Delia Rees, the “Bluebird of Mulberry Bend,” was one of the lowest and vilest frequenters of the dens of iniquity in the city of N___. In one such den, surrounded by thieves and wicked associates, she was befriended by some Christian workers, and a desire for a life of purity was kindled in her through the gift of a delicate pink rose.
“Bluey,” as her rough, sinful companions called her, was once a beautiful and innocent girl. Ruined by the use of a deadly drug, she had gone from bad to worse. She became addicted to snuff, tobacco, whiskey and opium. She had been behind prison bars six times. Her body was scarred and marked with stabs, cuts and bruises; and part of her hair had been pulled out by the roots. God’s children, through THE DOOR OF HOPE in N___, touched her heart and awakened in her mind thoughts of her childhood. Love reached her heart and she sought and found Jesus Christ as her personal Savior. She found Him to be a “risen Christ” and an ever-present Friend. She was delivered from the awful sinful habits that were dragging her down. She gave herself to the Lord, and like the woman of Samaria, she began at once to tell others of Jesus (Jn. 4:28-29).
Her health was undermined by her awful life of sin and she only lived a short time; but in the space of about eleven months she led one hundred souls out of darkness and into the light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Jn. 3:16-17; 8:12). The gates of hell prevailed not against her, and her death was a triumphant entrance into the joy of her Lord (Mt. 25:21).
Delia once spoke in Sing Sing prison, and there sat in the audience of prisoners a gentlemanly-looking man, who, though well connected, had through the power of sin landed behind prison bars. The previous speaker had spoken on the words of Jesus, “He that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out” (Jn. 6:37). Delia dwelt on the love of God and the power of Jesus to save. The man was an unbeliever, but he could not get away from the words of Jesus, Delia’s testimony, and the miracle of her transformed life. He threw himself upon his knees in his cell and cried, “If there is a God, have mercy on me,” and Christ opened the eyes of his heart and became his light and salvation (Psa. 27:1). This is what the love of God is, and what His wisdom and power can do in a human life. He is able to save from the uttermost and to the uttermost (Heb. 7:25).
Taken and revised from Deliverance from the Penalty and Power of Sin by Orson R. Palmer.
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