“I think just now of a certain island . . . I am on this island, and I felt the going fearfully hard. Oh, it was difficult to preach–you felt your very words coming back and hitting you. And I was a bit distressed. I turned to one of the other ministers and I said, “Now don’t you think that we should send for the praying men of Barvas?”
Let me say in passing that the praying men of Barvas were praying for us just now, there were at least five of them in this part of God’s vineyard who promised to do that and I believe they were keeping to their promise. However, I sent for them and in the conversation that I had with this businessman, one of the praying men, I said, “If it is at all possible will you bring little Donald Mc_____.” Now I will tell you later how Donald came to know the Lord. But bring him.
Now Donald had a remarkable experience on the hillside a fortnight after he was born again. And God came upon him — the Holy Ghost came upon him. He had a mighty baptism. I hope you believe in the baptism of the Holy Ghost as a distinct experience. You may disagree, but I believe in it…this young fellow had such a baptism of God among the heather, that he forgot about coming home and a search party had to be sent out to find him in the hills. And they found him on his face among the heather repeating over and over, “Oh, Jesus, I love You. Oh, Jesus I love You.” And wasn’t he near to Jesus if he spoke like that? He was, of course.
Well, I asked the men to bring little Donald with them. And now we are in the service in the church. And I am preaching from the text, “Who is this that cometh from Edom . . . this that is glorious in his apparel traveling in the greatness of his strength. I that speak in righteousness am mighty to save” that was the text. But oh, I tell you, the going was hard. The going was hard.
I looked down and I saw little Donald sitting there in the seat. And I saw that his head was bowed and I saw that the floor was wet with his tears. And I said to myself, “Well, now, there is a young lad nearer to God that you or I. Oh, there is a young lad who is in touch with God.” And I stopped preaching. And looking down at this young lad, I said, “Donald, I believe God would have you lead us in prayer. ” It was right in the midst of my address.
And that young lad stood to his feet. Now that morning at family worship they were reading Rev 4 where John has the vision of the open door. “I saw a door opened in heaven.” And as that young man stood, that vision came before him. And this is what he said in his prayers. “God, I seem to be gazing in through the open door. And I seem to see the Lamb standing in the midst of the Throne. He has the keys of death and of hell at his girdle.” Then he stopped and began to weep. And for a minute or so he wept and he wept. Oh, the brokenness. And when he was able to control himself, he lifted his eyes towards the heavens and he cried out, “God, there is power there–let it loose! Let it loose!”
And suddenly, the power of God fell upon the congregation. Of course in Lewis and in other islands of the Hebrides, they stand to pray, they sit to sing. And now, one side of the church threw their hands up like this. Threw their heads back and you would almost declare that they were in an epileptic fit, but they were not. Oh, I can’t explain it. And the other side they slumped on top of each other. But God, the Holy Ghost moved. Those who had their hands like this stayed that way for two hours. Now you try to remain like that with your hands up for a few minutes and you will find it hard–but you would break their hands before you could take them down. Now, I can’t explain it–this is what happened.
But the most remarkable thing that night was what took place in a village seven miles away from the church. There wasn’t a single person from that village in the church. Not one single person. Seven miles away, it was a while away certainly but while Donald Mc_____ was praying, the power of God swept through __________, that’s the name of the village. Swept through the village and I know it to be a fact that there wasn’t a single house in the village that hadn’t a soul saved in it. Not a single house in the village.
A schoolmaster that night looking over his papers 15 miles away from this island on the mainland suddenly was gripped by the fear of God. And he said to his wife, “Wife, I don’t know what’s drawing me to Barvas, but I must go.” His wife said, “But it’s nearly 10 o’clock and you’re thinking of going to Barvas. I know what’s on your mind, I know that you are going out to drink and you are not leaving this house tonight!” That was what she said to him–he was a hard drinker. And he said to his wife, “I may be mistaken, oh, I maybe mistaken, but if I know anything at all about my own heart and mind, I think I say to you now that drink will never touch my lips again.” And she said to him, “Well, John, if that’s your mind, then go to Barvas.”
And he got someone to take him to the ferry, someone to ferry him across, and I was conducting a meeting in a farmhouse at midnight and this schoolmaster came to the door and they made room for him and in a matter of minutes he was praising God for salvation. Now that’s miracle. I mean you cannot explain it in any other way.
A father, a mother and two daughters and a son were saved that night in this village but one of the daughters who was in the medical profession was in London. She was in London. A very clever girl. She is walking down Oxford Street after leaving a patient and she is suddenly arrested by the power of God. She went into a closet and cried to God for mercy and God saved her there–the whole family saved! My dear people, these are facts. And I tell you of them to honor God”
— Duncan Campbell