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— — “r experience. I -- . J Barwick, Ga., Feb. 25, WU- M Mr. Joel Moore, Very dear brother in Christ. It is with a feeling irre sistable that I this lovely morning endeavor to comply with your earnest request.' For several years I havo felt an impression to write what I trust to be the dealings-..0f the Lord with poor sinful me; and ns I have undertaken it may it not be alone, but may it be wiitten bj God's help, for without Him I have long since learned that I can do nothing. For I can truly say a did Paul “That in me, that is in my flesh, dwelleth no good things 1 ’ 1 Swas born of strict Methodist parents and raised to womanhood, under very strict Methodist disci- | nline, t: ained up in Sunday schools, to pray/ (no, just to go through the form of so-called prayer.) In short I was -alhari seo of the Pharisees,” without hope . .1 . vtmrlrl and without God in the worm. t When I was about ten years old I t joined the Methodist church. !■ a was sent up by my school teacher and did not realize what for, until r the preacher asked me how I wish j ed to be baptized, and 1 told him 1 ] had been sprinkled in infancy, ? which I suppose gave them satis- , faction, as that was the oi?ly tion I was asked. I now being a , member of the church I thought I must bo quite good, so 1 read a great deal in niy testament , but I will here strife I did not under stand a thing Tread. 1 once heard u Methodist minister say that it was as easy to understand the bible as it was to unravel, a sock, hut my experience in the matter teaches mo that they only under stand it to whom the Lord reveals it, and if 1 know anything of the least portion of it, ’tis through God’s mercy and goodness in re vealing it to me ; it is not oi my own wisdom. From my early childhood, I hace -T' 1 ! wp.l I! ~ WU'WW and what after death; would often wonder what would become of me .it I were to die, and when about twelve years old it appeared to me that I was a sinner in the sight of God, and I had been taught that God did not love sinners and it troubled me no little to think that I could not be a Christian. I tried to be good but it seemed I got worse, and if became such a bur den to me I did not think I could bear it. Often have I watched the sun sink behind the tree-tops with tears in my eyes, fearing I would never see it rise again, and Oh! what a nightcf terror for me. I have of ten stole up frorji my bed and tried to read my bible when. I could not sleep. When my eyes were closed it seemed that hell with all its inmates weie turned loose after me. At times my mind would not be so troubled, but for about five years no tongue can de scribe what 1 suffered. In my trouble 1 met and fell in love with my (now) husband, but it was not pleasant altogether for his people, that were members of any church, were Primitive Baptist, and to this my family objected, but 1 fully be lieved thatl could convert him in to a Methodist. We were married and all was quite agreeable for near a year. I had a great deal of fespect for my husband’s par ents but would not let my mind dwell on their being “Hard-shells,” this was the name 1 knew Primi tives by in those days. But after a while a sweet little girl was born to us, and now my full intention was to have her sprinkled, and 1 told my husband so, and his reply was, “No child of mine shall ever be sprinkled.” This sank deep into my heart. At that time it troubled me, lor 1 was satisfied that it was right, and 1 decided that 1 must go to work in earnest and get him to join the Methodist church, and 1 felt sure he would not oppose mein having my little one sprinkled. So 1 d’d all that lay in my power to convert him to my way yf thinking, but 1 could not. He not argue with me, ■•■Wl but very kindly tell me he did not 1 believe in what the Methodists i packed. One day after 1 had t been trying to get him to join the 1 M. E. church he said “Lets both go j to the Missionaries,” but this was almost an insult to me, and 1 told ’ him if 1 could not be a Methodist 1 should not be anything. lhen he reminded me of the fact that no bnuhadany objections to my being one*. ' And 1 wish to say here, that though my husdand and his fami ly have been accused of having in fluenced nie to join the Primitive Baptists the accusation was false : they did not try it. I feel sure that there was not enough families in the country to make me believe then what 1 now do believe. Time rolled on and with a bur dened heart 1 wondered what the end would be. I felt to be one alone ; surely, felt there was no one like me. I would hear my friends say they felt sure of heaven, nAt.liin.<r hrt wPP.n that there was nouung uetwcuu them and their God, they knew l} all would be well with them after death. But alas ! for me 1 could not feel so. I had been to a few «) Primitive meetings but of course I 1 did not believe anything they £ said for 1 had heard that theirs ( was a dangerous doctrine, and that was the way 1 believed it; and it was seldom Iwouldgo in the house when I went with my husband to Tear them; but after a while 1 heard these same people speak of having a little hope in Christ, and that God for Christ sake had par doned their sins, and 1 just felt that Oh, if 1 only had a hope, but 1 did not have even that. I felt that 1[ should be so thankful for even a hope, and one day 1 was going to Antioch church in Emanual coun ty, Ga., and felt so cast down 1 could not talk, but 1 still wished that 1 could claim a hope and my every breath was “Lord have mercy on me.” When we got there Elder S. M. first time in my life 1 found a peo ple 1 could witness with. They had felt burdened as L did. He set forth God’s plan of salvation ; how He had made some their redemp tion through Jesus Christ, and 1 found myself melted to teats, be lieving it, in spite of everything 1 had heard, and that day 