18. Calcutta and the Doctor

Calcutta and the Doctor

John Hyde was only one of many men who have hazarded life for God’s service. Nehemiah was warned of the plotting of Sanballat and Tobiah. He was advised to go into the house of God and shut the doors. He answered, "Should such a man as I flee? and who is there that, being such as I, would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in." Of Jesus it is written, "And it came to pass, when the days were well-nigh come that he should be received up, he stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem" (Luk 9:51). When Mr. Moody was in England the last time, he was having trouble with his heart. He was ex- amined by an eminent physician, who told him that his excessive labors were costing him his life. He was killing himself. He promised that he would not work so hard. On the voyage back to America, an awful storm struck his ship, the Spree. She was partly sub- merged, and in great distress the people appealed to Mr. Moody. He exhorted and prayed. He told the Lord at that time that if he would get them out of this trouble he would never let up in his labors for lost souls. That summer was the time of the World’s Fair in Chicago. Mr. Moody gathered such a band of preachers, evangelists, workers, and singers as probably never was assembled for such work before or since. Halls, storerooms, theaters, churches, and even circus tents, were utilized for Gospel meetings, Mr. Moody worked with all his old-time vigor. They "put over" a magnificent campaign. A few months later, at Kansas City, while on the platform preaching with all his tre- mendous energy, the great evangelist’s heart gave way, his voice ceased, and his labors on earth were over. A few days later, among his friends at Northfield, he passed over to join that heroic band who counted not their lives dear unto themselves that they might win precious souls to Jesus. A friend of John Hyde’s, living in Calcutta, who now knows what it means to be despised and re- jected of men, gives the following testimony as to John’s prayer life. "I remember W. T. speaking of dear Hyde’s having spent thirty days and nights in prayer for the great Sialkot Convention (that was in 1906), when the Convention was opened for the first time to all Christians.

"This news made a deep impression on me, as it stood out in such contrast to my own prayer- less life at that time. When he and I were alone, I pressed Turner for more details, particulars of which he was very reluctant to give (as he himself had stayed twenty-one days with the little prayer band). ’I cannot go into details,’ he said, ’but it was a time in the Mount with God.’ "

Soon after the 1910 Sialkot Convention, John Hyde held a meeting in Calcutta. His friend in that city writes about him: "He stayed with us nearly a fortnight, and during the whole time he had fever. Yet he took the meetings regularly, and how God spoke to us, though he was bodily unfit to do any work! At that time I was unwell for several days. The pain in my chest kept me awake for several nights. It was then that I noticed what Mr. Hyde was doing in his room opposite. The room where I was being in darkness, I could see the flash of the electric light when he got out of bed and turned it on. I watched him do it at twelve and at two and at four, and then at five. From that time the light stayed on till sunrise. By this I know that in spite of his night watches and ill- ness, he began his day at five.

"I shall never forget the lessons I learned at that time. I had always claimed exemption from night watches, as I felt too tired at bed time. Had I ever prayed for the privilege of waiting upon God in the late hours of night ? No! This led me to claim that privilege then and there. The pain which had kept me awake night after night was turned into joy and praise because of this new ministry which I had suddenly discovered, of keeping watch in the night with the Lord’s ’Remem- brancers.’ At length the pain quite left my chest, sleep returned, but with it the fear came upon me lest I should miss my hours of communion with God. I prayed, ’Lord, wake me when the hour comes’ (see Isa 50:4). At first it was at two A. M., and afterwards at four with striking reg- ularity. At five every morning I heard a Mohammedan priest at the Mosque near by call out for prayers in a ringing, melodious voice. The thought that I had been up an hour before him filled me with joy.

"But Mr. Hyde grew worse, and the annual meeting of his Mission was calling him. Being anxious, I induced him to come with me to a doctor. The next morning the doctor said: ’The heart is in an awful condition. I have never come across such a bad case as this. It has been shifted out of its natural position on the left side to a place over on the right side. Through stress and strain it is in such a bad condition that it will require months and months of strictly quiet life to bring it back again to anything like its normal state. What have you been doing with yourself?’ Dear Hyde said nothing; he only smiled. But we who knew him knew the cause: his life of in- cessant prayer day and night, praying exceedingly with many tears for his converts, for his fel- low-laborers, for his friends, and for the church in India!"

Then the friend writes how God taught him to live a life of prayer through Mr. Hyde’s example, and how afterwards he too, like John Hyde, was led into the fellowship of Christ’s sufferings down, down, down, farther and farther into the very recesses of Gethsemane, till he too seemed to tread the winepress of the wrath of God against sin all alone.

"The spirit jealously desires us for his own" (Jas 4:5; Alford). It is his highest desire that there be in us a life of fellowship with himself. For this supreme wish of his heart he rises early, seek- ing, knocking, unasked, uninvited (Isa 50:4). How much more if asked and invited! Does not this fact make the Morning Watch unspeakably precious and glorious ?

He seeks communion with us because it is his right and our benefit. He seeks this communion at the beginning of the day. He would claim the best, the very best hour of the day. With so great a privilege pressed upon us, does it not mean a solemn obligation on our part to cultivate this life of fellowship?

If we are willing, he will quicken and empower.

Remember Gethsemane! Our Lord’s appeal to his disciples in his hour of supreme crisis was: "Could ye not watch with me one hour?" The appeal, though thrice repeated, fell upon deaf ears, because the enemy’s power had overmastered the disciples through sleep. Do we not hear the Lamb upon his throne, "standing as though it had been slain," make the same appeal again at this hour of world-crisis, at this hour of church-crisis, "Could ye not watch with me one hour?" The renewal of the church will depend on the renewal of our prayer life. The powers of the world to come are at our disposal if we will make time for quiet hours for fellowship and com- munion, which is our Lord’s supreme, yearning desire."

"Oh, ye who sigh and languish, And mourn your lack of power, Heed ye this gentle whisper:

’Could ye not watch one hour?’ For fruitfulness and blessing, There is no royal road; The power for holy service Is intercourse with God. "Or e’er a word or action

Hath stained its snowy scroll Bring the new day to Jesus, And consecrate the whole. Then fear not for the record; He surely will indite, Whatever may betide thee, It shall be, must be, right. "Soon the last golden sunrise, Shall deck the eastern sky;

Soon the last "Watch" be ended, Redemption draweth nigh.

Then may this bright incentive, Within our spirits burn.

It may be that this morning The Bridegroom shall return I"

"The Calcutta friend concludes: "We have heard of martyrs who were kept in prison, and in the end were put to death. But have we ever heard of one who was so given up to the ministry of prayer that the strain of a daily burden brought him to a premature grave ?" "No, friend," an- swers another brother in India, "not a premature grave; it was the grave of Jesus Christ. John Hyde laid down his life calmly and deliberately for the Church of God in India."

"Who follows in his train?"