The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1899, Page 18

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18

The Lutheran Pioneer.

to prepare a place in His Father’s house where
the many mansions are. That will bea day
of great joy when we shall see ‘‘the King in
His beauty.”
‘There we shall see His face,
And never, never sin,
There from the rivers of His grace
Drink endless pleasures in.’’

es 0

Dedication of Chapel at Salisbury, N. C.

The 19th of February was a day of rejoicing
and blessing to our colored Lutheran people
at Salisbury, N. C.. On that day they dedi-
cated to the service of the Triune God the
chapel which they have been enabled to erect
by the contributions of the school children
of the‘Synodical

Conference.
The chapel had
been beautifully
decorated by

the skillful
hands of the
missionary and
his worthy wife.
At each of the
three services
the chapel was

filled with

young and old
hearers, who lis-
“tened atten-
tively to ~ the
preaching of
God’s Word.
At the morning
and afternoon
“services the
choir of the Col-
ored Lutheran
church at Con-
cord sang sey-
eral beautiful
anthems. In the morning service Rev. Bakke,
of Charlotte, preached the dedicatory sermon
on Psalm 84. In the afternoon the Rev. J. P.
Schmidt, of Concord, delivered the sermon.
At this service two persons were examined
and confirmed, and thus added to the mem-
bership of the church. In the evening the
Rey. J. C. Schmidt, of Greensboro, preached
& mission sermon on John 4, 4—42.

Our colored Lutherans at Salisbury rejoice
that they now have a church home where they
may assemble to hear the preaching of the
‘pure Gospel and where their children may be
; instructed in the way of life. May God con-
"tinne to bless our mission work among the
colored people to the glory of His name and
to th salvation of many souls! How gladly
we contribute to the carrying on of
ission, since God has s0 richly blessed
ttle that we have done! His blessing
d fill our hearts with thankfulness and
6 more liberal in our contributions,
More zealous in our missionary labors.

(For the LUTHERAN PIONEER.)

News from Southern Pines, N. C.

After about seven months of continual labor
we have at last been able to gather in the first-
fruits of our work by organizing a congregation
of colored Lutherans. Last September I com-
menced work here according to orders received
from the Hon. Board of Missions, and have
since incessantly strewn and sown the Word
of God among the colored population of this
place. Though the obstructions were many
and the opposition was strong,—by God’s
help we are what we are, namely, a congre-
gation of 7 voting and 13 baptized members.
Several others have announced their intention
to become,members also as soon as they have

Lutheran Chapel at Salisbury, N.C.

been sufliciently instructed. —If it please God,
we shall also, in the near future, commence
with the erection of a new house of worship.
At present we are located within the corporate
limits of the town, but, since it is an ‘‘un-
written social law’’ that the colored man shall
not own or possess any property within the
town limits, we, in order to avoid friction with
our white fellow-men, have been compelled,
or rather have concluded, to erect a building
outside of town, which will also make it more
convenient for our members, who, like all the
colored people in this place, aggregate in a
place known as ‘‘Jimtown.’’ That it is best
for us to act as we have concluded can not be
doubted. The enmity shown to us by threats
and acts which are not worthy of any man,
show and prove this sufficiently.

How many times have we been compelled
to look with wonder and admiration to the
fatherly providence and care which God has
exercised for us and in our behalf! Had He
not prevented it, we would long ago have

looked with sorrow upon the ashes of our
school-house. But He has not only warded
off danger, but also caused His Word to do
its work and bring forth fruits which were
mentioned before.

That He may continue to watch and care
for us in the future as He did in the past is
the sincere prayer of

His and your humble servant
Henry L. Persson.
Southern Pines, N. C.

— <= o - =

“He Redeemed Me.”

An incident is rélated of a man who before
the war was traveling in the South, and be-
came much interested in a young colored girl,
purchasing her
from her master
and giving her

her liberty.
After the bar-
gain had been
completed with
her owner, the
man found dif-
ficulty in get-
ting the girl to
realize that she

was actually
free. At last it
did dawn upon
her in all its full-
ness of mean-
ing ; butinstead
of exulting in

her newly-
gained liberty,
she exclaimed:

“QO, he re-
deemed me; I
will follow him ;

I can never
thank him
enough; I will serve him all my life!’’ she
accompanied him to his Northern home, and
as people often remarked her loving attention
to every wish of her newly-found friend, it
was her gladly-given and ever-suflicient reply:

‘Te redeemed me! He redeemed me!”’

So we have, as Christians, One who ran-
somed us, He is our Redeemer, our Saviour,
our Friend. Is it strange, then, that we should
find ‘‘the love of Christ constraining us?”” This
is the true motive to consecration.

If we allow this thought to be ever present
with us, ‘‘He redeemed me!”’ every sacrifice
required in his service will be a joy and de-
light to us.. We shall count nothing too dear
to render to Him in view of this great fact of
our redemption. This is what made the fires
welcome to the holy martyrs. ‘he love of
Christ constrained them to go with triumph
into the flames. — Guide to Holiness.

a OE 8

Tue truest end of life is to know the life

that never ends.