The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1901, Page 46

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46

The Lutheran Pioneer.

IIIT ITT

(For the LUTHERAN PIONEER.)

Dedication at Mount Pleasant, N. C.

Since the dedication of our own house of wor-
ship the prospects for the growth of our con-
gregation at this place are very encouraging.

The first Sunday of December was indeed a Many have expressed their intention of becom-

festive day for the colored Lutherans at Mount | ing Lutherans.
Pleasant, N.C. It was the day to which they
had for a long time been looking forward.
There was good cause for the joy and thanks-
On this day
they were to worship God in a house which
On this day they
were to dedicate to their Lord and Master a
house of worship in which He should continue
to_reveal Himself unto them in His blessed

giving which filled their hearts.

they could call their own.

Word and Sacraments.

The mission at Mount Pleasant was begun
by Rev. N. J. Bakke about the beginning of
1893. Since then it has passed through many
On several occa-

vicissitudes and changes.
sions the future seemed dark and gloomy.
There was no permanent house of worship.

To be driven from one humble and often di-
lapidated house to another, only to be forced
to again seek other quarters— this caused dis-
couragement and hindered the progress of the
work. Many and frequent were therefore the
sighs and prayers that God might in His mercy

provide a permanent house of worship. After
many years of waiting God has seen fit to hear
these prayers.

The Lord provided beautiful weather, and a
large crowd came-to join in the day’s festiv-
ities.
used as a public school. Being well adapted
for our purposes, it was recently bought from
the public school authorities of Mount Pleasant
at a private sale. The interior of the build-
ing was tastefully decorated with garlands of
cedar, evergreens, and flowers of the season.

There were two services, one in the morning
and another in the afternoon. At the morn-
ing service; which began at eleven o’clock, the
building was formally dedicated to the service
of the Triune God by the undersigned, the
ceremony consisting of an opening prayer, a
song, the dedicatory prayer, and an appro-
priate lesson from Scripture. Missionary Paul
Engelbert preached the dedication sermon,
basing his remarks on Gen. 28,17. In his ser-
mon he showed that the building which was
being dedicated to God was, in the first place,
a house of God and, therefore, in the second
place, also a gate of heaven.

At the afternoon service Missionary George
Schutes preached from Luke 19, 1—10. In
his sermon he showed that as Jesus once came
to the city of Jericho, and had been received
by the Publican Zaccheus, so He had come to
the people of Mount Pleasant in His Word,
that they might receive Him into their hearts
‘and believe ; and that as salvation had come to
the house of Zaccheus because he believed, so
‘would salvation come to them if they would re-
ceive their Lord and Saviour into their hearts,
main true and faithful to Him and His

The building to be dedicated had been

May God continue to guide
us in the future as He has done in the past,
and reveal Himself and the full counsel of His
will unto us, to the glory of His name and the
upbuilding of our colored Lutheran Zion.

R. P. O.

~<e.

“From Heaven Above to Earth | Come.”

In a small town in Germany there lived in
1871 a little boy, Eugene by name. He was
only five years old. He had taken great de-
light in the hymns that his older brothers and
sisters had learned and recited and sang at
home. The hymn that he loved best was Lu-
ther’s Christmas hymn, ‘‘From heav’n above
to earth I come,” of which he especially loved
the third verse:

“This is the Christ, our God and Lord,
.Who in all need shall aid afford;

He will Himself your Saviour be,
From all your sins to make you free.”

‘‘Mamma,” he said, ‘that is the sweetest
of all verses. It is so easy to learn too.”
During the season of Advent his little sister
took the smallpox, and Eugene and his father
also became sick. Still the little fellow was
able to stand by the Christmas tree, and with
beaming eyes he recited his fayorite hymn:
‘rom heav’n above to earth I come

To bear good news to ev’ry home.’?

‘Then he had to be taken to bed, and by
New Year’s Day the pox broke out on him.
He rapidly grew worse. At his request his
mamma sang one hymn after another for him,
among others also the Christmas hymn, ‘‘From
heay’n above to earth I come.’? When she
had ceased singing, he said with a feeble voice,
‘‘Mamma, more!: ‘This is the Christ, our God
and Lord.’”’ Then he fell asleep in Jesus, to
awake in the company of the saints made per-
fect round the throne of the Lamb.

—— or ee

Christmas Joy.

A poor little street girl—‘‘Little Broom-
stick’” was her street name—was taken sick
one Christmas and carried to a hospital.

While there she heard the Christmas story
of the Saviour, who came into the world to
save sinners. It was all new to her, but very
precious. She felt the need of such a wonder-
ful Saviour, and the Christmas story made her
very happy as she lay upon her little cot..

One day a nurse came around at the usual
hour, and “‘Little Broomstick’? held her by
the hand and whispered:

“I’m having real good times hereeeree
such good times. Suppose I shall haye to go
away from here just as soon as I get well;
but I’ll take the good time slong; for I’ll take

Jesus along with me.
Jesus being born?’’

Did you know about
**Yes,’’ replied the nurse, ‘‘I know. You
must keep quiet; don’t talk any more.’’

“You did know about Jesus being born?”
said the little girl. ‘‘I thought you looked as
if you didn’t, and I was going to tell you.”

“Why, how do I look?’’ asked the nurse,
forgetting in her curiosity her own orders
about keeping quict.

“‘Oh,”’ said the little girl, ‘‘just like most
folks—kind of glum. I shouldn’t think you’d
ever look glum, if you know’d about Jesus
being born.’’

Dear reader, do you know ‘about Jesus
being born’’?

—— + eae >

For Christ’s Sake.

In one of my early journeys I came, with
my companions, to a heathen village on the
banks of the Orange River. We had traveled
far, and were very hungry, thirsty, and fa-
tigued; but the people of the village rather
roughly directed us to halt at a distance. We
asked for water, but they would not supply it.
I offered the three or four buttons left on my
jacket for a drink of milk, but was refused.
We had the prospect of another hungry night,
at a distance from water, though within sight
of the river.

When twilight came on, a woman approached
from the height beyond which the village lay.
She bore on her head a bundle of wood, and
had a vessel of milk in her hand. The latter,
without opening her lips, she handed to us,
laid down the wood, and returned to the vil-
lage. A second time she approached with a
cooking vessel on her head, a leg of mutton in
one hand, and a vessel of water in the other.
She sat down without saying a word, prepared
the fire, and put on the meat. We asked her
again and again who she was. She remained
silent, until we affectionately entreated her to
give a reason for such unlooked-for kindness
to strangers. Then the tears rolled down her
sable cheeks, and she replied, ‘‘I love Him
whose you are, and surely it is my duty to give
you a cup of cold water in His name. My
heart is full, therefore I cannot speak the joy
I feel at seeing you in this out-of-the-world
place.’’? On learning a little of her history,
and that she was a solitary light burning in 9
dark place, I asked her how she kept up the
light of God in the entire absence of a church.
She drew from her bosom a copy of the Dutch
New Testament, which she had received from
& missionary some years before. ‘“This,’’ said
she, ‘‘is the fountain whence I drink; this is
the oil that makes my lamp burn.”’ I looked
on the precious relic, printed by the British
and Foreign Society, and the reader may con-
ceive my joy while we mingled our prayers
and sympathies together at the throne of the
heavenly Father. —Mofat.