THE SHADOW OF A GREAT SORROW
"WITH clouds He covereth the light." No human life is without some
experience of clouded skies and stormy days, and sometimes "the clouds
return after the rain." It is a blessed experience to recognize the
silver lining on the darkest storm cloud, and, better still, to be sure
of the shining of God's light behind a sky that seems wholly and
hopelessly overcast.
The year 1870 was made forever pathetically memorable by the decease of
Mrs. Muller, who lived just long enough to see the last of the New
Orphan Houses opened. From the outset of the work in November, 1835, for
more than thirty-four years, this beloved, devoted wife had been also a
sympathetic helper.
This wedded life had approached very near to the ideal of connubial
bliss, by reason of mutual fitness, common faith in God and love for His
work, and long association in prayer and service. In their case, the
days of courtship were never passed; indeed the tender and delicate
mutual attentions of those early days rather increased than decreased as
the years went on; and the great maxim was both proven and illustrated,
that the secret of winning love is the secret of keeping it. More than
that, such affection grows and becomes more and more a fountain of
mutual delight. Never had his beloved "Mary" been so precious to her
husband as during the very year of her departure.
This marriage union was so happy that Mr. Muller could not withhold his
loving witness that he never saw her at any time after she became his
wife, without a new feeling of delight. And day by day they were wont to
find at least a few moments of rest together, sitting after dinner, hand
in hand, in loving intercourse of mind and heart, made the more complete
by this touch of physical contact, and, whether in speech or silence,
communing in the Lord. Their happiness in God and in each other was
perennial, perpetual, growing as the years fled by.
Mr. Muller's solemn conviction was that all this wedded bliss was due to
the fact that she was not only a devoted Christian, but that their one
united object was to live only and wholly for God; that they had always
abundance of work for God, in which they were heartily united; that this
work was never allowed to interfere with the care of their own souls, or
their seasons of private prayer and study of the Scriptures; and that
they were wont daily, and often thrice a day, to secure a time of united
prayer and praise when they brought before the Lord the matters which at
the time called for thanksgiving and supplication.
Mrs. Muller had never been a very vigorous woman, and more than once had
been brought nigh unto death. In October, 1859, after twenty-nine years
of wedded life and love, she had been laid aside by rheumatism and had
continued in great suffering for about nine months, quite helpless and
unable to work; but it was felt to be a special mark of God's love and
faithfulness that this very affliction was used by Him to reestablish
her in health and strength, the compulsory rest made necessary for the
greater part of a year being in Mr. Muller's judgment a means of
prolonging her life and period of service for the ten years following.
Thus a severe trial met by them both in faith had issued in much
blessing both to soul and body.
The closing scenes of this beautiful life are almost too sacred to be
unveiled to common eyes. For some few years before her departure, it was
plain that her health and vitality were declining. With difficulty could
she be prevailed on, however, to abate her activity, or, even when a
distressing cough attacked her, to allow a physician to be called. Her
husband carefully guarded and nursed her, and by careful attention to
diet and rest, by avoidance of needless exposure, and by constant resort
to prayer, she was kept alive through much weakness and sometimes much
pain. But, on Saturday night, February 5th, she found that she had not
the use of one of her limbs, and it was obvious that the end was nigh.
Her own mind was clear and her own heart at peace. She herself remarked,
"He will soon come." And a few minutes after four in the afternoon of
the Lord's day, February 6, 1870, she sweetly passed from human toils
and trials, to be forever with the Lord.
Under the weight of such a sorrow, most men would have sunk into depths
of almost hopeless despair. But this man of God, sustained by a divine
love, at once sought for occasions of thanksgiving; and, instead of
repining over his loss, gratefully remembered and recorded the goodness
of God in _taking_ such a wife, releasing her saintly spirit from the
bondage of weakness, sickness, and pain, rather than leaving her to a
protracted suffering and the mute agony of helplessness; and, above all,
introducing her to her heart's desire, the immediate presence of the
Lord Jesus, and the higher service of a celestial sphere. Is not that
grief akin to selfishness which dwells so much on our own deprivations
as to be oblivious of the ecstatic gain of the departed saints who,
withdrawn from us and absent from the body, are at home with the Lord?
