The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1922, Page 90

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

⤓ Download .txt · copy text

90 The Lutheran Pioneer.

of worship of a Colored Methodist congregation.
This old church was replaced by the present church-
building about twenty-five years ago. A few years
previous to the building of the new church a large
school had been erected.

We hope. that the Lord of the Church may boun-
tifully bless Pastor Beck in his field of labor and
grant him the blessed privilege of leading many
souls to the Good Shepherd. F. J. L.

Mount Zion’s Oldest Member.

The oldest member of Mount Zion Church, New
Orleans, is Mrs. Mary C. Wright, who was among the
first to join the congregation when its home was still
in the “Sailors’ Home” almost a half-century ago.

' Mount Zion Church and School.

During all these many years she has been a diligent
hearer and doer of God’s Word and a liberal con-
tributor to her church.

Several years ago she donated a beautiful altar
and altar painting to her church and with her own
means bought a new bell to replace the old cracked
bell in Mount Zion’s tower. Just recently she has
had the church-tower, which had received some
severe wrenching during the storm several years
ago, thoroughly overhauled and repaired, and a
beautiful gilt cross once more adorns the graceful
spire as a result of this aged Christian’s generosity.
We also learn that she recently presented the little
Concordia mission-church in Carrollton, a suburb
of New Orleans, with a bell.

Mrs. Wright’s recent gifts to Mount Zion amount
to no less than $200, and her total donations during
the last few years will probably total about $500.
May God graciously reward Mrs. Wright’s gen-
erosity ! F. J. L.

From a Cabin in the Black Belt.

Before leaving for the convention of the Synod-
ical Conference at Cincinnati, we decided to make
a final swing through the “Black Belt” of Alabama
and attend to several important missionary matters.

Fifty-five miles over rough roads in a Ford
brought us to Rosebud, our oldest congregation in
Alabama, where we found Rosa Young instructing
fifty children who were attending summer school.
From Rosebud we doubled back five miles to Oak
Hill to attend to some business that required our
attention. Pastor Montgomery and the writer then
covered forty-five miles to visit a sick member at
Nyland.

Five years ago, when work was started at Ny-
land, an old “auntie” of seventy-nine years was
numbered among those who joined the first cate-
chumen class. After having been instructed, she
joined the Church. A faithful member of the
Church Aunt Lulu has been. Since connecting her-
self with our Church in 1918, she has not missed
one Communion service. This old soul was in her
seat every Sunday, unless sick on her back. Though
poor in this world’s goods,—now and then she
earned a few pennies by washing, — she always had
an offering for the Lord in her large old pocketbook.
The writer cannot recall that she ever failed to have
a contribution for her Savior. And how attentively
she listened to the Gospel that was brought to her
by the Lutheran Church! Indeed, she was in every
respect a model Christian, a fruitful tree planted in
God’s vineyard.

And now she is sick. Her mind at times wan-
ders, and a sore on her one foot, the size of a dime
at first, is eating farther and farther, covering the
entire foot. Living with her in the one-room
dilapidated cabin is her aged husband, with whom
she has spent the greater part of her life. He is
so old that‘he is scarcely able to move about. This
couple lives from the crumbs that fall from the
tables of others. Both are rapidly nearing the time
when they shall be summoned before the judgment-
seat of God.

Aunt Lulu has nothing to fear when she thinks
of that time! In the heart of this old and ignorant
Negro “auntie” is a live and strong faith in her
Redeemer. While in her home we asked her the
following questions : —

“Who is your Good Shepherd, Aunt Lulu?”
“The Lord Jesus.”