PRINCETON, N. J. 
 
 BS 1430 .P75 1860 
 
 Power, Philip Bennett, 1822 
 
 J. o -7 y , 
 "I will" 
 
 Shet. 
 
44 
 
 I WILL:" 
 
 BEING THE 
 
 IftoranEtums of % "glan of ioli, n fottni in sorae 
 
 of % "I mar of % issks. 
 
 EEV. PHILIP BENNETT POWEE, M.A., 
 
 Incumbent of Christ C^urdj, Moriljing. 
 
 AUTHOR OF "breathings OP THE SODL}" "FAILURE AND DISCIPLINE;" 
 "sacred ALLEGORIES," ETC. 
 
 ^aonb €i>ilion. 
 
 LONDON : 
 WERTHEIM, MACINTOSH, AISTD HUNT; 
 
 WORTHING: ALL BOOKSELLERS; 
 
 BRIGHTON : TREACHER, NORTH STREET ; WHITE, WESTERN ROAD, ' 
 
 1860. 
 
frintcb bg losxalj gltic^tx. 
 
THE REV. EDWAED KING ELLIOTT, M.A., 
 
 RECTOR OF BROADWATER, SUSSEX, 
 
 [by whom 
 
 the district parish of christ church, worthing, 
 
 was formed and endowed,] 
 
 t;^is doinmz is ^zhicntth, 
 
 AFFECTIONATE REMEMBRANCE 
 
 OF UNION IN SENTIMENT AND MINISTRY, 
 
 BY 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
PEEEACE. 
 
 It was the original design of the Author of 
 this volume to have sent forth into the world 
 a little book, containing a few thoughts with 
 respect to each of the subjects which are to be 
 found in the following pages. Hence the first 
 subject treated upon, viz.. Trust, although 
 of equal importance with the rest, is not 
 considered at such length; the style of its 
 treatment also differs somewhat from that 
 of the others. Almost unconsciously to the 
 writer, the little book began to grow and 
 develop into a large one; and all that he 
 can now do, is, to hope that its increased 
 size may make it of increased worth. 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 Several illustrations have been added to 
 those given in the first edition, especially in 
 the chapter on Prayer. In many of the 
 matters mentioned in these illustrations, the 
 Author has been personally concerned, but 
 he has not deemed it necessary to specify such 
 cases particularly. 
 
 The reader will observe that the same per- 
 sons and facts are frequently referred to in 
 different portions of the volume; this does 
 not, however, involve any real tautology, for 
 such is the fulness of Holy Writ, and such is 
 the variety of application of which each portion 
 of it is susceptible, that, in point of fact, a 
 few incidents and a few characters answer 
 all our need. When we consider how very 
 few are the leading characters which are 
 brought before our notice in Holy Scrip- 
 ture, it seems as though God designed 
 to teach us by the few and not by many, 
 in order that we, as individuals, might 
 be taught or warned by the individual, 
 and not by a class. Hence in part tie 
 
PREFACE. Vn 
 
 exceeding preciousness of the individuality 
 of Jesus. 
 
 The reader, who is familiar with the hook 
 of Psalms, will also observe that many "I 
 wills " are omitted in this volume ; amongst 
 these are some which group together under 
 different heads, such as the '' I wills " of 
 CoNPEssioN and Htjmiliation, of Worship, 
 of Joy and Eejoicing, of the Mind and 
 Heaet, and of Obedience, together with 
 many which do not range themselves in any 
 distinct order; these the writer preferred 
 leaving untouched, rather than saying but a 
 few words upon them. 
 
 The following pages are designed rather to 
 suggest than to teach, to whisper than to 
 speak. Yet all their whisperings are of im- 
 portance, for their subjects are from the word 
 of God ; may they admonish and encourage, 
 may they remind and direct, may they help 
 and confirm the people of the Lord according 
 to their respective needs; may they shew 
 them where they have failed to determine, 
 
Vlll PREFACE. 
 
 and where their determinations have come 
 short ; and, from time to time, reminded by 
 these pages of these things, may they go on 
 unto perfection, nntil the fulfilled determina- 
 tions of time, (accepted in the blood of 
 Christ,) bring to them the fruition of glory 
 in eternity. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE "I will" of trust. 
 
 The unreservedness of Trust— Trust despite appearances — Luther 
 at Worms — Helps to unreservedness of Trust — Unreservedness 
 in the Apostle Paul — The shipwrecked sailor — Trust though 
 all be unknown — Helps to procuring this Trust. Trust in 
 God, even though the usual human instrumentality of help 
 may he at hand — Helps to obtaining this Trust. Unreserved 
 Trust in the union of cause and effect — The child's umbrella — 
 Helps to obtaining this Trust — God the great object of Trust 
 — The Psalmist's trust in God in all developments of Himself 
 — God the Ruler of the people — God in the still chamber — 
 Ridley's sleep — The sleepless minister— Elijah's flight — The 
 shadow of God's wings — Helps to Trust under this shadow — 
 God the Fortress — Alliance between God and man — The 
 Believer not alone — The strawberry plant — Mungo Park's 
 moss — God in decisive action — Whitelock taught by his ser- 
 vant — Co-operation between God and man — Practical thoughts 
 resulting from this co-operation — Luther and Melancthon. 
 Circumstances under which Trust is to be exercised— Times of 
 danger from man— The hook in the nose— Times of helplessness 
 — The helplessness of Jacob — The time of natural fear — The 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 action of Trust in the time of fear — Instances in the martyrs. 
 Bishop Farrar, Dr. Taylor, Bishop Hooper, Thomas Hawkes 
 — Hard struggle in the case of Rawlins White and George 
 Tankerfield — How to endure pain — Howe's fear of pain — Sir 
 Robert Peel's fear of pain Pages 1—63 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Pini^lrg anJr f^stimonj. 
 
 THE "I will" of ministry AND TESTIMONY, 
 
 The duty of Ministry and Testimony not fully recognised in the 
 present day — The loss which God's people suffer from non- 
 recognition — The ministry of Mary in breaking the alabaster 
 box — Loss of the leflex benefit of action for God — Duke Eric 
 of Brunswick — The positions in which Ministry is to be 
 carried on — Teeva's prayer — Ministry in the family — The 
 mother's hand — The Church of Christ a sufferer by lack of 
 Ministry — A great result from a small act of Ministry — The 
 preacher's ministry to one man — The German Colporteur — The 
 Sunday School child — Melancholy picture of the Church as 
 regards Ministry. The world a loser by lack of Ministry and 
 Testimony — The crowing missionary — Deathbed witness of 
 one who died in despair , Pages 64 — 91 
 
 CHAPTER IIL 
 
 THE "I will" of converse. 
 
 Low converse of the world; and often of God's people — Evil 
 of laboured religious conversation — Visiting — The world's 
 ideas of ministerial visits — Hervey's experience — Converse in 
 domestic relationship — The blessed effects of holy converse 
 
 Pases 92—99 
 
CONTENTS. XI 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE ''I will" of converse. 
 
 Continued. 
 
 Holy converse must come from a holy heart— Subjects of the 
 Christian's converse — This converse not upon vague generalities 
 — Blessed results Pages 100 — 105 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 THE "I WILL" OF TEACHING. 
 
 God a Teacher — The dignity of the Teacher's office — Teaching 
 out of personal experience — Dark experiences capable of sup- 
 pljdng useful teaching — Instances of this — Blessed experiences 
 to be turned to account in teaching Pages 106—112 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THE "I will" of teaching. 
 
 Continued. 
 
 Painstaking should be found in all teaching for God — Endurance 
 in Teaching — The endurance of Christ — Endurance and Talent 
 — Great encouragement to this — Milne the missionary — Con- 
 descension in Teaching — Jesus an example of Condescension 
 — Elliott the missionary to the Indians — Patience in Teaching 
 — Wesley's mother — The necessity of not over-drivino- in 
 religious knowledge — The necessity of doing God's work fully — 
 Rowland Hill — Whitfield -Faithful before the jury at Vanity 
 Fair — Christ's ministry to sinners — The unreasonableness of 
 expecting all smooth work Pages 113 — 126 
 
^1 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Little known or heard of tlie mighty powers "Prayer" and 
 "Faith" — Scripture statements of the power of Prayer — How 
 man comes to pray at all — Children's prayers — Impediments to 
 Prayer — Natural Inaptitude — The difficulty to some of putting 
 thoughts into words — The Chippewa Indian — Inherent Un- 
 belief — The natm-al tendency to do the most for om-selves, 
 independently of God — The natm-al tendency to keep from 
 alone and immediate connection with God — Letters to be 
 spread before the Lord — Backwardness from known and felt 
 imperfection in Prayer — Man to go to God just as he is 
 
 Pages 127—144 
 
 CHAPTER VIIL 
 
 THE OBJECT OF THE "I WILL" IN PRAYER. 
 
 God the great object of Pra^yer in the troublous time — The 
 impotence of human sympathy — The sympathy of silence — 
 Value of a personal definite view of God — The heart's desire 
 that God would speak — Rutherford's remark on the Syro- 
 phenician woman — The silence of God — The desire for assurance 
 of being heard — The great value of mental realization in 
 prayer — Bodily acts in prayer — The desire that God would 
 speak to us — The sustaining influence of the consciousness of 
 being heard — The heart's dependence on God — The heart's 
 hopelessness apart from God — Spiritual acquisition sometimes 
 quickly made Pages 145—162 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE "I WILL" OF PRATER IN THE TIME OF TROUBLE. 
 
 Prayer made in time of trouble by Christ — The Psalmist's position 
 of distinctiveness — Malice not to be disarmed by compromise — 
 Polycarp — The isolated position— The sympathy of Christ in 
 man's isolation — Luther before the council — His prayer — The 
 
CONTENTS. Xm 
 
 recognition of God as a Friend in trouble — The closeness of 
 suffering must not be allowed to obscure the vision of God — 
 The discovered hollowness of human friendship not to be 
 allowed to throw a shadow on the divine. Continuous prayer 
 under continual pressure — Wearing out temptations — Robert 
 Glover — St. Augustine — Parent's prayers — Dr. Leland's testi- 
 mony about them — The child prayed home — The door kept on 
 the latch — The wonder of prayer being heard Pages 163 — 195 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE "I will" of prayer IN THE TIME OF TROUBLE. 
 Continued. 
 Various kinds of troubles — Overwhelming troubles — Cryings from 
 the ends of the earth — Overwhelmings of heart — Loss of 
 natural power of resistance — The overwhelmings of Christ — 
 Visions of sin — Doubts of divine love — Remarkable case of 
 long sorrow and sudden deliverance — The sense of weakness — 
 Temporal overwhelmings — Recognition of a place of safety — 
 The place of safety sudicicnt, when personal weakness has 
 been realized — Christ as the Rock — The helping hand 
 
 Pages 196—216 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 TBE "I AVILL" of prayer IN THE TIME OF TROUBLE. 
 Concluded. 
 
 Prayer an unfailing resource — Dark valleys — Looking to the hills 
 — Christ's upward lookings — Elevation above suiTounding 
 circumstances — The power of spiritual sight in prayer — 
 Spiritual sight to be exercised in distinct action — Little 
 troubles Pages 217—228 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 THE "I W^ILL" of continuance IN PRAYER. 
 
 Excellence in different departments of the Christian life — 
 Continuance in prayer as a habit — St. Augustine's wish — The 
 
XIV CONTENTS. 
 
 servant who continued always in prayer — Prayer in special 
 places — Prayer in a strange place — Prayer on the chimney 
 top — Prayer in common places — Prayer without iiressing need 
 — Thoughts and interests which excite prayer Pages 229 — 239 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 THE "I will" of continuance IN PRAYER. 
 Continued. 
 Realization of Privilege in Prayer an incitement to continuance in 
 Prayer— Communion, higher intercourse with God than worship 
 — The common things of daily life to be committed to God in 
 prayer — The crying child — The railway travellers — The lost 
 paper — The lost purse — The rejected medicine — Travelling 
 expenses — The operation of the Holy Ghost upon the hahit 
 of the mind — Results of continuance in prayer as a habit 
 
 Pages 240—249 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 THE "I will" of expectation IN PRAYER. 
 
 What it is to expect in Prayer — Example from JMiiller's narrative 
 of the Orphan Houses at Bristol — One prayer operating upon 
 several people — An answer by coincidence — The Cree Indian — 
 The servant girl's missionary box — The Marquis of Argyll — 
 Ten minutes' sleep — Simeon at Cambridge — Money found to 
 buy a pair of shoes — The converted Jew — An answer to prayer 
 sent by a singing bird — Scripture warrants for expectation in 
 prayer — Power of sanctified reasoning upon the character of 
 God — Prayer for £10 — The results of Expectation in prayer — 
 Precision in prayer — Greater readiness in prayer — Less leaning 
 on man — More cheerfulness of heart — The traveller's pack — 
 The man with eight children — Energy in the use of means — 
 Alexander's answer to Perdiccas — Looking out for answers to 
 prayer — AUcine's advice — The expecting Sunday School 
 teacher — Patient expectation in prayer — The praying mother 
 and her nine children — Mrs. AVinslow Pages 250—283 
 
^ CDNTENTS. XV 
 
 CHAPTER XY. 
 
 THE "I WILL" OF INTENSE PRAYER. ' 
 
 Seasons of Intense Prayer — The time when a few hours or 
 minutes must settle a question — Mr. Clarke and Dr. Prince 
 amid the savages — The time of sudden calamity — The time of 
 realization of the importance of the thing asked for — The time 
 of heavy pressure and failing resources — Immediate and inde- 
 pendent operations of the Spirit — The time of failure — The 
 time of feeling the pressure of sin — The time of longing intently 
 for inward comfort— The time of earnest desire for some 
 spiritual blessing — Purely spiritual blessings — Delay, not denial 
 
 Pages 284—295 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 gclioii 
 
 The gross ignorarice of the people of the world — The knowledge 
 which the people of God have of their own ignorance — Their 
 desire of being taught for action — The need of being taught in 
 difficult circumstances — God's ways of teaching— Guidance 
 with the eye — Honesty of mind in action .... Pages 296 — 311 
 
 CHAPTER XYII. 
 
 THE "I WILL" OF HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 
 
 The want of heartiness in many believers — What heartiness is — 
 A certain amount of duty compatible with a want of heartiness 
 — Heartiness has a good effect on others — Embraces a large 
 circle — Heartiness honours the Christian's profession — The 
 
 Hindoos' portion for their god — The Rajah of Burdwan 
 
 "Giving" a part of action — The widow and her two mites — 
 Scripture examples of heartiness — Christ, Paul, the Mace- 
 donians, the Israelites, David, &c. — Heartiness the work of the 
 Spirit— Wesley's reply Pages 312—333 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 THE " I V/ILL" OF DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 
 
 The trial of heartiness — Scripture examples of determination 
 
 Determined enemies — Instances of the need of determination 
 
XVI ' ^ CONTENTS. 
 
 Luther's motto — Going in the strength of the Lord God — 
 Benefits of the realization of external power — Consequences of 
 this realization. Great eflPorts will be made ; appearances will 
 not retard action ; humility in guccess — Praise ascribed to God 
 
 Pages 334—346 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 The Christian's life like a stream — Causes of shortcoming in 
 praise, viz., natural ingratitude, the giddy and non-apprehen- 
 sive character of the heart; the deadness of the moral 
 atmosphere — Entail of loss to the individual, the world, and 
 the Church — Particulars for which praise is due : " Personal 
 Creation," "Daily powers of enjoyment," the process of 
 digestion — The glory of the song — The position occupied by 
 praising suffering ones — Praise for "bountiful dealing" — 
 Man's readiness to detract from God's dealings — Particularizing 
 in praise — Apparently unbountiful dealings of God — Praise 
 for "Help" — The churching of women often a mockery — 
 Praise for "Loving-kindness" — For " Tenderness in Action" — 
 For " the Truth of God" — For " Escape from the triumphing 
 of the ungodly" — Temporary triumphs over the people of God 
 — Praise for " Hearing Prayer " Pages 347— 378 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 THE DIFFERENT ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 
 
 Heartiness in praise — The miserable nature of unhearty praise — 
 Thoughts conducive to heartiness in praise — Continuance in 
 praise — The crippled widow — Praise in affliction — Increase in 
 praise — Different kinds of praise — Manifestation — The good 
 effects of manifestation — Extolling — The nature of extolling 
 
 Pages 379—391 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 THE WILLING SPIRIT AND THE WEAK FLESH. 
 
 Christ's words over the sleeping disciples — The willing Spirit 
 looked at independently of results — The willing Spirit, wherein 
 seen Pages 392—395 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 The "I Will" of Trust. 
 
 Psalm iii, 6. " For I will not he afraid of ten thousands of 
 people^ that have set themselves against me round about." 
 
 Psalm iv, 8. " I ivill both lay me down in peace, and sleep, for 
 thou. Lord, only makest me dwell in safety." 
 
 Psalm xxiii, 4. " Yea, though I walk through the valley of the 
 shadow of death, I ivill fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy 
 rod and thy staff they comfort me. " 
 
 Psalm xliv, 6. " For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall 
 my sword save me." 
 
 Psalm Iv, 16. "^s for me I will call upon God ; and the Lord 
 shall save me." 
 
 Psalm Ivi, 3. " What time I am afraid I ivill trust in thee." 
 
 Psalm Ivii, 1. ^^ Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto 
 me ; for my sold trusteth in thee : yea, in the shadow of thy wings 
 trill I make my refuge, until these calamities he overjjasf 
 
 Psalm Ixi, 4. " I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever, I will 
 trust in the covert of thy ivings." 
 
 Psalm Ixxxvi, 7. " In the day of my trouble I ivill call upon 
 thee, for thou wilt answer me." 
 
 Psalm xci, 2. " I will say tmto the Lord, He is my refuge and 
 my fortress, my God, in him ivill I trust." 
 
 Psalm cxviii, 6. " The Lord is on my side; I will not fear: 
 what can man do unto me ?" 
 
 SO dull^ so wavering are these poor hearts of ours in 
 faith_, that very often we will not trust God_, even in 
 circumstances in which we would have fully trusted an 
 
2 TRUST. 
 
 eartlily parent. The dear cliildren of tlie Lord are 
 continually detecting themselves in unbelief. At one 
 moment they are leaning upon human instrumentality_, 
 at another they are wholly at their wits^ end ; now they 
 are full of terror at an immediate prospect of danger, 
 and now they lose all rest in God ; all which evils 
 proceed from the want of simple faitli_, of child-like trust. 
 God loves trust ; it honours Him ; he who trusts the 
 most shall sorrow least. If there were continual trust, 
 there would be continual peace. 
 
 Let us first notice The Unreservedness of Thust, 
 which we find in the following group of verses. 
 
 Psalm iii_, 6. " I ivill not be afraid of ten thousands 
 of ijeople, that have set themselves against me round 
 ahoutr 
 
 Psalm xxiii, 4. " Yea, though I ivalk through the 
 valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, 
 for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they 
 comfort me'' 
 
 Psalm Iv, 16, 17. ^' As for me I luill call upon God ; 
 and the Lord shall save me. Eveynng, and morning, and 
 vbt noon, will I pray and cry aloud : and he shall hear 
 my voice" 
 
 Psalm xliv, 6. '' For I ivill not trust in my bow^ 
 neither shall my sivord save me'' 
 
 Tie Psalmist will trust, despite appearances. He will 
 not be afraid though ten thousands of people have set 
 themselves against him round about. Let us here limit 
 our thouglits to this one idea, '^ despite appearances.^' 
 What could look worse to human sight than this array 
 of ten thousands of people ? Ruin seemed to stare him 
 in the face ; wherever he looked an enemy was to be 
 
TRUST. 3 
 
 seen. What was one against ten thousand ? It often 
 happens that God's people come into circumstances like 
 this; they say ""all these things are against me;'' they 
 seem scarce able to count their troubles; they cannot 
 see a loop-hole through which to escape ; things look 
 ver}'- black indeed. It is great faith and trust which 
 says under these circumstances,, "I will not be afraid." 
 
 These were the circumstances under which Luther 
 was placed^ as he journeyed towards Worms. His friend 
 Spalatin heard it said^ by the enemies of the Pteforma- 
 tion^ that the safe conduct of a heretic ought not to be 
 respected, and became alarmed for the Reformer. " At 
 the moment when the latter was approaching the city, a 
 messenger appeared before him with this advice from the 
 chaplain, ' Do not enter Worms ! ' And this from his 
 best finend — the elector's confidant — from Spalatin him- 
 self! -^ -^ -x- -Jf But Luther, undismayed, turned 
 his eyes upon the messenger, and replied, ^ Go and tell 
 your master, that even should there be as many devils in 
 Worms as tiles on the housetops, still I would enter it."* 
 The messenger returned to Worms with this astounding 
 answer. ^I was then undaunted,' said Luther, a few 
 days before his death, ^ I feared nothing.' '' 
 
 At such seasons as these the reasonable men of the 
 world, those who walk by sight and not by faith, will 
 think it reasonable enough that the Christian should be 
 afraid ; they themselves would be very low if they were 
 in such a predicament. Weak believers are now ready 
 to make excuses for us, and we are only too ready to 
 make them for ourselves; instead of rising above the 
 weakness of the flesh, we take refuge under it, and use 
 it as an excuse. 
 
4 TRUST. 
 
 But let us think prayerfully for a little while^ and we 
 shall see that it should not be thus with us. To trust 
 only when appearances are favourable^ is to sail only 
 with the wind and tide, to believe only when we can see. 
 Oh let us follow the example of the Psalmist, and seek 
 that unreservedness of faith which will enable us to trust 
 God, come what will, and to say as he said, '^ I will not 
 be afraid of ten thousands of people, which have set 
 themselves against me round about." 
 
 Helps to unreservedness of trust. 
 
 1. Remember how many changes things take, and 
 that they do not always end according to appearances ; 
 therefore it does not follow, that because they now look 
 badly, they must of necessity end badly. 
 
 2. Remember that all can be turned hither and thither 
 at any moment, and to any extent that God chooses ; and 
 if His mind toward us be unchanged, present appearances 
 should not terrify or crush us. 
 
 3. Consider the Scripture examples of dark appear- 
 ances but bright issues. 
 
 4. Consider examples within your own experience and 
 knowledge. 
 
 5 . Remember that any one can trust, or seem to trust 
 God when all things are going on well ; that the believer 
 must shew his faith by trusting when things appear to 
 be going ill. 
 
 6. Remember that this is a special opportunity for 
 glorifying God, over and above all ordinary ones. 
 
 To do all this is hard indeed ; but there is great grace 
 for hard requirements, if it be sought.^ Let us make 
 
 * This was St. Paul's experience in 2 Cor. xii, 7 — 10. " And 
 lest I should be exalted above measure throuo-h the abundance of 
 
TRUST. 5 
 
 this prayer_, " Lord give me that unreserved faith which 
 will enable me to trust Thee unreservedly, _ despite all 
 appearances/' 
 
 The following recent occurrence will perhaps some- 
 times come into the reader's mind^ when he thinks that 
 
 the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the 
 messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above 
 measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it 
 might depart from me. And He said unto me, My grace is 
 sufficient for thee ; for My strength is made perfect in weakness. 
 Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that 
 the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasui-e 
 in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in 
 distresses for Christ's sake : for when I am weak, then am I 
 strong." 
 
 See the unreservedness of trust displayed by Paul in the 
 tempest, in Acts xxvii, 22 — 25. " And now I exhort you to be of 
 good cheer : for there shall be no loss of any man's life among 
 you, but of the ship. For there stood by me this night the angel 
 of God, whose I am, and Avhom I serve, saying, fear not, Paul ; 
 thou must be brought before Caesar : and, lo, God hath given thee 
 all them that sail with thee. Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer : 
 for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me." 
 
 Even when circumstances assumed a darker aspect, his faitli 
 was unshaken. Verses 33 — 35. " And while the day was coming 
 on, Paul besought them all to take meat, saying, 'J'his day is 
 the fourteenth day that ye have tarried and continued fasting, 
 having taken nothing. Wherefore I pray you to take some meat : 
 for this is for your health : for there shall not an hair fall from 
 the head of any of you. And when he had thus spoken, he took 
 bread, and gave thanks to God in presence of them all : and when 
 he had broken it he began to eat." The result we know, "And 
 so it came to pass, that they escaped all safe to land." 
 
 How favourably Paul here contrasts with Peter in Matt, xiv, 30. 
 "But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and 
 beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me." 
 
 B a 
 
TRUST. 
 
 ruin is about to be brought upon him by some either 
 apparent or real misfortune : — 
 
 A Belgian vessel,, called " The Leopold/^ recently ran^ 
 in a violent storm^ on a rock^ near one of the Falkland 
 Islands^ on the coast of Patagonia^ and went to pieces. 
 It was supposed that all her crew^ nine in number^ and 
 their officer s^ had perished. A letter was, however^ 
 subsequently received from one of the crew, named 
 Declerk, announcing that he alone escaped. He swam 
 to an island. He found no inhabitants, and had to live 
 on some bits of bread which had been washed ashore, 
 wild celery, and some birds, which he killed with a stick. 
 Happening to have matches with him, he succeeded in 
 lighting a fire, which he fed with turf. To make his fire 
 burn well, he partly surrounded it with some planks 
 washed ashore from the wreck. One night the wind 
 blew these planks into the fire, and they were consumed. 
 He thought this a terrible misfortune, but it was the 
 memis of saving him. An American ship happened to 
 be passing two miles off, and seeing the rising smoke — 
 an extraordinary thing on a desert island — some of her 
 crew disembarked. They found the poor fellow crouch- 
 ing over the fire, and on hearing his tale, they took him 
 on board. 
 
 The Psalmist will also thus trust, even though all be 
 unknown. 
 
 We find him doing this in Psalm xxiii, 4. "Yea, 
 though I walk through the valley of the shadow of 
 death, I will fear no evil." Here, surely, there is trust 
 the most complete. We dread the unknown far above 
 anything that we can see; a little noise in the dark will 
 terrify, when even great dangers which are visible do not 
 
TRUST. 7 
 
 affright : the unknown, with its mystery and uncertainty, 
 often fills the heart with anxiety, if not with foreboding 
 and gloom. Here, the Psalmist takes the highest form 
 of the unknown, the aspect which is most terrible to 
 man, and says that even in the midst of it he will trust. 
 What could be so wholly beyond the reach of human 
 experience or speculation, or even imagination, as " the 
 valley of the shadow of death,^' with all that belonged to 
 it ? but the Psalmist makes no reservation against it ; he 
 will trust where he cannot see. How often are we 
 terrified at the unknown; even as the disciples were, 
 who "feared as they entered into the cloud;" how often 
 is the uncertainty of the future a harder trial to our faith 
 than the pressure of some present ill ! Many dear 
 children of God can trust Him in all known evils; but why 
 those fears and forebodings, and sinkings of heart, if they 
 trust Him equally for the unknown ? How much, alas ! 
 do we fall short of the true character of the children of 
 God, in this matter of the unknown. A child practically 
 acts upon the declaration of Christ that " sufficient unto 
 the day is the evil thereof; " we, in this respect far less 
 wise than he, people the unknown with phantoms and 
 speculations, and too often forget our simple trust in God. 
 Let us seek for grace to exercise a simple trust as 
 regards the future ; just to be content with seeing God 
 in it, as the Psalmist was. He said, '' I will fear no evil, 
 for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they 
 comfort me." Whatever the unknown was, God was in 
 it, and that was enough for him. Oh ! how would this 
 simple trust dispel a multitude of fears ; how would it 
 rid us of gloomy forebodings ; how would it take many 
 of its terrors even from death itself; how would it enable 
 
8 TRUST. 
 
 lis cheerfully to step onwards into the future ; how many 
 heart-aches^ how many perplexing thoughts, how many 
 sleepless nights would it save us ! The unknown is God's — 
 God is in the unknown ; be that enough, O my soul, for 
 thee; say " I will trust, I will not fear ; the darkness is no 
 darkness, O my God, to Thee; I Avill trust without reserve/^ 
 
 Let the very fact of our not being able to concentrate 
 our thoughts upon the unknown, make us concentrate our 
 thoughts upon the truth, that " whatever it may bring 
 forth, God is in it for His people;" and in that trusting 
 thought, we shall find rest. 
 
 Helps to procuring this trust. 
 
 1. Consider that in all known circumstances, God has 
 ever been found equal to His people's need ; hence there 
 is every reason to believe that He will be j;hus found in 
 the unknown also. 
 
 2. Remember that the unknown future contains no 
 chance ; its arrangements are all as distinctly made by 
 God, as have been those of the past. 
 
 3. Reflect upon the very position in which you are 
 placed. Do yoiu' utmost, you cannot grapple with, or 
 make provision for, the unknown ; therefore, unless you 
 trust God in it and/o?' it, you never can have peace. 
 
 This also is no easy attainment ; but if we would live 
 up to our privileges, or honour God fully, we must say 
 with David, ''Yea, though I walk through the valley of 
 the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art 
 with me. Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me." We 
 must trust unreservedly, even where all be unknown. 
 
 We are further taught by the Psalmist to makie God 
 the great object of our trust, even though the usual human 
 instrujnentaUty of help may he at hand. 
 
TRUST. 9 
 
 " I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword 
 save me/^ said he in Psalm xliv_, 6; and that, after 
 having expressed his belief that great things were about 
 to be accomplished. " Through Thee will we push down 
 our enemies; through Thy name will we tread them 
 under that rise up against us." 
 
 Human means and appliances are not to be thrown 
 away as useless or despised, but the temptation of 
 trusting in them must be guarded against. The sword 
 and the bow were surely the fittest things so far as 
 human appliances went, wherewith to go against the 
 enemy : they seemed to make provision for all circum- 
 stances of warfare, for distant skirmishing, and for band 
 to hand engagement ; but, whatever they might have 
 been for use, they were valueless as objects of trust. 
 
 "We are continually prone to lean upon the instrument, 
 to expect much from it, from its tried efficiency, from its 
 suitability to the occasion, from its being apparently 
 providentially ready to our hand ; and thus we very 
 often come insensibly to think too much of the instru- 
 ment ; we expect certain results from it, as though it had 
 powers and energies of its own. When we succeed, we 
 say, "how admirably the instrument works;" when we 
 do not, we blame the instrument, and say, " how it fails." 
 Satan contrives to hide a snare even in the midst of 
 God^s blessings; when God prospers an instrument, 
 Satan is pretty sure to magnify it. We must be very 
 careful ever to put God above the instrument ; to keep 
 our reliance specifically upon Him ; on no account to 
 lose sight of Him in the instrument. Even in good 
 things, and amongst the children of God, the error of 
 which we are now speaking is too frequently committed. 
 
