ZION’S LANDMARKS.
DEVOTED TO THE DEFENSE OF THE PRIMITIVE BAPTISTS.
“TO THE -A^ISTT) TO THE TESTIMONY.’
Tolume II.
WiLSOx, NoiiTH Carolina, September 15, 1869
Number 20.
State of Missouri, }
Green County, August 2bd, 1SG9. ^
Bear Brother Bodenhamer :—Below I send
\ ou a piece of poetry found on the back of a
Minute of the Mount Pleasant Association,
■;cld with the Bethlehem Church, Gallia coun
ty, Ohio, in September, 1860 ; which lines were
iuiuul written on the back of an'old Bible, in a
■ onucr day, when many banks suspended spe
cie payments.
R. A. WISEMAN.
Ik
This is my never-failing bank.
My more than golden store ;
No earthly bank is half so rich,
Ilow then can I be j>oor ?
’Tis when my stock is spent and gone,
And I without a [,'roat,
I’m glad to hasten to my bank,
• And beg a little note.
Sometimes my Banker smiling says,
“ Why don’t you oltener come.
And when you draw a little bill,
Why not a larger sum ?
“ Why live so niggardly and jioor,
Thy bank contains a plenty ;
Wli\’ come and take a one pound note,
When you can have a twenty
“Nay, twenty thousand, ten times told.
Is but a frilling sum.
To what th"^' bank contains for'thee.
Secured in God’s own Son.”
Since then my bank it is so rich,
I have no need to borrow-.
But live upon these notes to-day,
And draw again to-morrow.
I’ve been a thousand times before.
And never ivas rejected;
Those notes ean never be refused.
That are by grace accepted.
All forgiCd notes will be refused,
They' are sure to be detected ;
aH those will deal in forged notes.
Who are not God’s elected^.
’Tis only those, beloved of God,
Eedeemed by precious blood.
That ever had a genuine note.
They are the gift of God.
There’s many ransomed dinners fear
They’ll have no note at all.
Because they feel the plague of sin.
So beggar’d by the fall.
Though many notes lay scattered round,
All signed and sealed and free,
Yet many doubting souls will say,
“ Ah, they are not for me!”
Base unbelief will lead the soul.
To say what is not true;
I tell the poor, self-emptied man,
These notes beldng to you.
Should all the banks in Britain break.
The bank of England smash.
Bring in your notes to Zion’s bank,
You are sure to get your cash.
Nay, if you have but one small note,
Fear not to bring it in;
Come boldly to this bank of grace,
The Banker is ■within.
I’ll go again, I need not fear
My notes should be rejected ;
Sometimes my Banker gives me more
Than asked for or expected.
Sometimes I feel a little proud,
I manage things so clever.
Perhaps before the day is gone,
I feel as poor as ever.
Sometimes -with blushes in my face.
Just at the door I stand;
I know if Moses kept the bank.
I’m sure I should be damned.
We read of one young man, inaeed.
Whose riches did abound.
But in the Banker’s book of life.
His name was never found.
The leper had a little note ;
“ Lord, if thou wilt thou can !”
The Banker paid his little note.
And healed the dying man.
Behold, and see the dying thief.
Hang by his Banker’s side;
He cried, “ Lord remember me !”
lie got his cash and died.
His blessed Banker took him borne,
i,. To everlasting glory.
And there to shout his Banker’s grace.
And tell his endless story.
With millions more, Jehovah’s choice.
Redeemed by precious blood.
With Peter, Paul and Magdalene,
And all the elect of God.
, Henry County, Va.,
August 8th, 1869.
Elder E. I. Bodenliarner— By
her permission I send you a copy of
my mother’s experience from nature
to grace. .. It was written in Septem
ber 1858, to Mrs. McNeely, and pub
lished by her request m “Zion’s Ad
vocate,” edited by Elder John Clark.
I have seen so many good experiences
in your paper, I felt like I wished
Mama’s republished, and have Ob'-
tamed her permission to send you a
copy, for you to dispose of as you
think best.
