s in
continuing to meet, as a church, at Gideon Chapel, we were still
quite willing to continue to occupy it as a preaching place, provided
the brethren whose property the Chapel was (because of their having
contributed towards the purchase and fitting up of the building,)
were perfectly satisfied with our doing so. If this had been the
case, all the difference would have been, that on Lord's day mornings
Gideon Chapel would have been shut, and all the church would have met
at Bethesda; but we should have been willing not only to preach in
Gideon on the Lord's day evenings, and once or twice in the week, but
also on the Lord's day afternoons instead of the morning meeting: so
that even the unconverted, or the believers of that neighbourhood,
who are not in communion with us, should have been no losers.--Whilst
nothing was stated by any one, that showed us we had been mistaken in
the conclusion to which we had come, a point was mentioned which soon
brought the matter to a final decision. It was said that the giving
up of one of the principal meetings on the Lord's day would be
against the spirit of the trust deeds, as the Chapel was particularly
intended to be a preaching place. Now, though we did not see it to be
thus, as we meant to preach the Word, as before, at Gideon, if it
could be done in perfect harmony with the owners of it; yet it seemed
beyond a question that we could not retain the Chapel, whilst we
appeared, even in the least to alienate the property from the use for
which it was said to have been intended. We, therefore, were
confirmed by this in our conclusion to give up the Chapel at once,
and that entirely. [In order that the aged and infirm, and invalids
who live in the neighbourhood of Gideon, might not be losers by the
change, cars were provided, at the expense of the church, to convey
them to the meeting for the breaking of bread at Bethesda; and a
Chapel was rented in Callow-hill Street, near Gideon, in which, on
the Lord's day and Thursday evenings the Word was ministered, It was
very kind of the Lord to order it so that this chapel was at once to
be had! Two years and a half afterwards, in October, 1842, we rented
a still more suitable Chapel, in the heart of the City. On April
19th, 1840, we preached for the last time at Gideon, after having
laboured there, with abundant blessing, for about eight years. Only
three saints, as far as I know, out of about 250, who used to meet
with us at Gideon, rem