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10
NEWS FROM THE WORKERS
Look up, my friend. No sparrow
Falls that God does not heed;
Should care or doubt or sorrow
Assail, He’ll fill your need.
Trust Him. He’ll not forsake you
In high or low estate;
Call—and He’ll ever aid you,
Nor leave you desolate.
Evangelist Looks Like a Congressman
Wm. J. Ray, Alabama Preacher, Stands Six Feet One and a Half Inches, and
Seems Able to Carry An Empire On His Ample Shoulders—
“ The Man Who Knows That Nature Called Human.”
If you were out gunning for a high
stepping congressman, United States
Senator, or even a President, you
would be apt to shoot William Jack
son Ray, preacher, evangelist and all
around ‘“big man” over in Alabama.
Not that all congressmen are good
looking, nor all United States senators
or Presidents in their visage and vest
ments are “good for the sore eyes,”
but you generally think of all these
dignitaries as “well kept,” while
many of them are really handsome —■
for instance, Hobson, Heflin, Under
wood and Co. —all of Alabama. While
they are tall in their intellect and elo
quence, even as Congressman Burnett
is short in stature and broad in wis
dom, William J. Ray outlooks all of
them put together.
William Howard Taft is a poor sec
ond beside him; Theodore Roosevelt
is not in the running at all; while
Woodrow Wilson only makes up in
keenness of eye and kingliness of de
meanor what he lacks in “lines and
curves of beauty” when he stands up
by Evangelist William Jackson Ray.
Ray can’t help it—it is “the nature of
the beast.”
The fact that this stalwart preacher
has just turned down an important
Texas call, and returned from the
Lone Star Empire to his native Ala
bama to make it his permanent
home, brings him afresh before the
world of Christian workers, giving
special interest to some of the fun
damentals of his life-story.
Stood Alone With Fourteen.
Converted at twenty, and the first
to become a Christian in a family of
fourteen, Will J. Ray, had to start
his Christian life alone. Encouraged,
as many mistaken parents taught
their children in those evil days of
old (and as a good many are Teach
ing them now) to go fishing on Sun
day rather than go to church, young
Ray stumbled out to an evangelistic
service one day, and was “pricked in
his heart,” converted and convicted.
Determined to read his Bible
through, but denied a lamp at night,
he burned pine knots after the drudg
ery of the day was done, and finally
completed the task.
Uniting with a Baptist church, and
feeling the call of God to preach the
gospel he worked his way through
college—sometimes sitting up late at
night to wash and dry his clothes
to have something to wear to an ap
pointment next day.
Led His Family to Christ.
The young preacher had been tell
ing the story of redeeming love for
two years, and before any of his fam
ily became Christians, and then God
gave him the unspeakable joy and
privilege of leading all of his lost
loved ones to Christ. No wonder
the evangelistic impulse is the ruling
passion of his life. His last pastorate
was Park Avenue Church, Birming
ham. Resigning to do evangelistic
LOOK UP
By W. D. LITTLE.
!fi tfi Hi S Mi Si Mi Mi S
So, there’s no need for pining,
No need for doubt or care,
No need to keep declining
God’s blessings everywhere.
Just look above and trust Him,
For life and hope and power,
To help you in life’s race to win,
And be a conqueror.
work, he was soon elected state evan
gelist, and during four years he or
ganized twenty-five churches. Going
to Texas to do the work of educa
tional secretary for Baptist schools,
and later called to evangelistic work
out there, he felt Alabama tugging
away at his heart and he recently re
turned to Harpersville, his old home,
bought a farm on which to raise the
Rays of his household, and will radi
ate around that safe home center,
preaching the gospel that saved him,
and which, through him, has saved
thousands of others.
Brilliant, forceful, sane and conse
crated, “Big Bill” Ray, at forty-three,
is just beginning, we hope, that cam
paign against sin which will be an
increasing blessing to the world.
WILL D. UPSHAW.
4* 4*
Parsons, Kansas, Nov. 26, 1912.
Dear Golden Age:
We have recently closed a meeting
with the Baptist Church, at Bowling
Green, Mo., Rev. O. L. Brownson, pas
tor. 'I preached two sermons each
day during the week and three and
four on Sunday, for nineteen days.
The meetings were greatly blessed of
God.
Mrs. Palmer and I greatly enjoyed
our stay in this beautiful little city.
Bro. Brownson is an old-time friend.
He is beloved by the Church and the
entire community—a hard student, a
fine preacher and a deeply spiritual
man of God.
The Church at Bowling Green num
bers among its members many choice
spirits. Here we met the widow and
daughter of the late Rev. J. D. Biggs.
Sister Biggs’ whole heart is in the
service of the Lord.
Bowling Green is the home of a
number of Baptist ministers. Wiley J.
Patrick, A. C. Jones, T. H. Terrell,
D. R. Robertson and A. P. Rogers all
live in or near Bowling Green.
Especially famous has this city be
come because it is the home of Champ
Clark. The people here are very
loyal to this illustrious man. The
pastor and I called to see him. He
received us cordially and when we
left he put his arm around my shoul
der and said: “I hope you will have
a gracious meeting.”
Bowling Green is also the home
of our Governor-elect, Elliott Major,
whose beautiful Christian mother went
home to heaven a few months ago.
The father, aged eighty-eight, is one
of the most devout Christians I ever
met. As I knelt with him at his fire
side, I could not but pray that the
mantle of this consecrated man might
fall on his gifted and eloquent son.
We are now in special meetings with
the First Baptist Church, of Parsons,
Kansas, Rev. A. W. Claxon, D. D., pas
tor. Many have already been con
verted and we are expecting a great
work of grace.
RAY PALMER.
