirty thousand pounds has come in, so that only about ten thousand pounds more is needed, to meet all the expenses connected with the building of the two houses; for the remaining ten thousand pounds for fittings and furniture would only be needed when the houses are built, or nearly so. Now as the Lord has been pleased to send me during the past year above eleven thousand pounds for the Building Fund, and as by commencing the two houses at the same time the whole would be completed considerably earlier, than if one house at a time were built, I am by this, in addition to all the other reasons given, led to a more decided conviction, that it is better to wait till God shall have in His great kindness, and in pity and compassion to the many hundreds of Orphans now waiting for admission, sent me ten thousand pounds more. He can do this in a very short time if He please.

The following pages will show how the Lord was pleased further to help us; but out of the many donations only a few can be singled out.

July 17th. From Hong Kong £50.—July 25th. From the neighbourhood of London £100, with the following letter:—

My dear Sir,

"I believe that it is through the Lord's actings upon me, that I enclose you a cheque for £100.

"Yours in the Lord, ——."

This Christian gentleman, whom I have never seen, had sent me several times before a similar sum. A day or two before I received this last kind donation, I had asked the Lord, that He would be pleased to influence the heart of this donor to help me again, which I had never done before regarding him; and thus I had the double answer to prayer in that not only money came in, but money from him. The reader will now see the meaning in the donor's letter, when he wrote, "I believe that it is through the Lord's actings upon me that I enclose you a cheque, etc."

Verily it was the Lord who acted upon this gentleman, to send me this sum. Perhaps the reader may think, that in acknowledging the receipt of the donation, I wrote to the donor what I have here stated. I did not. My reason for not doing so was, lest he should have thought I was in special need, and might have been thus influenced to send more. In truly knowing the Lord, in really relying upon Him and upon Him alone, there is no need of giving hints directly or indirectly, whereby individuals may be induced further to help. I might have written to the donor (as was indeed the case), I need a considerable sum day by day for the current expenses of the various Objects of the Institution, and also might have with truth told him, at that time, that I yet needed about twenty thousand pounds, to enable me to meet all the expenses connected with the contemplated enlargement of the Orphan work. But my practice is, never to allude to any of these things in my correspondence with donors. When the Report is published, every one can see, who has a desire to see, how matters stand; and thus I leave things in the hands of God to speak for us to the hearts of His stewards. And this He does. Verily we do not wait upon God in vain!

A Missionary gives £500

August 1st. A few days since I received the following letter from one of the Missionaries among the heathen, whom I have sought for a number of years to assist with pecuniary supplies:—

My dear Brother in Jesus,

"I write to inform you, that I have written to my father by this mail, requesting him to send you £500, being a portion of a legacy left me by an uncle, who departed to be, I hope, with Jesus. Please use it as our dear Lord directs. I feel unworthy of the privilege of contributing to the glorious work in your hands. If you think it right so to do, please do not let it be known who gave it. The other portion of the legacy I have ordered to be sent out here, as there are different objects, for which I feel it is greatly required. May the Lord enable me to act as His steward! Etc."

To-day I received, accordingly, from the father of this Missionary, £500, of which I took £250 for the Building Fund and £250 for Missions. Admire, dear Christian reader, the hand of God together with me. Here is a Missionary, labouring for years under many difficulties, trials, privations, and hardships, in order to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ to poor benighted idolators, himself having been repeatedly reduced to his last piece of money. Now all at once he is put into the possession of many hundreds of pounds, and, instead of spending it on himself, or keeping it laid up in the bank or otherwise on interest, the love of Christ constrains him to spend it, and gladly too, for the Lord. I love to dwell on such cases; for though there is much to sorrow over, in these days, in connection with the Church of God, yet there is the bright side too, and there are many things yet to be found among the children of God, to gladden the hearts of those who love the Lord. It has been my own happy lot, during the last thirty-seven years, to become acquainted with hundreds of individuals, who were not inferior to apostolic Christians. And why may not all believers act in the spirit of apostolic Christians, seeing that the same blessed Spirit who dwelt in them, dwells in all who believe in the Lord Jesus; and that we have the whole revealed will of God in our possession in the Holy Scriptures; and, like apostolic believers, are looking for the return of the Lord Jesus, with whom we shall share the glory? Verily, did we more abundantly enter into what God has done for us, and will do for us, what manner of persons should we be? Let us then encourage one another to live more fully, more habitually, yea, altogether for God, while the honour is continued to us, to be here on earth as His witnesses.