10 TRUST. 
 
 For example : — how much is expected from a preacher, 
 while little is expected from a recognition of the One by 
 whom the preacher has been sent; how mnch from 
 human friends_, from the advice of certain physicians, 
 from certain well-known and efficacious remedies, and 
 the like, without its being remembered that God makes 
 use of these means, and that they have no virtue in 
 themselves. We shew practical unbelief, when we feel 
 peace because we have certain means at hand, and not 
 because God Himself is near to help. Under these 
 circumstances, the sword and bow are our comfort; we 
 go in SauFs armour ; we do not make mention of the 
 living God. It may be that our human instrument is 
 weak ; that we have no more than the five smooth stones 
 of the brook, or the handful of meal in a barrel, and the 
 di'op of oil in a cruise, but we cling to it nevertheless ; 
 we can see it, and sight has ever more power than faith 
 for poor human nature. If we want a blessing upon 
 the means, let us put them in their proper place. They 
 cannot be absolutely trusted ; in themselves they have 
 the elements of failure, weakness, and miscarriage ; thej'- 
 can be depended upon, only so far as faith can recognise 
 God in them ; yea, and even more than this, God as able to 
 do without them. In daily life, we too often present the 
 extraordinary spectacle of men trusting in machinery, 
 without recognising its motive power. We cannot expect 
 God to prosper anything which intrudes itself into His 
 place, and detracts from His honour; the bow will be 
 effectual in proportion to our recognition of the fact, 
 that it is He who must direct the arrow^s flight ; the 
 sword will be powerful in proportion as we recognise the 
 truth, that it is He who gives the strength to grasp its 
 
TRUST. 11 
 
 hiltj and skill to wliet its edge ; to cnt^ to parry_, or to 
 thrust j tlie means will do most^ when the God of means 
 is recognised most. Let us reflect on this, and act upon 
 it in matters of daily life ; let us say with David, " I will 
 not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me ; " 
 and with him, doubtless, we shall be able to add, " But 
 Thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them 
 to shame that hated us.^^ 
 
 Helps to attaining a trust which will put God above 
 means. Let us remember that 
 
 1. All human means have in them only the virtues 
 which He has bestowed, therefore He can withdraw from 
 them their virtue, or increase that virtue at any moment. 
 
 2. No matter how much certain means are in them- 
 selves calculated to produce certain ends_, a thousand 
 counteracting influences or circumstances may intervene 
 to neutralize or destroy their efficacy, therefore, unless 
 God be above the means, and not dependent upon them^ 
 we cannot be sure that all will go well. 
 
 3. When all means fail, God is as well able to work as 
 when they abound. 
 
 4 . Even if the means be at hand, by using them wrongly, 
 or feebly, we may fail in producing the desired result. 
 
 5. God will be sure to blast the means if we put them 
 above Him, or make them independent of Him. 
 
 Thus He did in the case of Asa, mentioned in 2 Chron. 
 xvi, 12. "And Asa, in the thirty-and-ninth year of his 
 reign, was diseased in his feet, until his disease was 
 exceeding great, yet in his disease he sought not to the 
 Lord, but to the physicians.^^ ''Thus saith the Lord, 
 Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh 
 flesh his arm." Jeremiah xvii, 5. 
 
12 TRUST. 
 
 There remains yet one point to be observed, with 
 reference to tlie unreservedness of the trust whicli we 
 should put in God. 
 
 In Psalm Iv, 16, the Psalmist says, ^^ As for me I will 
 call upon God, and the Lord shall save me.^' Here we 
 have cause and effect linked together, and the Psalmist's 
 unreserved trust in the union of the two ; he will call, 
 and the Lord shall save. 
 
 It would be blessed indeed for the Lord's people, if 
 they continually exercised the trust expressed in this 
 verse ; if they felt, that when they called, He would both 
 answer and save. This trust would bring us gladly to 
 our knees, for we should always feel sure that our labour 
 upon them was not in vain in the Lord; it would dispel 
 a thousand fears; it would give energy to our prayers; 
 it would save us from casting about hither and thither 
 for help ; it would simplify many of the intricacies of the 
 spiritual life. While others were rushing to and fro, 
 asking what could be done, and trying one thing and 
 another, we should see our way clearly before us ; the 
 use of the '^ I will '' would settle all for us ; our trust 
 would bring us peace ; we should say, ^^ As for me I will 
 call upon God, and the Lord shall save me.'' Alas ! how 
 often do we call, not as though we expected God to act 
 in our behalf; the utmost we can say is, ^^I will call, 
 and perhaps the Lord will save ms ; " we do not realize 
 the truth, that effects must follow real calling upon God ; 
 our prayers are rather trials whether the Lord will be 
 gracious unto us, than petitions founded upon the full 
 assurance that He will be so. If our feelings were put 
 into words, they would be expressed somewhat thus ; " I 
 win call, but I do not know whether the Lord will 
 
TRUST. 13 
 
 answer me or not/^ Oh ! for a larger measure of trust 
 in the exercise of prayer. Oh ! for a fuller belief that 
 for all spiritual sowing there must be spiritual reaping; 
 that no prayer offered in distress and in faith can come 
 to nought. This faith would give us power with God, 
 and we should prevail ; it would give us that spring of 
 energy which is conferred by the prospect of success. 
 See how the prospect, or rather the certainty of success, 
 sent David forth with a springing step to meet the giant 
 in single fight. '' This day will the Lord deliver thee 
 into mine hand, and I will smite thee, and take thine 
 head from thee ; and I will give the carcases of the host 
 of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and 
 to the wild beasts of the earth ; that all the earth may 
 know that there is a God in Israel. And all this 
 assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with 
 sword and spear ; for the battle is the Lord^s, and He 
 will give you into our hands." 1 Sam. xvii, 46, 47. 
 David acted out this confidence. " David hasted and 
 ran towards the army to meet the Philistine." 
 
 If our trust were such as to give us a belief in the power 
 of prayer, many a thing which now seems impossible 
 would be easy ; we should know how to produce great 
 spiritual effects ; we should pray with this conviction, 
 ''^An answer (only in the Lord^s way and time) ivill 
 surely come." Let us not be above learning from a 
 little child. 
 
 At the time of a great drought, several pious farmers 
 agreed to hold a special meeting to pray for the much 
 needed rain. When the appointed time came, the 
 minister was surprised to see one of his little Sabbath- 
 scholars bringing a huge old family umbrella, and asked 
 
14 TRUST. 
 
 her why she did so on such a lovely morning. The child 
 gazed at him with evident surprise at the enquiry, and 
 replied, " why, sir, I thought as we were going to pray 
 God for rain, Pd be sure to want the umbrella'^ While 
 they were prajdng, the wind rose, and the clear sky 
 became clouded, which was soon followed by a heavy 
 thunder-storm, by which those who came unprepared to 
 the meeting were drenched, while Mary and the minister 
 were sheltered by the umbrella her faith had led her to 
 bring. 
 
 Here are some practical helps to believing in this 
 union of cause and effect, in prayer. Let us call to mind 
 
 1. The large promises given in Holy Scripture to 
 prayer. 
 
 • 2. The statements which Holy Scripture makes on 
 this head. 
 
 3. The character of God as a true and faithful God. 
 
 4. The many instances of this recorded in Scripture. 
 
 5. And also in our own experience. 
 
 Thus, then, we have seen something of the Psalmist^s 
 unreservedness of trust. May we aspire to having the 
 same. jNIay we seek to grow in grace until we can say, 
 ^'^ I will trust the Lord despite appearances ; I will trust 
 in Him though all he unknown ; I will trust in Him, and 
 not in meanSy though means be ready to my hand; I 
 will be sure that if I call, He will hear ; that there is an 
 answer for every prayer.'^ 
 
 AA^e have now, in the next place, to consider The 
 (jREAT OBJECT OF THIS Trust. It IS GoD. God in 
 personal relationship with the soul; God assuming 
 various aspects, according to that soul's 7ieed. 
 
TRUST. 15 
 
 That God does assume a variety of aspects^ tlie soul 
 exercised in spiritual things well knows. It recognises 
 Him as ever the same God, although under different 
 developments of Himself; just as a man knows that a 
 prism is the same prism, although it exhibits different 
 colours under different circumstances, and at different 
 times ; or as a man knows that a building is one and the 
 same, though at one time the most prominent object be 
 its massive buttress, and at another its tapering spire. 
 At one time, the prominent idea of God is that of a 
 Father ; and at another, that of a Ruler ; now, He is the 
 Refuge ; and now, the Shadow for the afflicted soul ; as is 
 man^s need, so is God^s development of Himself toward 
 him. 
 
 And here, in this book of Psalms, we find determina- 
 tions to trust God in each development of Himself; the 
 Psalmist will not trust Him in one development of 
 Himself, but refuse to do so in another. He does not 
 say, " I will feel safe in Thee as a Refuge and a Fortress, 
 but I cannot feel so safe only under the shadow of Thy 
 wing ; " he does not say, " I will trust Thee if Thou 
 drawest me into the secret of Thy tabernacle, but I will 
 not trust Thee amid the ten thousands of the peopled* 
 The '' I will ^^ of real, trusting, faith and love, is fixed on 
 God Himself, irrespective of times and seasons. It is 
 well, however, to contemplate the specific characters 
 under which God presents Himself, as in relationship to 
 His people; and to endeavour to attain to that high 
 measure of faith, which will enable us to trust God in 
 each of them. 
 
 If we turn to Psalm iii, 6, a passage to which we have 
 already referred, we find the Lord there coming before 
 
16 TRUST. 
 
 US, as ^' the Ruler of the people/' Ten thousands swarm 
 around the Psalmist, but he will not be afraid. And the 
 only ground upon which fear could be removed is the 
 supremacy of God ; the thought that, however lawless 
 the people were, and however independent in their own 
 mind. He was loftier than them all ; He was Ruler in 
 very truth. 
 
 Let us say, '^ I will not be afraid, I will trust, because 
 I know that God is ruler over all/' Circumstances often 
 arise when it is a blessed thing for God's people to be 
 able thus to trust. Enemies appear in perhaps unexpected 
 quarters ; it may be that we find our foes even amongst 
 those of our own household; here and there we find 
 them starting up, and even those whom we hoped would 
 have been on our side prove the most bitter against us ; 
 sometimes we become the victims of a series of isolated 
 attacks ; and sometimes the enemy comes in like a flood, 
 bursting upon us like a column of soldiers trained to act 
 in concert. Is it not most comforting at such times to 
 be able to trust in God as the '^ Ruler of the people?" 
 One stronger than their malice or their passions, able to 
 put His hook in their nose, and His bridle in their lips ? 
 Why should I be so much afraid of such and such an 
 one, if God be the Ruler of the people ? Why should I 
 fear such and such a party, if God can sway and turn 
 their hearts and plans exactly as He will ? Why should 
 I compromise principle, either to gain their favour or 
 avert their wrath ? Enemies of various kinds we meet 
 with in the world; some who are our enemies on 
 religious grounds, and some who are so for some worldly 
 reasons, yet without any fault of ours. The way to be 
 at peace, no matter what they say, or do, or plot, is to 
 
TRUST. 17 
 
 trust God in His character of a Euler ; and then, like the 
 Psalmist of old, we can say, ^^ I will not be afraid of ten 
 thousands of people, which have set themselves against 
 me round about/' 
 
 We have now to retire for a moment from the strife of 
 tongues, and the open hostility of foes, into the stillness 
 and privacy of the chamber of sleep. Here, also, we 
 find the "I wilP' of trust. ^^ I will both lay me down 
 in peace, and sleep; for Thou, Lord^ only makest me 
 dwell in safety .'' Psalm iv, 8. 
 
 God is here revealed to us as exercising personal care 
 in the still chamber. And there is something here which 
 should be inexpressibly sweet to the believer ; for this 
 shews the minuteness of God's care, the individuality of 
 His love ; how it condescends, and stoops, and acts, not 
 only in great, but also in little spheres ; not only where 
 glory might be procured from great results, but v/here 
 nought is to be had save the gratitude and love of a poor 
 feeble creature, whose life has been protected and pre- 
 served, in a period of helplessness and sleep. How 
 blessed would it be if we made a larger recognition of God 
 in the still chamber ; if we thought of Him as being 
 there in all hours of illness, of weariness, and pain; if 
 we believed that His interest and care are as much con- 
 centrated upon the feeble believer there, as upon His 
 people when in the wider battle field of the strife of 
 tongues. There is something inexpressibly touching in 
 this ''^ laying down'' of the Psalmist. In thus lying 
 down, he voluntarily gave up any guardianship of him- 
 self; he resigned himself into the hands of another ; he 
 did so completely, for, in the absence of all care, he 
 slept ; there was here a perfect trust. 
 
 c 3 
 
18 TRUST. 
 
 Many a believer lies down, but it is not to sleep* 
 Perhaps he feels safe enough so far as his body is con- 
 cerned ; but cares and anxieties invade the privacy of his 
 chamber ; they come to try his faith and trust ; they 
 threaten, they frighten, and alas ! prove too strong for 
 trust. Many a poor believer might say, '' I vrill lay me 
 down, but not to sleep." The author met with a touching 
 instance of this, in the case of an aged minister whom 
 he visited in severe illness. This worthy man^s circum- 
 stances were narrow, and his family trials were great; 
 he said, ^' the Doctor wants me to sleep, but how can I 
 sleep with care sitting on my pillow?" It is the 
 experience of some of the Lord's people, that although 
 equal to an emergency, or a continued pressure, a 
 re-action sets in afterwards ; and when they come to be 
 alone, their spirits sink, and they do not realize that 
 strength from God, or feel that confidence in Him, which 
 they felt while the pressure was exerting its force.* 
 We have a remarkable instance of this in the case of 
 Elijah in 1 Kings, xviii, xix. At the end of the former 
 chapter he is represented to us as alone confronting the 
 idolatrous Israelites, the wrath of the king, and the four 
 hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four hundred 
 prophets of the grove ; in the beginning of the latter he 
 is a fugitive, running away from the threats of a woman. 
 When Elijah heard her threat he arose and went for his 
 life. There is a trial in stillness ; and oftentimes the 
 still chamber makes a larger demand upon loving trust 
 
 * Ridley's brother offered to remain -with him during the night 
 preceding his martyrdom, but the Bishop declined, saying, that 
 ** he meant to go to bed, and sleep as quietly as ever he did in 
 his life." 
 
TRUST. 19 
 
 than the battle field. Oh! that we could trust God 
 more and more with personal things. Oh ! that He 
 were the God of our chamber^ as well as of our temples 
 and houses. Oh ! that we could bring Him more and 
 more into the minutiae of daily life. If we did this, we 
 should experience a measure of rest to which we are_, 
 perhaps, strangers now ; we should have less dread of 
 the sick chamber; we should have that unharassed 
 mind which conduces most to repose, in body and soul; 
 we should be able to say, ^' I will lie down and sleep and 
 leave to-morrow ivith God I'' 
 
 Beloved ! Shall we not follow the Psalmist's example ; 
 shall not we also say, ^' I will both lay me down in peace 
 and sleep ; " shall not we also surrender ourselves into the 
 holy and personal care of the Lord ? Let us observe how 
 loving trust secures rest, and the relaxation of the over- 
 strung soul. The Psalmist would lay him down; he 
 could take rest in God, and God's personal care of him. 
 But how is it with us ? If our trust be small, we can 
 seldom thus rest and refresh ourselves in God; we 
 cannot, if I might so speak, enjoy the pleasure of quiet 
 in Him, and with Him ; we may be able to walk, run, 
 fight, speak, sing, anything, or everything, but rest. 
 
 Let us endeavour, then, more and more, in holy trust 
 to realize the personal and vigilant care of God; to see 
 that He who keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor 
 sleep. Let us learn as Luther did, who, looking out of 
 his window one summer evening, saw, on a tree at hand, 
 a little bird making his brief and easy dispositions for a 
 night's rest. " Look," said he, " how that little fellow 
 preaches faith to us all. He takes hold of his twig, 
 tucks his head under his wing, and goes to sleep, leaving 
 
20 TRUST. 
 
 God to think for him!^* God is honoured by such trust, 
 and we^ on our part, shall be benefited ; and as he who 
 is well rested, comes forth from the privacy of his 
 chamber, refreshed for the trials and labours of the day, 
 and prepared to bear its burden and heat ; so we, also, 
 having been drawn aside from all turmoil for awhile, 
 and enjoyed the security and conscious peace which is to 
 be had in the felt presence of being alone with God, 
 may go forth, able to do and to endure what, otherwise, 
 might have been too much for our overtaxed strength. 
 Jesus says to His people now, even as He did to His 
 disciples of old, ^' Come ye aside, and rest awhile.^^ 
 
 We now turn to Psalm Ivii, 1, in which we have God 
 presented to us under another aspect, as ojie ivith over- 
 shadowing wings. '^ Be merciful unto me, O God, be 
 merciful unto me ; for my soul trusteth in Thee ; yea, 
 in the shadow of Thy wings will I make my refuge, until 
 these calamities be overpast.^' The same idea occurs in 
 Psalm Ixi, 4. " I will trust in the covert of Thy wings.'' 
 
 We are all familiar with the image presented to us 
 here, from its use by oui' blessed Sa^^our with reference 
 to Jerusalem. '^^O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that 
 killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto 
 thee, how often would I have gathered thy children 
 together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her 
 wings, and ye would not \" Matt, xxiii, 37. And here, 
 as in the care shewn in the sick man's chamber, there is 
 a special personal presence of God, in which the soul 
 finds ground for trust. But there is something peculiarly 
 sweet and precious to the believer in the simile before us 
 now; there is the active interference of love on behalf of 
 
TRUST. 21 
 
 an endangered loved one; there is that endangered 
 loved one^s faith and trusty making the shadow of the 
 wingj to be sought as the sweet refuge. 
 
 Let us observe here^ the trust of the Psalmist in the 
 presence of calamities. We often pray to be delivered 
 from calamities ; we even trust that we shall be ; but we 
 do not pray to be made what we should be^ in the very 
 presence of the calamities ; to live amid them, as long as 
 they last, in the consciousness that we are held and 
 sheltered by God, and can therefore remain in the midst 
 of them, so long as they continue, without any hurt. 
 
 This continuing in the presence of the enemy, or of 
 trial brought on by him, will be no more than was the 
 lot of many an ancient worthy, yea, of the Captain of 
 our salvation, Jesus Christ Himself. For forty days and 
 nights, the Saviour was kept in the presence of Satan in 
 the wilderness, and that, under circumstances of special 
 trial. His human nature being weakened by want of food 
 and rest. The furnace was heated seven times more than 
 it was wont to be heated, but Shadrach, Meshach, and 
 Abednego were kept a season amid its flames, (as calm 
 and composed in the presence of the tyrant^ s last ap- 
 pliances of torture, as they were in the presence of 
 himself,) before their time of deliverance came. And 
 the livelong night did Daniel sit amongst the lions, and 
 when he was taken up out of the den, '^ no manner of 
 hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his 
 God." They dwelt in the presence of the enemy, 
 because they dwelt in the presence of God. "Thou 
 preparest a table before me," says the Psalmist, " in the 
 presence of mine enemies." Psalm xxiii, 5. And the 
 promise of Israel is also ours. ^^ When thou passest 
 
22 TRUST. 
 
 tlirougli tlie waters I will be with thee ; and through the 
 rivers, they shall not overflow thee ; when thou walkest 
 through the fire, thou shalt not be burned ; neither shall 
 the flame kindle upon thee." Isaiah xliii, 2. 
 
 The hen shelters her chickens under her wings, in the 
 very presence of the enemy. Ah ! how do we shrink 
 from the presence of the enemy. We would have the 
 enemy taken away from us, or have ourselves removed 
 from him. We can, perhaps, exercise faith as regards 
 either of these events ; but to be able to live safely, and 
 under a consciousness of shelter in his presence, is 
 another thing ; this is undoubtedly, a high degree of 
 faith and trust. This we find the Psalmist exercising 
 here ; and this may the Lord enable us to exercise also. 
 It is for His glory that we should dwell at times in the 
 presence of our enemies ; that we should be there under 
 the shadow of His wing, and in effect, say, '^ My God 
 can sustain my cause, despite your continual efforts and 
 presence. He need not destroy your activity, and 
 annihilate you, in order to keep me in safety ; He can 
 continually and evenly neutralize all your efforts ; your 
 intended prey is kept continually in your sight, but you 
 have no power to touch it, or to do it any hurt." Satan 
 is often thus foiled. He has not to go and look for the 
 beUever. He has not the satisfaction of saying, " I was 
 crushed by a force so far superior to me, that it was no 
 disgrace to me to be foiled." He has the misery of 
 feeling his impotence against a sheltered believer; of 
 knowing that the prey is, as it were, actually within his 
 reach, and that he cannot touch it. And although this 
 presents no visible spectacle to the human eye, yet we 
 may be assured that it does to that of those, who can see 
 
TRUST. 23 
 
 invisible things. How is Satan put to sliame before his 
 kindred evil spirits^ when the weak believer is actually 
 in his sight_, actually before him^ and he cannot touch 
 him ! How is his impotence against the saints brought 
 forth ! How are the promises of God proved good_, and 
 His mercies proved true ! We may rest assured^ that 
 great ends are being accomplished by our being kept in 
 the midst of calamities_, kept in them as well as from 
 them. Let us remember this_, when we contemplate the 
 passage now before us ; let us seek to be kept in trial 
 when God calls us thereto^ and cultivate_, by the help and 
 teaching of the Spirit, that determined trust which shall 
 enable us to say_, " In the shadow of Thy wings will I 
 make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast.^' 
 " I will trust in the covert of Thy wings.^' 
 
 The passage before us has yet further meaning, and 
 brings to our notice not only the preservation of the 
 believer in the midst of calamities, but also his actual 
 closeness to God. To be under the shadow or covert of 
 the wing implies closeness ; to be under the shadow of 
 God's wing, implies " closeness to God." Let us weigh this 
 well ; let us attempt to realize it, and it will bring great 
 peace and assurance to our hearts. We know what a 
 perfect sense of security the child has, from the con- 
 sciousness of nearness to its parent. One step away 
 from that parent, and all is trembling and tears ; but 
 there is no need of these, when the child hides behind 
 the parent, or touches, or holds him. God is close to His 
 people, and is willing that they should both know and 
 feel it. Satan comes close, and the Lord will not be far 
 away ; when we realize the closeness of the Evil One, 
 there is no reason why we should not realize the close- 
 
24 TRUST. 
 
 ness of God also. The stronger faitli is^ the closer will 
 it ever draw a man to God ; and the feeling that we are 
 near God_, and that God is near us, will give ns peace. 
 There is_, perhaps, no sense of security so great as that 
 which man derives in this way. The "covering with 
 the wing" implies an "immediate presence of God, 
 and that in connection with us," which must be of 
 inestimable price, when danger is actually at hand. 
 
 Once more : we have here brought before us the idea 
 of warmth. While the wing shelters from impending 
 evil, the body infuses some of its own warmth into the 
 sheltered one ; and thus, perhaps, the vital heat is 
 restored, the current of which was impeded by the chill 
 which we know comes on with fear. If we act as the 
 Psalmist did, and seek the sheltering wing in real, trust- 
 ing faith, we also shall find warmth as well as safety. 
 God will impart to us of Himself; our vital heat shall 
 come from heaven. The believer would be saved many 
 and many a cold shiver, if he habitually sought the 
 sheltering wing; many a tremor which shook the soul 
 might thus have been stilled ; and many an icy feeling 
 have been thawed ; and though natural resources would 
 have supplied no warmth, warmth would have come from 
 God Himself. 
 
 All comfort in present calamity is to be had by 
 nearness to God. Such comfort many of the ancient 
 saints possessed. Paul and Silas could even sing praises 
 in their prison-house. Nearness to God will infuse into 
 us that which no nervousness, no fear can chill ; in near- 
 ness to Him we shall find, that, even in the midst of 
 tribulation, comfort can abound. The Rev. Charles 
 Simeon^s life contains a " Memorandum on meeting with 
 
TRUST. 25 
 
 injurious treatment/' wMch concludes in these words. 
 ^' My experience all this day has been^ and I hope will 
 yet continue to be_, a confirmation of that word, ^ Thou 
 wilt hide me in the secret of Thy presence from the 
 strife of tongues.' Insult an angel before the throne, and 
 what would he care about it ? Just such will be my feeling, 
 whilst I am hid in the secret of my E^edeemer's presence."'' 
 The following thoughts may help some of the Lord's 
 people to hasten under the shadow of His wing, when 
 calamity comes on. 
 
 1 . At such times the warmth of our love is likely to 
 cool, and by great nearness to God we shall receive fresh 
 heat, which shall hold our soul in life. 
 
 2. When the believer shelters himself under God's 
 wing, Satan has to deal with God, rather than with him, 
 and so he becomes sure of deliverance. 
 
 3. Any attempts to stand out alone, and fight in our 
 own strength, and with the measure of grace which we 
 possess, apart from the immediate recognition of God, 
 will be sure to bring upon us the consequences of 
 spiritual pride. 
 
 4. When close to God, hidden under His wing, the 
 most prominent idea in the believer's mind will be, the 
 immediate nearness and presence of God ; and that v/ill 
 bring him peace. 
 
 5. There is ever in God, a perfect readiness to receive 
 and shelter us; and that, even after we have been 
 wounded by our own rashness and presumption. If we 
 will but seek the refuge, we shall be sure of welcome. 
 
 We now turn to another aspect in which God presents 
 Himself as an object of the believer's trust. 
 
26 TRUST. 
 
 The Psalmist says_, in Psalm xci^ 2, " I will say of the 
 Lord_, He is my refuge and my fortress." The shadow 
 of the wing brought before us the idea of even a mother^s 
 care^, her love joined with protection ; here we have not 
 so much an active as a passive defence. Resistance,, the 
 power of repelhng assault^ and such like circumstances 
 of war^ come prominently before us. 
 
 It is beside our present purpose to enter into all the 
 points^ in which a similitude exists between God and a 
 fortress ; let us rather consider His appearance under 
 this aspect^ in relation to the shadow of the wing, which 
 iias just come under our notice. There is a strong 
 contrast between the two. We have seen the believer's 
 defence by the watchful eye, by the head turning every 
 way to meet the assault, by the very intensity of life 
 exercising itself on its behalf; (and it is a blessed thought 
 that intensity of life, even of God's life, is in exercise 
 for the sheltered believer ;) but now we see the frowning 
 fortress, the thick and battlemented wall ; all is still, in 
 the consciousness of mighty strength. The idea before 
 us is the repelling of assault by strength ; the trembling 
 creature within the fortress is not presented to our view 
 at all ; he is there, that we know ; — the presentation is 
 that of the great God Himself, in all His might. 
 
 The fortress is an edifice planned for purposes of 
 defence ; forethought is to be seen in all its arrangements 
 and contrivances. The hen shielding her chicken, 
 developes the active instinct of nature; the fortress 
 shielding one taking refuge in it, developes forethought, 
 nnd arrangement, and skill. From the prominence of 
 these various ideas, there is great comfort for the trusting 
 believer. AVhen he thinks of the first, he says to him- 
 
TRUST. 27 
 
 self, " God's very nature secures His active interference 
 on my behalf; " when he thinks of the second, he says, 
 "God's mind, as well as God's nature, is on my side. 
 Satan has to contend against God in His forethought, 
 and His plans, and His arrangements ; and as all these 
 develop infinite wisdom, what prospect has he of being 
 able to succeed against me?" This thought would at 
 times be very profitable to us, for we are tempted con- 
 tinually to make our own plans, and to trust in them. 
 We will construct an entrenchment in the open field, it 
 shall evidence our skill, and be defended by our valour; 
 but, alas ! our mighty resolutions often end in our defeat.^ 
 But what can Satan, skilled though he be in all spiritual 
 sieges, as well as personal encounters, do against the 
 mind of God ? There he finds every contingency guarded 
 against, every avenue closed, every possibility of assault 
 utterly destroyed; he may survey the fortress, he may 
 make a demonGtration against it, he may, in his madness, 
 
 * Thus it was with the Israelites when they attacked the 
 Amalekites and Canaanites, as recorded in Numbers xiv. "And 
 they rose up early in the morning-, and gat them up into the top 
 of the mountain, saying, * Lo, we be here, and will go up unto the 
 place which the Lord hath promised : for we have sinned.' And 
 Moses said, ' Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment 
 of the Lord? but it shall not prosper. Go not up, for the Lord 
 is not among you ; that ye be not smitten before your enemies. 
 For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and 
 ye shall fall by the sword : because ye are turned away from the 
 Lord, therefore the Lord will not be with you. But they pre- 
 sumed to go up unto the hill top : nevertheless the ark of the 
 covenant of the Lord, and Moses, departed not out of the camp. 
 Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites which dwelt 
 in that hill, and smote them, and discomfited them, even unto 
 Hormah." 
 
28 TRUST. 
 
 even go so far as to venture to assail it, but the fortress 
 must be stormed, before the one taking refuge in it can 
 be hurt. Hear it, O trembling, yet trusting believer ; 
 God must cease to be, before the Evil One can take away 
 thy life ! Thou art surrounded (if I might so speak) by 
 the arrangements of God; all His foreknowledge and 
 wisdom are keeping thee, all His strength is put forth for 
 thee ; surely a realization of this should help thee also to 
 take up the Psalmist's words, and say, '' I will say of the 
 Lord, He is my strength, and my fortress. ^^ 
 
 This idea stands forth, also, by its visibility, in strong 
 contrast to that of the invisible watcher in the still 
 chamber. The fortress is something built, and estab- 
 lished, and manifest; it gives an impression of strength 
 from its very appearance ; it is a plan carried out into a 
 result. Under this aspect it is our privilege to see our 
 God. When He presents Himself in the aspect of a 
 fortress for His people. He shews himself as simply 
 carrying out His own designs. To love them, to protect 
 them, to save them from the strongest assault, to present 
 an impassable barrier to the utmost efforts of their foe, 
 these are God's designs. He carries them out in Himself. 
 As stone cemented to stone, presents to the enemy a 
 front which lie cannot successfully assail, so all that 
 makes up the glorious character of God, connected and 
 knit together, presents an obstacle to Satan, against 
 which his utmost efforts cannot prevail. Oh ! that we 
 fully realized the strength of the fortress, the refuge 
 which is ours ! Oh ! that we trusted it as we should, 
 nay, let us not say '^as we should,'' but "as it is our 
 privilege to do." God loved His own people from all 
 eternity; God thought of them, and for them; God 
 
TRUST. 29 
 
 intended to manifest Himself on tlieir behalf; He 
 determined that the excellencies which were in Himself 
 should assume a substantial development for them. The 
 believer may not only say^ " I know what God thinks for 
 me/^ but also, ^^ I know what he is for me.^^ And the 
 more he ponders this, and seeks for the grace of faith, 
 and enlarged trust, the more plainly will the outlines of 
 his mighty fortress begin to be visible ; point after point 
 of its great strength will develop itself, as the mists 
 which hang around his spiritual vision disappear; and he 
 will say of the Lord, '' He is my refuge and my fortress ; 
 my God, in Him will I trust." 
 
