The above was 79 years of age when he was called to his eternal home recently. His loss is much felt by the Church of God, as well as by his own family, to whom he was a dutiful father.
Being of a modest and retiring disposition, he was not given to relate how he had come to embrace the Saviour, but that he had done so was made very evident by his life and walk and conversation.
In the days of his ignorance he had been like others, but the arrow of conviction that pierced his heart was a word of warning from the late godly Neil Gillies, who said to him that he would be a witness against him at the great Day of Judgment unless he repented. He then came under concern for his soul.
He attended the means of grace faithfully on Sabbath and week-day as long as his legs would carry him to the House of God, in this leaving an example for others to follow. He never really recovered from the shock of his amiable partner’s death, which made the world to be a wilderness to him more than ever, along with the increasing infirmities of old age.
His love for those who feared God continued warm to the end, and we were privileged to conduct worship with him when entering the dark valley of the shadow of death. The shadow was removed for him, as it will be for the righteous. Instead of despondency and despair, he sang from the 103rd Psalm with a loud voice, and also prayed incessantly. The writer asked him how he was. What he replied was that he didn’t expect to be better in this world but in eternity. He had hope that God was with him.
Having a wonderfully strong, melodious voice for an old man, he often led the praises of God in the sanctuary, and was also acceptable in prayer and in speaking to the Question on Fridays of Communions.
On the last occasion on which he witnessed on the side of Christ publicly, he remarked that when he was young there was no such thing as a concert or a football match, but that there was the Sabbath School for the young and the catechising and the prayer meetings. He could not say the new was an improvement on the old way of life in North Uist.
We have thus lost a link with better days, when prayer meetings were crowded, and there was no demand for village halls to be used for the purpose of dancing and drinking and the works of darkness. He had some striking anecdotes of former days, which he used to relate with interest to the Lord’s people at Communions. One was concerning Finlay Munro, when he came to Uist as a pioneer, when great ignorance of spiritual things prevailed. The latter went from house to house, asking if they had any salt here. The reply in one house was in the negative, but the person addressed said they had something better than salt, and produced a bottle of whisky, but Finlay remonstrated that he would have none of that type of hospitality. Some said simply that they had no salt, but in one house the master said that they had just enough to prevent the flesh from rotting. So the evangelist said he would lodge there that night.
It is also reported of Finlay Munro that on one occasion, when addressing a multitude, two retired army pipers encompassed the congregation playing on their pipes. He was forced to pause and then said, “Do you see those men? Not a spadeful of earth shall go on either of them.”
The first of them happened to be coming home from Lochmaddy, having drunk his army pension, and was drowned in a loch. The other of the two betook himself to America, but he also met his death by drowning in the wilds of America. So Finlay was shown to be a true prophet. Our departed friend served the congregation for many years as a treasurer, and latterly as an elder. We would express our deepest sympathy with his family and sister left to mourn his loss. May they follow his footsteps.—D. J. Macaskill.