Great Grandma’s Bible

Miss Henrietta Speirs

319 Chestnut Street

Arlington, NJ

From

John Thomson Jr.

North

Reformed

Church

1930

When only 16 years old, Henrietta Speirs, your Great-Grandma, was invited by her friend, Ruth, to a religious “cottage meeting” that was being held at her house. It was there that Henrietta met John Thomson for the first time. A number of the attendees of the “cottage meeting” were from the Newark Gospel Mission, and apparently during the evening one of them asked John to be the speaker at the mission the following Friday night.

John agreed and invited Henrietta to go with him. That Friday night after hearing him speak a gospel message Henrietta accepted Christ as her Savior. In memory of the occasion John gave her this little black leather Bible.

In looking through the worn pages I found at the back of the book a comment written in Great-Grandma’s handwriting. It read, “The woman who walks with God always gets to her destination.” I couldn’t help but think that ever since that day of her salvation in 1930 Great-Grandma walked with God. For 83 years she sought to know the paths and ways of the God of her salvation.

God never failed her. Even when she was 99 years old and her mind was forgetting many things, He provided for her, guided her, and brought her to her final destination in heaven.

As I held the little black book in the palm of my hand I tried to imagine all the years that it had been the map for Great-Grandma’s life. Throughout all her difficulties and joys the truth in those pages taught her to wait on God and to rest in His tender mercies.

The message is the same for us today. As many before us, we also must ask God to make His ways known and teach us His paths because, in the words of Great-Grandma, “Every woman [or man] who walks with God always gets to her [or his] destination.”

Love,

Mama