It will be accepted without argument that Mr. Moody was a successful man. He had failures, made mistakes, was sometimes disappointed, and at times discouraged, but viewing his work from every reasonable standpoint, he was eminently successful as a religious promoter and a soul-saver. Here are some of the secrets of his success. Mr. Moody had a wonderful capacity for work. For those who knew Mr. Moody intimately it was not difficult to understand the secret of his capacity for hard work. He had a magnificent constitution; he took care of this body that God had given him. He did not dissipate. His very physical build seemed to demand continued exertion and special effort. But beyond this he was able to throw off all burden of mind when he had done his utmost. “It’s worry that kills,” he would say. He believed that God would carry on his own work, and after doing all in his power he would cast his burden on the Lord. Thus it happened that he could almost sleep “to order.” A few minutes before going to address a large audience he would lie down for a nap of ten or fifteen minutes. Mr. Moody had a wonderful genius for generalship, by which he would delegate to others the work they could do and thus spare
himself the trouble of details. As, for example, his large undertakings during the six months’ campaign in Chicago during the World’s Fair. He was able to organize, plan, and harness the available resources, start and continue an offensive against sin along an extended battle-line. Said Mr. Moody, “It is better to put ten men to work than to try to do the work of ten men.” To this motto he steadfastly adhered, and he may rightly be called one of the greatest discoverers and developers of lay workers the Christian Church has ever known. He had the love of the poor, the respect of the learned, the confidence of the wealthy. Think of the thousands of college men who felt the power of his influence. Perhaps his great influence is best seen in the lives of the thousands of young men and women who enjoy high privileges as a direct result of his life and work. Sons and daughters of his spirit have gone out to the ends of the earth, to continue to be true. Mr. Moody once said of himself: “Some day you will read in the papers that D. L. Moody, of East Northfield, is dead. Don’t you believe a word of it! At that moment I shall be more alive than I am now.” His life still lives, in the men and influences he set in motion. One of the secrets of Mr. Moody’s phenomenal success in bringing souls to Christ was that he believed absolutely, implicitly in his message. His faith was simple and childlike. No doubts ever dimmed his faith in God’s Word. To him it was the truth and the whole truth. He never sat down and folded his hands and waited for the Lord to bring about what he wanted. He did not believe in passive Christianity. He said, “I hate the word ‘can’t.’ When a man says ‘you can’t,’ it always makes me want to prove that I can.”
One writer says of Mr. Moody: “The basis of Mr. Moody’s character was sincerity. He had an inveterate aversion to all forms of sham, unreality, and pretense. Most of all did he detest religious pretense or cant. Along with the fundamental quality he cherished a great love of righteousness. His first question concerning any proposed action was, ‘Is it right?’ ” He was brave, magnanimous, and unselfish! To add to all this, he was transformed and transfigured by divine grace. Mr. Moody was a man of prayer. Here we touch the inner source of his matchless power. To him God was a person who feels and thinks, a Father who rules and loves, concerned with everything that affects his children. With such a conception of God we are not surprised to find him leading a life of ceaseless communion with God, out of which grew overcoming strength. There was a correspondence between Mr. Moody’s life and his prayers. Both were massive, and on a grand scale. Prayer was the real working power of Moody’s life. He was systematic. He was an early riser. He generally arose about daybreak during summer, devoting his early hours to Bible study and communion with God. He used to say that one who followed this plan could not get more than twenty-four hours away from God. He would breakfast with the family at 7:30. Family prayers followed; the servants and hired help attended. Mr. Moody read a passage of Scripture, then prayed, simply and earnestly. He usually opened all his letters personally and gave impartial attention to all. But he also had his periods of recreation. On the farm he loved to see things grow. Feeding his chickens furnished him an excuse for exercise. He would spend hours “puttering around” his hen houses.
On the Campus at Northfield
He had a keen sense of humor. Once he wrote this letter to his grandchild, not yet a year old: “I have just heard that the milk you get at my house does not agree with you. But I think the fault is not with the milk, but with the cooks. You know, or you should be old enough to know, that when you cook milk and put it in a bottle and put a black rubber nipple on it—well, you will be disgusted when you get a little older and know how your parents have treated you! You must not blame my old cow, for she is as good as she can be. I do not want to turn you against your parents, but if they do not treat you right, slip down to my house and get some doughnuts and icecream.”