It is only in those circumstances of extreme trial which prove to
ordinary men a crushing weight, that implicit faith in the Father's
unfailing wisdom and love proves its full power to sustain. Where
self-will is truly lost in the will of God, the life that is hidden in
Him is most radiantly exhibited in the darkest hour.
The death of this beloved wife afforded an illustration of this. Within
a few hours after this withdrawal of her who had shared with him the
planning and working of these long years of service, Mr. Muller went to
the Monday-evening prayer meeting, then held in Salem Chapel, to mingle
his prayers and praises as usual with those of his brethren. With a
literally shining countenance, he rose and said: "Beloved brethren and
sisters in Christ, I ask you to join with me in hearty praise and
thanksgiving to my precious Lord for His loving kindness in having taken
my darling, beloved wife out of the pain and suffering which she has
endured, into His own presence; and as I rejoice in everything that is
for her, happiness, so I now rejoice as I realize how far happier she
is, in beholding her Lord whom she loved so well, than in any joy she
has known or could know here. I ask you also to pray that the Lord will
so enable me to have fellowship in her joy that my bereaved heart may be
occupied with her blessedness instead of my unspeakable loss." These
remarkable words are supplied by one who was himself present and on
whose memory they made an indelible impression.
This occurrence had a marked effect upon all who were at that meeting.
Mrs. Muller was known by all as a most valuable, lovely, and holy woman
and wife. After nearly forty years of wedded life and love, she had left
the earthly home for the heavenly. To her husband she had been a
blessing beyond description, and to her daughter Lydia, at once a wise
and tender mother and a sympathetic companion. The loss to them both
could never be made up on earth. Yet in these circumstances this man of
God had grace given to forget his own and his daughter's irreparable
loss, and to praise God for the unspeakable gain to the departed wife
and mother.
The body was laid to rest on February 11th, many thousands of sorrowing
friends evincing the deepest sympathy. Twelve hundred orphans mingled in
the funeral procession, and the whole staff of helpers so far as they
could be spared from the houses. The bereaved husband strangely upheld
by the arm of the Almighty Friend in whom he trusted, took upon himself
the funeral service both at chapel and cemetery. He was taken seriously
ill afterward, but, as soon as his returning strength allowed, he
preached his wife's funeral sermon--another memorable occasion. It was
the supernatural serenity of his peace in the presence of such a
bereavement that led his attending physician to say to a friend, "I have
never before seen so _unhuman_ a man." Yes, _un_human indeed, though far
from _in_human, lifted above the weakness of mere humanity by a power
not of man.
That funeral sermon was a noble tribute to the goodness of the Lord even
in the great affliction of his life. The text was:
_"Thou art good and doest good."_ (Psalm cxix. 68.)
Its three divisions were: "The Lord was good and did good: first, in
giving her to me; second in so long leaving her to me; and third, in
taking her from me." It is happily preserved in Mr. Muller's journal,
and must be read to be appreciated.*
* Narrative, III. 575-594.
This union, begun in prayer, was in prayer sanctified to the end. Mrs.
Muller's chief excellence lay in her devoted piety. She wore that one
ornament which is in the sight of God of great price--the meek and quiet
spirit; the beauty of the Lord her God was upon her. She had
sympathetically shared her husband's prayers and tears during all the
long trial-time of faith and patience, and partaken of all the joys and
rewards of the triumph hours. Mr. Muller's own witness to her leaves
nothing more to be added, for it is the tribute of him who knew her
longest and best. He writes:
"She was God's own gift, exquisitely suited to me even in natural
temperament. Thousands of times I said to her, 'My darling, God Himself
singled you out for me, as the most suitable wife I could possibly wish
to have had.'"