 It is, farther, a source of comfort to the believer to 
 reflect, that that on which he puts his trust is established 
 and immovable. Changes take place above and around 
 the fortress, but its massive buttresses still stand un- 
 moved, and its battlements frown defiance at the strength 
 of the foe. The clouds above are fleeting past, it may 
 be in silvery brightness, or it may be in pall-like gloom ; 
 the leaves are budding, or fading, according to their 
 seasons upon the earth ; but there stands the fortress, 
 established and unchanged. 
 
 And why is it that many of the Lord^s dear people do 
 not realize the great comfort which, from the very fact 
 of God^s being their fortress, ought assuredly to be 
 theirs ? Because they look at the changes going on all 
 around, and so miss the truth that He is unchangeable. 
 So long as Peter looked at Jesus, all was well ; but when 
 his eyes were turned to the waves, and he saw that the 
 sea was boisterous, then his faith began to fail. If we 
 look at the clouds, ever varying, and never continuing 
 in one stay, we are not likely to be impressed with the 
 
 d2 
 
30 TRUST 
 
 idea of stability ; if we look at the clianging leaves and 
 trees, 'continuance^ is assuredly not tlie idea that will 
 come prominently before our minds ; but let the aspect 
 of the heavens, or of the seasons, be what they may, 
 there stands the fortress ; and '^ continuance^ is one of the 
 grand ideas connected with it. 
 
 "We greatly need to have impressed upon our minds, a 
 deep conviction of the firmness, the abiding nature of 
 the character of God. We look at ourseh^es, and our 
 feehngs; and at times, when all seems favorable, take 
 some refuge in them ; but then they change, and we are 
 in distress. "VVe look at the effect which time appears to 
 have had on some, who once seemed the greenest in the 
 garden, and we see them verging to decay, their first love 
 having waxed cold ; but we look not at God in Christ, 
 unchangeable and unchanged, ^^ the same yesterday, and 
 to-day, and for ever.^^ Let us look at our fortress, and 
 not at what is going on around it, or at the numbers 
 about to come against it, and seek for grace to trust. 
 
 The last aspect which we have to notice, in which God 
 presents Himself as the object of His people's trust, is 
 in Psalm cx\iii, 6. ^' The Lord is on my side, I will not 
 fear : what can man do unto me ? '^ 
 
 A fresh set of ideas seems brought before us here; 
 embracing, no doubt, many of the points which we have 
 already considered, but distinctive, nevertheless. The 
 reason which the Psalmist gives here for his trusting, or 
 for his not fearing, is the great fact, that the Lord is on 
 his side; and the prominent idea which this brings 
 before us is Alliance ; the making common cause, which 
 the great God undoubtedly does, with imperfect, yet 
 with earnest, trusting man. 
 
TRUST. 31 
 
 We know very well, tlie great anxiety shewn by men, 
 in all their worldly conflicts, to secure the aid of a 
 powerful ally ; in their lawsuits, to retain the services of 
 a powerful advocate; or, in their attempts at worldly 
 advancement, to win the friendship and interest of those 
 who can further the aims they have in view. When 
 Herod was highly displeased with them of Tj^e and 
 Sidon, they did not venture to approach him until they 
 had made Blastus, the king's chamberlain, their friend. 
 If such and such a person be on their side, men think 
 that all must go w^ell. Who so well off as he who is 
 able to say, " The Lord is on my side ?" 
 
 The great God Himself, then, makes common cause 
 with His people. We would beg the reader to dwell 
 upon these two words, " common cause.'' The believer's 
 cause is God's; and why? Because God's cause is the 
 believer's also. This may not appear prominently at first 
 sight. The tried and tempted believer, absorbed in his 
 own necessities, and in the pressure which he is feeling, 
 and the trial he is enduring, may say, "I am the 
 sufferer ; I trust indeed that God will help me, but His 
 aid will come as an external help ; it will be an outflowing 
 of His goodness towards me." Thus he speaks ; but he 
 does not say, " His interests are identified with mine ; 
 He will be on my side, because my cause is His cause, 
 and His cause my cause ; because we are in relationship, 
 and must have a community of interest." 
 
 The realization that the cause of God, and that of 
 the believer are one and the same, will ever make the 
 saint seek, and feel sure of having His help, in hours of 
 trial ; he will never feel so sure, as when he knows, that 
 the Lord is working for His own name's sake. Here, 
 
32 TRUST. 
 
 then, is a grand position of strength. The believer says, 
 "I know that instead of being in conflict with e\dl_, I 
 might have been left under the power of evil. I know 
 that had I been left to myself, I might have been found 
 in the ranks of those whom I now count as my bitterest 
 foes. But He has called me to the knowledge of the 
 truth, and now His interests are as much concerned as 
 mine ; He will help me, not only for my own individual, 
 personal sake, but also for His own sake.^^ 
 
 A community of interest is a wonderfal bond amongst 
 men ; we consider it the strongest guarantee for unity of 
 action ; we want no other bond than this ; we feel that it 
 stands in the place of all others. We think rightly. 
 Alas ! for the selfishness of man, that it should be so. 
 There is another side, however, in which this community 
 of interest is to be looked at; and from this point of 
 view the idea of selfishness is wholly excluded. God 
 cannot be selfish ; He has given us one grand proof that 
 He cannot be; He '^'^ spared not His own Son, but 
 delivered Him up for us all." In the case now before 
 us, God appears on man's side, not only because He 
 loves man, but because that for which the believer 
 contends is the truth ; and for holiness' sake, and truth's 
 sake, God will stand upon his side. God is for truth 
 and for holiness, and the believer has by grace been 
 called into the knowledge of these, and by circumstances, 
 into conflict for them; he cannot, he shall not stand 
 alone, God will be on his side. 
 
 It is a matter of great importance to realize this ; for 
 it is, under any circumstances, a trying position, to stand 
 alone. We may be, we, no doubt, often are, called upon 
 to stand alone, so far as earthly companionship is con- 
 
TRUST. 33 
 
 cerned. Elijali Tvas in sucTi a position^ so was Daniel, so 
 was David; and many a solitary one in a family, and 
 many a minister in a dark and dreary district, has known 
 the bitterness, the difficulty, and the trial of such a 
 position. We cannot secure ourselves from it. When 
 we seem best supported by human help, then may come 
 a sudden stroke, and we may be left to get on as best we 
 can, with increasing enemies, and thickening clouds. It 
 is at periods sach as these, that men^s hearts have often 
 failed them. They seem to themselves to be deserted as 
 Uriah was, in the forefront of the battle, that they may 
 be slain ; they say with the prophet, " I only am left, and 
 they seek my life to take it away ; '^ and at such periods 
 but one thing can avail them, and that is, the realization 
 that God is on their side. At such times the people of 
 the Lord must see into the invisible ; they must discern 
 a helper where man can see none; they must (if they 
 would avert the direst calamity) be able practically to 
 say, " The Lord is on my side." If they cannot do this, 
 we need not wonder if something akin to despair take 
 possession of their minds. They see the enemy; per- 
 haps he draws out all his forces, on purpose to overwhelm 
 the poor tried believer with a sight of the fearful odds 
 which seem to be against him. How can he face such a 
 multitude alone ? 
 
 Let God^s people, on occasions like these, learn a 
 lesson from the lilies of the field, and the fowls of the 
 air; even they are not alone — the first are clothed by 
 Him, the second are fed by Him. The people of God, 
 if they read nature aright, might learn much from even 
 her humblest page ; for the bending grass has a voice as 
 distinct^ if not as loud, as the sturdy oak. Myriad 
 
34 TRUST. 
 
 voices ever testify that God is near. This truth was 
 found beautifully realized a little while ago by one of the 
 agents of the London City Mission^ who was visiting in 
 one of those courts where the houses are crowded with 
 inhabitants^ and where every room is the dwelling of a 
 family. In a lone room at the top of one of these 
 houses, the agent met with an aged woman, whose scanty 
 pittance of half-a-crown a week, was scarcely sufficient 
 for her bare subsistence. He observed, in a broken tea- 
 pot that stood in the window, a strawberry plant, growing 
 and flourishing. He remarked, from time to time, how 
 it continued to grow, and with what jealous care it was 
 watched and tended. ^^Your plant flourishes nicely; 
 you will soon have strawberries upon it.^^ '' Oh Sir,^^ 
 replied the woman, " it is not for the sake of the fruit 
 that I grow it." " Then why do you take so much care 
 of it ? " he inquired. " Well Sir," was the answer, '' I 
 am very poor, too poor to keep any living creature ; but 
 it is a great comfort to me to have that living plant, for 
 I know it can only live by the power of God ; and as I 
 see it live and grow from day to day, it tells me that God 
 is near." A small moss was the means of sustaining the 
 courage of the celebrated traveller Mungo Park. He was 
 robbed by banditti on the 25tli of August, 1796, when 
 on his road from Kooma to Sebidooloo, and was stripped 
 of everything. " After they were gone," he says, '' I sat 
 for some time looking around me with amazement and 
 terror. Whichever way I turned, nothing appeared but 
 danger and difficulty. I saw myself in the midst of a 
 vast wilderness, in the depth of the rainy season, naked 
 and alone, surrounded by savage animals, and men still 
 I was five hundred miles from the nearest 
 
TRUST. 35 
 
 European settlement. All these circumstances crowded 
 at once on my recollection^ and I confess that my spirits 
 began to fail me. I considered my fate as certain^ and 
 that I had no alternative but to lie down and perish. 
 The influence of religion_, liowever_, aided and supported 
 me. I reflected that no human prudence or foresight 
 could possibly have averted my present sufferings. I was 
 indeed a stranger in a strange land,, yet I was still under 
 the protecting eye of that Providence^ who has con- 
 descended to call Himself the stranger's Friend. At this 
 moment^ painful as my reflections were, the extraordinary 
 beauty of a small moss, in fructification, irresistibly 
 caught my eye. I mention this, to show from what 
 trifling circumstances the mind will sometimes derive 
 consolation ; for, though the whole plant was not larger 
 than the top of one of my fingers, I could not contem- 
 plate the delicate conformation of its roots, leaves, and 
 capsula, without admiration. ^ Can that Being (thought 
 I) who planted, watered, and brought to perfection, in 
 this obscure part of the world, a thing which appears of 
 so small importance, look with unconcern upon the 
 situation and sufferings of creatures formed after His 
 own image ? surely not ! ' Reflections like these would 
 not allow me to despair. I started up, and, disregarding 
 both hunger and fatigue, travelled forward, assured that 
 relief was at hand; and I was not disappointed. In a 
 short time I came to a small village.^' 
 
 And even if the tried and tempted saint be not 
 reduced absolutely to despair, he is at least very likely 
 to be depressed to a fearful extent. He may be conscious 
 of his rectitude of purpose ; he may be fully convinced 
 of the abstract truth of all for which he has to contend ; 
 
36 TRUST. 
 
 he may believe that God can do great things ; but it is 
 all to no purpose if he cannot realize the presence of God 
 on his side. Once let the conviction of this have full 
 power upon the mind_, and then the believer becomes 
 strong indeed^ and independent of outward circumstances. 
 He may be deserted of his own wife, as Job was ; or of 
 his chief friends_, as David was; or of those who had 
 companied with him the longest, as Jesus was ; but the 
 consciousness that God is on his side will carry him 
 through. 
 
 Dear reader ! are yon sure that God is on your side ? 
 Is your case like that of Peter's; though Satan desires to 
 have you that he may sift you as wheat, do you feel that 
 Jesus says of you, " But I have prayed for thee, that thy 
 faith fail not?^^ Have you made peace with God 
 through the blood of the Lamb? Do you love that 
 which He loves, and hate that which He hates? Are 
 you true in these feelings, although perhaps very im- 
 perfect, and very weak? Do you realize that God has 
 been pleased to bind Himself to you, by your acceptance 
 of the Saviour as your own? Then you, also, like the 
 Psalmist, need not fear what man can do unto you, nor 
 what can be done against you, by those evil spirits which 
 are stronger than man, and work by man. It is highly 
 possible that you may have to stand alone — and yet not 
 alone, for the great God is with you. The fact of His 
 being on your side is everything; in that thought you 
 will find both strength and peace, " If it had not been the 
 Lord who was on our side, now may Israel say; if it 
 had not been the Lord who was on our side, when men 
 rose up against us: then they had swallowed us up 
 quick, when their wrath was kindled against us : then 
 
TRUST. 37 
 
 the waters had overwhelmed us^ the stream . had gone 
 over our soul : then the proud waters had gone over our 
 soul. Blessed he the Lord,, who hath not given us as a 
 prey to their teeth. Our soul is escaped as a bird out of 
 the snare of the fowlers : the snare is broken, and we are 
 escaped. Our help is in the name of the Lord, who 
 made heaven and earth. ^^ Psalm cxxiv. 
 
 The thought of decisive action, or taking an active 
 part, is also plainly brought out here. We cannot say 
 that a man is on our side if, when we are hard pressed, 
 and need his aid, he remains passive, and takes no steps 
 on our behalf. The very expression which we are con- 
 sidering now, implies assault, and help given in that 
 assault; one is assailed, or obliged to stand upon his 
 defence, and another is lending him his aid, or prepared 
 so to do. 
 
 It cannot be denied that God^s people too often forget 
 His activity."^ They look upon Him as reigning above, as 
 
 * It is not uncommon for Satan to keep before the eyes of God's 
 people the value of their own activity, while he carefully hides the 
 activity of God. The consequence is, trust in self, and distrust of 
 Him, followed by discomfort and distress. Self, and the part self 
 has to play, take up a position in the mind wholly disproportioned 
 to their importance. Whilst called upon to act, and esteeming it 
 an honour to be fellow-workers with God, we should see, also, how 
 He can do without us. The following anecdote may help us to see 
 the value of a common sense view of the activity of God, and may 
 further help us to the enjoj'ment of that rest spoken of in page 33. 
 
 "When Bulstrode AVhitelock was embarking as Cromwell's envoy 
 to Sweden, in 1 653, he was much disturbed in mind as he rested 
 in Harwich on the preceding night, which was very stormy, while 
 he reflected on the distracted state of the nation. It happened 
 that a confidential servant slept in an adjacent bed, who, finding 
 
 E 
 
38 TRUST. 
 
 having all resources at His command^ yea, as being 
 Himself the one and only resource needed; but not as 
 occupying an active position with those who are actually 
 in the fight ; hence they look at what they can do, and 
 how long they can hold out, and what graces they have, 
 wherewith to contend; but forget to look for positive 
 and decided action from the One who is on their side. 
 Let us avoid this mistake; let us say, ^''God will work;" 
 let us expect Him to work, and He assuredly will. 
 
 Nor must we forget the idea of co-operation which is 
 presented to us here. At first sight, it may seem 
 presumptuous to speak of co-operation with God; but 
 the idea is a scriptural one, as we shall see by referring 
 to 1 Cor. iii, 9. '*^For we are labourers together with 
 God." The Lord^s people are workers together with 
 Him, and He is a worker together with them ; they are 
 both in action, and for the same cause. 
 
 There is in this fact, something very comforting for 
 our souls. When we are called upon to work, God will 
 work also. He never by circumstances calls any man, 
 
 that his master could not sleep, at length said : — '* Pray, Sir, will 
 yon give me leave to ask you a question ? " 
 
 '« Certainly." 
 
 " Pray, Sir, do not you think that God governed the world very 
 well before you came into it ? " 
 
 " Undoubtedly." 
 
 " And pray, Sir, do not you think that He will govern it quite 
 as well, when you are gone out of it ? " 
 
 " Certainly." 
 
 " Then, Sir, pray excuse me, but do not you think you may trust 
 Him to govern it quite as well as long as you live?" 
 
 To this question Whitelock had nothing to reply ; but, turning 
 about, soon fell fast asleep, till he was summoned to embarkc 
 
TRUST. 39 
 
 either to resist evil^ or to do good^ but that He Himself 
 is willing to work together with him. How much 
 readier should we be to enter upon conflict with evil^ or 
 to undertake difficult tasks for God, if only we could 
 realize this ! The sense of weakness would no longer 
 oppress us; the consciousness of disproportion to our 
 work would never daunt us ; we should feel that God 
 was with us, and that His present energy pervaded every 
 effort made in humility and faith. Do we not too often 
 fix our thoughts upon what we ourselves are doing, upon 
 how ive are resisting evil, or accomplishing good ; do we 
 not practically say, ^''Am I equal to the task imposed 
 upon me?" Let us remember, that God will work too ; 
 that His strength will be in all our efforts ; that He will 
 work together with us. It may be that man will not 
 recognise this ; that Satan, taking advantage of oui' weak 
 natures, will try to seduce us into spiritual pride, saying 
 '' You have done this or that ; " but let us recognise God 
 working in us, and we shall thus, at one and the same 
 time, possess humility and strength. The working of 
 God, and the recognition of God, are beautifully brought 
 before us in Isaiah xli, 13, &c. " For / the Lord thy 
 God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee. Fear not, 
 / will help thee. Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye 
 men of Israel ; / will help thee, saith the Lord, and thy 
 Eedeemer, the Holy One of Israel. Behold, / will make 
 thee a new sharp threshing instrument, having teeth : 
 thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, 
 and shalt make the hills as chaff. Thou shalt fan them, 
 and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind 
 shall scatter them : and thou shalt rejoice in the Loud, 
 and shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel." 
 
40 TRUST. 
 
 Let us take care_, also^ tliat as God is graciotisly 
 pleased to be on our side^ and to co-operate with us_, so 
 also we be ready to be on His side, and to co-operate 
 with Him. It is as true,, that in many points He 
 permits us to co-operate with Him, as that He is 
 graciously pleased to co-operate with us. It is through 
 man that He carries out many of His greatest designs 
 upon the earth. Some of these are brought to pass 
 through the instrumentality of those who hate Him ; 
 and the wrath of man is made to praise Him ; but many 
 through the active work of His own peoi)le. The man 
 of God should be ready to co-operate with Him at His 
 first invitation or command ; he should not hang back as 
 even Moses did, who would have excused himself by his 
 unreadiness of speech ; or as Jonah did, who would even 
 flee from the presence of the Lord ; or as Barak did, who 
 lost the honor which might have been his portion, when 
 Sisera was sold into the hand of a woman. So long as 
 we look at ourselves, our feebleness will make us decline 
 the responsibility ; but the consciousness that we are but 
 instruments in the hand of God, should make us willing 
 to be wrought with by Him. The case of David is full 
 of teaching for us in this. When he went forth to fight 
 Goliath, he was surely in himself wholly disproportioned 
 to the task ; his limbs were not as strong as the gianVs ; 
 his height was not so great ; his practice m warfare was 
 absolutely nothing; true, he had contended with the 
 terrible spring of the lion, and with the crushing embrace 
 of the bear ; but these were wholly diflerent from conflict 
 "with a man, trained to war from his youth. But despite 
 all this, he went out on the Lord's side ; he knew that 
 he was a worker together with God ; and he accepted the 
 
TRUST. 41 
 
 challenge of tlie Philistine, as of one who had defied the 
 armies of the li\T[ng God — as of one whom he would meet 
 in the name of God. It was God, assuredly, who was 
 engaged in that great conflict ; it was His eye that 
 marked the place in the giant^s forehead, where the fatal 
 missile was to sink ; it was His influence that guided it 
 through the air, so that its flight was true for, the 
 destined spot ; it was His might that energized the arm 
 of David, as he slung forth the smooth stone upon its 
 errand of death. Let the example of this great warrior 
 of God not be lost on us : if we feel that the Lord calls 
 on us to work, we may rest assured, that it is not to do 
 so alone; the strength will be not in the instrument 
 itself, but in the way it is used. 
 
 These are some of the practical thoughts resulting 
 from the truth, that God is on His people^s side. 
 
 1. I never can be left alone, in anything I am called 
 upon to do for God. 
 
 2. Nor can I be ever left alone, in any resistance 
 which I have to offer for God."^ 
 
 * Luther was enabled, by the power of simple faith to realize 
 a peace which was not possessed by his fellow labourer Melanc- 
 thon. The latter seemed overwhelmed at the circumstances in 
 which he was placed. He writes to Luther, " My dwelling is in 
 perpetual tears. My consternation is indescribable. O my father ! 
 I do not wish my words to exaggerate my sorrows; but without 
 your consolations it is impossible for me here to enjoy the least 
 j>eace." Luther traces Melancthon's trouble to a want of simpli- 
 city in faith. "As for Melancthon, it is his philosophy that 
 tortures him, and nothing else, for our cause is in the very hands 
 of Him who can say, with unspeakable dignity, * No one shall 
 pluck it out of my hands.' I would not have it in our hands, and 
 it would not be desirable that it were so. I have had many 
 
 E 2 
 
42 TilUST. 
 
 3. I must have on my side the full benefit of the 
 heavenly alliance, in God^s thought, His resources. His 
 energy. 
 
 4. How wonderful the condescension, and the love, 
 which makes the great God stoop to alliance with man ! 
 
 5. In this I have the pledge of victory. 
 
 6. In all courses of action we should seek the assurance 
 that God is on our side. 
 
 7. The Lord's being on my side, will be sure to develop 
 itself practically. 
 
 Some practical results which should follow : — 
 
 1. The falling away of human friends, and the drying 
 up of human resources, should not stop me in my spiritual 
 warfare. 
 
 2. I ought to bring as vividly before my mind as 3 
 can, the alliance with God, and realize it as a matter of 
 fact ; so as to make it confront all the strength that is 
 against me, and compensate for all desertions from me, 
 and weakness in me. 
 
 3. In my personal conflicts, I should feel that I do not 
 stand alone ; and in active service, that I do not go fortli 
 alone. 
 
 things in my hands, and I have lost them all, hut whatever I have 
 heen ahle to place in God's, I still possess." 
 
 On learning that Melancthon's anguish still continued, Luther 
 wrote to him ; and these are words that should be preserved : — 
 " Grace and peace in Christ ! in Christ, I say, and not in the 
 world. Amen. I hate, with exceeding hatred, those extreme cares 
 which consume you. If the cause is unjust, abandon it ; if the 
 cause is just, why should we belie the promises of Him who com- 
 manded us to sleep without fear ? Can the devil do more than 
 kill us ? Christ will not be wanting to the work of justice and of 
 truth. He lives ; He reigns ; what fear, then, can we have," &c. 
 
TRUST. 43 
 
 4. This one fact^ of " The Lord being on. my side/' 
 should in my estimation far overbalance all the confed- 
 eracies and alliances against me; when I see them, I should 
 destroy their terrifying influence by a consideration of 
 this. In Psa. Ixxxiii, we have brought before us the strong 
 confederacies of the enemy. '' They have taken crafty 
 counsel against Thy people_, and consulted against Thy 
 hidden ones. They have said, 'Come and let us cut 
 them off from being a nation, that the name of Israel 
 may be no more in remembrance.' For they have con- 
 sulted together with one consent, they are confederate 
 against Thee. The tabernacles of Edom, and the 
 Ishmaelites ; of Moab, and the Hagarenes ; Gebal, and 
 Ammon, and Amalek ; the Philistines with the inhabi- 
 tants of Tyre ; Assur also is joined with them, they have 
 holpen the children of Lot." Such was the confederacy, 
 it was strong both in men and money ; but the Psalmist 
 looks to his God to act against them — he says, " O, my 
 God, make them as the stubble before the wind." And 
 in calling upon God thus to break up the confederacy, 
 and destroy those engaged in it, he reminds Him of 
 former mighty acts. "Do unto them as unto the 
 Midianites ; as to Sisera, as to Jabin, at the brook of 
 Kison ; which perished at Endor, they became as dung 
 for the earth. Make their nobles like Oreb and like 
 Zeeb : yea, all their princes as Zeba and Zalmunna." 
 
 The Lord shews us, in Isa. vii, how easily He can deal 
 with a confederacy. Rezin, the king of Syria, and 
 Pekah, the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, go up 
 toward Jerusalem to war against it, but cannot prevail 
 against it. " And it was told the house of David, saying, 
 Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was 
 
44 TRUST. 
 
 moved^ and the heart of his people, as the trees of the 
 wood are moved by the wind. Then said the Lord nnto 
 Isaiah, Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, and Shear- 
 jashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the uj^per 
 pool, in the highway of the fuller^ s field. And say unto 
 him, Take heed and be quiet: fear not, neither be 
 faint-hearted for the two tails of these • smoking fire- 
 brands, for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the 
 son of Remaliah. Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of 
 Eemaliah have taken evil counsel against thee, saying, 
 ' Let us go up against Judah and vex it, and let us make 
 a breach therein for us, and set a king in the midst of it, 
 even the son of Tabeal : ^ thus saith the Lord God," — 
 mark, dear reader, how He will deal with the confederacy 
 — ""It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass. 
 For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of 
 Damascus is Rezin, and within three score and five years 
 shall Ephraim be broken, that it be not a people." 
 
 Nehemiah was tried by the existence of a confederacy 
 against him, when he undertook the rebuilding of the 
 walls of Jerusalem, but he knew where to go for help. 
 '^'^It came to pass that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and 
 the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, 
 heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and 
 that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were 
 very wroth. And conspired all of them together to 
 come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder us. 
 Nevertheless we made our prayer unto God, and set a 
 watch against them day and night because of them." 
 The conspiracy of Joseph^ s brethren against him ended 
 in his being promoted so high as to be only second to 
 Pharoah upon his throne. 
 
TRUST. 45 
 
 It may be well to add also a few words upon the 
 circumstances under which this trust is to be exercised, 
 A good deal has already been said incidentally on this 
 point ; it may_, however, be helpful to gather these cir- 
 cumstances together J and look at them by themselves. 
 
 In Psa. iii, 6, and also cxviii, 6, the times of danger 
 from man are prominently alluded to. ''\ will not be 
 afraid/^ said the Psalmist, " of ten thousands of the 
 people, that have set themselves against me round 
 about;" and again, in Psa. cxviii, 6, he says, " The Lord 
 is on my side, I will not fear what man can do unto 
 me." 
 
 Here we have times of danger from men brought 
 prominently before our notice, and the Psalmist^s deter- 
 mination to trust God, no matter how imminent the 
 danger might be. Now we must not under-c2iie, even as 
 we should not over-xdiiQ these dangers from men. When 
 our fellow-men are opposed to us, and threaten us with 
 evil, and proceed to active opposition, we have great need 
 of Trust in God. These visible dangers are likely 
 to exercise a powerful influence upon such frail creatures 
 as we are ; they press us closely ; they assume a distinct- 
 ness, and vividness, and reality, which are calculated to 
 daunt the heart ; we feel that we have to contend with 
 evil in its activity. When we can plainly see that men 
 are working evil against us, then evil seems to have 
 embodied itself against us ; we seem to feel that it now 
 has means of working, that it will not remain idle, that 
 we are within its reach; it soon makes itself felt. 
 
 At times the struggling believer has to meet with 
 opposition, and the probability of hurt from the very 
 men who should aid and befriend him ; he is obliged to 
 
46 TRUST. 
 
 say, " My foes are those of my own household/ ' (see 
 Matt. x_, 36.) " Yea_, mine own familiar friend^ in whom I 
 trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel 
 against me," (Psa. xli, 9.) As in the case of David, a way- 
 ward child may be the instrument of evil ; as in Joseph^ s, 
 it may be one^s brethren; as in JoVs, it may be one's 
 wife j and danger is peculiarly appalling when it comes 
 upon us from those, who from their nearness to us know 
 all the avenues of our heart, all our circumstances and 
 habits in life, where and how we can most easily be 
 hurt. 
 
 When evil assumes this present, and this \i\id form, 
 the best way to meet it is by making our Trust do the 
 same. We must oppose a vivid sight of God, to a vivid 
 sight of man. And if we do this aright our fear will 
 soon subside ; we shall say with the Psalmist, '^ I will not 
 fear what man can do unto me." When Goliath came 
 forth, there was a special presentation of man, but David 
 met it with faith; when the eight hundred and fifty 
 prophets of Baal, and the grove, confronted Elijah on 
 Carmel, there was a special presentation of man, but 
 Elijah also met them in the power of faith; when the 
 armies of Sennacherib came round about Jerusalem, 
 (Isaiah xxxvi,) and that proud monarch's blasphemous 
 letter was delivered to Hezekiah, there was also a special 
 presentation of man, but the king of Judah meets it 
 with faith, which enables him to oppose to it a special 
 presentation of God ; he owns SennacheriVs might, and 
 reminds God that it is He he is reproaching, (verses 17 
 and 20,) " Incline Thine ear, O Lord, and hear ; open 
 Thine eyes, O Lord, and see : and hear all the words of 
 Sennacherib, which hath sent to reproach the living 
 
TRUST. 47 
 
 God. "^ "^ Now therefore^ O Lord our God_, save us 
 from his hand,, that all the kingdoms of the earth may- 
 know that Thou art the Lord^ even Thou only.^^ 
 
 No doubt there is much which man can do, to hurt and 
 injure us_, so far as this world is concerned. Our Lord 
 Himself tells us this in Luke xii_, 4^ '^ And I say unto you_, 
 my friends_, be not afraid of them that kill the body : '' — 
 men can at times proceed even to the last extremity ; and 
 if to that^ then to other assaults calculated in themselves 
 to terrify or annoy. Our Lord tells us this in Luke xxi^ 
 12, '^ They shall lay their hands on you and persecute 
 you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into 
 prisons, bringing you before kings and rulers for my 
 name's sake." See what a description St. Paul gives us 
 of his sufferings in 2 Cor. xi, 23, &c. Amongst other 
 things he tells us that he had ''^ stripes above measure,'^ 
 that he was " often in prisons, and in deaths ; five times 
 he received forty stripes save one, thrice was he beaten 
 with rods, once was he stoned ; " he knew what it was 
 to experience ^^ perils from robbers and from his own 
 countrymen, perils from the heathen, and perils from 
 false brethren." Our enemies can break in upon, and 
 disturb the peace of our home ; they can hurt our bodies, 
 and our means of livelihood ; they can vex and thwart us 
 in many ways. Even if the enemy be not active in his 
 opposition, he can do us harm nevertheless, by looking 
 coldly upon us, by engendering suspicion against us, by 
 withdrawing from us some wonted countenance and 
 support; all these are serious things, w^hen we are 
 perhaps placed, to all human appearance, in a position 
 of dependence upon the very persons who treat us thus. 
 May we have grace to meet all this by simple, ViwiA 
 
48 TRUST. 
 
 trust, by seeing God to be for us with the same distinct- 
 ness tbat we see man to be against us ! 
 
 Let us consider also, the time of helplessness of the 
 believer. We can imagine no more helpless condition 
 than that of sleep. And what the Psalmist says is 
 this, ^^ I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep, for 
 Thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety .^^ Helpless- 
 ness is one of the great occasions for determined trust. 
 