1 fell so much in love with those once hated people .1 could hardly turn loose their hands when 1 shook hands with a few. It seemed 1 could see the image of Christ in them, but 1 promised myself that 1 would never J tell any one in the world that 1 ' ever thought they were the church of Christ; although 1 fully believed it, but on Sunday night as we rode , along it seemed my heart got full to overflowing, 1 had to confess it; and praise God, from whom all blessings flow. Such a happy night 1 have never spent. In a short ( time after we reached home Robert ) (now Elder Barwick) came and , wethen rejoiced together; there ] was beauty in their countenances ( that 1 had 1 never seen before and j my joy was indescribable. I felt like 1 wanted to get at the feet of all God’s dear people and beg their .' . forgivness. I was willing to make any acknowledgment required by them for the way 1 had persecuted them. Robert said, “Aunt Lizzie what do you guess your parents will say. ?” But 1 felt sure if they had passed through what 1 had, and could feel what 1 had experi enced they would not be angry with me, and 1 wrote to them but father’s response was a twelve-page letter which was not pleasant, Then he came to see me and sat and talked »to me until twelve o’clock and told me if he believed what 1 did he would throw his bible in the fire, and say it was every word a fraud and a iie, and do just as he pleased. But 1 told him no, no papa you would not, and dear Bro. Moore 1 can’t believe he would. On Sunday 1 with my dear companion was received at the wa ter and with five others were bap tized. This was a most joyful time to me, as 1 came up out of the wa ter, 1 felt so good 1 thought surely. 1 was free from all trouble, ’tis t heaven begun below. But 1 find r trials and crosses all along my e pathway; while at times 1 can re- |: joice in them, for 1 And that it i was through trialsand tribulations ; that Christ’s deciplesof old travel- ; ed here, even Christ himself was i persecuted while here on this earth, < and how very much my i were those of old to poor little i insignificant me. Iso often think of you and think Oh, if 1 could be like you, so submissive to God’s will but, “I am so vile so prone to sin I’fear I’ve not been born again.” 1 must now close, beging to be remembered in your prayers, and if anything I’ve written is of any comfort to you, give God the praise, for “by the grace of God 1 am what 1 am.” Your little sister in Christ, 1 hope. Mrs. J. B. Rountree. The Blind Man. '‘And as Jesus passed by He saw a man that was blind from his birth. John Ist verse 9th chapter, u What a contrast between the two. o Jesus could and did see him, but a he could not at the time see Jesus, s and his seeing Jesus in the future I entirely depended upon Jesus first I seeing him. The deciples also saw t the blind man, and his condition ? naturally attracted their attention, 1 and they began at once to set up some natural enteligible,but carnal . reasoning about the cause saying, “Who did sin etc,” but the answer 1 of Jesus was sufficent to teach them . that the power of God was to be < made manifest. This does not de pend upon human reason, or wis- I dom.lf so the great and wise would more likely arrive at the truth than the weak and ignorant,but God has not ordained that the power of God should stand in the wisdom of men. The blind man then in the text I believe represents a sinner ;one like our children now born in sin, not like some say their children are born little innocent creatures, but after awhile mav do bad com? sinners,but that ing born seeing, and after awhile go blind, not so with the man Jesus saw ;he was born blind,but I believe this blind man represent more than a sinner, to remain in sin but rep resents a sinner chose:: to salvation. This is the kind of a sinner I hope you are.l am writing to you Brother Simms. Then if this blind man represents a sinner chosen to sal vation, all the means of open ing his eyes and giving sight, were ordained of God and treasured up in Christ before the world began, hence the means were commensu rate to the end and proved effectual, and were not abortive. This is the reason the Church needs no auxil ery till this day, neither is there, now nor in any past time, neither will there he in any future time, necessityfor the church to devise or resort to any means to save sinners or qua lily preachers, and might T not safely and scriptually say that the Church has never done it—l mean the Church of Christ,because Gocfhas devised means whereby His banished shall not be expelled from Him. This Bro. Simms saves us the ‘ trouble and besides we would not know how to do it, we do not know how to open blind eyes, his parents could not do it, or they would not have had a blind child. The Church ot rist as organized on Apostolic faith and doctrine could not do it. The Apostles and all human efforts combined could not do it. Out of the skill of any earth ly physician or optican to open the eyes of one born blind, father in the fervency of prayer, and thej fond and loving mother in all hjfl tenderness and tears could not gi® sight, she might have led him to the beautiful flower garden andw endeavored, and besought, agon- 1 ized in tears and she could not see them,but in a more sublime strain she might have admonished and entreated him to behold the great Wide and deep ocean as she moves, stupendous mountains in all their grandeur or “my son I” she might have exclaimed in her agony “look < up and behold the beautiful com- I pany of Heaven, the dark clouds as they rise up majo-tyin tJd®| cniuy it for I 1 ' ’’"H i’cii a/Hi <-•011 I) M i u a W ;iian <S ■ t llit'S ' i.- hail® lh'l : ■Axl'kl;®;'- dren ® they® I had® the t« ' fact we .<® s ! > va® ® - ail tJte ■ ' ;i ‘ ! H s to I)(® : H this 8. he v,® •h.'SU.® Lt ’ l 1 -S" 1 cam® was ■ and ■ m ® ® : h ® mar® as oi prea here Bind