As to culture, she had a basis of sensible practical education,
surmounted and adorned by ladylike accomplishments which she had neither
time nor inclination to indulge in her married life. Not only was she
skilled in the languages and in such higher studies as astronomy, but in
mathematics also; and this last qualification made her for thirty-four
years an invaluable help to her husband, as month by month she examined
all the account-books, and the hundreds of bills of the matrons of the
orphan houses, and with the eye of an expert detected the least mistake.
All her training and natural fitness indicated a providential adaptation
to her work, like "the round peg in the round hole." Her practical
education in needlework, and her knowledge of the material most
serviceable for various household uses, made her competent to direct
both in the purchase and manufacture of cloths and other fabrics for
garments, bed-linen, etc. She moved about those orphan houses like an
angel of Love, taking unselfish delight in such humble ministries as
preparing neat, clean beds to rest the little ones, and covering them
with warm blankets in cold weather. For the sake of Him who took little
children in His arms, she became to these thousands of destitute orphans
a nursing mother.
Shortly after her death, a letter was received from a believing orphan
some seventeen years before sent out to service, asking, in behalf also
of others formerly in the houses, permission to erect a stone over Mrs.
Muller's grave as an expression of love and grateful remembrance.
Consent being given, hundreds of little offerings came in from orphans
who during the twenty-five years previous had been under her motherly
oversight--a beautiful tribute to her worth and a touching offering from
those who had been to her as her larger family.
The dear daughter Lydia had, two years before Mrs. Muller's departure,
found in one of her mother's pocketbooks a sacred memorandum in her own
writing, which she brought to her bereaved father's notice two days
after his wife had departed. It belongs among the precious relics of her
history. It reads as follows:
"Should it please the Lord to remove M. M. [Mary Muller] by a sudden
dismissal, let none of the beloved survivors consider that it is in the
way of judgment, either to her or to them. She has so often, when
enjoying conscious nearness to the Lord, felt how sweet it would be now
to depart and to be _forever_ with Jesus, that nothing but the shock it
would be to her beloved husband and child, etc. has checked in her the
longing desire that _thus_ her happy spirit might take its flight.
Precious Jesus! Thy will in this as in everything else, and not hers, be
done!"
These words were to Mr. Muller her last legacy; and with the comfort
they gave him, the loving sympathy of his precious Lydia who did all
that a daughter could do to fill a mother's place, and with the
remembrance of Him who hath said, 'I will never leave thee nor forsake
thee,' he went on his lonely pilgrim way, rejoicing in the Lord, feeling
nevertheless a wound in his heart, that seemed rather to deepen than to
heal.
Sixteen months passed, when Mr. James Wright, who like Mr. Muller had
been bereft of his companion, asked of him the hand of the beloved Lydia
in marriage. The request took Mr. Muller wholly by surprise, but he felt
that, to no man living, could he with more joyful confidence commit and
intrust his choicest remaining earthly treasure; and, ever solicitous
for others' happiness rather than his own, he encouraged his daughter to
accept Mr. Wright's proffered love, when she naturally hesitated on her
father's account. On November 16, 1871, they were married, and began a
life of mutual prayer and sympathy which, like that of her father and
mother, proved supremely and almost ideally happy, helpful, and useful.
While as yet this event was only in prospect, Mr. Muller felt his own
lonely condition keenly, and much more in view of his daughter's
expected departure to her husband's home. He felt the need of some one
to share intimately his toils and prayers, and help him in the Lord's
work, and the persuasion grew upon him that it was God's will that he
should marry again. After much prayer, he determined to ask Miss
Susannah Grace Sangar to become his wife, having known her for more than
twenty-five years as a consistent disciple, and believing her to be well
fitted to be his helper in the Lord. Accordingly, fourteen days after
his daughter's marriage to Mr. Wright, he entered into similar relations
with Miss Sangar, who for years after joined him in prayer, unselfish
giving, and labours for souls.
