MRS. HAMPSON’S MISSION.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume III, Issue 634, 12 May 1882, Page 2

MRS. HAMPSON’S MISSION.

Mra Hampson held her second mission service in Ashburton at the Town Hall last evening. The night was cold and damp, and anything but an inviting one in fact. Yet, despite the weather, the Hall was crowded, the auditors being chiefly men. The proceedings- opened with prayer, which was followed by a hymn. This was succeeded by a second hymn, Mrs Nixon singing the solo part very sweetly. The 56th hymn, Moody and Sankey’s collection, was then given out by Mrs Hampson, and sung with much heartiness by the audience, standing. The Rev. John Nixon then offered up an extempore prayer, in the course of which he returned thanks to God for having permitted Mrs Hampson to come amongst them. Mrs Hampson then advanced, to the front, repeated the Lord’s Prayer, and then, in her earnest and impressive manner, delivered an address, taking as her text the 51st chapter of on which she gave a sort of running commentary. The Saviour had brought them there that night, and for the purpose of sending a message to them through her—the message of life. To business men time waa money—every moment was precious. If they had capital, did they riot lay it out to the best possible advantage ? Did they not calculate on increasing it and turning it to account.' They kept their books with the utmost care, so that nothing should escape them and be lost. They reckoned up their debit and credit columns so as to be able to account for every minute of their time and labor. Now God had asked them to meet Him that night, had asked them to draw near to Him and eay whether they bestowed equal attention on what was infinitely more precious than their money, than their gains. He had sent her to ask them what they were doing, and whether they felt that they were getting an equivalent for their time and labor—were they neglecting their precious souls?- Were they satisfied ? Were they at rest ? Were thej' happy, contented, at ease? God.had sent her to ask them, and He wanted a reply. Ho saw down into their hearts — He saw the aching void therein—and He bade them come down from their wretched “ reasoning)” -hat had never satisfied them yob, and never would satisfy ttfem. until they had found Him »nd acknowledged Him. God’s ways wore not as their ways ; His thoughts not their thoughts. He would not descend to their level and speak to them in the way they wanted, because He wanted to draw them up to His level. That was the reason. People often talked about the responsibility of ministers, and said they would not have their responsibility for worlds, but they did not think of their own responsibility as listeners. The day waa coming when, like a panorama, every good thing they had heard, every sermon they had listened to, every Sunday school lesson they had learned, would be spread out before their eyes and the reason demanded why they had not made a better ase of the opportunities afforded them. That night the message contained in the 19th chapter of Luke and the 10th versa was sent'to them: “ For the son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost,” The words were not “ will come,” or “ had come,” but “is come.” It was fashionable now to sneer at religion and the Gospel, to sneer at God and Gbd’s ways, but if they had attended the deathbeds that the speaker had attended they would understand what that word “ lost ” meant. They would not sneer at and trample the love of God under their feet. God sought all alike ; it was not because some went to church and read their giltedged Bibles that they would be saved. The mere act of going to church would not save them; mere “church-going respectability ” would not avail them. God knew no distinction between little sins and great sins; all were alike sinners until they had found Him—and He' was continually seeking them. Yes, He had sought them ; not one of them could look back and say that he had not been sought. Did they not remember kneeling at their mother’s knee, and asking God to put within them a clean spirit ? Did they not remember that mother repeating “ Gentle Jesus, meek and mild?” Well, in the mother’s voice and tone and manner there was the love of God. He would have rescued them then, early in life, if they would but have gone to Him. Then later on, when they were growing up and heard His word preached to them, He had sought them again—ay, again ; time failed to say how often he Had sought them. Ha was socking them then. It was not mere curiosity that had them there that night; and it was something more than that, it was God who waa trying to save them ; and He would save them if they would let Him, but Ho would not force the truth on them; He would not thrust it down their throats, but He offered it to them He would help, if asked to help. A rich man had asked the speaker ortce what he should do to find God ; he had said, “shall I find him if I throw my riches into the streets, into the river ? Oh, that I could purchase with my wealth but one atom of peace of mind !” And this man had found Jesus He had cast his riches at His feet. Many had doubts and misgivings about the Saviour; they were sceptical and hard to convince, they could not understand the scheme of redemption; but could they understand the mysteries of life and of nature ? Could they unfathom the secrets that Jay behind these ? They could not—they knew not; then why should they expect to learn the secrets of spiritual life ? They must accept God as he was, and ask no questions. There waa a constant conflict going on betwixt God and the devil. All their lives they were, subject to temptations, but their was no real life until Jesus was found. In England the speaker had been laughed at on one occasion by a man as an enthusiast, a fanatic, and yet twenty-four hours afterwards that man waa shrieking out her name, for he lay at death’s door, and she had turned back fifty miles to go to him. Ah, he did not laugh then 1 The speaker

concluded her address with an earnest exhortation to those prese' t to delay no longer, to put it off not even for one more night, but to seek Jesus then and there; to come to her in the enquiry-room .after the service. M ould they find Him if they camel Yes, they would; she would unhesitatingly say that, for she knew it, and had seen it in thousands of cases. The proceedings closed with the singing of the 90th hymn, Moody and Sankey’s collection, and the large audience dispersed evidently much impressed with what they had heard. A considerable number of persons remained behind to interview Mrs Hampson and her assistants in the enquiry-room.