 If we examine the records of Holy Scripture, and the 
 lives of God^s people as detailed therein, we shall find the 
 most eminent saints placed from time to time in positions 
 of helplessness. What could be more helpless, as we 
 have just seen, than JacoVs position when he went forth 
 to meet Esau ? or than Joseph^ s, when he lay in Potiphar's 
 prison ; or than Jeremiah's, when he was in the bottom 
 of the pit; or than Elijah's, when he stood alone in 
 confronting the prophets of Baal ; or than David's, when 
 the people spake of stoning him ; and again, when Shimei 
 cursed him and threw dust at him ; or than Daniel's, 
 when he was shut up in the lion's den ; or than the three 
 children's, when they were thrown down into the burning 
 fiery furnace ; or than the disciples', when they were sent 
 forth staff in hand, as sheep amongst wolves ? 
 
 That we should from time to time find ourselves in a 
 helpless position is no new thing : this is no mere fortui- 
 tous falling together of circumstances, but a permitted 
 arrangement of God ; He will teach us the perfection of 
 His strength, in the perfection of our weakness. We 
 may rest assured, that we are no less called upon to realize 
 our own intrinsic helplessness, than to put forth whatever 
 powers and faculties have been bestowed upon us by God j 
 we have to be taught our utter helplessness, apart from 
 
TRUST. 49 
 
 God, as well as what we should do in the power of God. 
 The apostle found this sense of personal weakness no bar 
 to his being strong for the Lord ; he did not find it bring 
 him into such sad circumstances, as would be the natural 
 consequences of such weakness ; he said, " When I am 
 weak, then am I strong/' God had said to him, " My 
 strength is made perfect in weakness,^' and he had 
 realized the truth of that. What we, however, desire 
 to attain to, is the being able to say, " / can do this, / 
 can do that ; ^' we want the personal comfortable feeling 
 that we are individually equal to this or that ; and there 
 is very often a temptation hidden in this ; for Satan, when 
 once he finds a man working in any feeling of mere per- 
 sonal spiritual strength, soon tries to make him work in 
 a feeling of personal strength which is natural, and not 
 spiritual at all. St Paul could say, " I can do all things 
 through Christ which strengtheneth me ; '' but oh ! that 
 strengthening of Christ was everything ; that was what 
 he had ever present before his mind. 
 
 The child of God, then, must not be surprised, if from 
 time to time he finds himself in a position of personal 
 helplessness. At times he may come into this position 
 in his worldly, and at times in his spiritual cu'cumstances ; 
 but whenever he comes into them the part of faith is to 
 trust unreservedly.* Let us learn from the words of our 
 
 * The case of Jacob is a very instructive one in this respect. 
 (Gen. xxxii, 6.) " His messengers returned, saying, * We came 
 to thy brother Esau, and also he cometh to meet thee, and four 
 hundred men with him.' Then Jacob was greatly afraid and dis- 
 tressed." And no wonder ! his two bands were helpless women 
 and children, with cattle and in all probability unarmed servants, 
 and Esau had four hundred men. These two bands of which he 
 
50 TRUST. 
 
 great Teacher Himself, in Psa. xxii, 11, 19^ ''Be not far 
 from me_, for trouble is near, and there is none to help. 
 But be not Thou far from me^ O Lord, O my strength,, 
 haste Thee to help me." 
 
 The recognition of this resting upon God^ met with a 
 notable blessing in the case of Asa. (2 Chr. xiv^ 9 — 15.) 
 '' And there came out against them Zerah the Ethiopian 
 with an host of a thousand thousand, and three hundred 
 chariots ; and came unto Mareshah. Then Asa went out 
 against him, and they set the battle in array in the valley 
 of Zephathah at Mareshah. And Asa cried unto the 
 Lord his God, and said, ' Lord, it is nothing with Thee 
 to help, whether with many, or with them that have no 
 power : help us, O Lord our God ; for we rest on Thee^ 
 and in Thy name we go against this multitude. O Lord, 
 
 speaks in verse 10 were blessings given, but they were blessings 
 which he had no power of himself to keep ; and this lesson he 
 had to learn now. God must not only be the one to give blessing, 
 but also the one to preserve it ; the four hundred men would soon 
 have made havoc of the two bands. Under these circumstances 
 Jacob acknowledges his fears ; he says, " Deliver rae, 1 pray Thee, 
 from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau ; for I fear 
 him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the 
 children ;" but he falls back also in trust upon the old promises of 
 God ; he calls Him the God of his father Abraham, and the God 
 of his father Isaac, and reminds Him, moreover, of His relation- 
 ship to himself as a promiser of good ; he calls Him " The Lord 
 which said unto him, 'Return unto thy country, and to thy 
 kindred, and I will deal well with thee.' And Thou saidst, ' I 
 will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the 
 sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.'" Have we th« 
 promises of God as ours ; can we plead them ? if so, we need not 
 fear man, he cannot meddle with them. 
 
TRUST. 51 
 
 Tliou art our God ; let not man prevail against Thee.* 
 So tlie Lord smote the Ethiopians before Asa^ and before 
 Judah ; and the Ethiopians fled. And Asa and the people 
 that were with him pni-sued them nnto Gerar : and the 
 Ethiopians were overthrown, that they conld not recover 
 themselves; for they were destroyed before the Lord^ 
 and before His host ; and they carried away very much 
 spoil. And they smote all the cities round about Gerar; 
 for the fear of the Lord came upon them : and they 
 spoiled all the cities ; for there was exceeding much spoil 
 in them. They smote also the tents of cattle, and carried 
 away sheep and camels in abundance, and returned to 
 Jerusalem.** 
 
 And in that of Hezekiah. (Isa. xxxvii, 14 — 38.) 
 "And Hezekiah received the letter from the hands of 
 the messengers, and read it : and Hezekiah went up unto 
 the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord. 
 And Hezekiah prayed unto the Lord, saying, ' O Lord 
 of hosts, God of Israel that dwelleth between the cheru- 
 bims. Thou art the God, even Thou alone, of all the king- 
 doms of the earth : Thou hast made heaven and earth. 
 Incline thine ear, O Lord, and hear ; open thine eyes, O 
 Lord, and see : and hear all the words of Sennacherib, 
 which hath sent to reproach the living God. Of a truth. 
 Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the nations 
 and their countries, and have cast their gods into the 
 fire : for they were no gods, but the work of men*s hands, 
 wood and stone : therefore they have destroyed them. 
 Now therefore, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, 
 that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that Thou 
 art the Lord, even Thou only.* -J^ * ^ Because 
 thy rage against Me, and thy tumult, is come up 
 
52 TRUST. 
 
 into Mine ears^ therefore will I put My hook* in thy 
 nose, and My bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee 
 back by the way by which thou earnest. -J^- -x- •?€■ 
 Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the king 
 of Assyria, ' He shall not come into this city, nor shoot 
 an arrow there, nor come before it with shields, nor cast 
 a bank against it. By the way that he came, by the 
 same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, 
 saith the Lord. For I will defend this city, to save it 
 for Mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.' 
 Then the angel of the Lord went forth, and smote in the 
 camp of the Assyrians a hundred and fourscore and five 
 thousand : and when they arose early in the morning, 
 behold, they were all dead corpses. So Sennacherib king 
 of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt 
 at Nineveh. And it came to pass as he was worshipping 
 in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and 
 Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword ; and they 
 escaped into the land of Armenia ; and Esar-haddon his 
 son reigned in his stead.'' 
 
 Thus was it blessed in them, assuredly it will be also 
 blessed in us. 
 
 Now we come to the period when natural fear comes 
 
 * " My liook ill thy nose ! " What an expressive phrase is this. 
 A ball with a hook in its nose can be led even by a little child. 
 The ferocity of the animal is untamed, his might and strength 
 remain as they were before, but he is powerless, the least plunge 
 or struggle is restrained by the pain of the hook or ring. Thus 
 the Lord often controls wicked men; He leaves them their 
 ferocity of nature, but so puts them under restraint, and that, by 
 apparently unimportant means, that they cannot hurt his people. 
 We must not so much look for the changing of the bull's nature, 
 as for the putting the hook in his nose. 
 
TRUST. 53 
 
 on us. " What time I am afraid/' (says the Psalmist in 
 Psa. Ivi, 3J "I will trust in Thee/' 
 
 There are some persons in the world who seem destitute 
 of fear; they have a natural courage which defies pain^ 
 and almost death itself. Such persons are, however, 
 comparatively few; and even they have their weak 
 points, through which fear will occasionally make its 
 way. We are most of us, as we know painfully from 
 experience, subject to natural fear from various causes. 
 Some are afraid of pain. When John Howe's son, a 
 physician, was lancing his leg, Howe enquired what he 
 was doing? and observed "I am not afraid of dying, 
 but I am of pain.'' The late Sir Robert Peel was 
 engaged with Stephenson the great engineer and others, 
 in making some observations on blood under the micro- 
 scope. Each furnished some of his blood from a scratch, 
 and at length Stephenson asked for some of Sir Robert's 
 to see what the blood of a politician was like. Sir 
 Robert agreed to furnish it, but shrank several times 
 with such manifest repugnance from the necessary 
 scratch or puncture, that at last the experiment was 
 abandoned, so far as he was concerned. Some are all 
 their life long subject to the fear of death; some are full 
 of nervous dread, lest circumstances should go wrong ; 
 some have certain persons as the chief object of their 
 fear; and they never come into contact with them, 
 without having their fears excited. Inevitable pain 
 makes some shrink ; and the mere prospect of it has a 
 terrifying effect upon others. Now we may not be able 
 to prevent fear from thus affecting us ; this fear may be 
 sinless, although it be an infirmitj'', and that, one of a 
 distressing kind. There is, however, often more or les? 
 
 F 2 
 
54 TRUST. 
 
 sin mixed with human fear, because it often arises, more 
 or less, from want of Trust. 
 
 We have many instances in Holy Scripture, of the 
 Lord^s people being put into great fear. When Abram 
 was going down into Egypt he was afraid, and that, even 
 though he was surrounded with the promises of God ; 
 he says to his wife, '* Behold now, I know that thou art 
 a fair woman to look upon ; therefore it shall come to 
 pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall 
 say, 'This is his wife :' and they will kill me, but they 
 will save thee alive. Say, I pray thee that thou art my 
 sister, that it may be well with me for thy sake, and my 
 soul shall live because of thee." Gen. xii, 11, &c. When 
 Jacob went to meet Esau, he was '^ greatly afraid, and 
 distressed." Gen. xxxii, 7. We have the terrible effects 
 of a night vision upon Eliphaz, described in Job iv: 
 " In thoughts from visions of the night, when deep sleep 
 falleth upon man, fear came upon me, and trembling, 
 which made all my bones to shake ; then a spirit passed 
 before my face, the hair of my flesh stood up." David 
 also, who was pre-eminent for valour, by whose mighty 
 arm the giant had fallen, was thus distressed by his 
 own people, when the Amalekites had invaded Ziklag, 
 and taken away captive the wives, and daughters, and 
 sons of his men; "then David was greatly distressed, 
 for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of 
 all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for 
 his daughters, but David encouraged himself in the Lord 
 his God." 1 Sam. xxx, 6. Elijah as we have already 
 seen, was put in fear by Jezebel, as we read in 1 Kings 
 xix, and that after an extraordinary display of courage, 
 *^ the standing alone against eight hundred and fifty men ! " 
 
TRUST. 55 
 
 Now when natural fear comes upon us^ our best remedy 
 for it will surely be^ simple trust in God. This fear may 
 not be a specific act of unbelief; it may be only the 
 natural consequent of the weakness^ or nervousness, of 
 our nature ; but the remedy for it is simple trust in God. 
 And let us beware of the temptation of Satan, which 
 would say to us, " God has nothing to do with fear of 
 this kind ; He will make no allowances for it ; He will 
 feel no sympathy for the man that is afflicted with it ; 
 He looks down upon it as weakness ; if this fear were a 
 spiritual matter, He would encourage you, and help you 
 out of it, but He cannot be expected to condescend to 
 every petty weakness of your nature." Such thoughts 
 as these are unjust indeed toward God ; we are told that 
 ^' He knoweth whereof we are made;" we know that all 
 things lie open before His eyes, and however unimportant 
 or unfounded our fears may really be, He knows that 
 they are of real importance to us ; and He acts, not only 
 with reference to His own greatness, but also with ref- 
 erence to our weakness. When Peter, Matt, xiv, 30, 
 " saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid, and beginning 
 to sink, he cried, saying. Lord save me ;" and Jesus did 
 not turn a deaf ear to his distress — " Immediately Jesus 
 stretched forth His hand, and caught him, and said unto 
 him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?" 
 Everything connected with a child of God, whether it 
 belong to his body or his soul, to his temporal or eternal 
 concerns, interests the Most High. " Like as a father 
 pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear 
 Him." Psalm ciii, 13. And in this respect, God 
 assuredly deals with His people as a parent does with 
 a child. The child may be alarmed at but a very little 
 
56 TRUST. 
 
 thing; perhaps at nothing more than the sight of a 
 strange face, or the sound of an insect, or the falling 
 darkness of the night; there is nothing in all this to 
 be really frightened at, the father well knows; but he 
 tenderly remembers the weakness and the ignorance of 
 the child ; he sees that his child is suffering real fear, and 
 therefore he acts accordingly; perhaps pointing out to 
 the little one his error, but certainly soothing him in his 
 fright, and whiling away his sorrow. 
 
 When natural fear comes upon us, let us remember 
 this. When we wince in the body, may grace be given 
 to us to commit the body, and its fears, to God ; let us 
 not shrink from doing so, under the impression that it is 
 beneath Him to attend to us ; He will be gracious to us 
 in the matter of our fears, as well as in that of our wants. 
 Nehemiah committed all to God, when men would have 
 put him in fear; as we read in chapter vi, 9 — 14. And long 
 before that, when the pressure of direst necessity was 
 upon the Israelites, Moses said unto them, "Fear ye 
 not, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord.^' 
 Exod. xiv, 13. With us, let the time of natural fear be 
 also the time of trust ; let us say with the Psalmist : 
 " What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee,^^ Psa. Ivi, 3; 
 and it shall come to pass that the " Lord will give 
 thee rest from thy sorrow and thy fear, and from the 
 hard bondage wherewith thou wast made to serve,^^ and 
 thou shalt say with the Psalmist, " I sought the Lord, 
 and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.^' 
 Psa. xxxiv, 4. 
 
 And before we leave this branch of our subject, let us 
 for a moment recall to mind the human nature of our 
 Lord. The Saviour's body was like ours, subject to paia 
 
TRUST. 57 
 
 and suffering of evei*y kind. He had precisely the same 
 natural views of pain that we have ; the same shrinkings 
 from it ; the actual feelings of human nature concerning 
 it ; He did not consider pain an evil^ to be philosophically 
 descanted upon, or stoically endured ; He knew it to be 
 a portion of the curse ; and forasmuch as all the effects 
 of the curse must fall upon Him, pain, without any 
 extraordinary mitigation, was His lot. The prospect of 
 suffering was as terrible to the Saviour in His flesh, as it 
 is to us in ours ; for His flesh was the same as ours. 
 Every nerve in His holy body had quick susceptibility; 
 every human instinct shrank back from the pressure of 
 physical suffering. He was very man ; and though now 
 in a glorified body. He is very man still, at God^s right 
 hand. 
 
 Let us not forget that Christ still possesses human 
 sympathies. He remembers well His own human feel- 
 ings with respect to pain ; how His human nature shrank 
 back from the mental anguish of Gethsemane, and the 
 bodily torture of the cross ; all these things are before 
 Him; and He knows that His people are even as He 
 was ; that they feel as He did ; therefore He can sympa- 
 thize with them, and send them help according to their 
 need. If an angel were sent from heaven to strengthen 
 Him, His people shall not be left destitute of such help 
 as they require ; He will deal with them, in their suffer- 
 ings, in the remembrance of His own. When what we 
 terribly feared is actually upon us ; when we say with the 
 Psalmist, in Psalm Ixix, " The waters are come in unto my 
 soul, I sink in deep mire where there is no standing, I am 
 come into deep waters where the floods overflow me," we 
 shall not be left alone, if only we have grace to trust. 
 
58 TRUST. 
 
 The Psalmist declares, that he will thus call upon God, 
 when the calamity is actually upon him. " In the day 
 of my trouble I will call upon Thee, for Thou wilt answer 
 me" Psalm Ixxxvi, 7. An affecting picture of this 
 day of trouble we have given to us in Psalm cxvi, 3, &c. 
 '^ The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of 
 hell gat hold upon me, I found trouble and sorrow ; then 
 called I upon the name of the Lord, O Lord, I beseech 
 Thee deliver my soul." Then what came to pass ? 
 ^'^ Gracious (says the Psalmist) is the Lord, and righteous, 
 yea, our God is merciful. The Lord preserveth the 
 simple. I was brought low, and He helped me. Return 
 unto thy rest, O my soul, for the Lord hath dealt 
 bountifully with thee; for Thou hast delivered my 
 soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from 
 falling." 
 
 If we were able thus to trust in God, and to stay our- 
 selves upon Him, when the sufferings of pain were 
 actually upon us, we should be able to bear them far 
 better than we have perhaps ever hitherto done. 
 
 Thus the martyrs seem to have done, and very wonder- 
 ful are the histories of their deaths. When we consider 
 their greater pains, and their patience in the midst of 
 them, rnay we, in our lesser pains, bear all as trusting in 
 a God whose immediate presence we are able to realize 
 and feel. "VVe are told that a young man named Jones, 
 the son of a Welsh Knight, came to Bishop Farrar a few 
 days before he suffered, and lamented the painfulness of 
 the death prepared for him. The Bishop, in faith, 
 relying upon the extraordinary support vouchsafed to 
 those who were thus publicly called to seal their testi- 
 mony with their blood, told the youth to mark him while 
 
, TRUST. 59 
 
 suffering that painful death, and if he saw him once stir, 
 then to give no credit to the doctrines he had preached. 
 Foxe adds_, " And as he said, so he right well performed 
 the same ; for so patiently he stood, that he never moved, 
 hut even as he stood holding up his stumps, so still he 
 continued, tiU one Richard Gravell, with a staff, dashed 
 him upon the head, and struck him down.^^ When the 
 fire was kindled about Dr. Taylor, he held up his hands, 
 and said " Merciful Father of heaven, for Jesus Christ, 
 my Saviour's sake, receive my soul into Thy hands." 
 He stood still in the midst of the flames, without crying 
 or moving, his hands folded together, till Soyce struck 
 him down with a halbert. The particulars of Hooper's 
 death, as given by Foxe, are too shocking to be given 
 here at length ; but he endured them all in the strength 
 of God. When three irons were brought for the purpose 
 of fastening him to the stake, he said, " Trouble not 
 yourselves ; I doubt not God will give strength sufficient 
 to abide the fire, without these bands ; notwithstanding, 
 suspecting the Aveakness of the flesh, although I have 
 assured confidence in God's strength, do as ye think 
 good.'^ In the fire. Hooper stood praying, ^' O Jesus, 
 Son of David, have mercy upon me, and receive my 
 soul." And when the fire was spent, he wiped his eyes 
 with his hands, and mildly but earnestly entreated that 
 more fire might be brought. "After suffering inex- 
 pressible torments for three quarters of an hour, the 
 martyr, bowing forwards, yielded up the spirit, dying as 
 quietly as a child in his bed." He was indeed strength- 
 ened, in answer to his prayer, the concluding words of 
 which were these, " And well seest Thou, my Lord and 
 Godj what terrible pains and cruel torments be prepared 
 
60 TRUST. 
 
 for Thy creature, such, Lord, as, without Thy strength, 
 none is able to bear, or patiently to endure. But all 
 things that are impossible with man are possible with 
 Thee. Therefore strengthen me of Thy goodness, that 
 when in the fire I break not the rules of patience ; or 
 else assuage the terror of the pains, as shall seem most 
 to Thy glory.^' When the fire was kindled upon the 
 martyr Waid, he was heard to exclaim, " Lord Jesus, 
 receive my soul." And he continued to do so without 
 impatience, standing still, and holding up his hands, 
 clasped together, above his head, as if engaged in prayer, 
 remaining in this attitude " even when he was dead, and 
 altogether roasted, as though they had been stayed up 
 with a prop under them." The account of Latimer at 
 the stake shews us how the bowed down frame can be 
 strengthened for its terrible conflict. We are told that 
 " his mortal frame becoming invigorated at the prospect 
 of the near approach of his journey^s end, he no longer 
 appeared a withered, crooked old man, his body crazed 
 and bending under the weight of years, but he stood 
 upright, as comely a Father as one would desire to 
 behold." The case of Thomas Hawkes, who suffered 
 martyrdom at Coggeshall, on June 13th, a.d. 1555, 
 shews us how God can enable His people to bear pain, 
 especially for Him. Shortly before his death, some of 
 his friends, expecting that they should be called to bear 
 a similar testimony to the truth, requested that if the 
 pain of burning were tolerable, so that it could be 
 endured with patience, he would give them a sign by 
 lifting up his hands towards heaven. The trying hour 
 arrived, the martyr was fastened to the stake, and the 
 fire was kindled. His friends anxiously watched for the 
 
TRUST. 61 
 
 appointed sign. A long time passed^ liis skin was 
 shrivelled up by the flames_, and his speech taken away_, 
 so that all thought he was gone, when suddenly, and 
 contrary to all expectation, he raised up his hands, 
 ^^ burning with a light fire, and with great rejoicing, as 
 it seemed,'^ struck them together three times. At this 
 sign of his stedfastness in the faith, the people shouted 
 with joy, especially his friends. The martyr then sunk 
 down and expired. 
 
 And yet how hard the struggle may be in itself we see 
 from the cases of some other martyrs. As Rawlins 
 White was led to the stake, he saw his wife and children 
 stand weeping. The sight of those who were near and 
 dear to him moved him. ^^ Ah, flesh ! '^ exclaimed he, 
 smiting his breast, " wouldst thou hinder me, wouldst 
 thou fain prevail? By God^s grace, thou shalt not have 
 the victory." While the smith was fastening him to the 
 stake, he said, " I pray you, good friend, knock in the 
 chain fast, for it may be the flesh will strive mightily ; 
 but, O God, of Thy great mercy, give me strength and 
 patience." He also spoke to a person named Dane, who 
 related these particulars, saying that he felt a great 
 struggle between the flesh and the spirit, and entreated, 
 if he began to waver, he would hold up his finger, " and 
 then," said he "I trust I shall remember myself." The 
 conflict between the spirit and the flesh are graphically 
 pourtrayed in the case of George Tankerfield, who was 
 burned at St. Alban's, on August 25th, a. d. 1555. 
 ^^ Being taken to an inn, many persons came to see him, 
 some to dispute with and revile him, while others praised 
 God for his constancy. Sitting down before a fire, he 
 pulled off" his shoes and hose, and stretched his leg out to 
 
62 TRUST. 
 
 the flame^ but quicldy withdrew it on feeling tlie pain. 
 He tlien shewed to those who stood by, how the flesh 
 persuaded him one way, and the spirit another. " The 
 flesh saith, *^0 fool, wilt thon burn and needest not?^ 
 The spirit saith, ^Be not afraid, for this is nothing, 
 compared with eternal fire.^ The flesh saith, '^Do not 
 leave the company of thy friends and acquaintance, 
 which love thee, and will let thee want nothing/ The 
 spuit saith, 'The company of Jesus Christ, and His 
 glorious presence, doth exceed all earthly friends.^ The 
 flesh saith 'Do not shorten thy time, for if thou wilt, 
 thou mayest live much longer.^ The spirit saith, 'This 
 life is nothing compared with the life in heaven, which 
 lasteth for ever,^ " &c. 
 
 What a strength, what a support would it be, if, while 
 enduring pain, we could fix our mind wholly upon God, 
 in Christ ; if we spake to Him ; if we said some such 
 short sentences as these : — " O Lord, help me to bear 
 this, as one of Thy children should." "O Lord, I 
 would glorify Thee in this pain." " O Lord, undergird 
 me, that I may be able to endure." " O my Father, not 
 my will, but Thine be done." " O Jesus, I would bear 
 it as unto Thee, who didst bear such pain for me." 
 And while thus talking to God, much, perhaps, of the 
 bitterness of the pain will be past ; its worst spasms will, 
 perhaps, be tided over ; and we shall have the inestimable 
 pleasure of feeling, that we have glorified God in the 
 time of our hardest trial ; that, like the three children, 
 we have glorified Him in the fires, and walked in the 
 glowing furnace, even with the Son of man Himself. 
 
 Even so, O Lord, enable us to do this ! Whenever 
 our trial time comes on — when we have to endure — when 
 
TRUST. 63 
 
 the hour of suffering is come — be thou specially at hand, 
 and give Thy special help ! 
 
 We now conclude this portion of our subject. May 
 we have grace to turn it to practical account. The daily 
 circumstances of life will afford us opportunities enough 
 of glorifying God in Trust, without our waiting for any 
 extraordinary calls upon our faith. Let us remember 
 that the extraordinary circumstances of life are but few ; 
 that mucb of life may slip past without their occurrence ; 
 and that if we be not faithful and trusting in that which 
 is little, we are not likely to be so in that which is great. 
 The same spirit which animates the martyr at the stake, 
 enabling him to glorify G od amid the fires, may be evinced 
 in the way in which a little pain is endured, or reproach is 
 borne ; the same calm Trust which enables the believer to 
 rest peacefully on God, in the little affairs of daily life, 
 is nothing but the exercise, within a narrow circle, of a 
 grace, which, if called upon to move in a wider sphere, 
 would keep the heart in peace, amid the overturning of 
 dynasties, and the wreck of thrones. Let our trust be 
 reared in the humble nursery of our own daily experience, 
 with its ever recurring little wants, and trials, and 
 sorrows ; and then, when need be, it will come forth, to 
 do such great things as are required of it ; even as Moses 
 came forth from the wilderness to deliver a whole nation 
 from bondage ; and David came from his solitary sheep- 
 watching to slay the giant, who had defied the armies of 
 the living God. 
 
64 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 The "I Will" of Ministet and Testimony. 
 
 Psalm ix, 1. " I ivill shew forth Thy marvellous tvorks" 
 Psalm xxii, 22. " I ivill declare Thy name unto my brethren" 
 Psalm li, 13. " Then tvill I teach transgressors Thy ivays, and 
 
 sinners shall he converted unto Thee." 
 
 Psalm Ixxxix, 1. " With my mouth will I mahe known Thy 
 
 faithfulness to all generations." 
 
 Psalm cxlv, 5. ^^ I will s^eah of the glorious honour of Thy 
 
 majesty." 
 
 WE have, in these verses, the determinations of the 
 man of God, with reference to Ministry and 
 Testimony. This subject of Ministry and Testimony 
 is one well worth onr consideration in the present day ; 
 for to the great loss of the church at large, and also of 
 individual believers, it is but little recognised. 
 
 The particulars to which the reader^ s attention is 
 solicited are these : — the fact that ^the Lord^s people are 
 called to Ministry and Testimony/ also, that *^ this is not 
 generally recognised in the present day ; ' further, ' the 
 present aspect of the church of God in this particular ; ' 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 65 
 
 and ''the loss whicli is tlms entailed upon the world, 
 upon the church, and upon individual believers/ 
 
 There are some who may, perhaps, meet us at the very- 
 outset with a denial of their being called to exercise any 
 ministry, to give any testimony in the world for God. 
 They have learned the fundamental principles of the 
 Christian faith ; they have had some knowledge of the 
 sinfulness of their own hearts; they believe that the 
 blood of Jesus Christ alone can cleanse them from their 
 sin ; and being sound in faith, they do not see that they 
 are called upon to be active in life. It may be that such 
 persons are of a contemplative turn of mind; or still 
 more probably, naturally of an inactive disposition ; but 
 from whatever cause, so it is, that the world is little the 
 better for their Christianity ; and assuredly we might say 
 to them, " We have not so learned Christ.'' 
 
 Selfishness and sloth are, to the eyes of the great and 
 heart-searching God, too plainly marked blemishes of His 
 church, and people upon earth. It is true, there never 
 was more noise made in the world about religion, than 
 there is now ; never was there a time, when men could 
 talk louder about their respective views ; or pronounce 
 more distinctly the shibboleths of their respective parties ; 
 and never was there a time, when there seemed more 
 outward activity in schools, reformatories, charitable 
 societies, and such like agencies for good ; but the great 
 energies of the church of God have not been put forth ; 
 the inward might of an active faith has not been fully 
 roused ; what has been done, has been for the most part 
 done by a few ; and while we acknowledge thankfully, 
 that there has been a blessing fally proportioned to the 
 efforts made, we cannot but perceive that the reason why 
 
 G 2 
 
66 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 there has not been more blessings is because the efforts 
 have been so small. 
 
 What department is there of Christian iabonr, that is 
 being worked with the full energies of the church of 
 God? What parish, or district_, what institution^, or 
 society, what family circle, is receiving the impulses of 
 Christian ministry in its highest efforts, its very fullest 
 powers ? We look around in vain ; and were it not, that 
 in the munificence of God, single grains are made to 
 bring forth many more than themselves, the reaping would 
 be even as the sowing, scant and miserable indeed. 
 
 Our readers will here remember that we are speaking 
 of the people of God; this fault lies in unnumbered 
 instances at their door ; and they cannot allow themselves 
 in this fault without suffering loss. The loss which they 
 shall suffer does not touch their eternal life, for '^'^he that 
 believeth on the Son hath everlasting life ; " but it does 
 touch and affect the measure of their future reward. 
 That glory should be given at all, is of free grace, but 
 the measure of that glory shall be ^^according to works." 
 We cannot fail in ministry, and testimony, without 
 suffering loss. '^ Therefore my beloved brethren," says 
 St. Paul in 1 Cor. xv, 58, " be ye stedfast, unmoveable, 
 always abounding in the work of the Lord; forasmuch 
 as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord." 
 " Ye," says St. Peter, 1 Pet. ii, 9, " are a chosen gener- 
 ation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar 
 people, that ye should shew forth the praises of Him, 
 who hath called you out of darkness into His marvellous 
 light." Here the apostles are speaking to true believers 
 — to you, dear reader, if you have embraced Christ; 
 your life is claimed on the ground of having been called 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 67 
 
 ^'^ out of darkness into light ;^^ and that life's labour is 
 made sweet by the blessed truths that it " is not in vain 
 in the Lord." 
 
 But now, let us proceed to take in order three, out of 
 the many losers, by the sloth of God's people, in this 
 matter of Ministry and Testimony. They are 
 I. The Christian himself. 
 II. The Church of God. 
 
 III. The world at large. 
 
 It may be, that a contemplation of all this loss will 
 stir you, dear reader, on to work ! 
 
