Truth is ancient; it's grey hairs may make it venerable;
it comes from Him who is the ancient of days. --Thomas Watson

 

31 January, 2008   comments: (0) Wonderful Plan?   The Huguenot Galley Slave Story - Part 4 of 4 Years passed away, and M. Le Fevre was still the solitary tenant of the dungeon at Marseilles, France. While the companions of his youth and manhood, and those who had entered with him on an honorable career, were pursuing their course, amid the active scenes of life, surrounded by social and domestic comforts, he sat alone in his cell, unseen by all, by many unremembered; but surely not forgotten by Him "who heareth the prayer of the destitute," and suffereth the sighing of the prisoner to come up before him. The trial of the sufferer's faith and patience was, indeed, prolonged; but still he was supported under it. His weakness was strengthened; his sorrows were mitigated; his spirit was cheered by the presence of that gracious Savior, who saith to his children, "I will never leave nor forsake you; and none shall pluck you out of my hand." Of a truth he is still their Lord, and their Shepherd, in every scene of calamity, as well as in the dark valley of the shadow of death; and they are enabled to say, "I will fear no evil: thy rod and thy staff they comfort me." "That field of promise how it flings abroad Its odor o'er the Christian's thorny road! The soul, reposing on assured relief, Feels herself happy amidst all her grief; Forgets her labor as she toils along, Weeps tears of joy and bursts into a song." Many of those who were dwelling at ease and in prosperity, but whose hearts were not right before God, might well have envied Le Fevre in his afflictions. It is thus that he writes to a relative in the year 1695: "I enter into the tenth year of my sufferings,; and by God's grace I have neither lost faith nor patience, at least not totally. Ah! My dear kinswoman, the Lord hath heard your prayer and those of the other Moseses and the Samuels who intercede for me. If I were but disburdened of sin, and if I could disengage myself from the thoughts of the world, I should be too happy. I should be incomparably more happy than I was in the world, though, when I left it, I had almost all I could desire in it. But I confess, with grief and confusion, that I am a man of little faith, and a sinner. I have desired my visible and temporal liberty with too much fervency. I expect all from the grace of my God: I hope all from my Savior, Jesus Christ, who will subject my flesh to himself, and who will heal the diseases of my soul. My comfort is, that this Great Physician has undertaken my cure, and that he will never forsake me. He sought me when I did not seek him, he has engaged me in the defense of his truth, in spite of my resistance and fear. Will he forsake me then, when I seek him -- when I am afraid of nothing more than that I should fear something else more than him? No! because that seeking after him, that desire, that filial fear are earnests of his love, and assurances of his protection. What has he not done, and what does he not do for me? And where can I find one like him in heaven or earth? He opens the ear of my soul, to cause me to hear his voice; and he takes me by the hand when he seeth me stagger. He raiseth me up when I am fallen; he supports me, in my weaknesses and defects, from all the power of those who would devour me. His design is, doubtless, to lead me into that city whereof 'glorious things are spoken.' As for the rest, God is always in my heart, though he does not always make himself to be equally felt there. I shall rest with confidence, provided he assists me; for, without his assistance, I fall away like water. God is stronger than all, and no one can take me out of his hand. The tender care that his adorable providence has been pleased to take care of me, strengthens me in the midst of my fears." After the time when the above letter was written, six years more were added to his captivity; and then his spirit was freed from every fetter, to enter into the mansions prepared for him, where the oppressor can never enter. From the scanty records of his last days, we find that some alleviations were allowed him in his extremity. He was permitted the privilege of sometimes seeing a benevolent Protestant lady, (Lady Salincroffe,) in the presence of witnesses. To see and converse with one who had so much in common with him, was an unspeakable consolation; though their interaction was fettered by the presence of men who watched the utterance of every word. In all her visits Lady Salincroffe found the sufferer like the first martyr, Stephan, full of faith and the Holy Ghost, and all zeal and charity for his [Catholic] persecutors. She saw him for the last time, two days before his death. He then appeared very weak, but in the same truly Christian spirit. A Protestant gentleman, writing of this event, says: "We are sorry we could not collect what he had to say in his sickness. He is dead; that is to say, he has conquered, by the grace of God; and there remains nothing but for him to triumph with his Savior, and to possess that kingdom and crown which he purchased for his confessors and martyrs." Such are the prison annals of M. Le Fevre. Are not his sufferings recorded on high? When the books shall be opened, and the judgment set, this patient sufferer will assuredly be of the number to whom the Judge shall say, "Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit a kingdom prepared for you from the foundations of the world." THE END The 17th century account depicted above is from our 4-part series of church history posts, out of the book Stories of The Huguenots. It's a true story of one of the many who suffered while condemned to the slave galley ships of France. Based on the memoirs of the life and death of M. Le Fevre, described in the book as: "a counselor by profession, well educated, and possessed of almost everything which could make life pleasant to him, he was arrested at age 37, on account of his protestant religion; and bore, for sixteen years, the hard yoke of a cruel bondage, with unrepining submission to the word of God; taking joyfully his sufferings, and in the manner of the apostle, 'rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing instant in prayer'." If you are just tuning in, you can get caught up by starting on part 1. Learn more about the French Huguenots on Wikipedia or in a book that I highly recommended called Sketches From Church History. Posted by: Jim B.   Link: http://www.oldtruth.com/blog.cfm/id.2.pid.910   Be the first to post a comment about this article        Home  |   About  |  Videos   |  Calvinism