Wallace Turnbull is 94 years old and still going strong for the Lord. I am almost finished reading his biography,
Say to These Mountains, written by his granddaughter, Elizabeth Turnbull. Wallace and his wife Eleanor served God faithfully for many decades in the country of Haiti. God blessed and used their tireless efforts in wonderful ways. As a result of their life's work, the ministry they founded, Baptist Haiti Mission, now has 350 churches and 263 schools serving 50,000 children. Today, the Turnbulls have turned over the leadership of the ministry to my good friend, Fred Eppright, a gifted man with a heart the size of Texas.
Wallace and Eleanor experienced many miracles during their time of serving in Haiti. They saw God save voodoo priests and multitudes come to faith in Jesus. Wallace says one of the most miraculous things God did was in the life of a man named Dr. Leandre Page, a brilliant professor at the University of Montreal who was visiting Haiti. He and Wallace became friends. Page had theological questions for Wallace, and the first one had to do with theodicy. Page was a Huguenot in France and had been shocked over his experiences in a Nazi prison camp. As a result, he had not read his Bible in 20 years. His question was, "How could a God of love allow something so horrible to happen?" Wallace told Page he was not a theologian, but here was his answer, "I'd say it's because He is a God of love. He does not force anyone to make decisions, and those men made bad ones."
Over the next six months, Page and Wallace had multiple spiritual conversations. In fact, Page asked him a total of 14 specific theological questions. On February 14, 1971, the famous missionary E. Stanley Jones preached in Haiti. The 92 year-old missionary to India was preaching that evening in Port au Prince at a Baptist Church. What happened next is so remarkable I will let Wallace share it with you in his own words:
"Dr. Jones preached, with Pastor Marc Reuben interpreting in French. He said, 'Jesus is God's Yes to all of man's questions.' Repeating it after each of the fourteen questions Page had asked me and giving the exact same replies that I had given over the preceding six months. Both Page and I were stunned."
When the worship service concluded, Page went forward with tears streaming down his face. He grabbed E. Stanley Jones' hand and shouted, "Oui!" (French for "yes") He then took Wallace by the hand and said the same thing, "Oui!" (Turnbull, p. 188-190)
What a powerful story. There are times when God speaks directly and answers our questions, like He did for David in today's Scripture and for Dr. Page in Haiti. When God does this, there is no questioning or doubting. God can still do this. He can answer in miraculous ways. But most of the time, He chooses to answer in other ways that cause us to trust Him for the answer when the answers we are seeking are not as clear. He will answer us. We must wait in faith. God will respond; it is only a matter of time.
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