Do you know either of the two old women in the above photo? Look closely. The one on the left was Peggy Smith. She was about 84 years old (and nearly blind) when that picture was taken (almost 70 years ago). The woman on the right was Peggy's sister Christine. Those two sisters lived together, as neither of them ever married. You don't recognize them, do you? I didn't think so. They were hardly known outside of their own neighborhood, on the Isle of Lewis, off the coast of Scotland. They never amounted to very much, by the world's standards. Oh, but there is indeed good reason why you should know about those two elderly sisters. You see, they prayed down one of the greatest outpourings of God's Spirit in history ~ the effects of which are still ongoing, today.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the "Lewis Awakening," or the "Hebrides Revival," as that is variously called, here are a few resources which will help you get started, if you may be interested to learn something about what real Revival is. (Click on the title of each item, below):
"The Lewis Awakening (1949-53)," by the Rev. Duncan Campbell (pictured in photo, above)
"The Hebrides Revival," by Kathie Walters
"The Revival on the Isle of Lewis - An Account of What Happens in True Revival" (YouTube video, 1 hr. in length)
Everyone of course knows the man at right. Well, everyone in Heaven does, anyways. That's Bill McLeod: one of the great characters in the annals of Church history. Bill went on to be with the Lord only 4 years ago (2012; at age 93). So, Bill's story is sufficiently recent to disprove the idea that real Revival is not possible in our time. In 1962, Bill was invited to pastor a relatively small Baptist church (175 people) in Saskatchewan, Canada. One of the first things he did when he arrived there was to organize the church members into groups which would take turns canvassing their surrounding community. But when it came time actually to go out, no one showed up. Yet, under Bill's leadership throughout the ensuing years, that church sent out more than 3,000 teams, which went to every part of the world spreading the word, and effects, of Revival.
If you'd like to know how that God worked in obscurity to bring Revival in and through the life of Bill McLeod, here is a link for you to begin your study. Believe me, if you will spend enough time researching and studying the life and works of the people mentioned in this blog essay, it will be worth more than any University course of study.
"The Saskatoon Revival by Bill McLeod" (YouTube video, 1 hr. 33 min.)
How about the fellow pictured at left? Do you recognize him? At least part of his story is much better known, than is Bill McLeod's. Unto this day, he is often referred to as "Father Seymour." No, he was not a Catholic priest. But Seymour "fathered" one of the greatest Revivals in modern history. You've probably heard of the "Azuza Street" Revival (which began in 1906).
But don't get your information, about William Seymour, from Wikipedia. The real story began long before that God began to move in great power at the Azuza Street mission. What happened there actually began much earlier, in Seymour's prayer life. It is reported that Seymour (whose habit was to pray several hours every day) asked the Lord what more could he do to receive God's blessing of Revival; and, he believed that God told him to "pray more." So, he did. I will not say how much he is supposed to have prayed; it probably seems too incredible for most people to believe. Besides, I can't prove it. But what happened throughout several years, at a converted warehouse at 312 Azuza Street in downtown Los Angeles, proves that Seymour evidently found something extraordinary in God. Importantly, for those of us who are earnestly seeking God for Revival in our time, Seymour found that special place in God, in obscurity.
In a time period when Seymour (because he was "colored") was not even allowed inside of "white" churches in America, famous "white" preachers from all over the world came to see and to hear for themselves what God was doing at Azuza Street.
If you will study the lives of those whom God has used in exceptional ways, you will in every case discover that God found them, and developed and prepared them, in obscurity. Consider, if you will, the case of Moses. When, 40 long years after Moses left Egypt, and God appeared to Moses, in the "burning bush," Moses replied:
Well, it's about time, God! I've been waiting out here in the desert for you, ever since I left Egypt 40 years ago. I still have my college degrees hanging in my tent. I have advanced training in weapons and military strategy. Oh, and economics. Yeah, and civil engineering. You know, God, I've been doing a lot of thinking, and I've come up with a great escape plan for those poor Hebrews back in Egypt....
Uh, not quite. What Moses really said, was simply: "I'm sorry, God; you've got the wrong guy. Besides, I can't speak very well." Moses was then 80 years old. Perhaps, at that age, and still tending sheep every day in the hot desert sun, Moses had had a stroke, which affected his speech. At any rate, Moses did not demur from accepting God's calling because that Moses was disinterested to serve the Lord and to know God in a deep way. On the contrary. Do you suppose that Moses just happened to be camped out with his sheep, on that particular day, at the base of what was then called, "the Mount of God"? I believe that Moses made his home there. I believe that Moses often climbed that mountain to pray and seek God. God knew right where to find Moses ~ and at the right time, that is, when Moses was in obscurity.
God later found a guy named Saul, in obscurity. Only, Saul's place of obscurity, unlike Moses's, was not the Midian desert; at least, not at first. Instead, Saul was "hidden" among the wealthy elite of his day. Saul was an intellectual, a social ladder-climber. He was full of "spit and polish," as that saying goes. But he was empty on the inside; and no one knew it but himself. His search for Truth, for God, led him in the wrong directions; until, Christ suddenly appeared in blazing glory to Saul. That single, momentary vision of the risen Savior changed Saul's life forever. Never again would Saul care anything about worldly fame, or power, or riches. Saul henceforth from that day, only wanted to know and to please that heavenly Being whom Saul had seen with his own eyes. And Saul somehow knew where he must go, if he were to know Christ in a deep way: that is, he must go into the desert. Or, should I say, obscurity.
For three years ~ three years! ~ Saul camped out somewhere in the desert, far away from the busyness and distractions of human relationships. Then, one day, like a shimmering mirage on the horizon of the distant sands, there appeared the figure of a solitary man. Returning, as he was, to the world of men. But it was not the same Saul who, three years before, had been "lost" in the desert. But after that very long season in obscurity, the desert at length gave up its golden treasure: an Apostle of Jesus Christ.
Do you, my Brother, have a longing in your soul to know Christ in a deep way? Or, you, dear Sister. Do you hunger to see a real move of God in this generation? But you are nobody, from nowhere. You have no special talent or training. You have no money, no resources to speak of. Who cares about you? No one, practically, even knows your name. Perhaps, even, you are not young anymore. Opportunities ~ and vitality ~ of youth have passed away. How can you make any real difference, now?
You can pray. You can seek God with all your heart.
But don't go looking for Him in the limelight. He's not much welcome, actually, wheresoever that human talent, or personality, or fame is on display. But if your soul truly hungers for a special relationship with Christ, do what others before you have done, who found Him . . .
in obscurity.
Oh, and one more thing: don't fret yourself about the time it may take. That will be up to Him.
where was lewis island?
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