Miracles and mercies

16 Miracles and Mercies

In spite the now extremely difficult circumstances, these were days of proving God in so many little ways. I had two outstanding experiences of the fact that God, (as indicated in the Bible), is no man’s debtor.

The first concerned one egg, an almost unprocurable thing at that time. I don’t even know how I came by it, I only know it was in my cupboard the day our milkman came to our door with our small ration of skimmed milk. He looked so very ill. He told me he had very bad dysentery. My thoughts raced to that precious egg and I saw this man so pale, I knew that I must give it to him. At first he refused but I insisted he take it. I had heard that if one hardboiled an egg and sprinkled it with grated acorn it would be beneficial for his condition and would do him good. At last he agreed.

That afternoon I had a visitor who came to see me and encourage me. She had come in from a country area and brought with her a gift… two eggs!

‘Little’ Mrs Cohu

The second occasion concerned a half-pound of flour I had stored in an airtight tin. I had often thought that, when there was absolutely nothing else left, I could make 8 meals of flour and water for my little boy, Michael. And then there came a knock on the door. I opened it to see little Mrs Cohu. She looked dreadful. “Please, have you anything you could give me to eat?” Like a flash I thought of that half-pound of flour. For a few seconds I toyed with the options and it’s of no credit to me that I gave it but I am sure our loving Saviour was caring for that poor woman and urging me to help. I gave her the flour, encouraging her to use it wisely and with a smile on her face she went home.

Not long afterwards a man came from the other side of the island to ask Gilbert to go with him and pray for his mother who was ill. We didn’t know this family at all but someone had suggested that they should contact us. “Most gladly I will!” Gilbert replied, going to fetch his bike from inside the house. As the man took his own bicycle from behind the wall in front of the house, he reached into his saddle bag. Turning, he said, “Oh, I have something for you, Mrs Dunk,” and handed me a paper bag containing one pound of flour!

With these and many other small mercies in relation to food, in those days of want, I truly proved that you can’t out-give God and the Biblical promise “My God shall supply all your need…” is a reality.

Meanwhile, creative minds must be kept active and Gilbert had become somewhat frustrated that weeknight evening services had been curtailed due to blackout and curfew restrictions. He searched for something to do with his hands to make the evenings pass more productively. After giving it some thought, he set about creating a perfect-scale model of the Tabernacle of the Old Testament. Having enjoyed the Bible College studies of the ‘typology’ of this amazing building, woven deeply with significance and deep meaning for God’s People, he felt he could create the model to use as a teaching tool in days ahead when this present trial had passed.

Starting in the house, he began to create miniatures of every listed item as recorded in Exodus, wash basins, the altar, priests’ clothing, incense burners, instruments, pillars, guy-ropes, lights, curtains, etc., etc. Everything was to be finished to perfection. To obtain all he needed, he bartered and traded to get the gold and silver paint, material for the tent-cloth, wood…everything, you name it. Eventually, as it grew to its planned fifteen feet length, it had to be moved, piece by piece to the attic in the church’s school building. When it was all finished, he moved into the main school room where he conducted a teaching series on the meaning of the Tabernacle. After that, he worked out how to roll it up, fold it up and pack it away into two tea-chests he had modified for this purpose, in order to make it portable enough to take on a teaching itinerary. Those who ever saw it fully erected, and attended the lectures, never forgot what they had seen and heard.

Gilbert’s heart was not only committed to caring for the needs of the flock but also teaching them the truth of the Word of God, as fully as possible. Pastor, teacher and man of prayer, he went quietly about his ministry without fame or fanfare throughout those five years, serving his Heavenly Father with all his being.

In spite of …or perhaps because of…the difficulties of the time, he did everything possible to preserve certain ‘normality’ in congregational life. Whilst it was necessary to make adaptations to evening service times and locations due to the curfew, he insisted that the regular calendar of church events be maintained as much as possible. Sunday School Anniversaries (despite the diminished numbers but with added members as families from other denominations who had moved to one of the three Elim assemblies as their nearest church), Easter Weekend Convention meetings, the traditional Harvest Thanksgiving Sunday (even when food and crops were scarce), Christmas Sunday School plays, carol services, Infant Dedications, and even weddings continued as usual. Picnics and social get-togethers were also encouraged as much to help maintain community morale as for the spiritual welfare of the flock. There was a warming familiarity about these gatherings which drew folk out of their gloom and into the company and fellowship of others. Throughout the entire occupation, churches were full, often with those who had never made a habit of regular church attendance, and the three Elim churches were no exception. With three churches to oversee, however, Gilbert was under a good deal of strain but he just kept on giving and giving of his very best and by God’s grace he was kept well and strong for the task at hand.