Portugal by C. E. Rentfro

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · May 30, 1907

Portugal

By C. E. Rentfro

LISBON.—As yet our work does not show a great number of openings. Our meetings are attended by a few. Now and then a stranger comes, and disappears. We can not tell how far the seed goes.

Not long ago a woman saw our advertisement in the paper, and came to see if she could not attend here, as it was quite near her home. Three years ago she was induced to leave Catholicism by a friend. This same friend called her attention to our meetings. She felt quite ashamed not to be able to find the texts in the Bible, but said she was very well practised in the prayer-book. Yet she believed she could learn to open her Bible, which she had read a few times in three years. Her daughter of fourteen or fifteen accompanied her. They desire to keep the Sabbath.

The professor and wife, of whom I wrote before, are desirous of keeping the Sabbath. As he is a teacher in a college, it will take some time for him to arrange affairs, and he may have to take up private work. At present these four are the only ones manifesting any interest.

The first of February, while on the way to Oporto, for a counsel with Elder Schwantes, I was much impressed by seeing a young man taking firewood from an old eucalyptus stump along the railway. He had no modern appliances, such as stump-puller, mattock, auger for boring a hole to put in powder, etc., but with an old ax, which looked like an iron wedge; with a crooked stick for a handle, was at work taking away the stump bit by bit. It surely would take a long time to break up such a large stump.

I thought, This resembles us. While it seems we can not reach thousands at one time, yet we expect to keep at our task, picking away with the appliances we have,—where an ax will not do, going at it with our hands,—until the stump of difficulty may be lifted and placed in the fire.

Yesterday we received about fifty dollars, which I suppose goes to pay for our organ, for which we had already negotiated. We thank God and the friends of the truth for this help.

C. E. RENTFRO.