Tag: biography

Afraid of What?

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E.H. Hamilton, a Presbyterian missionary to China, wrote the poem below to reflect upon and commemorate the martyrdom of his fellow missionary J.W. Vinson (1880-1931). In October 1931, as Vinson visited some believers 18 miles from his mission station, the area was overwhelmed by a group of 600 bandits. Vinson was taken hostage along with around 150 others. Offered freedom if he would write a letter to the commanding officer of government troops telling them to withdraw, Vinson declined “unless all the hostages are released”. The bandit chief refused and Vinson was shot and killed. His decapitated body was later found by Edward Currie, and he was buried in the small missionary cemetery in Haichow.

As his captors prepared to execute Vinson, waving a gun in his face they asked him, “Are you afraid?”. A girl who witnessed the event later testified that Vison replied, “No. If you shoot, I go straight to heaven.” This incident inspired E.H. Hamilton to write his poem.

Afraid? Of what?
To feel the spirit’s glad release?
To pass from pain to perfect peace,
The strife and strain of life to cease?
Afraid? Of that?

Afraid? Of what?
Afraid to see the Saviour’s face,
To hear His welcome, and to trace,
The glory gleam from wounds of grace,
Afraid? Of that?

Afraid? Of what?
A flash – a crash – a pierced heart;
Brief darkness – Light – O Heaven’s art!
A wound of His a counterpart!
Afraid? Of that?

Afraid? Of what?
To enter into Heaven’s rest,
And yet to serve the Master blessed?
From service good to service best?
Afraid? Of that?

Afraid? Of what?
To do by death what life could not –
Baptise with blood a stony plot,
Till souls shall blossom from that spot?
Afraid? Of that?

Poem by E.H. Hamilton

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By webtruth.org / Photo Great wall of China by Tom Fisk at pexels

Practising The Presence of God ~ Free eBook

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One of the most adored books on living in God’s presence comes from an unlikely source— a man who was maimed as a young soldier and later became a footman “who was clumsy and broke everything.”

That is the early life of Nicholas Herman before he became Brother Lawrence.

Herman was born around 1610 in Herimenil, Lorraine, a Duchy of France. His birth records were destroyed in a fire at his parish church during the Thirty Years War, a war in which he fought as a young soldier. It was also the war in which he sustained a near-fatal injury that left him quite crippled and in chronic pain for the rest of his life.

Brother Lawrence Learned to Be in God’s Presence While Doing Chores

At mid-life he entered a newly established monastery in Paris where he became the cook for the community which grew to over one hundred members. After fifteen years, his duties were shifted to the sandal repair shop but, even then, he often returned to the busy kitchen to help out.

While repairing sandals or working in the kitchen, Brother Lawrence discovered and then followed a pure and uncomplicated way to walk continually in God’s presence. For some forty years, he lived and walked with God at his side. 

It was not until after his death that a few of his letters were collected. Joseph de Beaufort, representative, and counsel to the local archbishop, first published the letters in a small pamphlet. The following year, in a second publication which he titled, “The Practice of the Presence of God,’ de Beaufort included, as introductory material, the content of four conversations he had with Brother Lawrence.

In this small book, through letters and conversations, Brother Lawrence simply and beautifully explains how to continually walk with God, not from the head but from the heart. 

Brother Lawrence also left the gift of a direct approach to living in God’s presence that is as practical today as it was four hundred years ago.

The conversations between Brother Lawrence and de Beaufort covered many topics but most dealt with man’s responsibility to continually commune with God:

Brother Lawrence related that we should establish ourselves in a sense of God’s Presence by continually conversing with Him. It was a shameful thing to quit His conversation to think of trifles and fooleries. We should feed and nourish our souls with high notions of God which would yield us great joy in being devoted to Him.

He said we ought to quicken and enliven our faith. It was lamentable we had so little. Instead of taking faith for the rule of their conduct, men amused themselves with trivial devotions which changed daily. He said that faith was sufficient to bring us to a high degree of perfection. We ought to give ourselves up to God with regard both to things temporal and spiritual and seek our satisfaction only in the fulfilling of His will. Whether God led us by suffering or by consolation all would be equal to a soul truly resigned.

Brother Lawrence said that the worst that could happen to him was to lose that sense of God which he had enjoyed so long. Yet the goodness of God assured him He would not forsake him utterly and that He would give him strength to bear whatever evil He permitted to happen to him. Brother Lawrence, therefore, said he feared nothing. 

The book includes 15 short letters written by Brother Lawrence during the last ten years of his life to a variety of long time friends.  They are the heart and soul of his ability to live in the constant presence of God.

The account I can give you is: Having found in many books different methods of going to God and diverse practices of the spiritual life, I thought this would serve rather to puzzle me than facilitate what I sought after, which was nothing but how to become wholly God’s. This made me resolve to give the all for the All. After having given myself wholly to God, to make all the satisfaction I could for my sins, I renounced, for the love of Him, everything that was not He, and I began to live as if there was none but He and I in the world.

