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On sowing and knowing

Wayne M. Warner

Alexander Whyte, the famous preacher at St. George’s Church in Edinburgh, Scotland, told of meeting a travelling salesman named Rigby. Rigby travelled to Edinburgh regularly and attended St. George’s Church faithfully on Sundays. Rigby also practised an interesting habit. Before leaving his hotel on Sunday mornings, he always invited someone to accompany him to church.


One Sunday morning, Rigby invited a man who refused rather angrily. Rigby persisted, however, and the man finally consented.

The stranger was so impressed with Whyte’s sermon, he accompanied Rigby to the evening service and committed his life to Christ.

The following day, business took Rigby by Whyte’s house, and, although he had never met Whyte, he gave way to impulse. Knocking at Whyte’s door, he asked to see him and told him about the day before.

“God bless you for telling me,” Whyte announced. “I thought Sunday night’s sermon fell flat, and I was very depressed about it.”

Then Whyte continued: “I didn’t quite catch your name. What is it?”

“Rigby,” he replied.

“Man,” said the preacher, “I’ve been looking for you for years.”

Stepping back into his study momentarily, Whyte returned with a bundle of letters. He read one that began, “I was spending the weekend in Edinburgh, and a man called Rigby invited me to come with him to St. George’s; the service that day changed my life.”

Every letter in the bundle was the same. Whyte went on to say, “Out of that bundle, 12 came from young men, and of those 12, four have already entered the ministry.”

Inviting someone to church may not seem like a very big gift, but it takes only one tiny seed to produce the largest of plants.

Wayne Warner lives in Battle Creek, Mich.

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Last modified May 3, 2001.

© 2001 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
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