PRESENTING THE GOSPEL TO THE PEOPLE.
The experiences of missionaries in getting the Gospel before the
people are varied and interesting. The general method of presenting
the message is by distributing tracts from door to door, and seeking
in this way to get conversations with the people. In addition to
this, meetings are held and the people invited to attend them. In
Great Britain and some parts of the United States street preaching is
done to a considerable extent when favorable weather permits. In some
countries out-door meetings are not allowed in the towns and cities. In
such places the meetings are generally held in public halls or private
dwelling houses.
In distributing tracts from door to door a missionary meets with all
kinds of people, and, it might be added, with all kinds of receptions.
His first day's tracting is generally made memorable by some occurrence
which is of a novel character to him. Approaching the first house on
the street selected for his field of operation, he timidly knocks at
the door. It may be opened by a child, who, on seeing it is a stranger,
or at his request, calls its mother to see what is wanted. She has all
sorts of surmises as to who it may be. If she is expecting the rent
collector she hesitates about meeting him as she may be unprepared.
If she suspects him to be a peddler or book agent she approaches with
a scowl of impatience on her face. Finding he has only a Gospel tract
to offer her, and that without cost, she is willing to accept it, but
hastens to cut the conversation as short as possible on account of
being so busy.
The missionary may meet with a similar reception at a number of
places, but sooner or later he is almost sure to have the door
closed in his face before he can deliver his message. This kind of
treatment may cause his hopes to fall somewhat and his courage to
fail him for a moment, but soon his determination is renewed, and his
timidity vanishes. He may consider his first visit in tracting fairly
successful. By introducing himself as a Latter-day Saint, or merely
leaving the tract without further introduction, on his first visit he
is looked upon as nothing less than a respectable gentleman.
By the time he calls with the second tract some of those who received
the first will have read it, and without doubt were deeply impressed
with the truth of its teachings; but learning later that the Latter-day
Saints are the same people as are commonly called "Mormons," they
refuse to investigate further or to have anything to do with such
a people. Not because of their doctrines do they shun them, but on
account of the prejudice which exists against the Saints. It is indeed
astonishing to the young missionary to discover on his second visit how
some of those to whom he handed tracts show their extreme contempt for
him and the literature he is circulating. On seeing him at their doors
they will at once go and get the tract left the week before, carrying
it by one extreme corner, as if afraid of contamination, and push it
out to him at arm's length, telling him to never come again to their
door. Some have been known to carry the tracts back with a pair of fire
tongs, in order to express more effectively their utter abhorrence of
everything connected with "Mormonism."
Such are some of the unpleasant features of tracting. There is a bright
aspect to this same avocation. The satisfaction of having performed a
most important duty in the service of God gives joy to the heart, no
matter how little encouragement one may receive from the people in his
labor of tracting from door to door. But often through diligent and
prayerful searching a missionary finds those who are willing to listen
to his message and testimony, and his visits result in the conversion
of precious souls to the great truths that lead to eternal salvation.
A young man who recently filled a mission in Great Britain, one day
while distributing tracts felt impressed to call at a certain house,
and present his message to the inmates. He obeyed the prompting, and
was met at the door by the lady of the house. She listened to what he
had to say and accepted the tract he offered, but showed no unusual
interest in his message. The next time he was in the neighborhood
delivering tracts he called again at this particular house. His
reception this time was similar to the first one. He called again the
third time, and still three more times without meeting with any further
encouragement. He received no invitation to go in and converse upon the
Gospel, still he retained the impression that there was someone there
who would listen to his message. He called the seventh time, and his
perseverance was rewarded with a
request to enter the house. The husband was at home and was in a humor
to talk upon religion. He had one request, however, and that was that
the missionary confine his teachings to the scriptures, and prove his
assertions from the Bible. He was acquainted with the scriptures, and
was also aware that many professed teachers of the Gospel did not
adhere to the word of God as taught in the Bible, hence his desire to
hold the Elder to the scriptures. Of course this was just what the
missionary desired, and it did not take him long to convince his friend
that the doctrine he advocated was strictly scriptural. The result was
the man and his family soon embraced the Gospel. It was what the man
had been looking for. He had become dissatisfied with the creeds that
he had before heard, and at the time the missionary called at his house
he was praying for guidance that he might know what church to unite
with.