The second Mrs. Muller was of one mind with her husband as to the
stewardship of the Lord's property. He found her poor, for what she had
once possessed she had lost; and had she been rich he would have
regarded her wealth as an obstacle to marriage, unfitting her to be his
companion in a self-denial based on scriptural principle. Riches or
hoarded wealth would have been to both of them a snare, and so she also
felt; so that, having still, before her marriage, a remnant of two
hundred pounds, she at once put it at the Lord's disposal, thus joining
her husband in a life of voluntary poverty; and although subsequent
legacies were paid to her, she continued to the day of her death to be
poor for the Lord's sake.
The question had often been asked Mr. Muller what would become of the
work when he, the master workman, should be removed. Men find it hard to
get their eyes off the instrument, and remember that there is only,
strictly speaking, one AGENT, for an agent is _one who works,_ and an
instrument is what _the agent works with._ Though provision might be
made, in a board of trustees, for carrying on the orphan work, where
would be found the man to take the direction of it, a man whose spirit
was so akin to that of the founder that he would trust in God and depend
on Him just as Mr. Muller had done before him? Such were the inquiries
of the somewhat doubtful or fearful observers of the great and
many-branched work carried on under Mr. Muller's supervision.
To all such questions he had always one answer ready--his one uniform
solution of all cares and perplexities: _the Living God._ He who had
built the orphan houses could maintain them; He who had raised up one
humble man to oversee the work in His name, could provide for a worthy
successor, like Joshua who not only _followed_ but _succeeded_ Moses.
Jehovah of hosts is not limited in resources.
Nevertheless much prayer was offered that the Lord would provide such a
successor, and, in Mr. James Wright, the prayer was answered. He was not
chosen, as Mr. Muller's son-in-law, for the choice was made before his
marriage to Lydia Muller was even thought of by him. For more than
thirty years, even from his boyhood, Mr. Wright had been well known to
Mr. Muller, and his growth in the things of God had been watched by him.
For thirteen years he had already been his "right hand" in all most
important matters; and, for nearly all of that time, had been held up
before God as his successor, in the prayers of Mr. and Mrs. Muller, both
of whom felt divinely assured that God would fit him more and more to
take the entire burden of responsibility.
When, in 1870, the wife fell asleep in Jesus, and Mr. Muller was himself
ill, he opened his heart to Mr. Wright as to the succession. Humility
led him to shrink from such a post, and his then wife feared it would
prove too burdensome for him; but all objections were overborne when it
was seen and felt to be God's call. It was twenty-one months after this,
when, in November, 1871, Mr. Wright was married to Mr. Muller's only
daughter and child, so that it is quite apparent that he had neither
sought the position he now occupies, nor was he appointed to it because
he was Mr. Muller's son-in-law, for, at that time, his first wife was
living and in health. From May, 1872, therefore, Mr. Wright _shared_
with his father-in-law the responsibilities of the Institution, and gave
him great joy as a partner and successor in full sympathy with all the
great principles on which his work had been based.
A little over three years after Mr. Muller's second marriage, in March,
1874, Mrs. Muller was taken ill, and became, two days later, feverish
and restless, and after about two weeks was attacked with hemorrhage
which brought her also very near to the gates of death. She rallied; but
fever and delirium followed and obstinate sleeplessness, till, for a
second time, she seemed at the point of death. Indeed so low was her
vitality that, as late as April 17th, a most experienced London
physician said that he had never known any patient to recover from such
an illness; and thus a third time all human hope of restoration seemed
gone. And yet, in answer to prayer, Mrs. Muller was raised up, and in
the end of May, was taken to the seaside for change of air, and grew
rapidly stronger until she was entirely restored. Thus the Lord spared
her to be the companion of her husband in those years of missionary
touring which enabled him to bear such worldwide witness. Out of the
shadow of his griefs this beloved man of God ever came to find that
divine refreshment which is as the "shadow of a great rock in a weary
land."