p. 14 | An Experience by GEO. O. STATES.

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California · Aug 30, 1910

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 37, No. 34.

An Experience

By GEO. O. STATES.

DEAR EDITOR: I have been a reader of the SIGNS OF THE TIMES much of the time since its publication. About six years ago my health failed through nervous breakdown, and since that it has been little I could do by way of interesting people in the grand truths which the SIGNS is carrying to the people. For the past few months my health has been improving, and tho not able to do much public speaking, yet I have been out nearly every day among the people for miles around with the SIGNS and other reading. O, I have had such grand experiences. Several miles from my home, I have visited a family and each time had to stay over night. I found there a father who never made any profession, the mother who nearly twenty years ago, when quite young, had been baptized and united with the church. For about sixteen years she had been living in the Wild West, and married, and was rearing a family. The oldest child is a girl of fifteen, who told me, as I walked with her over two miles on her way to school, that she wanted to be a Christian, but did not know just how to be.

The next visit I had, Bible study in the evening and a good talk with the whole family, and prayer before breakfast. The father gave me a year's subscription for our good church paper.

Not long after, I had the joy of seeing the man and his wife earnestly listening to my talk one Sabbath. In my last visit I made a personal appeal to the mother and the three children who were old enough to accept Christ and live Christian lives. The youngest boy said, “I will if mama will.” The next Sabbath I had the joy of seeing the mother with her four children in the Sabbath-school. O, I do believe that by faithful labor in time the father, mother, and three children will be living Christian lives.

Another lady to whom I had given papers twice, told me how much she enjoyed reading them. I asked her if she was a Christian. She said, “No, I never made any profession; there are so many churches I don’t know which is right.” We had a good talk, and the next visit I gave her a copy of the SIGNS, which answered a question that was bothering her. O, there is such a satisfaction in getting right into the homes of people and telling them the Lord is coming, and that they must be Christians to be ready.

GEO. O. STATES.