There are experiences which all servants of God go through that seem almost too personal and too
sacred to reveal to the public, and yet some of these incidents might be used of the Lord to
strengthen the faith of others passing through seasons of special trial. And so I have decided to
share such an episode with my readers.

It was in the summer of the year 1900 that my wife and I went to what is now known as East
Bakersfield, but was then called Kern City, in California, for a tent campaign. At the conclusion
of our two month stay, we went to the railroad station to get tickets for our return to Oakland. Just
before purchasing them, a very distinct impression came to me that I should not go through to
Oakland, but should stop at Fresno.

Now I know that it is a very dangerous thing to be guided by impressions, but this one was of such
a definite character that I could not throw it off. I told my wife how I felt, and said to her, "You
stay here and pray while I go outside and talk to the Lord about it." I walked up and down the
station platform, asking God to make clear to me whether this was His mind. The more I prayed,
the less I could shake it off, so I went to the window and bought a ticket for my wife to Oakland,
but a ticket to Fresno for myself.

As we got on the train, I said, "If when we reach Fresno I am clear about going on, I will simply
step out and purchase another ticket; otherwise I will get off at Fresno." However, when that
station was reached, I simply could not get the consent of my own mind to go on to Oakland, so
I handed my wife all the money I had with the exception of a solitary dollar, not telling her, of
course, the low state of my finances, and bidding her good-bye, I stepped off the train, not
knowing what was before me.

I took my suitcase and went and found a palatial lodging at a cost of twenty-five cents a night! The
little money that I had would not carry me very far even in so inexpensive a place, so I was very
careful not to spend any more for food than was absolutely necessary.

Toward evening, I was on my knees asking God to show me if I had made a mistake, or on the
other hand to give me some indication if He had a service for me in this city. I then went outside
and found, a block away, a street-meeting in progress. There was a good ring to the word being
preached, so I decided to go on to the Mission Hall for the later meeting. I waited until a large
crowd had gathered inside, and then slipped in quietly and sat down by the door. A man and his
wife were in charge of the meeting. I had hardly taken my seat when I became conscious of the
fact that both of them were looking in my direction and whispering together, evidently about me.
It was a little embarrassing, to say the least. The next moment, the gentleman walked down the
aisle, and coming directly to where I sat, inquired, "Are you the one who is to preach here
tonight?" Surprised, I answered, "I do not know."

He looked at me peculiarly, I thought, and then said, "Well, are you not a preacher Of the
gospel?" I told him that I was, or tried to be. "And have you not a message for us tonight?" I
replied, "I am not sure. Why do you ask?" He answered that his wife and he, who had charge of

the Mission, had been praying about the message for the evening, and it had seemed as though a
voice distinctly said to both of them, "I will send My own messenger tonight. You will know him
when you see him." And he added, "So we were watching everyone who came in the door, and
when you entered, we both were sure that you were the person."

This was more surprising than ever, but it fitted in with my own experience, and I told him how
I happened to be in the city that night. He immediately said, "You must be the Lord’s messenger.
Please come right to the platform."

Accepting it as an opening of God, I obeyed, and proceeded to preach the gospel to the assembled
throng. I was immediately asked if I would not remain for at least a two-weeks’ campaign, which
I agreed to do.

This, I should explain, was on Thursday night. I preached the next two evenings, looking to the
Lord daily in prayer that He would supply my temporal needs, of which I could not, of course,
speak to anyone else. But in His inscrutable wisdom He allowed Saturday night to come, leaving
me absolutely penniless. I did not even have the required twenty-five cents to pay for my room,
so I left the room and took my suitcase into a drug store, asking permission to leave it there until
called for.

I will never forget how utterly alone I felt as I stepped out into the street. It was getting quite late
in the evening, and I had had only five cents worth of food all day, and I had no place to go for
the night. Yet somehow I felt strangely lifted up as I remembered the One who had said, "The
foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man hath not where to lay His
head."

I had a large supply of gospel tracts with me in a number of different languages, so I walked into
what was then the very worst section of the city, and I spent my time until two o’clock in the
morning visiting the vile saloons and! filthy dance halls of the district, until I had distributed about
three thousand of these little gospel messages.

But now even the saloons were closing up. My supply of tracts was exhausted, and still I was left
without any place to go. So following the streetcar track, I walked out to the end of the suburban
line, and there found an empty car into which I crept, and tried to sleep on the benches. The night
had turned very cold, and I could not be comfortable. I tried to pray, but I regret to confess that
I was not in the spirit of prayer. In fact, by this time I was inwardly complaining, not without
bitterness, to God. The Scripture came to me, "My God shall supply all your need according to
His riches in glory by Christ Jesus," and my rebellious spirit exclaimed, "Then why does He not
do this? He has promised and He is not fulfilling His Word."

I became very much perplexed and distressed. But about four o’clock in the morning I decided
that I would find more comfort in walking than in the car, so I went back to the city. In the
grounds surrounding the court house was a large weeping willow tree, the branches of which hung
very low on all sides. I crawled in under them and managed to get about two hours’ sleep where
no one could see me.

When I awoke, God was speaking to me in regard to certain things in my life concerning which
I had allowed myself to become very careless, and I knelt beneath the tree and poured out my
heart to Him regarding my lack of faith and my self-will. The more I confessed, the more things
came to my mind which required self-judgment, until I no longer wondered why God had not
undertaken for me, but I was amazed to think how very good He had been to me in spite of my
many failures.

That afternoon an interested crowd filled the Mission Hall, and at the close of the service a young
doctor came up to me and asked, "Could you come and stay with me? I am lonely for Christian
fellowship, and I would be delighted to have your company."

Well, what could I do but accept? I felt that it was the Lord’s wondrous provision. I hurried off
to the drug store where I had left my bag, and having obtained it, I hastened to the doctor’s
apartment. He noticed that I was rather weary, and suggested that while supper was being
prepared I should have a little nap. To this I very gladly consented.

After supper we went down to the evening meeting. God wrought in power, and quite a number
of precious souls professed to accept the Lord Jesus that evening. Then, without the least
intimation on my part of a need of any kind, one and another of the Christian friends crowded
around me, slipping money into my hands, until when I went back to my room I counted it out
and found I had twenty-seven dollars.

How I thanked God for His mercy! On the morrow I sent my wife a good portion of the money,
knowing it would be needed at home, but I prudently retained enough to pay my railroad fare if
nothing more was received.

A little later I went out to the post office to look for mail, and found a letter from my stepfather.
At the end of the letter I read the following postscript:"God spoke to me through Philippians 4:19
today. He has promised to supply all our need. Some day He may see that I need a starving! If
He does, He will supply that."

Oh, how real it all seemed to me then! I saw that God had been putting me through the test in
order to bring me closer to Himself, and to bring me face to face with things that I had been
neglecting. And so I pass this little incident on to others, hoping it may have a message for some
troubled worker who may be going through a time of similar need and perplexity.