Free Church, Elie (1874)



TIE following has been sent us by REV. WALTER WOOD:-

Kind friends had more than once put up the names of Elie and Earlsferry for prayer at the noonday prayer meeting in Edinburgh; and a week of united prayer meetings had been held by us in the month of January, so that a spirit of expectation had already been awakened, and many of God's people were earnestly praying that the time of grace might not pass by without our receiving a blessing. Then tidings came that two young men belonging to Elie, who had lately gone to reside in Edinburgh, had been brought to the knowledge of the Lord, very shortly after Messrs. Moody and Sankey left that city for Glasgow. Thus considerable attention was awakened to the necessity of having a personal interest in Christ; and as the weekly prayer meeting began to be more largely attended, this feeling was continually increased by the accounts read there of what was going on in other places. But the blessing came at last in an unexpected way. There is a Good Templar lodge belonging to Earlsferry and Elie. When the Grand Lodge sent down a recommendation to all subordinate lodges to devote the week beginning the 8th of March to prayer for the advancement of the objects which they have in view, the lodge at Earlsferry resolved to hold open meetings on three nights of the week; and being of opinion that the best way of making men sober is to make them Christians, they resolved that the meetings should be wholly evangelistic. The management of them fell, of course, into the hands of the chaplain, who is the minister of the Free Church; and several young people offered their services to sing Mr Sankey's hymns. The meetings were so well attended that another week was unanimously resolved on and the attendance still increased every evening. Towards the end of this second week, some outward signs of awakening appeared, and one or two remained to a second meeting. The third week was that which was set apart for prayer for our young men. Meetings were arranged for every evening in the Free Church and the Congregational Chapel, the two ministers co-operating in the most friendly way. A great impulse was given to the movement by the account given on Tuesday evening by Mr Henry Drummond of what he had seen of the Lord's work among young men in Edinburgh and Glasgow; and also by an address of Mr Cameron of Pathhead, who told of what God had wrought in his own neighbourhood. The numbers who remained to the second meetings very much increased, and many were in the deepest anxiety for the salvation of their souls. The people earnestly besought that another week (the fourth) might be employed in the same manner. The interest still deepened and extended far beyond those who had been attending the meetings. For the present, our special services are over and we are engaged in endeavouring to carry home the sheaves. Bible Classes have been commenced; a Young Men's Christian Association has been formed; and we are rejoicing in the great goodness of the Lord, but rejoicing with trembling, for we are not ignorant of the devices of Satan. We feel also that it is right to state, for the encouragement of others, that, apart altogether from conversions, we have received abundant blessing in the stirring up of the Lord's people, so that they have been made willing to put their hand to His work.

8th April

"Times of Blessing," April 18th, 1874.

Additional Information

The building is long gone


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