 The child of God is a loser here, and certainly here- 
 after also. Is it not a sweet and blessed feeling, when 
 we are able to render daily service to the one we love? 
 We feel pleasure in being able to tell of our love ; in 
 being able to act it ; in shewing it in the unnumbered 
 little opportunities, which continually present themselves 
 in daily life. If love can proclaim its depth in some 
 great deed, it can whisper of it, in all the lesser deeds, 
 which make up the sum of daily life. A little deed, like 
 a gentle whisper, may tell much. We can imagine no 
 greater blow to genuine love, than such a saying as this, 
 ^^You may feel love, you may rejoice in it, you may 
 nurse it in your bosom, but you must never shew it:^ 
 How could our human love bear such a restraint as this ? 
 How could we bear to feel it ever coming to our lips, and 
 yet those lips never to be permitted to utter a word about 
 it ? How could we bear to feel it ever welling upward 
 from the heart to the eye, while that eye was not permit- 
 ted to beam with one loving look, but was compelled to 
 imprison, as with an impassable barrier of clear thick ice, 
 the warm springs beneath ? To be placed hi such circum- 
 
68 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 stances^ amongst those we love here below, would be bell 
 on earth, and the punishment, proving too severe for 
 mortal frames, would wear us out. And if we be lovers 
 of Christ, if we feel that we owe all to Him, if He have 
 our hearts, how does it come to pass, that we do not come 
 forth in ministry for Him ? and not only for Him, but 
 to Him, for all that is for Him is to Him also ? The 
 woman that brake the alabaster box of ointment loved 
 much, and she anointed the way-worn feet of Jesus, with 
 all that she had most precious ; and in most touching 
 personal service, she wiped them with the hairs of her 
 head. Her love would have her best bestowed upon her 
 Lord ; she ministered to Him of her substance, and of 
 her energies ; alas ! how many of ns are deficient in our 
 ministry, with both of these. In Mary's case there was 
 indeed a personal ministry, a ministry of self. We are 
 told that ^^ she wiped His feet with her hair." A woman's 
 hair is her glory, the greatest adornment of beauty which 
 she has received from God, that about which she gene- 
 rally takes the most care in the attiring of her person ; 
 and here we have this loving woman giving that which is 
 her greatest adornment to perform a menial office for 
 Christ. " She wiped His feet with her hair.'' The feet 
 which had been soiled by travel — the feet which bare the 
 marks of His journejdngs to and fro, of houseless 
 wanderings for man's salvation; these, though they 
 were the least honourable portion of His person, were 
 the objects of her care; she pom-ed the ointment on 
 His head and feet, but she wiped also His feet with her 
 hair. And herein she was not left without honour, for 
 was ever any head so distinguished as that which bare 
 away a part of what had anointed Christ? I would 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 69 
 
 rather have had that ointment than the pearly wreath or 
 jewelled crown; that ointment than the warrior^ s helmet 
 or the victor's lanrel; the glory of the diadem is for 
 time^ bat the glory of an honour like this is for eternity ; 
 the crested helm of the warrior is struck down in battle, 
 but the strongest amongst the evil ones could not tear 
 from this disciple the glory of this deed ; the chaplet of 
 the victor fades, and his very name becomes erased from 
 the annals of human fame, but the halo of this woman's 
 love shall never perish, and perhaps in her resurrection 
 body it shall be seen, for peculiar love has its own 
 peculiar rewards, and it may be that men shall be re- 
 warded, not only according to the value j but also according 
 to the manner of their deeds. 
 
 But what does this truth teach us ? what, save that 
 the very best we have should be ungrudgingly applied by 
 love to do even the most menial deed for Christ. And 
 oh ! that we may have greater grace from heaven, never 
 to think anything of Christ's too lowly for our care, 
 anything of ours too good for His lowly work. Nothing 
 is lowly that belongs to Him except His character; 
 everything becomes dignified from the fact of its being 
 connected with Him, the least service that is for Him is 
 greater than the greatest that is for the earth, for He is 
 not only the Son of God, but He is our Lord, our 
 husband, and our king. If it be in itself a wearisome 
 task to teach a dull and wayward child, let us bear in 
 mind that we are teaching it for Him, and then we are 
 invested with more honour than if we were training the 
 noblest genius to become a foremost man in the ranks 
 of intellectual but unsanctified knowledge, — knowledge 
 which is of the world and for it, and never goes beyond. 
 
/U MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 If it be in itself great weariness in the flesli to climb the 
 dmost unending stairs^ and keep vigils in the sick 
 chamber during long and silent hours^ to listen at times 
 to almost unending complaints^ to plod along an un- 
 varying round of duty for which there is little earthly 
 thank; now set Christy dear reader, between you and 
 all your earthly toils,, let them be for Him, then these 
 toils become a burden that is light, and these trials a 
 glory which it is our privilege to be allowed to bear. 
 Think it no small thing to do what might be called little 
 deeds for Christ; it was Jesu's feet that Mary wiped 
 with her hair. 
 
 Let us not forget that Mary bare away with her in 
 her hair a portion of the perfumed ointment which had 
 been poured upon the head of Christ ; she did not seek 
 it, she did not immediately intend it; but it clave to 
 her, and what had been bestowed upon her Lord thus in 
 part returns to her again. Thus has it ever been ; there 
 is always, as is stated below, a reflex benefit of action for 
 God ; we cannot minister to Christ without being bene- 
 fited ourselves, the honour which we bestow on Him, 
 will cleave of necessity to us. In the very substance 
 with which Mary perfumed the feet of Jesus, was she 
 perfumed in her own hair; she could thus only wipe His 
 feet, but while she was doing so. He all silently and 
 imperceptibly could anoint her head. And has Jesus 
 been ever blest without blessing in turn again? No 
 doubt the world has not seen Him acting, even as no 
 one at this feast saw Him do this, the blessing was 
 between Himself and Mary, our blessing shaU be between 
 Jesus and ourselves; it is a law of Christ's kingdom 
 that whosoever spends on Je?us, on him will Jesus spend 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 71 
 
 agaiiij restoring him all that he has given^ hallowed by 
 the holy contact into which it has come. Beloved^ let 
 us try our love_, let us probe deep into it^ let us examine 
 itj let us judge it by its fruits; and if we be in no 
 ministry_, if we be giving no testimony, let us ask 
 ourselves ^^how comes this to pass?^' 
 
 There is another aspect in which this matter is to be 
 viewed. "VYhen there is a lack of real ministry and 
 testimony, we ourselves must suffer loss. That which we 
 lose is_, '' the reflex benefit of action for God.'' It is 
 impossible for any man to exercise himself in action for 
 God, without receiving a reflex benefit upon his own soul. 
 The rule of the spiritual kingdom is, that he who waters 
 others shall be watered also himself. God will be no 
 man^s debtor, and as the heavens send down again in 
 showers, the moisture which is attracted into them from 
 the earth, by the heat of the sun, so God sends down as 
 blessings upon His people, the results of those very 
 energies, which He had drawn forth from them, and 
 attracted upwards to Himself. Never did man do aught 
 for God, but that He in His own way paid him back 
 again. We cannot go forth in any real ministry and 
 testimony for Him, without receiving a blessing ourselves. 
 
 Here, however, our reader might say, "This is not 
 altogether borne out by my experience; I have been 
 engaged in such and such acts of ministry, I have given 
 such and such testimony ; but I do not see how I myself 
 have been the better for it, or what particular blessing I 
 have had in so doing .^^ ^ 
 
 * A touching instance of the reflex benefit of an act of ministry 
 is given by D'Aubigne in his history of the Reformation. " When 
 Lather had returned to his hotel (after having appeared before 
 
7)1 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 Let lis first enquire : what was our motive in ministry 
 and testimony ? had you any motive at all ? Motives are 
 all important in tlie spiritual life_, and especially in work 
 for God. We can imagine a person in tolerably active 
 ministry,, and giving pretty decided testimony, without 
 any motive at all. Suppose a person to be thrown into 
 what is commonly called ^^ religious society ;^^ he may 
 fall into a certain habit of acting from routine, and into 
 a certain formula of speaking, without really living and 
 speaking to God at all. Just as the cameleon takes the 
 
 the Ernperor in the Diet of Worms) seeking to recruit his body, 
 fatigued by so severe a trial, Spalatin and other friends surrounded 
 him, and all together gave thanks to God. As they were con- 
 versing, a servant entered, bearing a silver flagon filled with 
 Eimbeck beer, * My master,' said he, as he offered it to Luther, 
 * invites you to refresh yourself with this draught.' * Who is the 
 prince,' said the Wittemburgh doctor, ' who so graciously remem- 
 bers me ? ' It was the aged Duke Eric of Brunswick.. The reformer 
 was affected by this present from so powerful a lord, belonging to 
 the Pope's party. * His Highness,' continued the servant,, 'has 
 condescended to taste it before sending it to you.' Upon this 
 Luther, who was thirsty, poured out some of the Duke's beer,, 
 and after drinking it, he said : ' as this day Duke Eric has remem- 
 bered me, so may our Lord Jesus Christ remember him in the hour 
 of his last struggle.' It was a present of trifling value;; but; 
 Luther desirous of shewing his gratitude to a prince who remem- 
 bered him at such a moment, gave him such as he had — a prayer. 
 The servant returned with this message to his master. At the 
 moment of his death, the aged Duke called these words to mind, 
 and addressing a young page, Francis of Kramm, who was stand- 
 ing at his bedside, * take the Bible,' said he, * and read it to me.' 
 The child read these words of Christ, and the soul of the dying 
 man was comforted. * Whosoever shall give you a cup of water to 
 drink in my name^ because ye belong to, Qhrist, verily T say unto 
 you, he shall not lose his rewardy^ 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 73 
 
 colour of surrounding objects,, or as man drops naturally 
 more or less into the habits of the climate in which he 
 lives, so we are often influenced by the religious society 
 in which we are cast. Under these circumstances, very 
 little passes between God and the soul; we become 
 pieces of spiritual machinery, we miss the connecting 
 link through which blessing should have come. The 
 minister of the gospel, the visitor of the sick, the teacher 
 in the Sunday school, may one and all be at work, but 
 not at work to God. That which we must be careful 
 about, above all other things in ministry, is to do it to 
 God : to let our ministry first be laid before Him ; and 
 then, having been consecrated, and having been made 
 powerful by Him, to let it work amongst our fellow men. 
 Our bow of service should arch from earth to heaven, 
 and then back to earth again. Let our ministry pass 
 through the hands of Christ, as did the bread wherewith 
 He fed the five thousand ; and then, poor though the 
 provision may be, which we have in ourselves, it will not 
 only do wonders, but come unexhausted out of an effort, 
 in which, humanly speaking, it might have been spent. 
 In all our work for God, let us have Him distinctly 
 before us ; let us say, " It is for Thee, O Father, it is for 
 Thee, and for Jesus, and the Spirit :'' and this distinctness 
 of purpose will not be without its reward ; for a new 
 strength will thus enter into our efforts ; God will be in 
 them; we shall feel His pervading presence in them; 
 and we shall be spared that faint-heartedness, which 
 otherwise might have come upon us, and neutralized the 
 effort we were about to make. 
 
 The realization of the presence of God is beautifully 
 brought before us in the prayer of Teava one of the 
 
 H 
 
74 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 Rarotongan converts in the South Sea. No sooner had 
 the Rarotongans felt the power of the gospel of Christ 
 themselves, than they earnestly desired to take the boon 
 to the islands of the Samoan group. In making known 
 his desire to go as a Christian evangelist to the savage 
 tribes of Samoa, Teava wrote: — '^Mj desire to fulfil 
 Christ's command is very great : He said to his disciples, 
 ' Go ye into all the world.' My heart is compassionating 
 the heathen, who know not the salvation which God has 
 provided for the world. Let me go to those savages. 
 Why is the delay ? May God direct us, but my desire 
 for this work is very great.'' This good man's desire 
 was fulfilled ; he was taken to Samoa, he landed in the 
 midst of its savage population ; he gained a position at 
 Monono, an influential station, and, besides being one of 
 the most intelligent and consistent pioneers to the 
 European missionaries there, he has been for many years 
 one of their best native assistants in translating, in 
 schools, and in the general work of the station. 
 
 A part of a prayer of this excellent teacher has been 
 recorded by Mr. Williams, which he offered to God, on 
 board ship, on his passage to Samoa, which shews the 
 
 realization of God in effort in ministry. " if we fly 
 
 to heaven," said the good man, addressing God, " there 
 we shall find Thee; if we dwell upon the land. Thou art 
 there also ; if we sail on the sea. Thou art there ; and 
 this affords us comfort, so that we sail upon the ocean 
 without fear, because Thou, O God, art in our ship." 
 
 " The King of our bodies has his subjects, to whom 
 he issues his orders, but if he himself goes with them, 
 his presence stimulates their zeal; they work with 
 energy^ they do it soon^ they do it well. O Lord^ Thou 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 75 
 
 art the King of our spirits ; Thou hast issued orders to 
 Thy subjects to do a great work; Thou hast commanded 
 them to go into all the world_, and preach the gospel to 
 every creature. We^ O Lord,, are going upon that errand, 
 and let Thy presence go with us to quicken us, and 
 enable us to persevere in the great work until we die. 
 
 *' Thou hast said that Thy presence shall go with Thy 
 people even to the end of the world. Fulfil, O Lord, to 
 us this cheering promise. I see, O Lord, a compass 
 in this vessel by which the seamen steer the right course, 
 that we may escape obstruction and danger. Be to us, 
 O Lord, the compass of salvation.^^ ^ 
 
 Let us remember also, to look beyond this world. 
 Here our ministry and testimony may seem to be able to 
 do but little, perhaps not to accomplish anything at all ; 
 and because we can trace no results, we may see no use 
 in our going on ; but hereafter there are to be diversities 
 of reward; and if we stand not in testimony, we shall 
 lose glory and position; the positive, the enduring 
 property of the other life. 
 
 Here let us say a word or two upon the positions, in 
 which ministry is to be carried on. God has placed 
 every one of us in a position; He has ordered, and 
 measured, the diameter of our circle ; He has given us 
 our sphere; He has a record of all the opportunities 
 which that sphere affords; and we shall be reckoned 
 with, not concerning matters beyond our sphere, but 
 concerning all matters within our sphere. 
 
 Let us take as an illustration, the case of the mother 
 of a family. The cares of a family are numerous and 
 heavy; and there are many instances, in which it is 
 * Gems from the Coral Islands 
 
76 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 impossible for a mother, and head of a house, to be 
 engaged in much external ministry for God. But if she 
 be willing to serve Him, she need not be disheartened. 
 Is not home a little world in itself, and is not she, 
 either for good or evil, the grand influence of home, 
 much, most of it taking its tone from her? Would 
 that Christian mothers recognised more, the great 
 opportunities and responsibilities of home ministry ; that 
 they saw how the very fact of their influence being con- 
 centrated, gave it force ! The charge of gunpowder, 
 which occupies but a little space, sends the shot to a long 
 distance ; what mother can tell, how far her concentrated 
 influence will send her children, in the career of holiness, 
 and usefulness amongst their fellows. There is ministry 
 in a mother's look. It has re-appeared in after life, amid 
 the gleaming eyes which burned with unhallowed fires ; 
 and succoured the tempted one by the memory of its 
 solemn, soft, and holy gaze. There is ministry in a 
 mother's voice. It has re-echoed, after many years in 
 the chambers of the memory, and warned in deep 
 mysterious tones, as though it now came from another 
 world, and cheered, and soothed, with even more than 
 the power it possessed in earlier days, as though it were 
 privileged to speak with the soft melody of heaven. 
 Yes! there is ministry even in a mother's touch; and 
 long after the hand from which it came, is cold in the 
 motionless solitude of the tomb, its impress remains in 
 living power. A mysterious hand from the invisible 
 world traced the sentence of Belteshazzar's ruin; this 
 hand, mysterious and invisible also, leaves imprinted on 
 the heart, words at once of warning and of lovC' — words 
 of most powerful warning, because words of love. 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. '^^ 
 
 " When I was a little boy/' said a good man^ ''*' my 
 mother used to bid me kneel beside her, and place her 
 hand upon my head, while she prayed. Ere I was old 
 enough to know her worth, she died, and I was left too 
 much to my own guidance. Like others I was inclined 
 to evil passions, but often felt myself checked, and, as 
 it were, drawn back by a soft hand upon my head. 
 When a young man, I travelled in foreign lands, and 
 was exposed to many temptations. But when I would 
 have yielded, that same hand was upon my head, and I 
 was saved. I seemed to feel its pressure, as in the days 
 of my happy infancy ; and sometimes there came with it 
 a solemn voice, saying, ^ Do not this great wickedness, 
 my son, nor sin against God.' " 
 
 Yes ! Christian mothers, God requires testimony and 
 ministry from you, in your own circles. If you be 
 limited to them, by Him, He will accept your home 
 ministry, and He will not leave you without a reward. 
 You shall act upon the world, from the recesses of your 
 own sanctified home ; the ministry which you carried on 
 for God upon the child at your knee, shall have a place, 
 not in the annals of the world alone ; your sons will 
 perhaps be the fathers of God-fearing, and God-praising 
 families ; they will perhaps minister in the public service 
 of the sanctuary; they will salt the society in which 
 they move. It may be, that your daughters, as mothers, 
 wiU reproduce your influence, the circle widening with 
 every generation ; and thus (provided God has limited 
 your circle) shall you, if you minister in it for Him, 
 throw forth circles ever widening more and more, so that 
 you, being dead, shall speak, and live, and move in 
 influence, long after you have departed in the flesh. 
 
 h2 
 
78 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 Are there not cares_, and privations, and many troubles 
 to be borne^ from time to time^ in the ministry of home ? 
 Are there not self-denials to be endured_, and exertions 
 to be made ? There are — for all such^ as would carry on 
 an active ministry for God ; as desire to do something 
 more than merely drag through,, or discharge duties, 
 which they cannot well jivoid. 
 
 Thus the individual suffers, when ministry and testi- 
 mony are neglected. There is another sufferer, also, i.e. 
 the Church of Christ. That church must suffer injury, 
 when the Lord^s people are not occupying their place ; 
 for as in the human body, if one member suffer, all the 
 others suffer with it, so in the church, if one congrega- 
 tion, or one individual be holding back, the church, as a 
 body, suffers loss. 
 
 What is this loss ? In the first place, the church of 
 God has its power of impression diminished. The church 
 is made up of individuals, and when those individuals are 
 feeble, and of little weight, the church in their locality 
 makes a corresponding feeble impression. A branch of 
 the church need not be large, to do great things ; where 
 two or three are gathered together in the name of Christ, 
 there is He in the midst of them. The church of early 
 days was small at first ; and even now, some very small 
 branches of the church are making great impressions, 
 and doing great things ; their members are in ministry ; 
 and here, under the influence of the Spuit, lies the secret 
 of their success. 
 
 But let us look for a moment, not at churches great 
 or small, but at individuals. How much might be 
 accomplished, by the efforts of even isolated individuals. 
 The man who determines to seize opportunities as they 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 79 
 
 are presented to liim^ and to work witli humble means, 
 when great ones are not entrusted to him, may do 
 wonders in the spiritual world. To write a few texts on 
 a half sheet of note paper, seems but a poor way of doing 
 good, yet see the results of this act of ministry for God. 
 The following account was sent recently to the Secretary 
 of the Religious Tract Society by a gentleman, who con- 
 firms its accuracy. It is a true story of Lucknow. 
 
 "^In the station of , in the Upper Provinces of 
 
 India, I was one morning visiting the hospital as usual. 
 As I entered the General Hospital, I was told by one of 
 
 the men that a young man of the Regiment was 
 
 anxious to speak to me. In the inner ward I found, 
 lying on his chaepoy, in a corner, a new face, and walking 
 up to him, said, ^ I am told you wish to see me ; I do 
 not recollect the pleasure of having seen you before.' 
 ' No,' he said, ^ I have never seen you, yet you seem no 
 stranger, for I have often heard speak of you.' I asked 
 him if he was ill or wounded. ' I am ill,' he replied. 
 He went on to say that he had just come down from 
 Cawnpore. ^ Perhaps you would like me to tell you my 
 history. It may be you remember, a long time since, 
 some of our men going into the hospital opposite, as you 
 sat reading to one of the Highlanders. There were some 
 half-dozen or more of them ; they went to see a sick 
 comrade. You went up presently to them, and told them 
 how grateful you and all your country-people were to 
 your noble soldiers for so readily coming to protect you 
 all, and how deeply you sympathized with them in the 
 noble cause in which they were now going to take a 
 share. Then you talked to them of the danger which 
 would attend them. You reminded them that life is a 
 
80 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 battle-field to aU, and asked them if they were soldiers 
 of Christ, and if they had thought of the probability of 
 their falling in battle. I have heard all about that long 
 talk you had with the men. Then you gave your Bible 
 to one, and asked him to read a passage. He chose the 
 twenty -third Psalm, and you prayed. They asked you 
 for a book or tract to remind them of what had been 
 said, and you gave all you had in your bag. But for one 
 man there was none. They were to start that afternoon, 
 so that you had not time to get one. But you went to 
 the apothecary, and got pen and paper from him. When 
 you came back, you gave this paper to him, telling him 
 you should look for him in heaven.' As he said this, the 
 poor fellow pulled out from the breast of his shirt half a 
 sheet of note paper, on which I recognised my writing, 
 though nearly illegible from wear. On it were written 
 the 1st, 7th, 10th, 14th, 15th, and 17th verses of the 
 5th Chapter of the 2nd Corinthians, and that hymn, 
 
 * How sweet tke name of Jesus sounds.' 
 
 *^That man,' he continued, *^and I were in the same 
 company, but he was a day ahead of me. We met in 
 Cawnpore, then marched on with the rest to Lucknow. 
 
 Whenever we halted, the first thing did was to take 
 
 out his paper, and read it aloud to those who cared to 
 hear; then he prayed with us. As we marched he spoke 
 much of his old father and mother, and only brother, and 
 wished he could see them once more. But he was very, 
 very happy, and ready to go ' home,' if God saw fit. As 
 we neared Lucknow he dwelt much on eternity, and said 
 to me, ' It is very solemn to be walking into death. I 
 shall never leave this ill-fated city.' We had many 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 81 
 
 fights standing always side by side. I am an orplian ; I 
 
 lost my parents when a child, and was brought up at 
 
 school. I never had one to love me, and life was indeed 
 
 a weary burden ; yet beyond, all was darker still, for I 
 
 knew nothing of a Saviour. 's reading and words 
 
 came to my heart — he was so kind to me, and always 
 
 called me brother. I never loved till I had him. He 
 
 had found Jesus, and led me to love Him too. I cannot 
 
 find words to say how I joyed, when at last I felt I had 
 
 a Friend above. Oh ! I never shall forget my joy when 
 
 I first understood and believed. We had no book, only 
 
 the paper. We knew it off by heart, and I don't know 
 
 which of us loved it best. At last, in a dreadful fight in 
 
 one of the gardens, a ball struck in the chest. 
 
 Words cannot say my grief when he fell — the only one I 
 
 had to love me. I knelt by him, till the garden was left 
 
 in our hands, and then bore him to the doctors. But it 
 
 was too late — ^life was almost gone. ' Dear / he 
 
 said to me, ^ I am only going home first. We have loved 
 
 to talk of home together ; donH be sorry for me, for Fm 
 
 so happy. 
 
 * How sweet the name of Jesus sounds.' 
 
 Read me the words she wrote.' I pulled them out from 
 his bosom, all stained with his blood, as you see, and 
 repeated them. ^ Yes,' he said, ' the love of Christ has 
 constrained us. I am almost home. I'll be there to 
 
 welcome you and her; good-bye, dear .' And he 
 
 was gone, but I was left. Oh ! it was so very bitter ! I 
 knelt by him and prayed I might soon follow him. Then 
 I took his paper, and put it in my bosom, where it has 
 been since. I and some of our men buried him in the 
 garden. I have gone through much fighting since, and 
 
82 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 came down here on duty witli a detachnient yesterday. 
 They think me only worn with exposure_, and tell me I 
 shall be soon well, but I shall never see the sky again. 
 I would like to lie by his side, but it . cannot be.' Poor 
 fellow ! he cried long and bitterly. I could not speak, 
 but pressed his hand. At length he said, ^So you'll 
 forgive me making so bold in speaking to you. He 
 often spoke of you, and blessed you for leading him to 
 Jesus. And he it was who led me to Jesus. We shall 
 soon be together again, and won't we welcome you when 
 you come home?' We read and prayed together. He 
 was quite calm when I rose from my knees. He was too 
 weak to raise his head even from the pillow, but was 
 quite peaceful and happy. ' I feel,' he §aid, ' that I 
 shall not be able to think much longer; I have seen 
 such frightful things. Thank God! I have sure and 
 blessed hope in my death. I have seen so many die in 
 
 fearful terror.' I turned to go. He said, * Dear , 
 
 when I am gone, promise me this paper shall be put in 
 my coffin. It gave me a friend on earth, who led me to 
 a Saviour in heaven.' I promised. Next morning I 
 went to see him, but oh, how sadly altered did I find him? 
 Those soft browii eyes were glassy and lustreless. He 
 was never to know me again. Dysentery in its fearful 
 rapid form had seized him during the night. I took his 
 hand in mine; it was clammy and powerless. Three of 
 the men in the ward came up to me, and said, ^ Till 
 sense left him, he was talking of home with Jesus.' 
 They knelt with me in prayer beside the poor sufferer. 
 I went again the next day His body was still there, 
 but his spirit had fled a few minutes previous. He was 
 covered with a blanket, and the coolies were waiting to 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 83 
 
 bear liim away. I took Ms paper from his pillow, where 
 it had been laicl_, and went to the apothecary, We walked 
 back to the corpse, and he placed it in the hands of the 
 departed. He was buried that evening. I have often 
 thought since, how beautiful was that heavenly love 
 which bound those two dear young soldiers together. 
 How it sweetened their last days on earth. They were 
 indeed friends in Jesus, and though their remains lie 
 parted, yet they are both sleeping in Jesus. Oh, what a 
 glorious resurrection theirs will be in the day of His 
 appearing ! " 
 
 It seemed but a poor opportunity for usefulness, when 
 on ascending the pulpit, a minister found his congregation 
 to consist of a solitary individual. Such was the case 
 on one occasion when Dr, Beecher, of Cincinnati, was 
 about to preach. The Doctor once engaged to preach for 
 a country minister, on exchange ; and the Sunday proved 
 to be excessively stormy, cold, and uncomfortable. It 
 was midwinter, and the snow was piled in heaps all along 
 the roads, so as to make the passage very difficult. Still 
 the minister urged his horse through the drifts, till he 
 reached the church, put the animal into a shed, and went 
 in. As yet, there was no person present ; and after look* 
 ing about, the old gentleman, then young, took his seat 
 in the pulpit. Soon the door opened, and a single 
 individual walked up the aisle, looked about, and took a 
 seat. The hour came for commencing service, but no 
 more hearers. Whether to preach to such an audience 
 or not, was now the question; and it was one that Lyman 
 Beecher was not long in deciding. He felt that he had 
 a duty to perform, and he had no right to refuse to do it, 
 because only one man could reap the benefit of it ; and. 
 
84 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 accordingly, he went through all the services, praying, 
 singing, preaching, and pronouncing the benediction, with 
 only one hearer. And, when all was over, he hastened 
 down from his desk, to speak to his '' congregation," but 
 he had departed. A circumstance so rare was referred 
 to occasionally ; but twenty years after it was brought to 
 the Doctor^s mind quite strangely. Travelling somewhere 
 in Ohio, the Doctor alighted from the stage, one day, in 
 a pleasant village, when a gentleman stepped up, and, 
 spoke to him familiarly, calling him by name. '' I do not 
 remember you," said the Doctor. " I suppose not," said 
 the stranger, ^' but we spent two hours alone once in a 
 house, in a storm." " I do not recall it, Sir," said the 
 old man, "pray when was it?" '^^Do you remember 
 preaching, twenty years ago, in such a place, to a single 
 person?" "Yes, yes," said the Doctor, grasping his 
 hand, " I do indeed ; and if you are the man, I have been 
 wishing to see you ever since." "I am the man. Sir, 
 and that sermon saved my soul, made a minister of me, 
 and yonder is my church. The converts of that sermon. 
 Sir, are all over Ohio." 
 
 If we cannot do what we would, let us do what we can, 
 such is the true spirit of ministry ; and he who has this 
 spirit will ever find that he will have as much as ever he 
 can do. The German colporteur in Pennsylvania did 
 what he could in dropping his few tracts, and in years 
 after, they made room for his books. This is his story : — 
 
 "I revisited the neighbourhood where, in 1852, I 
 commenced my colporteur labours, and where, on being 
 refused permission to stop at a house over night, I had 
 left a few tracts as I went away, hoping for the blessing 
 of God upon them. I now called at the same house, and 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 85 
 
 found the man reading the Testament. In looking around 
 the room^ I saw that the wall behind the glass was papered 
 with tracts. On calling attention to it^ the man said^ 
 ^ Some years ago^ a man who carried books and tracts 
 was here^ and left us a few to read ; but I ' — here he 
 stopped, and seemed to hesitate about saying more. I 
 enquired if he had read them. ^No/ said he, 'for at 
 that time I did not believe such things, and therefore 
 pasted them to the wall.^ 'Do you now believe them?' 
 I enquired. ' Yes. As often as I approached the wall 
 to look into the glass, I could not help seeing and reading 
 them. It was the same with my wife and children. We 
 were all led to see our sinfulness, and from that time we 
 had no peace until we commenced praying, and continued 
 till we found peace with God through Christ.' He told 
 me that he and his wife and children had joined the 
 church, and that he frequently had expressed a wish to 
 see the man who had given him the tracts. ' If he should 
 come again,' said I, 'what good would it do you?' 'I 
 should like to have some of those good books ; I have 
 borrowed several of my neighbours and read them, but 
 could never get any for my own.' Opening my saddle- 
 bags, I informed him that I was the very man, and 
 showed him my books. I cannot describe the joy they 
 felt on that occasion. I had to stay over night with 
 them, and the next morning they bought several dollars' 
 worth of books." 
 
 Dear reader, do not try to shift from yourself your 
 share of responsibility as regards ministry. No matter 
 who, or what you be, if you be the Lord's, there is a 
 sphere in which you are to act. It is your sphere, God 
 has marked it out as such ; and is it, alas, unoccupied, 
 
 I 
 
86 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 eitlier from never having been entered on at all_, or from 
 being deserted after having been wrought in for a time ? 
 
 You can do something in ministry. Try. 
 
 " Children, I want each of you to bring a new scholar 
 to the school with you next Sunday/^ said the super- 
 intendent of a Sunday school to his scholars one day. 
 
 " I canH get any new scholars/' said several of the 
 children to themselves. 
 
