Awakenings
Without doubt, the first springing up of that mighty river of God, which so soon engulfed the whole of Ulster in its flood of revival blessing, was in the parish of Connor, Co. Antrim. The parish of Connor includes the village of Kells and is situated about three and a half miles from Ballymena. The district is usually called by the joint name, Kells and Connor. Claims that the revival had its origin elsewhere cannot he substantiated.
A Faithful Witness
In November 1856 a Mrs. Colville, an English lady, visited Ballymena. This lady had a remarkable testimony. She had been religious but unregenerate, then one day the grace of God visited her, bringing salvation to her heart. She immediately testified of the great things God had done for her soul. Her relations were very angry and said she had “gone mad.” So embittered did they become that she had to leave her home and become a “wanderer.”
This persecution, however, did not quench her zeal for Christ. Like the apostles of old she could not but speak the things which she had seen and heard. She became a missionary of the Baptist Missionary Society in England. Her work brought her to Ulster and to County Antrim where she went from door to door telling forth the message which had brought such peace to her heart.
One day she visited a home in the town of Ballymena where a young woman lay dying. Mrs. Colville spoke to the dying woman and those of her girl companions who were gathered round her, concerning the things that pertain unto eternal peace. Her words were overheard by a young man named James McQuilkin, and the barbed arrows from this bow drawn at a venture fastened with a mighty pricking upon his conscience. He rose and hastily made his way homewards in deep anxiety of soul. This anxiety increased and became so unbearable that he was forced to seek out Mrs. Colville and have further conversation with her.
A Friend’s Observations
Mr. Jeremiah Meneely, a neighbour and close associate of Mr. McQuilkin, takes up the story: “Mr. James McQuilkin was a strong Calvinist and he feared that Mrs. Colville was not teaching straight Calvinistic doctrine. He asked her whether she was a Calvinist or not. ‘I would not wish,’ she replied, ‘to be more or less a Calvinist than our Lord and His apostles. But,’ she continued, ‘I do not care to talk on mere points of doctrine. I would rather speak of the experience of salvation in the soul. If one were to tell me what he knows of the state of his heart towards God, I think I could tell him whether he knows the Lord Jesus savingly.’”
“James felt that his heart was not right toward God, but he was too proud of his head-knowledge to admit the fact and he at once dropped the conversation. A woman who was present then began to unbosom herself to Mrs. Colville. Her spiritual condition was so much like that of James McQuilkin that he felt as though he could not have described his own condition more perfectly. He waited with almost breathless expectation to see what Mrs. Colville would say to the woman regarding her spiritual condition. After a brief pause, she said. ‘My dear, you have never known the Lord Jesus.’ James felt that this was true concerning himself, and the reply sent conviction like a dagger to his heart. After weeks of struggling under great agony of soul, he at last found peace and rest through trusting Jesus.”
McQuilken’s Testimony
Shortly after this, a meeting was held in the National School, Kells, to consider the doing of some repairs to the school fabric which had become somewhat dilapidated. At the conclusion of this meeting the young man Jeremiah Meneely, mentioned above, and the school-master walked homewards together, accompanied by another young man named Robert Carlisle. Carlisle asked them had they heard about the great change that had come over James McQuilkin.
Eager to discover more about this amazing matter, Jeremiah Meneely sought out James McQuilkin and after a long conversation with him became convinced that McQuilkin had something which had miraculously transformed him.
One day in his own kitchen in Jerry’s-town, Ferniskey, Kells (the place was called Jerry's-town after his grandfather Jeremiah) he was reading in the sixth chapter of the Gospel according to John, when he read the words of verse thirty-seven, “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me,” he stopped and exclaimed, “There it is again, how can I know I am a given one?” Then a voice, like the voice from the excellent glory which spoke to Peter, James and John on the holy mount, brought home to his heart the second part of the verse, “and him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out,” with the question “What are you doing now, aren’t you coming to me?” The glorious light burst into his heart and the same peace which his friend had experienced, became his too. He slapped his knee exclaiming, “I see it now” and arose assured of his sins forgiven and of his name written in heaven. This was in the year 1857.
About this time also two other young men, Robert Carlisle and John Wallace were brought to Christ through the efforts of McQuilkin.
These four young converts were naturally closely allied in spirit and they mutually agreed for their own edification and the salvation of precious souls to meet weekly for prayer and Bible study.
School House Meetings Begin
The place chosen for the meetings was the Old Schoolhouse near Kells and the meetings commenced in September 1857. During the long winter of 1857-1858 every Friday evening, these young men gathered an armful of peat each, and taking their Bibles made their way to the old schoolhouse. There they read and meditated upon the Scriptures of truth and with hearts aflame with a pure first love, poured out their prayers to the God of heaven. The peats made a fire in the schoolhouse grate and warmed their bodies from the winter’s chill, but their prayers brought down unquenchable fire from heaven which set all Ulster ablaze for God, and warmed with saving rays at least 100,000 souls.
Meneely describes the prayer meetings
In all interview with J. G. Lawson in 1903, Jeremiah Meneely himself described the prayer meeting in the following words:- “The prayer-meeting was started in the autumn of 1857 and continued for three months before there were any visible results. Two more men joined in the prayer meeting during that time. One was an old man named Marshall and the other a young man named Wassan. On New Year’s Day 1858 the first conversion took place as a result of the prayer-meeting, but after that there were conversions every night. At the end of the year 1858 about fifty young men were taking part in the prayer meeting.”
As the revival tide rose the old schoolhouse was crowded out and the four original members of the prayer-meeting found themselves the leaders of a band of converts, who were eagerly sought after by many, who wanted to hear the great things God had done for them.
Such is the story of the great revival in its origination; the precursor - the faithful testimony of Mrs. Colville; the persons - four newly-born converts; the place - the old School house, Kells; the preparation - scriptural meditation and secret supplication; the plea - ‘Lord, wilt thou not revive us again?’; the power - the outpoured Spirit of God; and the plenitude - the salvation of multitudes and the kindling of revival fire that blazed to every county of Ulster. Truly, its beginning was small but its latter end did greatly increase.
