A SABBATH AT THE MATABELE MISSION.
By W. S. Hyatt
[W. S. Hyatt, in South African Missionary.] NO DOUBT many would be interested to know how we spend the Sabbath at the Mission farm, so I will give last Sabbath’s experience. I am sure you will conclude that we are busy most of the day, and have but little time to ourselves. Friday evening at sundown we met in the church, and spent about an hour in prayer, testimonies, etc. All seemed to enjoy the services very much. At the close of the meeting there was a class of those desiring baptism, who met at my house, and I spent an hour instructing them, and trying to prepare them for this important step. It is not a small task to take these poor heathen, and educate their minds to that point where they will understand the claims of the Gospel, and then have a heart to walk in the requirements of the Lord. During the time I had this class, Brother Sturdevant was with the others while they studied their Sabbath-school lessons. They retired before 9:00 o’clock. Before breakfast, Sabbath morning, the boys did the chores, and then the herdboys took the cattle and goats to the pasture. Breakfast was at 7:00 o’clock, and at 8:00 the teachers of the Sabbath-school met at Brother Sturdevant’s for study of their lesson. The teaching is all done by the natives. At 10 o’clock Sabbath-school convened, and continued for about an hour. The lesson was the 29th psalm. There were eighty young people in twelve classes, and the teachers seemed to take great interest in their work. Near the close of the school we took up the monthly collection which amounted to twenty-one shillings. For a long time the school tried to have weekly collections, but money was so scarce that they seemed to amount to nothing. Now we take them but once a month, and we get a good offering, much more than we did when we took them every week. At 11 o’clock Elder Sturdevant took the service and Jim acted as interpreter. The text was taken from Rev. 22:17, and the Lord blessed as Brother Sturdevant gave the invitation. “Whosoever will may come.” There were about one hundred at this meeting. Every Sabbath there are a few new ones who come into the meeting and the Sabbath-school. Following this meeting, the few white brethren and sisters met at one of the houses for Sabbath-school and meeting which continued for a little over an hour. Dinner was at 2:00 o’clock. Immediately after dinner, we went to the kraals to hold, what we call in America, cottage-meetings. Each leader took from two to four others with him to assist in the singing and prayer. On the previous Friday afternoon Elder Sturdevant gave all the young teachers a lesson on the subject of “Christ the Redeemer” from Isa. 43:1. In this way the same subject is given to all the kraals, and through the boys Brother Sturdevant was able to speak to 268 people in twelve kraals. These are from one to twenty miles from the Mission. In this way we are able to reach a large number of natives about us, and we are trying to give them the message as quickly as possible. But the people are slow to accept the Gospel. The most of the people worship the devil, and ask where he came from in the same way that white people ask where Cain got his wife. They fulfil Rev. 9:20 in that they openly worship Satan, and have their stones and sacred goats for worship. But we have confidence that the power of the Gospel will reach their hearts if we work faithfully. It would do you good to have heard the boys pray for the power of the Holy Spirit to go with them as they should speak to the people. We visited as many kraals as we could with them. The day closed by meeting at the chapel for a few words of prayer and praise for the blessings of the day. We thank the Lord that we can have a part in this work.