August 5th. From Ireland £100.—August 9th. From a former Orphan, then in dying circumstances at her sister's house, 1s., with the following letter:—

Dear Sir,

"I have just been reading to sister Ruth the last Report, and she, with deep gratitude and joy, begs me to send her mite toward the New Orphan House about to be built, with many prayers for you and those connected with the work, fondly remembering the happy time spent in No. 2, under your kind fatherly care; and the happy day she found Jesus to be her Saviour; and the last prayer at the time of parting: all is recalled with tears of joy. Also she wishes me to say, all is peace, with the prospect of death before her. She fears no evil. Christ is very precious to her soul, and she hopes to meet you and all loved teachers in heaven, through the blood of Jesus. A friend had given Ruth this 1s. to buy some wine; but she begged me to send it to Mr. Müller.

"I remain, dear Sir, your humble and grateful servant ——."

The dear Orphan referred to in this letter has since peacefully fallen asleep in Jesus.

September 1st. From a baronet in the neighbourhood of Bristol £50.

A remarkable donation

September 4th. To-day I have received one of the most remarkable donations that I ever received for the work in my hands. I am staying with my family at Ilfracombe for change of air. After the large packet of letters, which day by day comes to hand from Bristol, had been replied to, I took a walk with my family near the sea on the Capstone. In returning home, two gentlemen, entire strangers, came up to me, one of whom said, "Please excuse me, are you not Mr. Müller?" Having replied to him in the affirmative, he said, "I have to give to you some money for the Orphans." I then requested him to step aside, and to seat himself with me on one of the benches close by, that I might learn particulars. He now told me the following, which I give as nearly verbatim as I can.

"I live in the neighbourhood of M. I am a business man, and, what would be called, a hard-working business man. Some time since one of your Reports fell into my hands, but, I honestly confess it, I could not believe that you did obtain your funds simply in answer to prayer; I questioned the truth of it. However, the thing came up into my mind again and again. While I was thus considering whether God was really with you, and whether you really obtained simply by faith and in answer to prayer these large sums of money, I heard of a certain property to be sold, which I thought I should like to buy, if it were disposed of reasonably. I looked it over, and had it valued by a competent business man, who told me that it was worth so much. I then said to myself, in a kind of sceptical way, I will now see whether God is with Mr. Müller or not. If I get this property for so much (fixing a low price on it), I will give Mr. Müller one hundred pounds. I then instructed a person to bid for me at the auction, where this property was sold, at a distant place; but so great was my curiosity to see, whether God really would appear for you in this matter, that by the next train I set off to the place where the auction was, that I might obtain as early as possible information, how the matter would end; and I found, to my great surprise, that I had actually obtained this valuable property, at the exact low price which I had fixed. I was astonished. But I began now to reflect more on the principles on which you act, and I wondered that, as a Christian, I or any one else could call in question what you say about answers to prayer; and the more I consider the matter, and the more I read your Report, the more I see how right and proper it is, to come to God for all we need, and to trust in Him for everything. The conveyance having been made, and all being now settled, about the sale, I felt it right to fulfil my promise; so my friend, whom you saw just now with me, and I, set out on a tour into Devonshire, and then, on our way home, called the day before yesterday (Saturday) at your house; but found you were from home. We stopped yesterday (Sunday) in Bristol, and having there learnt your address, we came on here to Ilfracombe today, for I wished to know you personally."