The Dingwall congregation lost by death this year, on Tuesday, the 18th May, one of its oldest and highly respected members when the late Miss Finlayson, Garve, was removed to her eternal rest. As much suitable information is supplied by Mrs. J. Fraser, Strath, Gairloch, it is unnecessary to supplement these edifying notes. The late Miss Finlayson was a member in full communion with the F.P. Church since 1893. She was a strong-minded person, and was at home in the writings of Dr. Kennedy and other divines. It was a pleasure to visit her, or be visited by her. Her conversation was interesting and edifying. She loved God’s Name and cause. She was firmly attached to the F.P. Church in its stand against the false position introduced by the Declaratory Act of 1892, which, in effect, equates the common operations of the Holy Spirit with his saving operations. This Act was a new ecclesiastical testimony, and the late Mr. Macfarlane’s protest was an official Church court document setting forth that he, representatively, abode by the scriptural constitution of the Church of 1843, and kept it intact in its doctrine, worship, government, and discipline. This position, as frequently explained by the late Mr. Macfarlane, and those who upheld his hands, was well understood by her, and it was hers to the end. She loved the godly and was much loved by them. She was often at services in Dingwall in her latter years, when one felt that it was more needful for her to be in bed.
Deep gratitude is due to Mrs. J. Fraser, Gairloch, for having Mrs. Finlayson taken to Gairloch, and for the unwearied attention shown to her there to the end. She was there for probably half a year before her death. The Lord reward Mrs. Fraser for her love and kindness. We desire to thank deeply Dr. Macrae, Gairloch, and also Nurse Macdonald, for their unfailing kindness to her to the end.
Her remains were laid to rest in the Beauly Priory Burying Ground, on the 20th May. Other members of the family to which she belonged are interred there. We now add, with a few changes, the account forwarded to us by Mrs. Fraser of the late Miss Finlayson.
“Helen Finlayson was born in Kingussie in 1868. When she was three years old her parents removed to Garve, where her father worked as a railway porter. When a young woman, she served as a laundry-maid in Conon House, where she had the privilege of working with the godly Miss Munro, who was considerably older than Helen, and who took a motherly interest in her. It is said that she first came under soul concern through a warning which Miss Munro gave her in a letter. She told her that she had been much on her mind and added, ‘Grieve not the Holy Spirit.’ She was about 25 years of age when she first publicly professed her Saviour. When on her death-bed, the words of Psalm 45 were spoken to her, ‘They shall be brought with gladness great . . .’ and it was added, ‘You, too, will be brought with gladness into the presence of the King.’ To this she replied, ‘I hope so, for I have been following Christ for 61 years.’ She told once and again how she gave offence, when young, for refusing to deliver a letter to a tradesman on the Sabbath Day. She loved to add that she did not lose by her faithfulness to her Lord and Saviour, for members of the family with which she served sent her little gifts over a long period of years. When she was in Conon House she attended the means of grace in Dingwall on Sabbath and week-days. The time came when the illness of her father necessitated her leaving and returning home to Garve. She would thus be cut off to a large extent from the means of grace and from the fellowship of the Lord’s people which she loved. She was torn and tormented in her mind. The words of the Saviour followed her night and day, ‘Whosoever will not forsake father or mother for my sake is not worthy of Me.’ Yet her duty seemed clear. While she was in this troubled state of mind, she went to a prayer-meeting in Dingwall to find that the late Rev. Mr. Cameron was there. In the course of his address he suddenly said, ‘You are here, and you are torn as to your duty to your parents, but let me tell you the fifth commandment is as binding on you as any other of the commandments of God.’ Immediately her burden and temptation fell from her and an inexpressible thankfulness filled her heart. She said that Mr. Cameron did not know her then, and that she had not made known her trouble to anyone.
“Previous to her last illness she frequently spoke of the glory she was seeing in the everlasting Covenant. On one occasion she remarked—’I was thinking to-day that the covenant of grace is worthy of the Trinity. What glory redounds to the Father in saving sinners for Christ’s sake. I have been seeing more of this glory lately than I ever did before.’ One morning, two or three days before her seizure, she awoke with the verses in the Book of Proverbs (chap. viii. 22-31) very much upon her mind. There she saw Christ in the covenant of grace, and thereafter she frequently referred to the love which Christ bore to his people in a past eternity.
“On the morning after she was stricken down she was bright and happy. She told her friends that she had a wonderful dream during the night, and that it encouraged her. She saw that she was amongst a great multitude just outside the gates of heaven. A man showed her a token which he had received from Christ. This made her yearn that she too might receive a token from Christ. Soon after, one whom she did not recognise put a token into her hand. When she looked at it the words on it were, ‘Thou shalt stand in thy lot at the end of the days’ (Dan. xii. 13). She asked someone what these words meant, and the reply given her was, ‘Assurance of heaven.’ She then awoke in a joyful frame of mind, repeating the words, ‘The souls of believers are at their death made perfect in holiness and do immediately pass into glory, and their bodies being still united to Christ do rest in their graves till the resurrection.’
“One evening she remarked that Mr. Lachlan Mackenzie said, ‘If you have been giving yourself a thousand times to Christ, you will never be lost,’ and she added, ‘I feel that I have been doing that.’ Later she said, ‘Dr. Kennedy has this, ‘An eye to see His beauty, an ear to hear His voice, and a heart to receive Christ and His salvation as freely offered to us in the Gospel!’
“She several times desired the ‘Ascension Psalm’ (Ps. 24) to be read, and also, not long before the end, when in pain and felt darkness, that Isa. i. 18 be read. She was reminded of the words, ‘Hitherto the Lord hath helped,’ and immediately she answered, ‘Yes, and many a deep ditch I was in.’
“On her last Sabbath on earth, her darkness was dispelled while portions of Scripture were read to her, and her face shone with joy and peace. On that evening Mr. Duncan Fraser conducted worship and it was obvious that she followed with enjoyment the portions of scripture read and sung, and likewise his prayer was followed with rapt enjoyment.
“From then until shortly before four o’clock on Tuesday morning she took little notice of those around.”
We desire to thank Mrs. Fraser for taking such copious notes of what Miss Finlayson said, and obtaining so much information from her as to her life. Some omissions were made in the account kindly forwarded, but this is solely to shorten the notice for the pages of the Magazine.—D. A. Macf.