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REVIVAL AT WILMINGTON, N.C.

PROFESSOR GEORGE A. WOODARD.

The revival which took place in this church the latter part of the winter was, in some respects, a model one.

At the close of one of the Wednesday evening prayer meetings, our pastor spoke to us with the view of ascertaining if the church were ready for special work; then he appointed another prayer meeting for Friday night.  With faith, and resting upon the promises of God, the work was begun the next week.  At first the attendance was small; but, as the meetings continued, the interest increased, and it became necessary to move into the large hall of the school.

It was evident throughout that God was in the work and that the Holy Spirit was striving mightily with sinners.  A deep, quiet emotion pervaded the meetings, in strong contrast with the revivals held in many of the colored churches of the city, where the excitement becomes intense, and the confusion great.  Their meetings are often continued until long after midnight, in a crowded, unventilated room, whereas ours never closed later than ten o’clock.

As a result of our revival, although other revivals were going on amongst the colored people at the same time, upwards of forty were born into the Kingdom, for some of whom, many, many prayers had been offered up; and all was done in answer to prayer.  Among these were several cases of interest, two of which I will mention.  One is that of an intelligent young man employed by the leading dentist of the city, for whom he does the mechanical work, which previously had to be sent North.  Although of excellent character, he was a skeptic, reading the writings of Ingersoll, Paine, and others.  For years, our teachers had taken a special interest in him laboring with him and praying for him, that he might come into the light He was induced to attend these meetings, and was finally led to believe that these things are so and to accept of the Saviour.  He has gone earnestly to work to bring in other young men, teaches in the Sunday-school and is ready for any Christian work.

The other is that of a brawny brick mason, a great sinner, who, while earning excellent wages, often failed to bring home sufficient to feed and clothe his children; and when remonstrated with by his wife, would answer; “They are your children, you take care of them.”  All is changed now.  He gets up early Sunday mornings, assists in getting the children ready for church, where the family, all neatly dressed, can be seen regularly every Sunday; and in the prayer meeting his voice is usually heard.

As a further result of this revival, the church has been greatly quickened, the members have been brought closer together in brotherly love, and God has given a fresh outpouring of his spirit.