James Gilmour of Mongolia: His diaries, letters, and reportsGilmour, James
Religion
James Gilmour of Mongolia: His diaries, letters, and reports
Gilmour, James
Gilmour, James, 1843-1891; Missions -- Mongolia
'Yours of May 31 to hand three or four days ago. The China Inland
Mission has a lot of good men in it. It does a good work. It is
warm-hearted devotion that wins souls and gets God's approval. My
experience has been different from yours, happily. All along I have
gone on the "headlong for Christ" way of things here, even when
preaching to the most intellectual English and American audiences,
and they have received me royally. Man, God has waked me up these
last years to such an extent that I feel a different man. I
sometimes wonder now if I was converted before. I suppose I was,
but the life was a cold, dull one. Just the other day Jesus, so to
speak, put out His hand and touched me as I was reading a hymn,
something about desiring spiritual things and passing by Jesus
Himself. I wanted His blessing more than I wanted Him. That is not
right. Lately, too, I have become calm. Before I worked, oh so hard
and so much, and asked God to bless my work. Now I try to pray more
and get more blessing, and then work enough to let the blessing
find its way through me to men. And this is the better way. It is
the right way. And I work a lot even now. Perhaps as much as
before; but I don't worry at the things I cannot overtake. I feel,
too, more than I did, that God is guiding me. Oh! sometimes the
peace of God flows over me like a river. Then it is so blessed,
heaven is real. So is God: so is Jesus. Our lot is a great one.
'Try not to fly around so much: take more time with God. Be more in
private prayer with Him, and see if He will not give you a greater
spiritual blessing for your people. After all, the great want, as I
gather from your letters, is the spiritual blessing on the people.
Ask it, man, and you'll get it. God's promises are sure. I am
trying to combine the China Inland Mission, the Salvation Army, and
the L.M.S. I have a great district, and a hard one, all to myself.
There is said to be a young doctor on his way out to me. I am
writing by this mail for three young laymen. Non-smoking and
teetotalism are conditions of Church membership. I have seen no
foreigner since January 25, and am not likely to see one till
December 5. My mails take an enormous time to reach me, and two
sent in June and July from Peking (eight days off) have never come
to hand at all. I am baffled, battered and bruised in soul in many
ways, but, thank God, holding on and believing that He is going to
bless me.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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