 " V\\ try what I can do," was the whispered response 
 of a few others. 
 
 One of the latter class went home to his father, and 
 said. "Father, will you go to the Sunday school with me?" 
 
 " I can^t read, my son," replied the father, with a look 
 of shame. 
 
 " Our teachers will teach you, dear father," answered 
 the boy, with respect and feeling in his tones. 
 
 "Well, 1^11 go," said the father. 
 
 He went, learned to read, sought and found the Saviour, 
 and at length became a colporteur. Years passed on, and 
 that man had established four hundred Sunday schools, 
 into which thirty-five thousand children were gathered ! 
 
 Thus you see what trying did. That boy^s effort was 
 like a tiny rill, which soon swells into a brook, and at 
 length becomes a river. His effort, by God's grace, saved 
 his father: and his father being saved, led thirty-five 
 thousand children to the Sunday school ! 
 
 The church, if it awoke to a recognition of the 
 ministry to which it is called, would astonish the world ; 
 it is no marvel, if a sleepy church leaves unimpressed a 
 sleepy world. If the world took up a taunting tone 
 toward the church, we could not be surprised ; it might 
 iay, " yonder is a saint, he tells me that he is called to 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 87 
 
 be a peculiar man ; and that in Scripture^ his sort are 
 called ' peculiar people ; ^ he says he is to take up his 
 cross daily, and to war with the world, the flesh, and the 
 Devil ; but he leads an uncommonly easy life ; he does 
 not seem to trouble himself, any more than the rest of 
 us do, aboat the world, the flesh, and the Devil." The 
 ways of the people of God, are, alas ! in the present day 
 too like the ways of the world ; the seal is almost as 
 smooth as the wax ; and what marvel, if the impression 
 that it leaves, be slight. 
 
 We cannot but perceive, that those who hold the pure 
 truths of grace, and see their justification by simple faith 
 in the blood of Jesus, are in many instances of practical 
 activity, and outward ministry, far behind those who 
 distort the truth, and seek, in part at least, to do for 
 themselves what can be done by Christ alone. Well 
 might they say to some who glory in the rectitude of 
 their theology, " shew me thy faith without thy works, 
 and I will shew thee my faith by my works ; " they in 
 many instances, put us to shame : and the world, which 
 judges by external evidence, will give the palm to those 
 whose activity they see the most. 
 
 See the position in which the church is placed in the 
 aggregate; one might well ask, where is it? here and 
 there we see an isolated individual, or perhaps a little 
 company, ministering to Christ, and for Him in the 
 world ; but where is the great body, the church ? Where 
 can we behold its arrayed battalions, where its forces 
 massed for a grand assault upon the powers of evil; 
 where do we see it possessed of power from the very 
 impetus of its weight and numbers ? The sight is nowhere 
 to be seen ; split into fragments, in many cases inert. 
 
88 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 and standing aside from ministry, it exists no doubt, but 
 its existence lias little influence on the world. May the 
 Lord quicken it, and quicken each of His own people, as 
 members of it; and then, blessings to thousands, and 
 tens of thousands will be the result ! 
 
 A few words upon the world , as the third loser by the 
 non-ministering of many of the people of God, will close 
 this chapter. So long as the church of God takes up 
 a ifefensive, and not an o/fensive position, so long will 
 she be occupying a lower position, than that assigned to 
 her by Christ. The position occupied by Christ was 
 aggressive ; that marked out for His apostles was aggres- 
 sive ; that occupied by the early church was aggressive. 
 Peter and John refused to be silent, and said, ^^ Whether 
 it be right in the sight of God, to hearken unto you, 
 more than unto God, judge ye, for we cannot but speak 
 the things which we have seen and heard. ^' Acts iv, 19. 
 God has always honoured the aggressive assaults of His 
 church, upon the powers of darkness — a simply defensive 
 church is sure to be despised. The world has a complaint 
 to make against the people of God ; they do not, in this 
 ministry and testimony, hold forth the light to a world 
 that lieth in sin ; and although the world does not now 
 complain, and wicked men are perhaps glad to be spared 
 the intrusiveness of a troublesome testimony, still a time 
 may come, when these very men will perhaps prefer a 
 charge against the people of the Lord ; when they will 
 say, '^ why did they not testify to us, so that we must at 
 least have been startled ; ^ and perhaps we might not have 
 
 * The following speech of a converted Rarotongean,. though 
 couched in amusing language, is full of profitable suggestion. In 
 the course of his address he said, " Fathers and Brethren — Last 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 89 
 
 come into this place of torment ? " Yes, perhaps that 
 charge may come, even before they leave the earth. 
 There have been instances of this. Here is one. 
 
 For several successive evenings, a beloved and faithful 
 minister preached " Christ, and Him crucified," to an 
 attentive and solemn audience. God^s Spirit was there ; 
 this was known by the earnest attention, the solemn 
 stillness, the falling tear. 
 
 Evening after evening, at the close of the discourse, 
 the pastor invited all who felt concerned for their salva- 
 tion, to remain for conversation and prayer. Some 
 remained ; others went home : some, it may be, in the 
 solitude of their own rooms, to consecrate themselves to 
 the service of Christ ; but more, it is to be feared, to 
 drown the voice of conscience, stifle conviction, and 
 harden themselves in their impenitence. 
 
 night as I lay on my bed thinking on my present experiences, 
 the cocks began to crow, and all at once a thought came into my 
 mind that they resembled our teachers and missionaries, they 
 are always crowing, warning and teaching us from God's word. 
 Papenia came first, and he crowed every morning and evening, 
 making known the sins of the people, and the love of God; then 
 came Wiliameni and Pitimani and Barokote, and they all crowed, 
 all alike and continuously. Ah ! it was morning then ; and some 
 of you fathers awoke out of your sleep of sin, and you have had a 
 long day, but many of us sleep on ; we just heard the sound of 
 the voice, and lifted up our eyelids, but soon folded our hands in 
 our folly, and slept on in sin. It was thus with me, but I am 
 thankful the missionary did not fly away to another land, and 
 leave us to sleep on until death. He remained, and kept on 
 crowing the word of God. But alas! it is noonday now; my 
 morning is passed, yet I rejoice that I have been awakened out 
 of my sleep, and desire to give the remainder of my day to God's 
 service." — Gems from the Coral Islands. 
 
 I 2 
 
90 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 
 
 One evening, after a faithful sermon, the minister, 
 renewing the invitation to enquirers to remain, narrated 
 the following facts : — ■ 
 
 He was awakened at midnight by a message from a 
 young lady sinking in a decline, who wished to see and 
 converse with him. As he entered the room, he noticed 
 a younger sister of the dying one, who was evidently fast 
 following her into eternity. He commenced asking the 
 dying girl of her prospects, and as he did so, the younger 
 sister arose, with a look that said, plainer than words, 
 she did not wish to hear the conversation, and abruptly 
 left the room. But he continued, and was rejoiced to 
 find that the dying girl was leaning on the strong arm of 
 her Beloved, and that, as her feet trod the dark vaUey, His 
 rod and staff comforted her. And so she died — in hope. 
 
 Only a few weeks from her death, he was again sent 
 for; this time to visit the younger sister, who was so 
 soon following the elder to the grave. As he went to 
 her bedside, she looked up with great anxiety, and asked, 
 
 " Mr. M , do you remember, when you were here 
 
 before, and began to talk to my sister about death, I left 
 the room?'' "Yes; why did you do so?'' ''Because 
 I did not wish to hear what you would say ; and now see 
 
 where I am. Oh, Mr. M , why did you not follow 
 
 me, and make me hear ? " There was agony, even despair 
 in her tones, as she said it ; and then she added, " Oh, 
 it is a dreadful — dreadful thing to die." And before 
 many hours she died — in despair. 
 
 " Never, never," said he, " shall I forget that scene, 
 and never shall I cease to urge sinners, even to follow 
 them, if need be, that they may be warned of their 
 danger and led to their only Refuge." 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY. 91 
 
 Dear reader ! let us go forth to our testimony, and say 
 these "I wills'' with all our hearts, and practise them 
 in our daily lives. Let us lose no time, for souls are 
 perishing around, and our own lives are fading fast 
 away; and for aught we know, the night shades of our 
 ministry and testimony may be gathering around us 
 even now ! 
 
92 
 
 CIIAPTEE III. 
 
 The '*I "Will" of Converse. 
 
 Psalm cxlv, 5. " I will si^eak of the glorious honour of Thy 
 majesty" 
 
 THE subject upon whicli we have here to enter, is the 
 DIFFERENT FORMS OF MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY 
 
 brought before us, in the determinations of the Psalmist 
 which we have just read. They may be said to di^dde 
 themselves into three classes. 
 I. Converse. 
 IT. Teaching. 
 
 III. Manifestation. 
 
 The Psalmist's determination with reference to con- 
 verse, will form the subject of our consideration in the 
 present chapter. "I will speak," said he, ''^of the 
 glorious honour of Thy majesty." 
 
 Little need be brought forward, to shew how low is 
 the standard, of the habitual converse of the world. 
 Buying and selling, gossiping and trifling, form the 
 s'aple subjects of its daily converse. As are men's 
 minds, their hopes, their interests, their enjoyments, and 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — CONVERSE. 93 
 
 tlieir fears^ so also is their conversation. Of the earthy 
 earthy, such is the best description of it ; and that it is 
 so, we cannot be surprised. Where the treasure is, there 
 will the heart be also ; and where the heart is, there 
 generally will the tongue be too. Of course it is not for 
 a moment to be supposed, that we would sliut up all 
 conversation about business, or the ordinary affairs of 
 daily life ; most of the children of God, must get their 
 bread by labour as well as others ; and to do this, they 
 must mix more or less with the world ; but it is one thing 
 to talk with the people of the world, it is another to be 
 worldly in our tone. 
 
 That, however, with which we have now to do is, the 
 converse of God's people. Alas ! how low, how very low 
 is this oftentimes, in its tone. When the world can, so 
 to speak, make no demands upon us, when we need not 
 speak of its affairs, how frequently do we find ourselves 
 entermg with interest upon what is small, and unimpor- 
 tant; instead of upon subjects, calculated to enlarge our 
 knowledge of God, and our love to Christ. In a word, 
 how often do we find ourselves without an aptitude for 
 holy converse — without that abundance of the heart, out 
 of which the mouth should speak — without that readiness 
 in holy things, whiph would make us turn our conversa- 
 tion in their direction without any effort, without any 
 feeling that we were fulfilling a duty, or doing what was 
 right, or performing a task. Laboured conversation on 
 religious matters, is seldom profitable ; it is like a tune 
 played by one without an ear ; correct indeed in every 
 note, and the time kept with the utmost precision ; but 
 the spirit of the composer is not in it ; it is like poetry, 
 exact indeed in measure, and in rhyme, but lacking the 
 
94 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — CONVERSE. 
 
 inspiration^ which makes true poetry what it is ; it is 
 like a statue with rounded limb, and smoothly chiselled 
 surface, but destitute of that life, which plays in smiles 
 around the lips, and glitters with light in the deep 
 recesses of the eyes ; all may be proper and perfect, but 
 alas ! all may be also dead. The converse upon religious 
 matters which is pumped with labor from a christian, is 
 very different from that which flows with ease. Better 
 to be silent, and commune with our own hearts, if we 
 feel, from any cause, unwilling to converse on high and 
 holy things ; for to talk religion is a bad thing. 
 
 Let us descend, however, from generalities, to some- 
 thing more particular upon this matter ; for when certain 
 points are brought before us with precision, we are more 
 likely to derive some practical benefit; and to bring 
 forth some practical fruit in our daily life. 
 
 Let us first take visiting. There are many christians 
 who will find, if they will look into the matter, that they 
 have many most unprofitable acquaintances, who, from 
 custom, they are compelled to visit. These acquaintances 
 are not congenial to them ; perhaps in the first instance, 
 they never desired to meet them ; but they have done so 
 through some of the various changes and chances of 
 life, which are ever throwing us amongst new faces, and 
 making us enter into new relationships. Such persons 
 are unquestionably, at times, a great hindrance ; and if 
 the christian can limit their number, so much the better. 
 Many a christian has frittered away in his, or her daily 
 round of calls, not only much valuable time, but alsQ 
 mucli spiritual strength. A christian can never indulge 
 in trifling of any kind, witliout deteriorating to some 
 extent. 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY CONVERSE. \)!j 
 
 And here I may point out tlie position^ in wliich God^s 
 ministers are often placed, in this respect. , They are 
 expected, as it is called, to visit their people ; (I mean 
 the richer portion of them,) and every minister who is 
 alive to his duty, will endeavour to visit rich, as well as 
 poor. But the ideas of the visitor, and visited, are 
 perhaps very different ; the former is anxious to do good ; 
 it is, perhaps, entirely in a ministerial point of view, he 
 pays his visit ; but in nine cases out of ten, he can soon 
 see that this is not the idea of the person on whom he 
 calls. If there be a sick person in the house, then, so 
 far as that individual is concerned, a religious aspect may 
 be put upon the visit ; but not so far as others are con- 
 cerned. Inside the walls of a place of worship, is, in 
 their idea, the place where the minister ought to speak 
 religion ; but not in their houses, and not upon a week 
 day. If the minister do not go, he is thought a man 
 that neglects his duty; and many worldly people are 
 piqued, at not being paid the compliment of a call. If 
 he do go, they are perhaps offended at his endeavours to 
 do good ; they have certainly done what in them lies, to 
 waste his time ; if not to make him as great a trifler as 
 themselves. This was sorely felt by the excellent James 
 Hervey, who for some years before his death, visited 
 very few of the principal persons in the neighbourhood. 
 Being once asked why he so seldom went to see the 
 gentlemen, who yet showed him all possible esteem and 
 respect, he answered, ^' I can hardly name a polite family, 
 where the conversation ever turns upon the things of 
 God. I hear much frothy and worldly chit-chat, but 
 not a word of Christ ; and I am determined not to visit 
 those companies^ where there is not room for my Master, 
 
96 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — CONVERSE. 
 
 as well as for myself." It often happens, that a minister 
 cannot tliink what has happened to untune his mind, to 
 blunt the fine edge of his spiritual thoughts, and to bring 
 about such like evils ; if he turned his attention to this 
 direction, he would sometimes find out whence and how 
 the evil came. 
 
 Let us all, henceforth, pay some attention to the visits 
 which we have to pay, or to receive ; if we cannot raise 
 the tone of them as high as we would, at least let us 
 prevent them from falling as low as they have a natural 
 tendency to do. 
 
 Is it not very painful to listen, from time to time, to 
 the conversation of many who call themselves, and who, 
 perhaps, are, ^the children of God?' It is frequently 
 the merest gossip, it is at times not wanting in the 
 elements of slander, it is just ''all about nothing;'^ 
 when the whole thing is over we are just about as wise 
 as before it began. In every step we take in life we 
 leave a foot-fall behind us ; it wiU not be unprofitable to 
 ask, what footprints have we left in our neighbours' 
 houses ? We hope we shall not be misunderstood. If 
 we were to attempt to put a stop to social intercourse, 
 we should be doing what we believe is not according to 
 the mind of God; we would say to God's people, cannot 
 the tone of your visiting be raised ? 
 
 And to turn from our converse in visiting and company 
 to that of domestic relationship; might we not also 
 profitably ask whether this, too, could not be improved? 
 What speaking is there in our houses of the glorious 
 honour of the majesty of God? Are there not many 
 professing christians' houses in which God, and Christ, 
 and all holy things, are very seldom spoken about? 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY CONVERSE. 97 
 
 Are there not many Imsbancls and wives^ many brothers 
 and sisters^ who never interchange a word upon the 
 Siighestj and holiest, and noblest themes? Are there 
 not comparatively few who can say, "We take sweet 
 counsel together, and walk in the house of God as 
 friends ? ^^ Have not we, alas ! not only been backward 
 in leading to holy converse, but do we not feel to our 
 shame that we have damped it, and often been the means 
 of extinguishing it ? 
 
 And by so doing we have suffered loss; the heat 
 which comes from the friction of mind with mind, has 
 never kindled into a flame; the power of sympathy, 
 which is as great in spiritual as in temporal things, has 
 had no opportunity of gathering, and of putting forth its 
 energies ; mind has not been drawn out to mind, and 
 souls have lost that strengthening and comfort, which, 
 had they gone forth together to a common object, might 
 have been theirs. See what a oneness exists between 
 the parents of children, from the very fact, that the 
 father and mother have a common interest, and talk 
 about it as well as act for it. Insensibly they become 
 knit into each other ; their own love is di'awn out towards 
 each other, while they are spending and being spent 
 upon the common object of their affections. They do 
 not love their children with this design ; they do not act 
 together with the view of producing this result ; it comes 
 naturally ; and just so, when those who dwell together, 
 love the Lord, and talk of Him, their hearts burn 
 within them, as they journey on the road of life ; and 
 they are joined together by a peculiar bond; they feel 
 that their interests for eternity are one, that they love 
 the one Saviour, and are travelling on to a common 
 
98 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY CONVERSE. 
 
 home. May tlie Lord enable us, henceforth, to sanctify 
 more and more the converse of home ! That blessed word 
 will be invested with new and more sacred associations ; 
 it will have a fresh halo of light thrown around it, if 
 Jesus occupy his true place in it, as the relation above 
 all others; as the ONE who, with self-existing light, 
 walks amid earth's lesser lights, from the grandsire, 
 whose exhausted flame is glimmering in the socket, down 
 to the last-born child whose feeble life is like the taper 
 that has been just lit. The familiar household words of 
 home will be all the more precious, if our home be 
 Jesus' home, and His be the most familiar name. He, 
 the most frequent theme ; for wherever He is admitted. 
 He diffuses a fragrance which perfumes all within its 
 reach; whatever He touches He anoints with an oil 
 which forbids the rust to eat, and the heavy wheels of 
 life's daily work to creak. 
 
 Oh, I can easily understand how in a household where 
 Jesus is a well-known name, life's weary work is made 
 light, and much of its hard pressure is removed, and 
 much of what must else have proved bitterness, is made 
 sweet. 
 
 If Jesus enter into the thoughts and converse of daily 
 life, the servant will not be afraid of profaning His holy 
 aame by encouraging a fellow-servant to do that day's 
 work to Him ; and the husband will not forget to soothe 
 the anxieties, and to hush the cares, and still the 
 woman's fears, of the one who looks to him for support 
 and counsel, by bringing into their conversations that 
 well-known name, the name of Him who is touched 
 with a feeling of our infirmities, and whose heart is so 
 soft, that it takes the impression of every line of our 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — CONVERSE. i'9 
 
 sorrow ; and so responsive, that it echoes every sigh we 
 breathe : and she will be to hinij even as he has been to 
 her, and, having been counselled ia the name of God, 
 will, by the re-active law, counsel in the same name 
 again ; and having been strengthened in His name, will 
 in that name repay, by strengthening in return ; and 
 parents will not forget to make Jesus the subject of 
 their teachings to their children, and it may be, that 
 children, as they talk of Him, may, in so doing, unwit- 
 tingly fulfil the great re-active law, and ask some question 
 which will lead the parent into some new, and hitherto 
 undreamed of truth. Thus may Jesus be in our homes 
 on earth, for thus, assuredly will He be in our home in 
 heaven ! 
 
 And here we have touched but one point, even of 
 Christian converse ; and that as a part of the '^ I will of 
 Ministry and Testimony," but in this one point, how 
 much is contained ! The Lord number you, dear reader, 
 amongst those of whom it is said, "Then they that 
 feared the Lord, spake often one to another, and the 
 Lord hearkened and heard it, and a book of remembrance 
 was written before Him, for them that feared the Lord, 
 and that thought upon His name. And they shall be 
 mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make 
 up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth 
 his own son that serveth him/' 
 
100 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE '' I WILL " OF CONVEESE. 
 
 (Contirmed.) 
 
 Psalm cxlv, 5. " I will speak of the glorious hcnour of Thy 
 majesty" 
 
 WE must talk mucli to God, we must talk mucli with 
 Him, if we would safely talk much about Him. 
 We must have an inner life, out of wliich the outward 
 life must flow; else our external life of holiness, in all 
 its various streams, whether they be those which take 
 their way through our own home, or the houses of others, 
 will run unevenly, and, at times, run dry. 
 
 The secret of an effective holy life in public, will ever 
 prove to be a holy life with God in private ; this is the 
 root from which, in due season, will come both leaves 
 and fruit. 
 
 And let it be observed, that in this matter of converse, 
 the fruit which is thus brought forth is not, of necessity, 
 the power to speak with volubility upon sacred things. 
 There are many eminent Christians who are not great 
 talkers : but though not abundant of speech, they are 
 weighty in it; and what they bring forth in Vifew words, 
 is often of more value, than the much speaking of other 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY— CONVERSE. 101 
 
 men. Their words are like the large, rich, ripened fruit, 
 which hangs singly upon the tree; and which has 
 absorbed all the strength, and sap, of the branch on 
 which it hangs ; the words of others, are at times too 
 plentiful, and like the thick clustering, but immatured 
 fruit, for the swelling and bringing to maturity of which, 
 the branch has not sufficient strength. A few words 
 and weighty, are better than many and weak. 
 
 But now to turn more immediately to the matter we 
 have in hand. God, and Christ, and the Spirit, and 
 their honour, and all connected with them, should be 
 the subjects of our converse; not because we ought to 
 speak about them, nor even because it is a privilege so to 
 do ; but because we, ourselves, have an intimate relation 
 to, and interest in them all. We generally speak or 
 converse about that, in which we ourselves have an 
 interest ; the very fact of our having that interest and 
 relationship, making us come on such a topic. It is 
 personal interest that throws life into conversation ; we 
 see a change come over the countenance, and into the 
 tone of voice, and into the very attitude of the body, and 
 the animation of the eye, when the element of personal 
 interest, enters into the conversation in which we are 
 engaged. And when we recall to mind our conversations 
 on holy things, do we not feel how often they have been 
 flat, and cold, how often they have dragged wearily along^ 
 because they lacked this very fire of the personal element, 
 this very salt, and seasoning, of individual interest ? We 
 have, no doubt, come very short in this respect ; and it 
 may be, our very listlessness and formality have done 
 hurt ; our coldness and abstraction infected those, who, 
 had we been otherwise, might have caught from our 
 
 K 2 
 
102 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY CONVERSE. 
 
 animated eye, a spark of spiritual intelligence ; and from 
 our earnest tones, a deeper knowledge of the realities of 
 sacred truth. 
 
 Oh ! how blessed, how altered will be the condition of 
 God^s people in this respect, when they are perfected in 
 glory ! Converse upon all that is holy, will then be their 
 delight — converse, with an intelligence far above what 
 they now possess — converse, the interest of which will 
 never flag nor cease ; they shall feel in glory that they 
 have a common interest ; they shall be near the God, 
 and Christ, to whom they stand in blessed relationship ; 
 all the restraints of human corruption, langour, and dis- 
 traction, shall be removed; and saint shall doubtless 
 communicate with saint, with a freedom, and a largeness, 
 and a depth, of which not even an idea can be formed 
 now. Meanwhile, let us, dear reader, try to improve, 
 and endeavour in a measure, at least, now to attain that, 
 which if we be Christ^ s, we shall assuredly attain to here- 
 after. When we converse upon anything connected with 
 God, let us throw our own personal being into our words ; 
 let us not content ourselves with abstract theories, or 
 truths about Him, and His : surely the christian, who is 
 one with Christ, bone as it were of His bone, and flesh 
 of His flesh, is nearly enough connected with Him, to 
 make him speak with the power of personal interest , on 
 every subject in which He is concerned. If this is to be 
 the case, we must seek to have more personal realizations 
 of God in our own souls ; that out of the abundance of 
 the heart, the mouth may speak. 
 
 But the word which we here translate "speak," is 
 considered by Hebrew critics to include also the idea 
 of "expatiating," "speaking at large ;'^ not merely 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY CONVERSE. 103 
 
 '^ alluding to^ incidentally/^ but " entering into particu- 
 lars;" as though one took delight_, in speaking upon the 
 matter in hand. Now there is something very satis- 
 factory in entering into particulars ; we can often gather 
 light upon a great truth, by having had set before us 
 some of the particulars connected with it ; we can often 
 understand what is too high for us, in itself and hy itself, 
 by some examples which bring it within reach of our dull 
 understandings. We are like men who want to attain a 
 height, who have not wings to fly up to it, but who can 
 reach it by going up a ladder, step by step. Particulars 
 are often like the rounds of a ladder, little, it may be, in 
 themselves, but very helpful to us ; and to dwell upon 
 particulars is often of use to ourselves ; it certainly is to 
 many with whom we converse. 
 
 Let us remember, that circumstanced as we are in our 
 present state, we have no faculties for grasping in its 
 simple grandeur the glorious honour of the majesty of 
 God. We know most of God, from what we know of 
 His doings amongst the children of men. Hereafter, 
 the Lord^s people shall, no doubt, have much revealed to 
 them of the glorious honour of the majesty of God, 
 which they could now neither bear nor understand; 
 meanwhile they have to know Him chiefly by what He 
 has said and done ; and if only our eyes be open, we 
 shall be at no loss to recognise in these, the glorious 
 honour of His majesty. 
 
 Perhaps it might be said by some, " What can we know 
 of this ? We move in an humble sphere of life ; we never 
 come in contact with the mighty operations of God in 
 nature, nor with anything remarkable in the way of His 
 providence; we have no opportunities of realizing the 
 
104 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — CONVERSE. 
 
 glorious honour of God's majesty ;^^ but there is no 
 sphere too contracted for this great display ; there is no 
 position so low, that in it it will refuse to shine. The 
 fault, dear reader, lies in ourselves; the majesty of the 
 sun is not seen by the eye that is blind ; the majesty of 
 God in daily life is veiled, just in proportion to the 
 darkness of our understandings. If God open our eyes, 
 we behold wondrous things ; not only out of His law, 
 but in His daily ordering of events. Yes ! in these 
 common things, the glorious honour of God^s majesty is 
 to be seen; just as His creative majesty is visible, in the 
 formation of the smallest grass-blade or the meanest shell. 
 When our very daily bread comes before us, common as 
 it is, the glorious honour of God^s maj esty is to be traced 
 in it ; for what was every grain of corn of which it was 
 composed, but a separate resurrection from the dead ? 
 And how could that have been brought about, save by 
 the glorious majesty of God? WeU might the Psalmist 
 say, "/ will meditate also of all Thy work, and talk of 
 Thy doing s.^^ 
 
 Let me add, in conclusion, one or two practical 
 directions with reference to the *' converse '^ upon which 
 we have just now been dwelling. If we be God^s people, 
 let us shew the world that we have a real interest in 
 everything connected with Him ; let them see by our 
 way of speaking of Him, and His, that we love Him, 
 and all connected with Him, in every way. And let us 
 encourage each other, and magnify the majesty and 
 honour of God, by bringing into our familiar converse, 
 the one with the other, the particulars wherein we have 
 found Him gracious, and wherein He has done won- 
 drously for us. 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY CONVERSE. 105 
 
 We cannot tell how blessed the result,, which may be 
 thus produced. Perhaps some christian brother^ dull of 
 hearing and of seeing^ will understand more of His 
 greatness and His goodness ; perhaps some little sparky 
 which we have struck from our knowledge or experience, 
 may kindle a flame in him ; so that he may say ^' my 
 heart burns within me on the way.^^ It may be, that 
 making use of our talent, we shall have more given unto 
 us ; perhaps we shall be kept from some evil knowledge, 
 or evil train of thought, which, coming up in other 
 conversation, might have done us hurt. Of this we 
 may be sure, that the more our conversation has to do 
 with the glorious honour of the majesty of God, the 
 more will it be free from all that is calculated to debase, 
 or depress the mind : the more will self, in all its varied 
 developments, be excluded : the less will there be of those 
 idle words, for which we must give account . 
 
106 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 The *'I "Will" of Teaching. 
 
 Psalm li, 13. " Then will I teach transgressors Thy ways, 
 and smners shall he co7iverted unto Thee." 
 
 I REACHING is ennobled by the great fact that God 
 Himself is a Teacher. The three persons of the 
 Trinity — Father, Son, and Holy Ghost — are all presented 
 to us in Holy Scripture in the character of Teachers; 
 yea, not only of teachers, but of laborious Teachers, 
 carrying on their work in the midst of many impedi- 
 ments ; and with patience, and wisdom, and skill. 
 
 It is a sad fact, that but comparatively few are alive 
 to the vast importance of the position of the teacher. 
 Teaching is looked upon by many almost in the same 
 light as household work, and paid after the same rate; 
 the tutor and the butler are looked upon alike as servants, 
 and the master says, " I will give unto this last, even as 
 unto thee ! " 
 
 We can never degrade the teacher except at the expense 
 of the person taught ; the shaft men so often cruelly let 
 fly, will glance aside, and do some hurt to one they love. 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY TEACHING. 107 
 
 The teacher's mission is from God; and whether this 
 teaching be that of masters, and mistresses ■ in their 
 schools; or that of the mother who clusters her little 
 ones around her knee ; or that of the nurse, from whom 
 the infant catches the first meaning of the difiPerent tones 
 of the human voice ; it is a mission from God : it is en- 
 nobled by God, — and if it be carried on for God, — it will, 
 in eternity, take rank amid the great things which were 
 done by God's people, in time. 
 
 The victory which patient teaching has gained over an 
 unruly spirit, will be thought more of than the successful 
 issue of the most protracted siege ; the devices by which, 
 with God's blessing, stubbornness of the disposition is 
 melted, and through which the after life becomes fall of 
 holy deeds, will be magnified above all that the man of 
 science has done in his laboratory; above all that the 
 skilled artizan has produced from his loom. Christ 
 Himself will, in eternity, as the One who was the Great 
 Teacher, assume the headship of all who were teachers 
 after His example, and for Him ; and will acknowledge 
 as His brethren, in this respect, alike the apostle Paul, 
 who wrote "many things hard to be understood," and the 
 poorest Sunday school teacher, who could do little more 
 than teach his infant class how to spell the name of Jesus. 
 Jesus, verily, will not be ashamed to call them all 
 brethren ; they will be accounted the members of a body, 
 of which He is the head. 
 
 Surely such a consideration as this, should cheer the 
 heart of many, who are now, it may be, almost tempted 
 to despond. To flesh and blood much of their work is 
 uninteresting ; and many of those upon whom they have 
 to carry it on, are disappointing and provoking; but 
 
108 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY TEACHING. 
 
 whether they succeed, or whether they do not^ if they be 
 teaching as unto the Lord, they are one, in work and 
 interest, with J esus ; and every hour spent in labour, and 
 every effort made, shall hereafter be acknowledged by Him. 
 Let us now, however, turn from the general subject of 
 the ministry of teaching, to some of the particulars con- 
 nected with it. Several are suggested to our notice by 
 the passage immediately under consideration. We are 
 all familiar with the cirumstances under which this 
 psalm was written; it is full of fearful realities; the 
 realities of a broken heart ; of a deep view of the holi- 
 ness of God ; of the awful nature of sin : there is a living 
 personal earnestness, running through it all, which many, 
 perhaps, of ourselves, have unwittingly acknowledged, by 
 choosing it as the form of words, in which we confessed 
 before God, it may be, our general sinfulness, or more 
 probably, some recent, some decided sin. 
 