Sometimes I considered myself before Him as a poor criminal at the feet of his judge. At other times I beheld Him in my heart as my Father, as my God. I worshipped Him the oftenest I could, keeping my mind in His holy presence and recalling it as often as I found it wandered from Him. I made this my business, not only at the appointed times of prayer but all the time; every hour, every minute, even in the height of my work, I drove from my mind everything that interrupted my thoughts of God.

Brother Lawrence never advanced beyond being the cook at the Paris monastery, but he developed the unique gift of being able to pray incessantly with God throughout the entire day and regardless of whatever else he was doing. This unique gift produced such a spiritual change in Brother Lawrence that many people sought him out to learn how to practice the presence of God themselves.

By Daniel So at Justice Ventures International / Picture by Janez Podnar at Pexels

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FREE eBook Download:

FREE eBook: The Practice of the presence of God by Brother Lawrence

My Testimony – From New Age to Christianity: My Path to Redemption

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I was born and raised in London, England, in a non-religious and dysfunctional home. From an early age, I had always wanted to travel and experience the world. I had a distorted view of life and relationships. I believed that all paths led to God, no matter the religion and it was just a personal choice of how you got there. This belief eventually drew me to the New Age movement, which seemed to promise purpose, healing, and truth.

I became deeply involved in practices such as astrology, tarot cards, yoga, and spiritualist teachings. I believed in reincarnation, studied past life regression, and even qualified as a life coach, thinking I was helping others. But in reality, I was the one who was deeply unfulfilled. I was running wild—partying, clubbing, drinking, shopping—consumed by the image beast. I was careless and reckless in my behaviour, mixing with the wrong crowds. On the inside, I was lost, restless, and wounded, masking my pain with reckless behaviour and materialism, chasing after an image of success. Yet, no matter what I did, the emptiness in my heart wouldn’t go away.

Eventually, I hit rock bottom, and my life came crashing down. It descended into chaos—work, relationships, every area of my life fell apart. I became overwhelmed with hopelessness, depression, and despair, feeling like there was no way out. I began having suicidal thoughts, and in a very dark moment, I began contemplating ending my life. But instead, I found myself crying out for help. Unknowingly, I was reaching out to the One who had been waiting for me.

That night, Jesus the Christ met me in my brokenness. A warm presence of love and peace flooded my room, and I just knew it was Him. I didn’t need to be told He was the Son of God—I knew. Psalm 34:18 says, “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” The truth of that verse came alive for me that night.

The next morning, everything felt different. Inside, I felt refreshed. The heaviness I had carried for so long was lifted, and I felt hope stirring in my heart. At the time, I was staying with my grandmother, who had been praying for me and giving me Bible verses to read. Her prayers had planted seeds in my heart, and I began searching for answers.

I began reading the Bible and discovered that Christianity wasn’t about man trying to reach God through religious efforts. I had spent so much time in the New Age movement, thinking that all paths led to the same God and that Jesus was just a good teacher, but I was deceived. It was about God reaching out to us through Jesus Christ, wanting us to be restored so we can have a relationship with Him, the Creator of the universe. I had to face the truth that the practices I had embraced were harmful and part of a deceptive system. Colossians 2:8 warns us not to be taken captive by hollow and deceptive philosophies, and I could see how that had happened to me.

I repented of my sins, renounced my former beliefs, and surrendered my life to Jesus. He wasn’t just saving me from my sin—He was saving me from myself. I discovered that our sin had separated us from a Holy God, and no amount of self-help or religious effort could restore that relationship. But God, in His love, sent His Son to take the penalty for our sin and make a way for us to be reconciled to Him. John 14:6 says, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” I realised there weren’t many paths to God—there is only one, and it’s through Jesus, the mediator between God and man.

When I gave my life to Jesus, everything changed. The void I had tried to fill with the world was now filled with His love. I asked to be filled with the Holy Spirit in order to live a righteous life. His Word became my guide, His Spirit strengthened me, and His grace gave me peace and purpose. This wasn’t just a change in behaviour—it was a transformation of my heart, and I was now a baptised, born-again believer.

Looking back, I see how God’s kindness and mercy led me to repentance, and I am now walking in the assurance of His love. The Lord had a plan and purpose for my life ordained from the foundations of time, and He has a plan for you too. My life is a testimony of what God can do when someone repents, gives their life to Him, and surrenders to His will. I now know the peace, purpose, and true joy that come from knowing Jesus, and I am so grateful for the new life He has given me.

This was only the beginning of my journey. Since then, God has continued to reveal Himself in amazing ways in my life, and I’m grateful that He is still working in and through me.

My mission is to share God’s love and nurture faith by spreading the gospel, writing, engaging in outreach and missionary work, distributing Christian resources, and serving communities both locally and internationally. I am deeply committed to the sanctity of life, from the womb to the tomb and beyond, believing that every life is precious in both the physical and spiritual realms.

It’s a privilege to be part of the CFAN Youth Crusades team and to serve as a Fire Camp Evangelist, aiming to share Christ’s love and invite others to be reconciled with God wherever He leads me. ~ Lori McPherson

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*How to be saved: The Path To Salvation, please click: HERE / Photo by Eberhard Grossgasteiger