W. B. Godbey - Enter His Rest

circuit rider because you ride around on a horse. Now, please tell me, are you a priest?”
Here you see the absolute necessity of that beautiful gift of the Holy Ghost, denominated wisdom.
(1 Cor. 12:8.) Without that gift, do you not see how this brokenhearted Irish mother would have bluffed the
circuit rider. But, while James Hall had no collegiate learning, he was wonderfully filled with the Holy Ghost
and enriched with His gifts, therefore he was prepared to face the emergency.
He responded unhesitatingly in the affirmative: “Yes, madam, I am a priest.” In this he did not prevaricate,
because every called and sent preacher of the Gospel is a priest after the order of Melchizedek (Heb. 7th
chapter). Then the dear woman, determined that no defalcation should supervene, clinched the matter by
interrogating him: “But are you a Roman Catholic priest?” Now you see this gift of wisdom again coming to his
relief, as he had to be rigidly truthful on all occasions. It would not do for him to answer in the affirmative;
meanwhile a negative answer would ruin everything, utterly taking the job out of his hands. Therefore he
responds: “Not exactly; but I can do anything a Roman Catholic priest can do.” Then she at once settled down in
the conclusion that the priests in this new country were in some respects different from those in Ireland; but,
“What does that signify if they can do everything that appertains to the office and power of the Roman Catholic
priest? If that is so, he can certainly get my dear baby out of purgatory.” After this soliloquy, which instantly
passed in her mind, she proceeded at once to inform him that her sweet baby had passed away in the absence of
a priest to baptize it, and of course it had gone to purgatory, and he must please proceed at once to get it out.
Then he responded: “My sister, your neighbor who gave me your invitation also informed me about the baby. I
have had it before God, and am happy to say it is not in purgatory, but in Heaven, and is the happiest, prettiest
thing you ever saw, and has never cried nor whimpered since it got there, and the angels all want it in their arms
at the same time.”
This so pleased the family, that they almost died of joy to think the sweet baby whom they so dearly loved was
already in Heaven and the angels so delighted with it. Then he asked them if they had ever been born again, and
they answered in the negative, saying that they had never heard of such a thing. Then he told them that, while
the baby was already in Heaven, if they wanted to see it again they must be born from above, as the Savior said
to Nicodemus. They were so delighted with the glad news which he brought them, and, had all confidence in
everything the “priest” told them, they believed it without a doubt, therefore they asked him to come and see
them just as often as he could. Here comes in the supernatural spiritual gift of wisdom again. He had no church
edifice in all the land, and did all of his preaching in the cabins of the squatters and under the green trees.
Therefore the broad invitation they had given him to visit them as their priest was all the open door he wanted to
make their house a regular preaching place in his monthly round. So he says to them: “One month from this day
look for me to come and see you again, and feel free to invite your friends to be present during my visit.”
Therefore going around, for he had an appointment every day in the month, he published his appointment to
preach in the house of the Irish Roman Catholic family.
Sure enough, the day and hour arrived, and the house was crowded with those red-hot, fire-baptized Methodists,
for at that time there was no other sort, Satan not as yet having invented the Methodist ice factory, which, in our
day, to our deep regret, is doing a lamentably extensive business: Now these Methodists all threw open their
alligator mouths and roared like lions, singing the grand full salvation songs which God gave John and Charles
Wesley, so loudly that the angels heard them. Falling on their knees, their fire-baptized prayers rose in smoking
volumes till it seemed that the clapboards of the roof would all take wings and fly away and lodge among the
stars, and the puncheon floors break through under their ponderous leaps and mighty shouts. Meanwhile the
bottom of Heaven drops out and swelling floods pour down and inundate the whole congregation.
Under the irresistible power the whole family falls prostrate, paralyzed with a nightmare of repentance and
seeing themselves forever lost and crying aloud for mercy; while those red-hot Methodists were just in their
glory, praying those Roman Catholics through into the kingdom. What is the result? Those indefatigable
Methodists never let up till that Irish family was gloriously converted. They joined the Methodist Church and all
turned preachers. They, like the Godbeys, are preaching throughout the continent this day. Therefore, you see
that my family, on both sides, are preachers; my mother's family by pre-emption Roman Catholics, and my
father's family having emanated from the Anglican Church.