I receive “Zion’s Landmarks”
regularly now, and I think I derive
a great deal of pleasure in reading-
them. I hope your paper may be
more extensively read than it now is,
and continue to be a defender and
comforter to Zion’s cause. In con.
elusion I would beg of you to re
member me in your prayers, as one
who thirsts for righteousness, and
feels the need and desires the pray
ers of all who are Christians.
Respectfully your friend,
LOU. M. MARTIN.
My Dear Sister in Christ:—We
are all this morning in usual health,
for which I desire to feel thankful to
that dear Saviour from whence all
such blessings flow, and which I hope
you all are in possession of at this
time. Although I feel my unwor
thiness, and the imperfections of the
flesh admonish me, I feel a willing
ness to comply with my promise to
write to you. Oh, that the Lord may
be with me in my feeble attempt and
enable me to write from my heart to
your heart of such things as I do
hope he has given me, and enable me
to speak of his goodness and mercy
and long forbearance towards me a
sinner. Oh, sister, when I make the
attempt to speak or write to Chris
tians, I feel so unworthy and view
myself so imperfect, I am led to
pause and reflect, and to ask myself
the question, can ever God dwell
here ? But so it is, I have a hope
that he has dwelt ivith me, according
10 his riches by Christ Jesus, and
not according to anything that I have
done. Oh no, for in and of myself
I can do nothing that is acceptable
Avitii the Lord. Then I hope the
mercy of God brought me to see
that nothing short of the blood of
Christ would answer the demands of
the Lord against me. Oh, sister,
the very thought of calling Christians
brothers and sisters seems to be too
much for unworthy me, the token of
our relationship. But I want to tell
you a portion of the exercise of my
mind since I hope the Lord com
menced a work in my poor soul. To
name the date to you, or the precise
time of conviction, I will not attempt.
Suffice it to say that I hope the Lord
impressed my mind quite tender with
serious and solemn reflections on
death and eternity. My father and
mother were both members of the
Baptist Church. My father died
when I was in my 14th year. I had
a brother and sister that died in in
fancy. I would often think of them
and of being deprived of their com
pany. I thought they were in hea
ven with God their Eather, while I
was here and had no father at all.— i
I thought if I could only be prepared
to go to heaven when I died, I could
then be with my relations and be
happy. But these were not lasting
impressions, and I do not pretend to
say that I felt anything like convic
tion. I married in my 16th year,
and being in company ivith my hus
band’s relations, I heard them speak
ing of his being very serious at times,
and they seemed to think that the
Lord had commenced a work in him
and would finish it of course. Then
it was I thought again I could be a
Christian too. At length brother
George Griggs’ wife professed reli
gion. We were not living in the
same neighborhood at the time, but
the news reached us time enough to
go to Leatherwood meeting, ivhere
she expected to join the church. We
started on Friday, but we had to
stop on the ivay and did not go to
preaching on Saturday, but was there
Sunday and saiv her baptised, the
first .person I ever saw baptised.^
She was a relation I thought a greal
deal of, and now I believed she was
a Christian, it seemed to me I loved
her dearly. Next year after she
joined the church we moved to this
neighborhood, where she lived, and
was a lively member of Leatherwood
church. I used to visit her as often
as I could, hoping to hear her talk
about the teachings of the Lord with
his chosen ones. Sometimes we
would sit up late at night and I
would try to bring it about in some
way to hear her tell the exercises of
her mind while under conviction.—■
Still I did not wish any person to
know that I thought anything par
ticularly about such things. At
length I concluded I would try to
pray to the Lord to have mercy on
me, and do everything I thought was
right, and the Lord would favor me.
I had been to preaching but very few
times in my life before I was mar
ried. I had never had an opportu
nity of going; but now I lived close
to Leatherwood church and attended
regularly, and sometimes would feel
distressed in my mind, at others I
would feel indifierent, and thus it was