1859 Revival History - continued...

Shortly after this a meeting was held in the national School, Kells. Its purpose was to discuss repairing the building, but at the end of the meeting, three men, Jeremiah Meneely, the schoolmaster, and Robert Carlisle walked home together. Carlisle spoke about the great change that had come over James McQuilken and how Mr McQuilken had changed so much that he had got rid of the fighting cocks for which he was notorious in the area. All three decided that this was just a passing fad for McQuilken. However Jeremiah Meneely remarked “I would give the world to know my sins forgiven”, and the others agreed.

Shortly afterwards Meneely sought out McQuilken and after a long conversation became convinced that something genuine and miraculous had truly transformed him. Meneely now wanted to get right with God and one day as he sat in the kitchen of his home in Jerry’s-town, Ferniskey, Kells he was reading John 6 v37:

“All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever

comes to me I will never drive away.”

Slapping his knee he jumped up exclaiming: “I see it now”. God had spoken and he was wondrously converted. Soon Robert Carlise and John Wallace were also drawn to Christ. This was the beginning of the Revival. Encouraged by Rev J.H. Moore, minister of their church, Connor Presbyterian, the four young converts began to meet weekly for prayer and Bible study. They met in the old national schoolhouse. These meetings, which were on Friday evenings, continued from September throughout the winter of 1857 and into 1858. Each man took an armful of peat for the fire and in the other carried his Bible. It was from this little group that the fire was kindled which blazed through Ulster and carried the Gospel message to save 100,000 souls. The cornerstone of their theology was simple and threefold. They believed in the Sovereignty of the Holy Spirit, the sufficiency of the Holy Scripture and the secret of Holy Supplication.