COLLACE, August 30, 1844.
MY DEAR FRIEND,
—I am longing to hear of
you. Are you better? and where are you? It is a sore trial to be laid aside,
but it must be very sanctifying. It seems to be peculiarly a minister's
furnace. Remember the Baptist. He preached in full health amid the breezes
of the hills of Judea, and then at the waters of AEnon ; and as he preached he
cried, 'He must increase, but I must decrease!' Well, he was soon laid
up in the dungeon of Machaerus, and saw Herod's gay company riding out and in
to the palace—while he could only mourn, 'Lord! art Thou He that should
come?' Your own history resembles this—you ministered in the hilly
country, and then by the waters of AEnon; and now you are learning John's
lesson of trial. But perhaps you have more work yet—prepare for it by the
deepening holiness of your soul. Tell me what you are learning in his school .
. . . . .
Write me if you can, and believe me, dear brother, yours in the
Lord,
ANDREW A. BONAR.
KELSO, April 30th, 1846.
MY DEAR BROTHER,—I was appointed to furnish
you with the annexed list of brethren in which is your own name, understanding
that you were willing to join us in keeping one day every month as peculiarly
set apart for fasting and prayer. Monday next is the day we mean to begin and
the first Monday of every month thereafter. Your turn to give notice will not
be for a year yet. Surely we need much to pray—and to sigh and cry for the
land. How little fulness in our messages! How little of the love that is as a
most vehement flame! How seldom we feel commissioned by God at the time! How
rare the felt and evident presence of the Holy Ghost! Few are saved—our
hearers float down the stream to the lake of fire, and we sit on the banks
writing sermons and speaking words, instead of really rushing to their rescue,
declaring the whole mind of God opened out at Calvary. O brother, let us go and
put ourselves on Monday under the Holy Spirit's teaching anew—to be taught
the Word—and how to preach the contents of the Word, not our
thoughts upon it. One spark of lightning is worth a thousand of tame
candle-flames—so, one sentence given us by the Holy Ghost is worth volumes
of any other.
Join us, then, on Monday. May He Himself give us His power
to wrestle.—Yours truly in the Lord,
ANDREW A.
BONAR.
GLASGOW, 16th Dec. 1864.
MY DEAR FRIEND,
—I should have replied at once
to your very kind letter, but often just now there seems a strange indolence to
creep over me, disinclining me for exertion and suggesting postponement for a
time. . . .
My hands are full of work, which is good for me, for at home
the blank does at times appear indescribably sad. But the Lord is not far off.
He does at times pour over me the 'oil of gladness' from His own person and
presence. . . . I hope your throat is really better. You must be moderate in
your work though not in your creed. I am quite set on a visit to that private
chapel of yours. (Mr. Manson had fitted up his green-house
in Crossford as a meeting-place, and services were held in it till a church was
built in 1873) May it be in a high sense 'the Porter's Lodge,' the
Lodge of Him to whom 'the Porter openeth,' —and may the Divine Porter who
welcomed the returning Shepherd that laid down His life for the sheep be ever
there, ready to welcome returning sheep.
We are all well. 'He stayeth His
rough wind in the day of His east wind.' —Yours truly in the Lord Jesus,
ANDREW A. BONAR.
GLASGOW, 23rd Sept. 1889.
MY DEAR VENERABLE FRIEND,
—I have just
come from the funeral of Dr. Somerville, our old and true-hearted friend. He
was laid in the grave at the Western Necropolis, a little beyond Maryhill. Have
you many memories of him? He was greatly blessed in his ministry, and for
fifty-two years went on preaching the 'blood and the obedience of Christ'
without once turning aside. It is difficult to believe that he is gone from
among us. But we shall all soon meet together, for the 'coming of the Lord
draweth nigh.'
I have Major Whittle in my church this week holding
meetings. He is a most Scriptural and effective evangelist. Do you know that,
on Sabbath last, I began the fifty-first year of my ministry! Were you with me
on my Ordination-day, or Where were you? Dr. Candlish introduced me. O how many
sins of commission and omission! I feel often ashamed when I read over my
sermons of early date—so little in them —and so very little to
remember in regard to their being useful. Do you ever groan at such
retrospects? I do rejoice that it is written, 'Your sins and your iniquities I
will remember no more!'
Pray for us and for our evangelistic meetings this
week.—Yours affectionately, in much weakness, infirmity, stupidity, ANDREW A. BONAR.
P.S.—Your grapes were excellent. I wonder if Eshcol-clusters were
better? Scarcely!
Transcribed from Reminiscences of Andrew A.Bonar D.D.
first published
LONDON, HODDER AND STOUGHTON,
27 Paternoster
Row
1895
HTML transcription files copyright © 2001-2006.
Jane Newble
July 2001