For four long months God appeared to be just presenting himself. He found that he was motivated; he was not sermonizing for Christ; he was sermonizing for hope. He discovered the whole thing in his heart that should not be there. For four months a struggle went on inside him, and he was a dejected man. But after four months the delight came. It came over him as he was on foot in the streets of New York. (Dwilight Lyman Moody: 1837-1899: (www.higherpraise.com) Several times he had thought of it since he has been here. Eventually, he went back to God again, and he was no more dejected. He virtually prayed in his delight, 'O stay Thy hand!' He said he felt this earthen vessel would collapse. God occupied him with complete Spirit. If he had not been a different man since, he did not know himself. He believed that he had achieved more in the last four years than in all the remainder of his life. But O. It came after a wrestling and solid struggle! He thought he had never else got out of this dejected egotism. There was a time when he wanted to see his small vineyard sanctified, and he could not get out of it; but he could operate for the whole world now. He wished to go around the world and advise the fading millions of a Savior's love. (Dwilight Lyman Moody: 1837-1899: (www.higherpraise.com)

To save people not going to church by the thousands, Moody put forth an easy and valuable solution; he called it the three R's, namely, ruined by the fall, redeemed by the blood and rejuvenated by the Holy Spirit. (Dwight Moody God's just Do it Man) Moody would not go away Chicago until the Chicago fire. It was not that he abandoned Chicago but that the fire pushed him out of the nest into the rest of the world. God had much larger policies for D.L. He had utilized him as a sample and was now transporting him to New York to receive the Holy Ghost. He had a wonderful Holy Spirit experience and was in no way similar. (Book Nook on D.L. Moody by John Pollock) After the Chicago fire that damaged Moody's lecture hall and a number of institutions he had established, he traveled to New York to get finances for reconstruction. God had something else in mind. (Dwight Moody: (www.intouch.org) on Sunday night, October 8, 1871, while sermonizing at Farwell Hall, which was at the moment being used because of the huge crowds, Moody asked his parishioners to assess their relations to Christ and return next week to make their decisions for Him. But that crowd never gathered. (Dwight Lyman Moody- 1837-1899: (www.christiansintouch.com)

In 1870 Moody had met Ira Sankey in Chicago. Sankey was a piano player and vocalist extraordinaire as well as an outstanding hymn writer. For the next 25 years, the two of them were always together in many gatherings and meetings. They sold hymnbooks of music to fund the work of the Lord wherever they went. God sanctified them greatly. While Sankey was singing a closing song, the noise of fire trucks and church bells dotted them forever, for Chicago was on fire. In the next 24 hours, the Y.M.C.A. building, church, and parsonage were all lost. On December 24, 1871 the church was reopened and is now called the North Side Tabernacle, situated on Ontario and Wells Street close to the previous building. In it brief history of 1871-1876, there was no regular pastor. Moody had a life-changing incident, when he had himself locked in a room of a friend's house, in the city of New York and said that it was a strange day, which he found hard to explain, while he was out east raising funds for the reconstruction of this church. (Dwight Lyman Moody- 1837-1899: (www.christiansintouch.com)

In linking the event years after Moody said as to why he required the power. As he had the largest worshippers in Chicago, and there were many conversions and was in a sense, content; he at first thought he had power. But the prayers by two godly women for Moody and their sincere talk about consecrating for special service made Moody to think. Moody asked them to come and talk with him, and they emptied out their hearts in prayer that he might get the filling of the Holy Spirit. There came an immense desire into his soul that he did not know what it was. He started to cry out, as he never done before. He actually thought that he did not want to be alive if he could not have this power...

His heart was not in the act of pleading. He could not request and was weeping all the time that God would fill him with His Spirit. (How Great Soul Winners Were Filled With the Holy Spirit)
Well, one day, in the city of New York he cannot explain it, he hardly ever refer to it; it was nearly too holy an experience to mention. He could only state that God exposed Himself to Moody, and he had such a feeling of His love that he had to ask Him to stay His hand. He went to sermonizing again. The preaching was not different; he did not impart any new truths, and even then hundreds were converted. He said that he would not now be located back where he was before that holy incident if one should give him entire world -- it would be as the small dust of the balance D.L. Moody himself made much of this principle that Christians should be filled with the Holy Spirit, or baptized with the Holy Spirit, as he himself often put it. (How Great Soul Winners Were Filled With the Holy Spirit)

Moody gives evidence that his evangelistic efforts were much more productive after getting the Holy Spirit. The year 1872 saw Moody in England where his important work in mass evangelism started. From then on to the end of his life, he was in huge city movements and Bible conferences both in America and England. One writer recapitulates his work as follows: It is said that in conducting special meetings for the conversion of his fellowmen, Mr. Moody has toured over 1,000,000 miles, has talked over 100,000,000 persons, 25 million of whom were young people, and has dealt in person with nearly 750,000 individuals. (D. L. Moody: the Practical personal Worker)

Moody had regular evangelistic campaigns till his death in 1899. His final great series of meetings was in an enormous hall in Kansas City. He was taken with heart trouble there and returned home to die. His last words were, this is my victory, this is my coronation day, I have been anticipating to it for years. This old world had exhausted its charms for him and for a long time he had been nostalgic for heaven. His earthly remains were put to rest on 'Round Top,' at his favorite Northfield. By his particular appeal there were no symbols of bereavement at his funeral services. It is expected that not less than a hundred million people listened to the gospel from his lips, and his schools are instructing many others to convey the Glad Tidings all through the world. (D. L. Moody: Deeper Experiences of Famous Christians)

As he remained on his deathbed he thought his previous 62 years was a preface and not a full life. He says that one day you will read in the papers that "Moody is dead. Don't trust a word of it." At that instant "I shall be more alive then I am now... I was born of the flesh in 1837. I was born of the spirit in 1855. That which is born of the flesh may die. That which is born of the spirit will live everlastingly" on the evening of December 22, 1899, nine days prior to the close of the millennium Moody got his indication for eternity and found that nothing could keep him. His chariot was in the room. (Book Nook on D.L. Moody by John Pollock)

To conclude, we can say he was the supreme evangelist and speaker the world has ever seen. His victory was given to him because he wanted nothing but to pay back the God who rescued him and return love to him with his flair to arrange and win men to Christ who shed his blood for him. God approved Dwight Moody for his love of God and his audacity to be a pacesetter and give people what they require and wish for.

References

Chapters 1-3 D.L. Moody 1837-1899. Retrieved at http://www.whatsaiththescripture.com/Voice/Moody.The.Way.to.GOD.html. Accessed on 22 November, 2004

Gilchrist, J; Lawson, Anderson D.L. Moody. Deeper Experiences of Famous Christians... Ind.: Warner Press, 1911. Retrieved at http://www.wholesomewords.org/biography/biomoody4.html. Accessed on 22 November,

Dwight Lyman Moody) 1837-1899. Retrieved at http://www.christiansintouch.com/greatMen_DLM.cfmAccessed on 22 November, 2004

Dwilight Lyman Moody: 1837-1899. Retrieved at http://www.higherpraise.com/preachers/moody.htm. Accessed on 22 November, 2004

D.L. Moody: The Practical personal Worker. Retrieved at…