Only £8 17s 6d came in today, plus 6/- from Jean for books. Jean’s salary was $8 17s 0d (and National Insurance stamp £1 15s 6d), Freda’s £5 and mine £2. We spent £1 on stamps (1/5d to post a parcel of books to Mrs D.M. Bell, 11d postage on each of two Bibles to West Africa, 9 @ 3d, 6 @ 2d, 3 @ 1d). I sent a cheque for £2 19s 0d to Covenant Publishing Co. Ltd.
18th January, 1967
My dear friend,
If I were to ask you who — currently — is the most famous man in the world, you would probably say Mr Ian Smith, the Prime Minister of Rhodesia. What would you say if you knew that you were going to meet Mr Smith, to speak with him personally? That has just happened to my wife and me.
One day last summer, while burdened in prayer for Rhodesia, the Lord made me to know that He would send me there and that I would bring a special message to the Prime Minister. I had no idea how this would come about or even when. Many weeks passed until in October I knew we must go, and so, without even having time to make arrangements overseas but believing that God had called us, we flew to Portugal.
Our meetings in Lisbon were packed and we ministered there with great blessing — five deaf people were healed in one service — before flying to Las Palmas in the Canary Islands. Here the Lord have me a special message for a special meeting in a church we did not even know existed, and where no one could possibly have expected us. Seven souls came to Christ in this meeting, some of whom had never been in the church before, and could not know we would be there. Furthermore, a special speaker had been planned for that meeting, a missionary from Spain, but he had been ill, and his doctors would not let him travel. Moreover, the message the Lord gave us ministered exactly to the special needs of the people. It was a miracle from beginning to end.
Within 48 hours of our arriving in Rhodesia, I was invited to broadcast over the radio and to appear on television in the “Tonight” programme. This T.V. appearance was so blessed of the Lord that the next day the telephone never stopped ringing. The local bookshops were inundated with requests for Judgment on Britain, so much so that the largest booksellers in Rhodesia were applying for a licence to import the books from Britain. The T.V. broadcast also led to our being entertained to lunch at the House of Commons.
I wondered how the Lord would undertake for us to meet the Prime Minister, but we need not have worried. Mr Ian Smith and his wife [Janet] had been watching us on T.V. and were so impressed (as he told me afterwards) that Mrs Smith said to him, “If that young man says he wants to see you, you must take time to see him, no matter how busy you are.” Well, we did not need to ask, and a few days later my wife and I were received by the Prime Minister, and we brought him the very message God gave us all those months ago. And that is how we come to have on our office wall a large photograph of Mr. Smith which he personally autographed for us.
We travelled all over Rhodesia, holding meetings in Salisbury, Hartley, Bulawayo and Rusape, and meeti9ng with people from all walks of life, both European and African. I hope I may not be accused of dabbling in politics if I say that the situation in Rhodesia is grossly different from what we have been led to believe by the British press, radio and television.
In South Africa we conducted Crusades in Boksburg, Vereeniging and Pretoria. Our ministry was again greatly blessed of God, and many wonderful things happened in the prayer-line. There is so much one would like to report, but let me say this. We found South Africa to be the most Christian country we have visited anywhere in the world. At least 85% of the people regularly attend church. The Word of God is revered and read in people’s homes. There are no moral scandals in the government, no state lotteries, football pools, betting shops or Sunday entertainments. When will Britain learn that “Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people”? When will the people of Britain wake up and realise that God’s judgments hang over us, unless we repent and believe the Gospel, and turn to Christ?
This brings me to especially request your prayers for the Plymouth Guildhall Crusade from 28th March to 8th April. This will be our biggest-ever undertaking in Britain — it is costing about £1,000 — and I do earnestly covet your prayers that God shall bless and use us above all that we can ask or think. Please pray that through this Crusade the people of Britain shall heed the warning message. This is a Crusade to save Britain. We shall be commencing every meeting with the National Anthem (which is a prayer to God for our Queen and Country). We shall prominently display the Union Jack on the platform of this famous hall. We shall be bringing the Word of the Lord to the Nation, and we are expecting that every night the miracle-working power of Christ shall be abundantly manifested that none shall be able to doubt that Christ has sent us with this message.
Concerning this Crusade, I do want to thank all those who wrote with their advice about the financing of these meetings. Almost without exception you said you felt that people would want to give and that an offering should be taken, so we shall at least make some provision for those in the audience who wish to give to do so. Thank you again for your thoughts on this. I do believe that “In the multitude of counsellors there is safety” and I truly appreciate your helpful advice.
Now we have entered a new year and as we look back upon 1966 it is with nothing but gratitude to the Lord. 1966 was our greatest year even though our most difficult, and we are looking for greater things in 1967. May I count on your support? Will you personally help us in this great Crusade? I do not think I need on this occasion what our needs are. You know that we never ask the unconverted for funds, nor do we resort to unscriptural practices to raise money. The only people to whom we ever make known our needs are those who have helped us before without ever being asked, and, of course, you are one of these. I hope you will not mind my asking.
I am enclosing with this letter a little booklet, In Partnership with God [by Kenneth S. Keyes]. The message has been such a blessing to me that I wanted to share it with you. Please take time to read it. God bless you!
BRIAN WILLIAMS