The Golden Age for December 5, 1912.
Pueblo, Colo., Nov. 25, 1912.
The Golden Age,
Atlanta, Ga.
Dear Brother:
The Mesa Baptist Church has just
closed a two weeks’ revival meeting.
To say that the meeting was a great
success is putting it in mild terms.
We received fifty people into the
Church. Among them were many
strong men.
Evangelist W. L. Head, of Fort
Worth, Texas, preached the old gospel
with great power and ability. He is
a strong evangelist and every sermon
appeals to men. If there is one thing
he does above all others, it is to win
the Church to the pastor and the pas
tor to the Church. Brother Head is
not an evangelist of the vaudeville or
der, but rather in his first sermon gets
down to preaching the pure gospel.
Some of our most skeptical members
have said that they are sure that every
man or woman that came into the
Church under his preaching, will be
found at work in the Church one year
hence.
We cannot commend Rev. W. L.
Head too strongly to any Church de
siring an evangelist who preaches the
gospel and wins men to Christ.
One of the commendable features
of his work is that he is always sat
isfied with a free will offering for his
services, and the Church is always
glad to give to him freely.
Brother Head goes to Yukon, Okla.,
to begin another meeting at once.
F. CARL TRUEY, Pastor.
117 W. Evans Avenue.
4- 4*
WANTED —A literature committee
in every Church, Sunday School
Young People’s Society, Missionary
Society, W. C. T. U., etc., who will
send papers, magazines, etc., to mis
sionaries and to families living on
mission fields. For full particulars ad
dress
THE PAPER MISSION,
Rev. B. A. Loving, Supt.,
? Woodward, Okla.
4- 4*
THE RESCUE MAGAZINE FOR
NOVEMBER.
A recent number of The Rescue
Magazine, published by The Southern
Rescue Mission, Atlanta, Ga., has just
reached our desk, and we find it to be
worthy a place in every home; filled
with matter relating to the social evil
and making a fearless fight for clean
er and purer cities. This number con
tains among other good reading, the
following articles by the editor:
“Will the Scarlet Woman Reform?”
“Foreign Imigration—lts Relation
to Vice.”
“The City—lts Possibilities and Its
Pitfalls.”
“Hearst’s Magazine on the Social
Evil.”
“Traveler’s Aid.”
These magazines are given free to
the fallen or to those not able to pay
for same; to others they are 25 cents
per copy, or SI.OO per year. We are
informed that all who will send 25
cents may receive the number con
taining the above articles. Address
The Southern Rescue Mission, No. 82
N. Pryor street, Atlanta, Ga.
4* 4*
REGENERATION OF CAMP CREEK.
The missionary was making his usu
al rounds among the settlers up on
Camp Creek, a Churchless and Christ
less community. Late in the after
noon he drove to the door of a little
sod house. The children and the dogs
almost fell over each other in their de
light for the missionary, a true fron
tierman, was always a welcome visitor
at this humble home. There were
six bright, fun-loving, mischievous
children, four boys and two girls; and
they, with their father and mother,
and two dogs, all lived in one little
room, the walls of which were made
of sod from the prairies and plastered
with gypsum. Like their neighbors
these people were unable to supply
themselves with many of the necessi
ties and none of the luxuries of life.
But like all frontier people they were
“given to hospitalityy” and willing to
share what they had with the traveler
who might come their way.
“Well, boys, what do you have to
read these long winter evenings?”
kindly inquired the missionary that
night after supper as they sat around
the little old cook-stove feeding the
fire with corn stalks and broom corn
seed.
“Oh, nothin’ much,” responded one
of the boys. Another little fellow
piped out, “Why, we have a book about
Jesse James, and some detective
stories.”
Upon further investigation the mis
sionary found that the only reading
matter in this home, just as he found
in hundreds of other homes, was some
cheap trashy and even vicious papers
and novels that would do incalculable
harm. These young people with hun
gry minds and hearts would read this
rubbish if something better could not
be provided. How to counteract the
pernicious influences of bad literature
was a constant problem confronting
this preacher. Os course, he left re
ligious tracts and rolls of papers which
he always carried with him in liberal
quantities, but that could not very ma
terially change the situation for he
could not visit these hundreds of
homes more than once or twice a year,
and there are many he could not
reach at all.
About this time the missionary re
ceived a letter from the superintendent
of our Paper Mission asking him to
send the name and address of one or
more poor families on his field needing
good literature ,and she said she
would keep these homes supplied with
such papers as the Youth’s Compan
ion, Christian Hearld, Union Signal,
Christian lEindeavor World, Examiner,
Review of Reviews, etc. With a
thankful heart the missionary prompt
ly sent her the name of this family
living in the little soddy. That letter
from the Paper Mission gave the mis
sionary a wonderful inspiration.
There is a wealth of good literature
going to waste, mused he, in these
Eastern homes, while out here are
hundreds of homes that would be won
derfully enriched by it. A little post
age and Uncle Sam will do the rest.
He wrote the Paper Mission about
it giving the names and addresses of
hundreds of the people on his field
and soon he had practically every
home in Camp Creek settlement sup
plied more or less regularly with high
class papers and magazines. As a
result of this silent evangelism one
man gave his heart to Christ and aft
ward became a gospel preacher lead
ing scores to the Saviour by his min
istry there in the Camp Creek com
munity. Nearly the whole neigh
borhood has been regenerated. They
now have a strong Church, a good
Sunday School and a live Young Peo
ple’s organization, and all because the
missionary believed in free literature
distribution by post.
If you have reading matter which
you desire to pass on to others, write
us for a name and address,
THE PAPER MISSION,
B. A. LOVING, Supt.,
Woodward, Oklahoma.