PREPARATION FOR FURTHER SERVICE
We must go back again to the time when Mrs. Lü had her heart's desire
in seeing Mrs. Wen beginning to seek after God. In the midst of that
joy the testing time began, and the Lord brought His child through deep
waters. For days and weeks she was lying on her sick-bed, with,
humanly speaking, no hope of recovery. These weeks were hard and
trying, especially to her loved ones, who watched her anxiously. The
native doctors had given up the case as beyond their ability, and said
there was nothing more to be done; Mrs. Lü would never get well again.
Many friends crowded around and entreated her to make her peace with
the gods she had offended, and to let some Taoist ceremonies be
performed for her, as that was her only hope of restoration to health.
She, of course, would not hear of it, and to one and all testified to
the joy and peace she had in God. "Do not worry about me," she said
brightly, "I am not afraid to die. I rather long for death, for I
shall then be at home with Jesus, which is far better." Weak as she
was, she used every opportunity for pointing the unsaved ones to
Christ. When asked if she did not feel anxious about leaving her
husband, and the children who were still young, she replied, "The Lord
will take care of them." She was anxious about nothing, but was
longing for her heavenly home, although she said she would be glad to
serve the Lord a little longer, if He wanted her here.
Many went away wondering what the treasure was that she possessed,
which they knew nothing about. A wonderful treasure it must be, they
reflected, to keep her so calm and peaceful, yes, even rejoicing in the
face of death. But others insisted that the gods were punishing Mrs.
Lü for having left them; and as she would not take their advice and try
to reconcile the idols, they were furious and loud in their
denunciations of her. One of Mrs. Lü's relatives came to her and said:
"I am so frightened for you, all the people are cursing you. They
declare you are now reaping your punishment for leaving the idols."
Mrs. Lü only smiled and answered, "Let them curse, they can do me no
harm, neither they nor their gods of clay, for my God does bless me."
"But they say, you will surely die."
"Even if I should die, there is no punishment. I shall be most glad to
go to my Saviour, and I have nothing to be afraid of. I shall only
have the greater happiness and glory."
It need scarcely be said that we pleaded earnestly and constantly with
God to spare Mrs. Lü's life, if it would be His will, as we felt that
she was so much needed for the work at Kucheng. He graciously heard
and answered prayer, and Mrs. Lü began to take a turn for the better.
Slowly, very slowly the improvement showed itself. She would insist on
being carried to the services every Sunday, her husband fetching her
from her bed, and seating her in a chair in the little chapel, which
had become a sacred spot to her. There she would sit with closed eyes,
listening to the service. She could not read or sing, as she had no
strength to open her eyes even, but she said softly, "I can pray." At
the close of the service she was carried back to bed again, entirely
exhausted. But God, who knew her motives and saw the longings of a
heart full of love to Him, kept her from taking any harm through what
might otherwise have been considered very unwise.
What a joy it was to see her well! She had only gained, and not lost,
in her spiritual life during the time the Lord had laid her aside. She
had been chastened through her pain and suffering, through the
temptations from without and within, and would be more meet for the
Master's use than formerly. And so her later service proved. Often
when she went out shopping, or when any other business took her to the
street of the village, she would get an opportunity of witnessing for
her Lord. The shopkeepers and their wives would say, "Now, sit down
and tell us something of the Jesus doctrine first, and then we will
serve you." To that she gladly assented, and with pleasant manner and
convincing words, she would tell of the love of Christ, and what it had
done for her. It often happened that others came to listen to the
message; indeed, many went to her home for that very purpose, and to
each and all she related the story of her conversion, giving God all
the glory for having conquered when she had determined never to yield.
She told them of the blood of Christ and its cleansing power, and of
the great privilege of being a child of God. Mrs. Lü did not get
discouraged when they did not believe at once. "I do not wonder you do
not believe," she would say, "I was just the same once, and worse than
you. No power on earth could have made me leave my old way; but the
wonder-working power of God did it, and that same power will still
bring you into His fold."
Many strong opponents of the Gospel, many full of arguments and worldly
wisdom sought her out to argue and reason with her, fully assured that
their clever and witty speeches would soon bring ridicule and shame
upon her and her belief. But quietly and earnestly she silenced all of
them, often even outwitting them in arguments; at other times just
telling her simple story, but with such power that all mouths were
closed. The Lord indeed gave her "mouth and wisdom" according to His
promise in Luke xxi. 15, and very often, when the husband and wife were
telling their experiences, the former would say, with a proud, fond
look at his wife, "They are never able to get the best of her in
argument. The Lord always helps her to overcome them all." How he
loved her, and how united these two were in heart and mind! Day by
day, as they both followed Christ, they were drawn closer to each other.
Mrs. Lü was always ready for service, and whenever the Lord called her
to do something for Him, she did it joyfully and with all her might.
When some days had been set apart for the worship of a famous idol
visiting Kucheng, the people, especially the women, streamed together
from all quarters. A good many of them were strangers in the place,
and all sights worthy of notice had to be seen. The "Jesus Hall" was
one of them, perhaps the most important of all, for the women had heard
strange tales of the foreigners with their new doctrine, and they
wanted to see the place with their own eyes.
Mrs. Lü saw them coming, and realized that here was work for her to do,
as the old chapel-keeper was little good at preaching. That morning
Mrs. Lü had read in her daily text-book: "Be of good cheer. Speak, and
be not silent, for I have much people in this city." Now the message
came back to her, and it seemed to be the voice of God Himself, so she
answered joyfully, "Very well, Lord, if Thou dost want me to preach, I
will preach. I will put down my own work, and only work for Thee
during these days." So without delay or regret, she put everything
else aside, and for three or four days witnessed from morning till
night to all the women who came, so that each one might hear the glad
tidings of salvation before returning to a distant home. Could such
faithful work, done through the prompting of the Holy Spirit, and
through the constraining love of Christ, be in vain?
She would say in her own bright way--"I am glad and willing to work for
the Lord, even if it should mean great loss; but the Lord does not let
me lose anything, not even in worldly things. I give my time to Him,
and He so often helps me to do a piece of work that makes up for all
the time I have given. Do you know what happened last week? I gave my
time to preaching the Gospel during the week, and then on Saturday
somebody brought a pair of shoes to be mended. It was a difficult
piece of work, and few were able to do it. I undertook to mend them,
and in that one day I earned 100 cash, when others were only able to
earn 20 or 30 cash a day."
Does not this story give a striking example of how God rewards glad and
willing service for Him, even here, in addition to the greater
recompense above? "Therefore be ye steadfast, immovable, always
abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your
labour is not in vain in the Lord."