 It is in a psalm of this character, we find the words, 
 " Then will I teach transgressors Thy ways ; '^ and 
 coming, as these words do, after the petitions, that God 
 would '^restore to the Psalmist the joy of His salvation, 
 and uphold him with His free Spirit,'^ we have brought 
 before us the great fact, that the Psalmist^ s teaching will 
 be from experience ; out of the fulness of his own know- 
 ledge of God, he will minister in teaching to others. 
 
 We will now assume that the duty of ministering in 
 teaching, is recognised by each of our readers ; that you, 
 dear reader, wish to fulfil the whole will of God; and this 
 as well as anything else. Let me, then, direct your 
 attention to the great importance of teaching out of your 
 own personal experience ; of using your experience for 
 this purpose, and not letting it lie idle. Experience is 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY TEACHING. 109 
 
 accounted precious in the world ; the man that has it^ 
 turns it to account; it is precious also^ in the spiritual 
 world ; and he who has it^ may do good service with it 
 for God. Even the dark experience which a man, 
 unhappily, has had of sin, may be overruled and sancti- 
 fied, and a jewel be drawn forth from it, just as a 
 precious stone is often drawn from the depths and 
 recesses of a gloomy mine. The precious stone is un- 
 connected with the darkness of the mine, but it comes 
 forth from it ; the experience, also, is unconnected with 
 the sin, though it is from it that it is brought out. 
 
 Of course no one will misunderstand what I say, and 
 suppose that we would recommend men to do evil that 
 good may come. What we say is this — it seems to be 
 ever the way of God, to draw forth life from death ; this 
 He does continually, in the natural world ; and by the 
 operation of His wonderful power, and goodness. He 
 does the like in the spiritual world. Death is from man, 
 for sin w,as his and death came by sin ; but resurrection 
 is from God ; so sin is of man, the overruling of it is of 
 God; the terrible fall is from himself; the sanctified 
 experience from it, is of the Holy Ghost. And so is the 
 using of that experience also. And what are all the 
 records of the sins of the saints, which we find given us 
 in the Scriptures by the Spirit, but His use of man^s 
 dark experience of sin to warn and teach whoever reads ? 
 ^^ These things are written for our learning.'^ 
 
 Well, then, dear reader, let us use our own experience, 
 and that of others, for the purposes of teaching. Those 
 experiences may be dark ones, of the evil, and chastise- 
 ment, and misery of sin ; or they may be bright ones, of 
 the blessedness of serving God^ and of His faithfulness^ 
 
110 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY TEACHING. 
 
 and truth, and love; but whatever they are, let us not 
 permit them to lie idle. Let us use our own dark 
 experience, to warn others, or to make us pray for them ; 
 we shaU have opportunities enough of doing so, if we 
 will. Perhaps those opportunities will be afforded, even 
 amongst those who are near and dear to us, in our daily 
 life. When we see any one hastening to the brink of the 
 pit, into which we have fallen, and in which we have 
 suffered hurt, let us give him the benefit of our experi- 
 ence, and, if possible, save him before he plunge in. 
 And if, unhappily, we cannot do this, oh ! remembering 
 what we suffered ourselves, let us pray him out of the pit 
 if we can ; let us stand at the mouth of it, and, out of 
 our own experiences, teach him the only way of escape, 
 and, it may be, we shall be the means of rescuing his 
 soul. 
 
 Sin is no talent, but the sanctified experience of a 
 sinner, is. Let us use it, along with all other talents, for 
 the One to whom we must give account. A little 
 thought, and searching our own hearts, will shew us how 
 we can in this particular way, teach for God. If we 
 have had experience of gross sin in any form, the way of 
 doing so presents itself, only too plainly, before our eyes ; 
 but even if we have not, we need not be at any loss. 
 
 Let the mother who was snared in her own young 
 days, by the love of human approbation, teach her 
 children out of the depth of her own experience; and 
 from their youngest days, instruct them to look up to the 
 highest standard of praise, the approbation of their God. 
 Let her shew them that one approving word from Jesus, 
 yea, one sent from Him to them through their own 
 consciences, is better than man's superficial admiration. 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY TEACHING. Ill 
 
 man's most fulsome praise. Let the one who set her 
 heart too fondly upon hmnan love^ only to find that in 
 her case the fair vision was a mirage, the illusive lakes 
 and fountains of which, had not one real drop to slake 
 her parching thirst, teach those who come within her 
 circle of influence, out of the depths of her own wilder- 
 ness experiences ; and let her hand, wasted it may be 
 with lifers fever, point others to that One who is the 
 water of life, at which not only the immortal spirit, but 
 even the human affections of the heart, can drink and 
 be refreshed. 
 
 Whoever has yielded to pride, or vanity, or worldli- 
 ness, or selfishness, or foolish habits of thought, or any 
 such like things, can minister out of their experience to 
 others ; and do it with the earnestness which experience 
 gives. Who can warn the careless boy, who crowds 
 canvas upon his fragile boat, so well as he who has been 
 himself upset, and snatched, as it were, from the very 
 jaws of a watery death ? Who can warn the child of the 
 danger of eating the bright, but poisoned berry, so 
 well as he who had tasted once of the tempting bait, 
 and had writhed in agony from its subtle power, and 
 escaped from its influence barely with his life ? None 
 will be so well able to point out pure gold as they who 
 had once believed that all was gold that glittered, but 
 who have now found out their mistake by having become 
 the victims of many a cheat. Let us give our children, 
 and those with whom from time to time we come in con- 
 tact, the benefit of our experiences, so far as opportunity 
 is afforded; and perhaps from our sorrows they may 
 reap a harvest of joys. 
 
 And just one word upon those blessed experiences of 
 
112 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — TEACHING. 
 
 which the Psalmist speaks in the verse immediately 
 preceding the text. "Restore unto me the joy of Thy 
 salvation, and uphold me with Thy free spirit.'' What- 
 ever be our blessed experiences, let ns put them out to 
 interest for God; let us use thera for Him, let us teach 
 out of them. 
 
 If so be we have tasted that the Lord is gracious, let 
 us teach others of Him as we have found Him ; if He 
 have restored us after we have fallen, let us teach other 
 fallen ones that He is willing to restore them ; if He 
 have succoured us in our day of trial, either of body or 
 of soul, let us teach others out of our own experience, 
 and cheer them with the knowledge that the Lord is 
 gracious. " Blessed be God,^^ (says the apostle, in 2 Cor. 
 i, 3,) " even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the 
 Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, who 
 comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able 
 to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort 
 wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.^^ 
 
 If we have been in the garden of the Lord, oh, let us 
 win others thither, by telling them out of our own expe- 
 rience, how ripe are its fruits, how cool its shade ; that 
 there we found the One of whom it is written, ^*^ I sat 
 under His shadow with great delight, and His fruit was 
 sweet to my taste.'^ (Canticles ii, 3.) 
 
ll; 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THE 'a WILL" OF TEACHING. 
 
 (Continued.) 
 
 Psalm li, 13. " Then ivill I teach transffressors Thy ways,, and 
 sinners shall he converted unto Thee.''' 
 
 THE idea of teaching generally includes that of toil. 
 There are^ no donbt^ many cases when the aptitude 
 and intelligence of the pupil make teaching a pleasant 
 work ; but this must be taken as the exception_, and not 
 the rule. Teaching generally involves self-denial_, as well 
 as toil. Every good and successful teacher has been a 
 painstaking and self-denying man ; doing more than his 
 bare duty called upon him to do, and not measuring his 
 exertions simply by his hire. If we might speak of God 
 after the manner of men. He also seems to have taken 
 great pains in teaching the children of men. 
 
 Now what I desire to treat of in the present chapter 
 is: — 
 
 I. The painstaking ivhich should be found in all 
 teaching undertaken for God. And 
 
 II. The necessity of doing the Lord's work fully ; 
 not picking and choosing as we like, but taking it as He 
 presents it to us. 
 
 L 2 
 
114 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY TEACHING. 
 
 Tliere should be painstaking in all teaching for God. 
 "We should be very cautious how we treat as a light thing 
 our ministry of Teaching. That teaching may be in a 
 great congregation^ or in a Sunday school^ or in our own 
 domestic circle, or perhaps the object of it may be only 
 some one or two friends, who are looking up to us for 
 instruction ; but whether those who are taught be high 
 or low, many or few, rich or poor, what our hand findeth 
 to do we should do with our might : though we were but 
 teaching, as it were, the alphabet of religion, we should 
 take pains. The pains connected with teaching may be 
 divided into two classes ; the passive pains of what we 
 have to undergo ; the active pains of what we have to do. 
 
 There is a great deal to be undergone in teaching. 
 We have to bear with much. The stupidity, the inapti- 
 tude to learn, the inattention, the forgetfulness, the 
 waywardness, of those we have to teach, are so many 
 dead weights which we have to bear. We are but flesh 
 and blood, and these things weary us, and undoubtedly 
 make our work far harder than otherwise it would be. 
 
 Let me remind you, dear readers, that Jesus, the Great 
 Teacher, and I hope I may say your great example, had 
 to bear with all this ; and let me remind you further, 
 that all these are so many trials of endurance ; and that 
 the endurance of the saints will add to the lustre and 
 glory of their crown. There is a reward for endurance, 
 as well as action. 
 
 Have we not many instances in Holy Scripture of 
 Christ's endm-ance in this point? Instead of reviling 
 His disciples for their stupiditj^, hear how He speaks to 
 them in Matt, xv, 16: "And Jesus said, are ye yet 
 without understanding ? do not ye yet understand that 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY— TEACHING. 115 
 
 whatsoever enteretli in at the mouth goeth into the belly, 
 and is cast out into the draught ? ^' And again in chap, 
 xvi, 6 : " Then Jesus said unto them. Take heed and 
 beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the 
 Sadducees. And they reasoned among themselves, say- 
 ing, It is because we have taken no bread : which when 
 Jesus perceived, he said unto them, O ye of little faith, 
 why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have 
 brought no bread ? Do ye not yet understand, neither 
 remember, the five loaves of the five thousand, and how 
 many baskets ye took up? Neither the seven loaves 
 of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? 
 How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not 
 to you concerning bread, that ye should beware of the 
 leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees? Then 
 understood they how that He bade them not beware of 
 the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees 
 and of the Sadducees.^^ And again in John xi, 11 : 
 " These things said He : and after that He saith unto 
 them. Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go that I 
 may awake him out of sleep Then saith His disciples^ 
 Lord, if he sleep he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake 
 of His death ; but they thought that He had spoken of 
 taking of rest in sleep. Then said Jesus unto them 
 plainly, Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your 
 sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe ; 
 nevertheless let us go unto him.^' Surely the disciple is 
 not above his master, nor the servant above his Lord ! 
 Wherever we look we find that endurance in toil meets 
 with its reward. The greatest discoveries and inventions 
 have been the fruits of long endurance. At times, men 
 seemed to have the object they desired within their 
 
116 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — TEACHING. 
 
 gi'asp ; and tlieii;, it receded from them \ and with this 
 disappointment came also the temptation to give np : but 
 they endured and gained their end at last. In education 
 above all things, endurance is needed_, and is sure to 
 produce its results. Patient endurance in teaching has 
 accomplished more than even the most sanguine could 
 have dared to hope. 
 
 At the great day, there will doubtless be seen many 
 woDderfol results of simple endurance in ministry ; in 
 the ministry of Teaching, and of Testimony. Great 
 things will be found to have been accomplished, without 
 any shining talent, or extraordinary opportunities ; with 
 nothing but " the patient continuance in well doing/' 
 Our fellow men may have looked upon us, as having a 
 claim to no higher character, than that of a persevering, 
 patient plodder, in the path of duty or of lovcj they 
 may have despised our want of brilliancy, and talent ; 
 we may ourselves have felt painfully conscious, that in 
 these things, we have been far inferior to others ; but 
 the reward for patient endurance in labour will, in all 
 probabiHty, be greater than that for the bare use of any 
 talent we might have possessed. It may have been 
 positive enjoyment to use a talent; but it is seldom, or 
 never any enjoyment to endure; the results produced by 
 the sheer exercise of endurance, will be acknowledged to 
 have been purchased at a higher price, than those which 
 have been produced by the exercise of talent. This 
 assuredly ought to be no slight encouragement to those 
 who are possessed of no shining talents. Such persons 
 can do something. They can endure in some humble 
 sphere of labour, for Christ ; and by such endurance not 
 only act like Him, but also act for Him. Their talent 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — TEACHING. 117 
 
 may be of no more power in itself, than the single drops 
 which trickle down the surface of the rock ; But if they, 
 by continuance, can leave a record of their progress, in 
 the channel which they wear away, oh ! surely, so can 
 the feeble talent, ever at work, win a record of its 
 endurance, aye, in what wiU prove more indestructible 
 than the hardest rock itseK"^ 
 
 These, and such as these make up what might be 
 called the passive pains of teaching; there are others 
 which are active, and therefore more acute. 
 
 In teaching, we must condescend. We are now, of 
 course, concerned only with spiritual things ; and all our 
 remarks must have reference to them. Unless we con- 
 descend to men of low estate in knowledge, we shall often 
 not be able to accomplish anything for the soul. There 
 are few who are engaged in spiritual teaching who have 
 not, from time to time, been astonished at the dense 
 ignorance with which they have come into contact ; even 
 in the cases of men, who received credit for knowing 
 something of the truths of God. I am not referring 
 now, to ignorance on prophetical views, or abstruse 
 points of doctrine; but upon fundamental points. We 
 frequently find instances, where men are very misty upon 
 the great doctrine of justification by faith ; and still more 
 
 * The following fact should be remembered by such as are 
 inclined to despair. "When the celebrated Mr. Milne, the 
 missionary, was preaching, not long before he left England, in 
 the pulpit of his pastor, Mr. Cowie of Huntley, an old man 
 belonging to the church was observed to weep very much. On 
 being questioned as to the cause, he said, 'I remember the day 
 when I took William Milne by the shoulders and turned him out 
 of the Sunday school, for his inveterate obstinacy and stupidity.' " 
 
118 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — TEACHING. 
 
 misty upon the decided distinction, between justification 
 and sanctification ; and the relationship which they bear, 
 the one to the other. Upon all this we ourselves may 
 be perfectly clear, we may without intending so to do, 
 almost look down on those who are misty and confused ; 
 it is one of those cases in which we must condescend ; 
 milk is needed, and we must feed with milk, and not 
 with meat. Or the ignorance may be in spiritual practice. 
 A man may have received the truth in his head, but the 
 measure of his heart's sanctification may be small ; the 
 tone of his spiritual life may be low ; he may be allowing 
 himself in that, which we consider no christian man 
 should ; this is another case where we must condescend. 
 Our duty, under such circumstances, is to teach a man 
 what is better, what is right ; to stoop to him, to enlighten 
 his ignorance, and not to despise him, or pass him by, 
 or think him not worth teaching, because his point of 
 attainment is so far beneath oui' own. We never stoop 
 to bless another, without picking up a blessing for our- 
 selves ; we can never water without being watered ; we 
 can never teach without being taught. Here again Jesus 
 comes forward as an example. When Philip said to 
 Jesus, " Lord shew us the Father, and it sufnceth us.'' 
 Jesus condescends to His disciple's ignorance and answers, 
 " Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou 
 not known Me, Philip ? he that hath seen Me hath seen 
 the Father; and how sayest thou then shew us the 
 Father?" John xiv, 9. When the sorrowing disciples 
 journeyed with Him to Emmaus, they said, ^' But we 
 trusted that it hod been He which should have redeemed 
 Israel ; and beside all this, to day is the third day since 
 these things were done." Then He condescended to 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — TEACHING. 119 
 
 their ignorance; and thongli He saia unto them, ^^O 
 fools and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets 
 have spoken. Ought not Christ to have suffered these 
 things, and to enter into His glory ?^' still He fulfilled 
 towards them His ministry of teaching; for, "Beginning 
 at Moses and all the prophets. He expounded unto them 
 in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.^^ 
 Luke xxiv, 27. 
 
 Let this, then, encourage us to condescend to teach the 
 rudiments, the alphabet of religion. Let this induce the 
 preacher of the gospel to take up, from time to time, the 
 very plainest things ; and to dwell upon the first princi- 
 ples of our most holy faith ; and let it induce the man of 
 intellect, or the man of spiritual attainment, not to 
 despise an humble scholar, whether it be in a Sunday 
 school, or in a cottage, or amongst his own children or 
 servants at home. If his Father stoop from heaven, 
 surely he may stoop on earth ; it may be that as the 
 Christian rises he will lift up some fellow-Christian from 
 his low estate, at least to the level of himself. On the 
 day of his death, in his eightieth year, Elliott, "the 
 Apostle of the Indians," was found teaching the alphabet 
 to an Indian child at his bedside. " Why not rest from 
 your labours now?" said a friend. "Because," said 
 the venerable man, " I have prayed to God to render me 
 useful in my sphere. He has heard my prayer ; for now 
 that I can no longer preach, he leaves me strength 
 enough to teach this poor child his alphabet." 
 
 And in this ministry of teaching, let us be willing 
 often to go back, and to go over the same ground again 
 and again. In many cases this is absolutely necessary ; 
 the desired effect cannot otherwise be produced. This 
 
120 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — TEACHING. 
 
 the painter has to do with his pictures ; this the husband- 
 man has to do with his cr.ops ; this* God Himself has 
 done with us. If we have attained to anything, has it 
 not been by God^s teaching us the same thing over and 
 x>ver again? Have we not continually forgotten even 
 what we seemed to have learned? Has He not had to 
 repeat not only old lessons but old chastisements? AlJ 
 this was God^s taking pains with us ; and as He has not 
 thrown us off in our stupidity, we must not throw others 
 off in theirs. Their precious souls are worth the pains ; 
 let us take them freely and patiently ; perhaps we shall 
 have a great result.* 
 
 Let me point out also the great necessity of not over- 
 driving in religious knowledge. There are many who can 
 take in religious knowledge only very slowly ; we may 
 force them on ; we may give them a head knowledge of 
 great and even deep truths ; but they will be like a house 
 run up in haste, and therefore unsubstantial ; they will 
 be like a tree forced into bearing before its time, and 
 whose fruit is not natural; they will be Hke a child, upon 
 whose weak body there has been placed a load, too 
 
 * John Wesley's home education; under the tutelage of his pa- 
 rents themselves, was peculiar, and well calculated to initiate Mm 
 early in habits of order and perseverance in accomplishing any 
 object he might undertake. "Why, my dear," said his father 
 to his mother, while patiently teaching one of their children 
 a simple lesson, which it was slow to learn, " why, my dear, do 
 yon tell that dull boy the same thing twenty times over?" 
 " Because," replied the other, " nineteen times won't do. If I tell 
 him but nineteen times all my labour is lost, but the twentieth 
 secures the object!" 
 
 Zeuxis being asked why he was so long about a picture, 
 answered, " I paint foi'ctcririty." 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY TEACHING. 121 
 
 heavy for it to bear. ^' I have fed you with milk, (said 
 the Apostle,) and not with meat." The Apostle followed 
 the example of his Lord, who said to His Apostles, " I 
 have yet many things to say nnto you, but ye cannot 
 bear them now." 
 
 There is one point more upon which it will be well to 
 add a few words, i. e., the necessity of doing the Lord's 
 work fully ; not picking and choosing as ive like, but 
 taking it as He presents it to us. 
 
 The children of God may rest assured, that the Evil 
 One will tempt them in their work, when he cannot 
 tempt them from it ; a believer may, by the way in which 
 he does work, aiford Satan as great an opportunity of 
 triumph, as if he had stood aloof from work altogether. 
 
 There is a natural tendency in the heart of man, to 
 shrink from what is painful, and burdensome; and in 
 almost every instance, he has fancies and preferences, 
 which he wishes to indulge; this tendency and these 
 fancies manifest themselves in ministry and testimony^ 
 especially in that of teaching. The minister and the 
 district visitor may shrink from visiting the disagreeable 
 people in their respective paths of duty, and give their 
 attention to those with whom it may be pleasant to con- 
 verse, and from whom, in point of fact, they may learn 
 much themselves ; the Sunday school teacher may decline 
 to receive into her class some stupid or unprepossessing 
 child, who should come into it in the ordinary routine of 
 the schooFs periodic changes, or, perhaps she will visit 
 during the week only the agreeable children or agreeable 
 parents, or, should she be impelled, by a strong sense of 
 duty, to receive the undesired child into her class, perhaps 
 she will slur over her duties towards her, and take less 
 
 M 
 
122 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — TEACHING. 
 
 pains with her than with the rest. Again, in the matter 
 of his sermons, the minister may shrink from the rough 
 hard work of dealing with unconverted men ; knowing 
 well that distinctive preaching must bring with it ob- 
 servation, if not opposition, he may turn to a class of 
 truths, which may at once edify the godly and leave the 
 ungodly untouched; he may fall into that dangerous 
 system, too common in the present day, of calling all, 
 " Christian brethren," and " beloved brethren," although 
 they may be well known to be living in open and daring 
 sin ; by so doing he is following his own choice and is 
 not doing the Lord's work fully, he is choosing for 
 himself, and he is almost certain to leave that in which, 
 perhaps the greatest blessings would have been found. 
 
 Had we the energy of Whitfield and Hill, and such 
 men, displayed in the present day, results would doubtless 
 appear akin to those which followed their ministry ; but 
 he who will minister thus, must expect to be called " an 
 enthusiast," "a ranter," '"'^a new light," and he may 
 consider that he has got ofi" well if this be all."^ The 
 
 * " When Pickthank had told his tale " against Faithful, in 
 the Pilgrim's Progress, "the judge directed his speech to the 
 prisoner at the har, saying * Thou runagate, heretic, and traitor, 
 hast thou heard what these honest gentlemen have witnessed 
 against thee ? ' And when the jury went out, whose names were 
 Mr. Blindman, Mr. No-good, Mr. Malice, Mr. Love-lust, Mr. 
 Live-loose, Mr. Heady, Mr. High-mind, Mr. Enmity, Mr. Liar, 
 Mr. Cruelty, Mr. Hate-light, and Mr. Implacable, every one gave 
 in his private verdict against him among themselves, and after- 
 wards unanimously concluded to bring him in guilty before the 
 judge. And first amongst themselves Mr. Blindman the foreman, 
 said, I see clearly that this man is a heretic. Then said Mr. No- 
 good, away with such a fellow from the earth. Ay, said Mr. 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — TEACHING 123 
 
 thin-skinned preacher will bleed at every scratch ; and 
 yet^ for my part, I have always found those men most 
 respected, and even most followed, who have not paid 
 respect to any person, who have said what they thought, 
 and nailed their colours to the mast. Even the world 
 honours consistency and courage, and the plainest speaker 
 will have, in general, the most hearers. The only part 
 by which a bull can be safely taken is by the horns. 
 
 The energy of manner of the late Rowland Hill, and 
 the power of his voice, are said to have been at times 
 overwhelming. While once preaching at Woottcn- 
 under-Edge, his country residence, he was carried away 
 by his feelings, arid, raising himself to his full height, 
 exclaimed, " Beware, I am in earnest ; men call me an 
 enthusiast, but I am not; mine are the words of truth 
 and soberness. When I first came into this part of the 
 country, I was walking on yonder hill; I saw a gravel 
 pit fall in and bury three human beings alive. I lifted 
 
 Malice, for I hate the very look of him. Then said Mr. Love- 
 lust, 1 could never endure him. Nor I, said Mr. Live-loose, for 
 he would be always condemning my way. Hang him, said Mr. 
 Heady. A sorry scrub, said Mr. High-mind. My heart riseth 
 against him, said Mr Enmity. He is a rogue, said Mr. Liar. 
 Hanging is too good for him, said Mr. Cruelty. Let us despatch 
 him out of the way, said Mr. Hate-light. Then said Mr. Impla- 
 cable, Might I have all the world given me, I could not be 
 reconciled to him ; therefore let us forthwith bring him in guilty 
 of death." 
 
 Christians who are in testimony for God, do not always hear 
 the world's, and perhaps their own ungodly neighbours' opinions 
 of them, but the above would salute their ears full often, if men 
 spoke out what they inwardly think, and what they say amongst 
 themselves. 
 
124 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — TEACHING. 
 
 up my voice so loud tliat I was heard to the town below, 
 a distance of a mile. Help came^ and rescued two of the 
 poor sufferers. No one caUed me an enthusiast then; 
 and when I see eternal destruction ready to fall upon 
 poor sinners^ and about to entomb them irrevocably 
 in an eternal mass of woe^ and call on them to escape by 
 repenting and fleeing to Christy shall I be called an 
 enthusiast? No^ sinner_, I am not an enthusiast in so 
 doing."*^ A shipbuilder on being asked what he thought 
 of Whitfield^ replied^ '^'^ Every Sunday that I go to my 
 parish church I can build a ship from stem to stem 
 under the sermon ; but under Mr. Whitfield I could not 
 lay a single plank .^^ 
 
 In all ministry, whether its special development be 
 teaching, or anything else, Christ Jesus is to be our 
 example. And what is the example which He sets us 
 here? Jesus did his Father's work fully; He shrank 
 from no part of it ; He did not decline any portion of it ; 
 He came into contact with sinners ; yea. He died with 
 one on the right hand, and another on the left. If any 
 one was warranted in declining contact with the sinner, 
 that ONE, assuredly, was Christ. Sin was to Him essen- 
 tially odious ; odious in a way in which it never can be 
 to us ; we cannot know its depths — He did ; we cannot 
 detect the individuals in whom its worst developments 
 are dwelling — He knew them as soon as they came near 
 Him; moreover, our nature being sinful in itself, does 
 not recoil instinctively, as His did, when evil is at hand. 
 The presence of sin was suffering to Him — it is not 
 always so to us ; the presence of sin could not lie hidden 
 from Him — it may be wholly undetected by us. When 
 we think of all this, and then, that the testimony con- 
 
MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY — TEACHING. 125 
 
 cerning Him was, " This man receiveth sinners, and 
 eateth with them/^ how can we pretend to be in ministry, 
 after his example, and yet act altogether differently from 
 the way in which He did. 
 
 Jesus never shrank from any sinner, when He could 
 minister to him in teaching. True ! He left the Pharisees, 
 and Sadducees, and Scribes, and such like cavillers, who 
 wanted to gainsay, and not to be taught ; but He went 
 out into the highways of life ; He conversed with the 
 worst He found there, and invited them to come in. 
 Zaccheus found Jesus willing to look upon him; the 
 Samaritan woman found him willing to converse with 
 her ; and again, and again, did He retm'n to minister to, 
 and to teach the crowd; to bear with the captious 
 questions of some, with the hard unbelief and pitiless 
 scorn of others. How could He have been the man of 
 sorrows, and acquainted with grief, if He had so chosen 
 His path in life, as not to touch one piercing thorn, or 
 tread upon one rough edged stone ? 
 
 And as Jesus did, so did His apostles also. They 
 verily did not pretend to choose the smooth; they 
 certainly did not pretend to avoid the rough. Had they 
 done so, they need not have gone through their great 
 fight of afflictions ; we may also add, their ministry would 
 have been without its glorious results. 
 
 Common observation ought to teach us, how impossible 
 it is to avoid the rough, if we would succeed in any great 
 enterprize. No conqueror brings to a successful issue 
 the war in which he is engaged, without encountering 
 many difficulties ; and those, over and above what he has 
 to meet on the field of bloody strife itself. No sailor 
 can bring his vessel to port, after a long voyage, without 
 
 M 2 
 
126 MINISTRY AND TESTIMONY TEACHING. 
 
 having had to weather some storms, and reef his sails in 
 some tempestuous gales. The shopkeeper, in his daily- 
 transactions of business, has to take the rough with the 
 smooth; the artizan must do the same, even with the 
 material upon which he works. Shall the Christian be 
 the only one who is exempted from all rough work, and 
 who is not to be called upon for an exercise of patience 
 and of skiU ? Let the Christian know that much of this 
 rough work from which he shrinks, is absolutely necessary 
 for his souFs health. Carefully refined food, would be 
 deleterious to the body ; and God has mixed the coarse 
 and fine, in due proportions, so that both, together, 
 nourish and expand the frame ; and so, carefully refined 
 circumstances, and spheres of action, would be deleterious 
 to the soul, and God has mingled the rough and smooth ; 
 and he who takes them, as God gives them, will be robust 
 in his spiritual frame, and well developed in all the graces 
 of the soul. For our own sakes, then, dear reader, let us 
 not reject anything whereunto we are called; let us not 
 look for fancy spheres of duty, fancy school children, 
 fancy sick people, fancy poor people ; picked cases for 
 our convenience, or, to speak more plainly, for our sloth ; 
 rather let us be prepared to endure hardness, for Christ ; 
 let us simply ask that our sphere, and all in it, be allotted 
 by the one whose we are, and whom we wish to serve; 
 and let us go forth to fill it, saying determinately, in the 
 strength of the Holy Ghost, " I will." 
 
127 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Irager. 
 
 Psalm xxviii, 1. " Unto TJiee tvill I cry, O Lord, my rock, he 
 not silent to me ; lest, if Thou he silent to me, I become like them 
 that go down into the pit." 
 
 Psalm Iv, 16, 17. " As for me, I will call upon God, and the 
 Lord shall save me ; evening, and morning, and at noon, will I 
 pray and cry aloud : and He shall hear my voice." 
 
 Psalm Ixi, 2. "From the end of the earth will I cry unto Thee, 
 wheti my heart is overwhelmed : lead me to the rock that is higher 
 than /." 
 
 Psalm Ixiii, 1. " O God, Thou art my God, early will T seek 
 Thee ; my soul thirsteth for Thee, my flesh longeth for Thee, in a 
 dry and thirsty land where no water is." 
 
 Psalm Ixxxvi, 7. " Ln the day of my trouble I will call upon 
 Thee,^ for Thou wilt answer me." 
 
 Psalm cxxi, 1. " I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from 
 whence cometh my help." 
 
