FIVE SMOOTH STONES - The Five Ascension Gifts in the Heavenly Shepherds Bag

FIVE SMOOTH STONES — The Five Ascension Gifts in the Heavenly Shepherd’s Bag

Awakening. In A Mighty Winner of Souls Charles G. Finney, a Study in Evangelism, Frank Beardsley records, “The wife of a prominent Rochester attorney had invited Finney to her home, hoping to learn more about this preacher who was becoming quite famous. Secretly, she worried that revival, which seemed to follow Finney everywhere, would ruin the coming social season. As he spoke with the woman, Finney observed that pride was the most marked feature of her character. He felt prompted by the Holy Spirit to share one particular verse from the Bible: ‘ Except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter the kingdom of heaven. ’” Of this season, Charles Finney wrote, “ It was soon seen that the Lord was aiming at the conversion of the highest classes of society. My meetings soon became thronged with that class…As the revival swept through the town, and converted the great mass of the most influential people, both men and women, the change in the order, sobriety, and morality of the city was wonderful. ” This began a series of revivals which swept the Northeastern United States in what came to be known as Finney’s "Nine Mighty Years" of evangelism. “Charles P. Bush, a native of Rochester converted during the revival, later remarked, ‘ The whole community was stirred. Religion was the topic of conversation in the house, in the shop, in the office and on the street…Grog shops were closed, the Sabbath was honored, the sanctuaries were thronged with happy worshipers…There was a wonderful falling off of crime. The courts had little to do, and the jail was nearly empty for years afterward. ’” Philip also was called to influence an entire nation from the top down when he was led by an angel to bring the gospel to the treasurer of Ethiopia, a man in high authority in that country (Acts 8:26-39). Then Paul the apostle was chosen to bear the name of the Lord before the children of Israel, Gentiles, and kings (Acts 9:15). Bringing the gospel to heads of state and those in high places in society is part of the strategy that the Lord set forth for us to follow as a pattern. In India the story is told among the people concerning Thomas the apostle visiting what is today southern India. It is said that Thomas visited a river where Hindu priests were making their morning prayers and offerings by standing in the river and throwing water up

1