A Life Multiplied
The Rev. H. Merriweather, a dedicated missionary of the Sri
Lanka and India General Mission, was sent to the United
States to represent the mission in various capacities. The
head office of the mission asked him to call upon a certain
woman who supported a full-time missionary. On arrival in the
city, he made his way to her home, and was somewhat surprised
by the ordinary type of home found there. He had expected to
find a wealthy suburb with pretentious buildings. This woman
supported a full-time missionary! It was therefore to be
assumed that she was a lady of means. Had he made a mistake?
He read again the address, and carefully checked both the
name of the street and the number of the house. There had
been no mistake; this was the place. He knocked at the door,
and was greeted by a motherly old lady who beamed at him
and said, "Welcome, Mr. Merriweather. I knew you were in the
district and I have been waiting for you to call. Come in."
The missionary explained how he got her address, and even
while he was speaking to the lady his eyes were examining the
room. The furniture was
spotlessly clean, and yet it could hardly be described as
expensive. This was the abode of an ordinary working woman
who might be struggling against poverty. Yet headquarters had
said that she supported a full-time missionary.
Ultimately his curiosity gained the upper hand, and he asked
how could she -- a woman with meagre means -- manage to give so
much money to the Mission? Mutely he indicated the mediocre
furnishings of the apartment, and his eloquent
silence suggested that the task was beyond her capabilities.
The old lady was greatly amused as she said, "But, Mr.
Merriweather, I support four missionaries. I have one in
India, one in Africa, one in China, and one in South America.
Yes, sir, I have four -- people all over the world preaching
for me."
The man was amazed. Hardly believing his ears, he repeated,
"You have four people preaching for you. And you support them
all! -- But how on earth do you do this?"
Her lovely old face became grave; only her eyes smiled as she
told of the faithfulness of God. She explained how she had
always believed in giving
one-tenth of her income to God. Regularly she had set aside
His portion, and this had accumulated. Then God blessed
her even more, for someone had bequeathed to her a certain amount of
property. The rental from this greatly increased her income,
and consequently her "Lord's Fund" became larger. Soon she
found she was able to support a missionary.
She added, "I also discovered that my own funds were
increasing, and eventually I was able to purchase more
property. And so it continued, Mr. Merriweather. Come over to
the window, and I will show you my houses."
She showed him a row of magnificent villas, and said, "What
does a poor old body like me want with such big houses? I
have all I require in this little home, and the rent from
those places supports my missionaries. I knew I would never
be able to preach the Gospel overseas, so I determined others
should do it for me."
Mr. Merriweather concluded: "Some day at the Judgment Seat of
Christ, Merriweather the missionary will stand beside this
kind helper from America, and I am quite sure her reward will
far outshine mine. She knew how to give cheerfully. And the
Lord, Who loves a cheerful giver, blessed her."
Addendum -- To serve is to love; to love is to give! When you love, you
give; when you give, you serve; when you serve making others
happy, it makes you happy too.
[ Author Unknown -- Submitted by the: Walker family ]
Inspirational Messages
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