 ¥E hear much^ we see much of the mighty powers 
 which God has put into the hands of man^ as 
 regards the natural world. Wheresoever we turn, we 
 find ourselves surrounded with the evidences of this 
 power in construction, in invention, and in imitation. 
 Scarce a day passes, in which we are not presented with 
 
128 PRAYER. 
 
 sometliing whicL. lias more or less of the claims of 
 novelty ; with some new discovery_, or else some applica- 
 tion or combination of powers already known. To this, 
 man is not blind ; he appreciates, he uses each new and 
 mighty engine, as it is presented to him : and whether it 
 be chloroform, to blunt the acuteness of his pain; or 
 electricity, to flash his messages to the ends of the 
 world ; or steam, to whirl him over the earth^s surface, 
 and do in his factories the work of thousands of hands ; 
 he hears, sees, speaks about_, and uses the mighty powers 
 which God has put within his reach. 
 
 We hear but little, however, of the mighty powers 
 which God has put into man's hands, so far as the 
 spiritual world is concerned. The prevailing aspect of 
 God's people is one of weakness, often one of despond- 
 ency ; they feel the pressure of the world, they see 
 difficulties to be overcome, they realize their own inherent 
 weakness — there is much despondency, by reason of the 
 realization of their own feebleness ; there is little vigour, 
 by reason of the non-realization of the mighty efficacy 
 of faith and prayer. 
 
 Faith and Prayer ! Could we but realize, and put into 
 operation, the powers contained in these, the two great 
 forces of the spiritual world, we should, in our collective 
 and individual capacity, be very different from what we 
 are ; we should know and feel that we had the key of 
 heaven's treasure, and the lever of heaven's strength; 
 we should " be strong in the Lord, and in the power of 
 His might," we should be prepared for great deeds, both 
 of action and resistance, in the spiritual life ; we should 
 never dream of failure, we should never miss real success 
 The Lord give you, dear reader, power in prayer. 
 
PRAYER. 129 
 
 Now, first of all, it will be encouraging to note some 
 of the Scripture statements, which show the power that 
 God has linked to prayer. 
 
 " Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, 
 and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain ; and it 
 rained not on the earth by the space of three years and 
 six months/' James v, 17. 
 
 ^' Elijah cried unto the Lord, and said, O Lord my 
 God, hast Thou also brought evil upon the widow with 
 whom I sojourn, by slaying her son? And he stretched 
 himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the 
 Lord, and said, O Lord my God, I pray Thee let this 
 child's soul come into him again. And the Lord heard 
 the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into 
 him again." 1 Kings xvii, 20 — 22. 
 
 '^ Asa cried unto the Lord his God, and said. Lord, it 
 is nothing with Thee to help, whether with many, or with 
 them that have no power : help us, O Lord our God ; for 
 we rest on Thee, and in Thy name we go against this 
 multitude. O Lord, Thou art our God; let not man 
 prevail against Thee. So the Lord smote the Ethiopians 
 before Asa, and before Judah ; and the Ethiopians fled.'' 
 2 Chron. xiv, 11, 12. 
 
 " Jabez caUed on the God of Israel, saying, O that 
 Thou wouldst bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, 
 and that Thine hand might be with me, and that Thou 
 wouldst keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me. 
 And God granted him that which he requested." 
 1 Chron. iv, 10. 
 
 ^^ The angel said unto Zacharias, Fear not, Zacharias, 
 for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elizabeth shall 
 bear thee a sou." Luke i, 13. 
 
130 PRAYER. 
 
 " Then shall ye call upon Me, and ye shall go and pray 
 unto Me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall 
 seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with 
 all your heart. And I will be found of you, saith the 
 Lord : and I will turn away your captivity, and I will 
 gather you from all the nations, and from all the places 
 whither I have driven you, saith the Lord; and I will 
 bring you again into the place whence I caused you to 
 be carried away captive.^^ Jer. xxix, 12 — 14. 
 
 ^^And he said, O Lord God of my master Abraham, 
 I pray Thee, send me good speed this day, and shew 
 kindness unto my master Abraham. Behold I stand by 
 the well of water ^ -5^ -5^ and let it come to pass, that 
 the damsel to whom 1 shall say, ' let down thy pitcher, I 
 pray thee, that 1 may drink ; ' and she shall say, ^ drink^ 
 and I will give thy camels drink also : ^ let the same be 
 she that Thou hast appointed for Thy servant Isaac ; and 
 thereby shall 1 know that Thou hast shewed kindness 
 unto my master. And it came to pass, before he had done 
 speaking, that Rebekah came out,^^ &c. Gen.xxiv, 12 — 15. 
 
 These are some examples of the power of prayer, but 
 Scripture might be said to teem with them in almost 
 every page. 
 
 Wonderful, indeed, is what can be done by prayer. 
 By it the hungry have been fed, and the naked clothed, 
 and the sick healed ; heaven has been unlocked, and hell 
 shut up : by it God's people have been strengthened, 
 and their enemies weakened ; brands, half burnt, have 
 been plucked from the fire; and difficulties, otherwise 
 insurmountable, have been overcome : great battles have 
 been won by it; great loads have been moved by it; 
 ^reat burdens have been sustained by it; and yet, is it 
 
PRAYER. 131 
 
 not wonderful,, that^ although we know all this^ we often 
 have to drag ourselves to prayer^ and feel listless and 
 heartless when on our knees. Satan knows the power of 
 prayer^ and doubtless does all he can to weaken us in it, 
 to make it a burden to us. Good need has the man of 
 God to make a determination^ and say ^^ I will/' 
 
 It may not be amiss to say a few words upon the 
 nature of the prayer on which we are now about to dwell. 
 
 How comes a man to pray at all ? ' The light of nature ' 
 will teach a man to pray. Some pray to the sun and 
 moon, some to the devil, some to angels and saints, and 
 to the virgin Mary ; with scarce an exception, all mem- 
 bers of the human family have some object to which 
 they pray. But in addition to this, the teaching of the 
 light of nature, there is ' the teaching of parents.' We 
 are from our infancy taught to pray ; almost all of us, as 
 soon as we are able to lisp anything, begin to say some 
 form of prayer. Advanced as the reader may now, per- 
 haps, be in life, he may possibly remember the time when 
 he knelt at his mother^ s knee, and uttered, after her, the 
 first petitions which he addressed to the throne of grace. 
 How often do these early memories cling to us, when the 
 intervening events of life fade and pass away ! 
 
 I would address a word or two to mothers, upon this 
 all important subject, of their children's prayers. We 
 continually find children taught a certain form of prayer, 
 which they unvaryingly repeat, morning and evening; 
 and which only, too often, becomes a mere matter of 
 repetition, a form of words. This may be, this, doubt- 
 less, is J productive of mischievous consequences ; a child 
 becomes insensibly a mere piece of machinery, performing 
 
132 PRAYER. 
 
 its accustomed round of work; or a parrot repeating 
 certain sentences which it does not understand. That a 
 child should in part be taught what to say_, is very right ; 
 but the evil consists in confining it to the form. Let us 
 remember that a child lives in a perfect little world of its 
 own ; that it has its griefs and joys, which are as real as 
 our own — as important to it, as ours are to us ; it has its 
 little wants, desires, and fears ; and to repress its prayers 
 on all these subjects, and turn them into another channel, 
 is to introduce the leaven of unreality, into the very 
 l)eginning of its spiritual life. Let prayer, above all 
 things, be real ; let a child mean what it says ; let it 
 have an interest in the prayer it offers up ; let it not be 
 forced to say prayers about things which it cannot under- 
 stand, and in which it cannot possibly take any interest. 
 For my own part, I should much rather hear my child 
 pray to God, with all her heart, that to-morrow might 
 be a fine day, so that she may be able to enjoy an 
 expected treat, than to hear her utter some words about 
 the conversion of the heathen, or a similar subject, 
 which, from her age, she could not possibly understand. 
 
 If I might make a suggestion to parents upon this 
 subject, I would say, when your child has uttered its 
 simple form of prayer, every word of which you should 
 take care that it understands, not only permit, but 
 encourage it to offer up prayer to God in its own words, 
 and about its own interests. Do not be shocked, or 
 offended, if the request be about a tsifle ; remember that 
 trifles are the great events of a child's life; a broken 
 wheel of a little cart is as important to it, as the breaking 
 of a bank may be to you. Because the child is a child, 
 its little sorrows are real to it ; let its prayers be real to ; 
 
PRAVER. 13'' 
 
 then it will grow up with a real interest in prayer ; it wi 1 
 look upon praver as a practical working thing; it wil , 
 in all probability, escape much of that formalism which 
 is so detrimental, so dangerous to the soul. A parent 
 will of course, shew a child when, and where its petitions 
 are not right; but, above all things, take care that the 
 child understands. . 
 
 'Conventional habit' has also something to do w.tli 
 praver. Public worship, and family worship, and morning 
 and evening prayer, are, to a certain extent customary; 
 thus people get into what might be called the routine of 
 saying prayers; and this "prayer saying" is often, on y 
 too like any of the other customs of daily li e; it would 
 be missed because it is a custom; it would be missed 
 from the outer, but not from the inner life of man. 
 
 It will be readily understood that it is not such prayer we 
 have now to consider. That which alone is worthy of the 
 name of prayer, is something widely different ; it is the 
 fruit of the operation of the Holy Ghost within the hear ; 
 it is a reality derived from personal need ; it is soul work 
 And what are we to say of such prayer as this i Is it 
 not that the child of God has, very often, to put a holy 
 violence upon himself, to bring himself thus to pray. It 
 may seem anomalous, but so it is ; the Christian has often 
 to be very determined with himself, to bring himself to 
 his knees, to make him avail himself of the privileges 
 and blessing of prayer. It may not be amiss to consider, 
 a little more at large, these impediments of which we 
 have to complain. 
 
 The first to be noticed is 
 
 Natural Inaptitude. By nature we are unapt to pray, 
 we have no natural drawings to this holy exercise, we 
 
131 PRAYER. 
 
 turn against it. How often have we experienced this 
 inaptitude ourselves? our souls have been as sickly and 
 disinclined for prayer, as the body often is sickly and 
 disinclined for food ; we have turned from \t, happy are 
 we if we have not turned against it. It is by no means 
 uncommon to hear true Christian people complain, that 
 for many days they have not been really able to pray. 
 They knew not why, they could not even guess why; 
 but their hearts were dull and cold, and refused to 
 respond to anything save the stern command of duty. 
 All this is lamentable, no one laments it more than the 
 Christian himself; experience, however, shews us that it 
 is true, and Natural Inaptitude must be numbered 
 amongst our serious impediments to prayer. 
 
 To know this, may be in itself of no inconsiderable 
 value to the striving, and perhaps sorrowing, child of 
 God. Instead of going to pray in his own strength, and 
 expecting the power of prayer to keep alive within him, 
 simply from his own habit of praying, the Christian 
 will say ^^I need continual influencings of the Holy 
 Ghost, I need an energy which will counterbalance the 
 inertium of my own nature, I need a gift of prayer, I 
 need something above nature, even springs and impulses 
 from heaven.^' It is under the blessed influences of 
 such impulses, that we shall say '' I will," in this matter 
 of prayer, and not only say it, but act it also. We shall 
 pray, despite our dull heavy natures ; we shall rise above 
 the weight of the flesh and all belonging to it, its dull 
 and heavy inertium will be overcome. 
 
 Some there are who are often kept from prayer by 
 the great difficulty they experience in putting their 
 thoughts into the form of words. This inaptitude is 
 
PRAYER. 135 
 
 used by the Evil One^ to act upon the soul; and further 
 his designs with reference to increasing the difficulty of 
 prayer. Men are ashamed of the poverty of their 
 language^ they are oppressed with the difficulty of clothing 
 their ideas, and so they are often restrained from prayer. 
 Now as God does not look at a man's clothes, but at the 
 man himself, so he looks not at the words, but at the 
 ideas and feelings, of a man^s prayer; be the words 
 never so poor He will understand them. He will never 
 misunderstand them. 
 
 Some years ago, one of the North American Indians, 
 a chief, visited our country, and at several large meetings 
 told his story. That story was given in something like 
 the following words : — 
 
 ^' I was a worshipper of the sun, and moon, and stars, 
 some fourteen years ago, when I heard a missionary 
 preach of a beautiful heaven, into which, he said, all the 
 righteous should enter, and of a dreadful hell, into 
 which all the wicked must be cast. I asked, ' Is there 
 any chance of a Chippewa Indian getting to heaven?' 
 I was told, ' Oh yes, heaven is open to all who believe in 
 Jesus, God's Son, if we come through Him we shal 
 find a warm welcome and a ready entrance.' I was glad 
 at this, for my sins began to trouble me ; I was like one 
 of our Indian deer, when it is shot by the hunter; it 
 flies over the hills and prairies until it becomes weary 
 with its exertions and faint with loss of blood; it falls 
 down, and turns first on one side, and then on the other 
 side, and at last it dies. Thus it was with me, the pain in 
 my heart rankled sorely, and I could get no rest from its 
 smart. But I prayed to God : however, I thought God 
 would only hear me if I prayed to Him in the English 
 
136 PRAYER. 
 
 language. I did not know much English^ but I said, 
 ^Oh Christ, have mercy upon me, poor sinner, poor 
 Indian.' About that time I was asked out to dine. 
 Before dinner a blessing was asked in the English lan- 
 guage, '^Ah,' I thought, 'God understands that;' but 
 after dinner, thanks were returned in the Chippewa 
 language, and I thought, 'If God understands your 
 Chippewa, He will understand mine.' I went home, I 
 crept up into a little hayloft, and in my native tongue, I 
 poured out my heart before the Lord, I said with Jacob, 
 ' Oh Christ, I will not let Thee go except Thou bless me,' 
 and before the day broke, my heart was full of joy 
 unspeakable and full of glory." The results of this 
 prayer we cannot omit. '' I then strove to make known 
 to my fellow-men the blessedness of the Gospel I had 
 received, I established a school, and, among other scholars, 
 I had thirty married women, who taught their husbands 
 at night what they had learned during the day. I had, 
 however, but one spelling book and one Testament. 
 My spelling book I took to pieces and gave a leaf to 
 each scholar, my Bible was passed from hand to hand. 
 Our progress was very slow, so I thought I would come 
 to the country whence the Bibles came, to look out for 
 help. And now, my dear friends, I have told my tale, 
 and I want to ask you if you will give me some 
 Bibles and spelling books to take back to my dear 
 children." 
 
 The response of the hall to this appeal was, " We will ! 
 we will!" And soon afterwards, freighted with a large 
 supply, the Indian went back to his own country, and 
 lived and laboured for Christ. In "The Times'" obituary 
 there subsequently appeared the following brief record of 
 
PRAYER. 
 
 137 
 
 his death ; '"'■ Died, in North West America, (on such a 
 day) Peter Jones, missionary and chief/^ 
 
 Inherent Unbelief is another sore impediment to prayer. 
 Now it might seem strange to speak of this, in connection 
 with the children of God. If they be not behevers, 
 v/ho are ? if they have not faith, who has ? They 
 undoubtedly have faith, and in that faith, they live ; but 
 with faith enough for eternal life, there exist, also, 
 remnants enough of unbelief, to vex and keep back the 
 believer's soul, in a thousand ways. Unbelief many a 
 time keeps the believer from the throne of grace; he 
 wants something which he knows God can give him; 
 but he has not that faith which can make him ask for it 
 joyfully, because believingly, upon his knees. Oh ! if we 
 had a living, ever present, full, rich faith, with what joy 
 should we often pray ! We should be sure of being 
 heard; we should go to our knees in the full expectation 
 of being about to receive some good thing. What keeps 
 lis back from large petitions? What makes ns pray 
 with that feeling of insecurity, which causes wavering in 
 prayer; which makes us think that we are as unlikely, 
 as likely, to get what we desire? It is the remnant of 
 imbelief. This unbelief takes the life out of many of 
 our prayers . it shakes us, and gives us that feeling of 
 ■uncertainty, which damps our earnestness ; it makes our 
 hand too unsteady to lay hold of, and to bear away a full 
 cup of blessing. And, many a time, it keeps us from 
 praying at all. Because we are not sure of God's answer- 
 ing us ; of course as he thinks best, but nevertheless of 
 answering, we are daunted from trying, and unbelief 
 gradually works its way, until it passes from the point in 
 hand, to other things also, and does us amazing hurt. 
 
138 PRAYER. 
 
 Must we not meet this unbelief with a brave and 
 determined "I will;^' must we not meet it with a full 
 resolution to act against it ? Surely, it does not become 
 the Christian, to succumb to this unbelief; to let it 
 triumph over him ; to let it keep him from prayer, by 
 which alone the desired blessing is to be had; let him 
 now nerve himself for conflict; let him prepare himself 
 to act, in spite of his unbelief; and coming determinately 
 to prayer, in prayer he shall receive fresh strength ; in 
 it his faith will grow, and the victory shall be obtained. 
 There are remnants of unbelief, in the holiest of the 
 saints of God, clinging to them even to the last; and, 
 as they mount higher and higher in their desires, seeking 
 more and more from God, these remnants will endeavour 
 to work hindrance to the spirit in its flights, and will call 
 forth the believer's determined " I will." 
 
 We must not suppose that unbelief is easily beaten 
 out of the field ; it will try and hurt, so long as we are 
 at this side of the grave. And it is well for us to be on 
 our guard, with reference to this, for we are liable to be 
 deceived ; even our very progress in faith may be used, 
 by unbelief, to work out its own ends. 
 
 The course of its proceeding will probably be this. 
 We have attained to a certain measure of belief in 
 prayer — we can pray for certain classes of things, fully 
 believing that God will answer our prayer — we are happy 
 in that faith — we enjoy the comfort of it; and in doing 
 so, will scarce believe that there is unbelief still within our 
 heart. But, suddenly we are taken out of our accustomed 
 beat and sphere in prayer; 2^ fresh class of subjects comes 
 before us; perhaps they involve our making larger 
 requests of God, than have ever hitherto been the case; 
 
PRAYER. 139 
 
 perhaps these requests require more immediate answers^ 
 thau any we have ever hitherto preferred ; they bring us 
 more quickly i'o a point ; they lead us into subjects in 
 which there is not so much likelihood of an answer as 
 there was in more ordinary things. Now we see how 
 much unbelief clings around us still ; how, the moment 
 our faith is led out of its accustomed beat, and made to 
 stand upon its own resources, upon its inherent vitality 
 and strength, it begins to waver; it is good to be 
 creatures of habit, in faith, but we must be something 
 more also, or in sudden emergencies, in all higher flights, 
 we shall fail. 
 
 Thus, when we think well of our faith in prayer, we 
 become tried, and are found to come short ; and hence, 
 dear reader, the necessity for a stern, and determined 
 '^ I will/' '^ It is no use to pray about such and such a 
 thing/' says unbelief; "I will,'' says the man of God; 
 and then, the battle with unbelief brings down upon 
 the knees ; prayer after prayer, is troubled and weakened 
 by it; but in the power of the Spirit, the battle is 
 fought, and the day is won. After this the Christian, in all 
 probability, stands on ground higher than any on which 
 he ever stood before; and is found not only to have 
 gained a victory in conflict, but also to have accumulated 
 strength for some more stern combat, yet to come. 
 
 The natural tendency to do the most for ourselves, 
 independently of God, is another great impediment to 
 prayer ; for prayer is an acknowledgment of dependence ; 
 and from this cause, also, the Christian is summoned to 
 prepare himself to utter a determined " I will." 
 
 An attempt at independence, was the ruin of our 
 forefather Adam ; and it has ruined many of his sons. 
 
140 PRAYER. 
 
 Independence of God is one development of pride ; and 
 oftentimes, almost unknown to the believer, exists in him, 
 to a greater or less degree. " I am rich, and increased 
 with goods, and have need of nothing," is often said by 
 one, who, in the estimation of Christ, is wretched, and 
 miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked. Rev. iii, 17. 
 
 We can easily understand, how a believer needs some 
 degree of watchfulness over himself, in order to keep 
 his heart determinately in a prayerful state. We are 
 required, while in the flesh, to act — we have to think 
 how to act — we have to follow, in our minds, the results 
 of action — we have to appear, as prominent actors in the 
 scenes of life ; and we have to do with others, who are 
 tangible actors also ; moreover, we have natural energies, 
 and judgment ; and we have appliances at hand, and so 
 forth ; and the natural tendency of all these is, to make 
 us busy in them, and in our efforts to help ourselves, and 
 while thus engaged, to forget how much we need to be 
 helped by God. 
 
 There is something very sweet to the natural man, in 
 independence ; and in so far as the Christian has remnants 
 of the natural man, thus far will independence be sweet 
 to him. Satan, who is ever ready to ground a temptation 
 to evil upon a good foundation, or at least, upon one 
 seemingly good, is prepared to do so here. He says, 
 ^^Why carry all those trumpery little things to God?" 
 he says, " God meant you to help yourself, why don't you 
 do so?" and he adds a great deal more of the same 
 stamp. Of course he never tells us that God is our 
 Father, and interested in the most minute of our affairs ; 
 nor does he tell us, that He never intended us to put the 
 machinery of life in the place of Himself, the great 
 
PRAYEK. 141 
 
 living, guiding power ; nor, tliat acting without Him will 
 soon lead us to acting independently of Him; all this 
 would be beside Satan^s purpose; and under tbe pretence 
 of cultivating a manly spirit of self-reliance, he will make 
 us, if he can, live, and move, and act, independently of 
 God; of God sought, and acknowledged in prayer. 
 
 It sometimes happens that God allows His people to 
 try this independence — this was the case when the 
 Gibeonites were received, as we read in Joshua ix, 14. 
 '^And the men took of their victuals, and asked not 
 counsel at the mouth of the Lord.^^ The result we 
 know; they were miserably deceived. God will allow 
 His people to be workmen under Him^ but not indepen- 
 dently of Him. And because of this, we must use these 
 words, " I will.^^ " I will pray, in using such and such 
 an instrument ; I will pray for success and skill ; I will 
 not allow myself to be led astray by the fairness of 
 appearances ; I will not think that the end is secured, 
 because the means for accomplishing it seem of surpass- 
 ing strength ; I will not allow God to be hidden from 
 mine eyes, by all these material things ; I will use them 
 in a spirit of prayer.^^ 
 
 Let us but observe, and act on this, and we shall find 
 that we shall not be confounded. The God whom we 
 practically acknowledge in prayer, will be sure to ac- 
 knowledge us practically, by giving us cause for praise ; 
 "in all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct 
 thy paths. ^^ Pro v. iii, 6. 
 
 There is in man a natural tendency to keep from alone 
 and immediate connection with God; and to overcome 
 this, often requires the expressed determination, " I will.^^ 
 
 "We have, in all probability, experienced something of 
 
142 PRAYER. 
 
 this ourselves. In our |iours of trial and difficulty^ we 
 have sought the sympathy of our fellow-man ; when evil 
 tidings came^ we have written off to some dear friend to 
 come to us^ or we have gone to him ; we had not as yet 
 learned to go alone^ and to go immediately, before God. 
 It is not that at such times we desire to bear our sorrows 
 by ourselves, for we seek for sympathy and support ; nor 
 is it that we want to hide them from God, and discon- 
 nect ourselves from Him ; it is simply that we have not 
 attained to such a knowledge of Him, and such expe- 
 riences of Him as our truest friend, as would draw us at 
 once to Him, to tell Him everything, either about what 
 we wish to do, or have to bear. Here we must bring in 
 the determined "I will;^' we must say, "I will take 
 counsel of Him in the solitude of prayer; / will tell 
 Him everything, as it were, face to face; I will do as 
 Hezekiah did, I will spread my letter before the Lord." 
 
 Did you ever, dear reader, spread a letter before the 
 Lord; literally take the vexing sheet, and open it out 
 before Him, and say to Him, '' Behold, O Lord, what I 
 have received, and teach me what to do ; or help me that 
 I may bear ; or give me wisdom that I may answer," as 
 the case may be ? Few of our readers escape letters with 
 evil tidings, letters of provocation, or annoyance, or dis- 
 appointment ; when the postman raps at the door, who 
 can tell what tidings he brings ? There is but one way 
 of being prepared for whatever the day may bring forth ; 
 it is by being able to refer all to God ; by knowing that 
 in humble trust we may bring everythm^ before Him in 
 prayer. This is the preparation of which the Psalmist 
 speaks in Psa. cxii, 7. " He shall not be afraid of evil 
 tidings; his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord." We 
 
PRAYER. 143 
 
 are prepared for everything, if we feel that wfe can bring 
 all before the Most High; if we can go in alone unto 
 Him, and hear what He will say concerning it. Let me 
 recommend you, dear reader, to go in with yoiir letters 
 before the Lord ; to spread them as literally before him, 
 as yon would before a friend ; to point with your finger, 
 as you pray, to the very passages which troul)le you 
 most; and in such an exercise as this, there will be a 
 reality which will speak even to your own soul. The 
 -matter will be between God and you : and you may be 
 sure you will have a realization that it is so. But in 
 order to pray thus, bringing yourself and your affairs into 
 immediate connection with God, you must, by His grace, 
 be a man of holy determination ; able in these matters to 
 say, "I will." 
 
 There is yet one point more upon which it will be well 
 to touch, as calling for this fixed determination in prayer. 
 We are sometimes backward because of our own known, 
 and felt, imperfection in prayer. Man is generally averse 
 to doing what he does with difficulty, or what he feels he 
 does badly ; and this natural feeling enters into prayer. 
 We often feel discouraged, when we think of our luke- 
 warmness and our wandering in prayer ; we feel at times, 
 it is only mockery or formality to pray, when we think 
 how miserable our prayers are ; and Satan is sure to help 
 on such thoughts as these, and say, " God will not listen 
 to you," and "if you can do no better than you have 
 done lately, you may as well let prayer alone." The con- 
 sequence is, that the Christian very often is put on a 
 wrong tack altogether; he waits until he can work 
 himself up into a better frame of mind for prayer, until 
 he thinks he can pray better ; and whilst thus engaged. 
 
144 PRAYER. 
 
 with his mind turned in upon himself, he gets weaker 
 instead of stronger_, which is precisely the result that 
 Satan wishes to bring about. 
 
 Dear reader, be encouraged to come to God just as 
 you are; with all your imperfections, with all your 
 shortcomings. Nothing can atone for the presence of 
 these in your past prayers save the blood of the blessed 
 Jesus, who has already atoned for them, if so be that 
 your prayers were offered through Him. Let us remem- 
 ber that He, the Perfect One, will do away with our 
 imperfections ; and if the heart be right with God, Jesus 
 will take care that the prayer be right also. Our past 
 imperfections, instead of making us backward, should 
 rather spur us forward, in order that such imperfections 
 should be overcome ; let us put ourselves under restraint, 
 and bringing with us Jesus, the One through whom all 
 prayer is heard, determine in the power of the Spirit, 
 and say, '^1 will'' 
 
145 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 TKE OBJECT OF THE '^ WILL" m PRAYER. 
 
 Psalm xxviii, 1. " Utito Thee will I cry, O Lord my rock; he 
 not silent to me ; lest, if Thou he silent to me, I become like them 
 that go down into the pit." 
 
 THE verses whicli we have to consider in reference to 
 prayer, present the supplications of the man of God 
 before us^ in several different aspects. More than one 
 of these aspects, is frequently found in the same verse; 
 we shall therefore have to recur to some passages, even 
 after they have been specially treated of, as presenting to 
 us fresh teaching, in this all important matter of prayer. 
 Thus Psalm Iv, 16, 17, gives us the time of trouble, in 
 which prayer is made ; and no less than three character- 
 istics of that prayer, namely " Faithful Expectation,^' 
 " Intensity,'^ and " Continuance." "As for me, I will call 
 upon God ; and the Lord shall save me. Evening, and 
 morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud : and 
 He shall hear my voice." The time of prayer was a 
 troublous one. He says, that " the Lord shall save him." 
 The prayer was made in faithful expectation — " the Lord 
 shall save" — the Lord ^^ shall hear my voice." The 
 
 o 
 
146 PRAYER. 
 
 prayer was cliaracterized by intensity — I will " pray and 
 cry aloud." And also with long continuance — " evening, 
 and morning, and at noon." 
 
 We shall limit onr thoughts in this chapter_, to the 
 consideration of God as the great object of prayer, in 
 the troublous time. 
 
 Prayer is here made in trouble,, in which^ all earthly 
 solacing would be but vain. It is evident that the 
 trouble is great ; that it is beyond the reach of ordinary 
 alleviation; that it will depress into the very lowest 
 depths, unless help be afforded from God Himself; if He 
 be silent, the Psalmist will be "like one, that goes 
 down into the pit.'' 
 
 Now earthly solace is not to be despised. The 
 sympathy of our fellow man, especially if it come from 
 a kindred heart, is sweet to most ; and even the rough 
 sympathy of those, who are not in many things kindred 
 with ourselves, but who, nevertheless, are drawn forth to 
 us by our woes, is grateful to us in our sorrowing hours. 
 Whilst, however, human sympathy is not to be spoken 
 of with depreciation, it must also be spoken of with truth. 
 Its powers are limited — it often tires and fails — there are 
 woes, both spiritual and temporal, which it cannot reach. 
 This has been experienced by every one who has been 
 in deep sorrow, either of body or of soul; they have 
 been cast loose from man ; the tie of communion, the 
 connecting link with their fellows, seems to have been 
 severed ; and they have been placed alone. How often 
 is it the case that this has been done, in order that the 
 way might be made clear for God, and God alone, to act. 
 
 It must not be supposed that at such seasons earthly 
 solace is silent, in the abstract. No ! the voice of 
 
PRAYER. 147 
 
 sympathy is heard by the outward ear^ bnt it cannot 
 penetrate to the heart; kindly looks are bright^ as the 
 sunbeams in their radiance, but they fall upon an icy 
 surface, which may reflect them, but does not receive 
 them ; the depths remaining as frost-bound as they were 
 before. Many a word of sympathy, and sustaining, and 
 consolation, has fallen, not only upon the outward ear, 
 but has reached the judgment, and yet never reached the 
 heart. The lip has responded to it ; so has the mind ; 
 but the heart has been silent; it has not heard itself 
 addressed, it has nothing therefore to answer. 
 
 It might not be amiss to remind the reader, that if he 
 undertake the task of comforter, or sympathizer, he 
 must expect to find this. There are times when we feel 
 inclined to be disappointed, at the little success of our 
 sympathizing efforts; we feel half inclined to be displeased 
 with the sorrowing one, because he will not be comforted ; 
 it is not enough for us that he receives our sympathy, we 
 want something more; we want to see some effect from 
 it. If, indeed, we wish to be wise sympathizers, let us 
 be content to spend our sympathy, without seeing any 
 result ; let us learn to be silent with the silent ones ; to 
 shew them that we, in some measure, take in their 
 sorrows ; that we are feeling they have a depth of woe, 
 which we cannot fathom. Such silence is eloquence, and 
 has much more likelihood of reaching the heart in time, 
 if indeed it ever can be reached by human sympathy, 
 than if we lavished many words at a season when the heart 
 Lai no capacity for taking in words at all. Job^s friends 
 did more for him when " they sat down with him upon the 
 ground seven days and seven nights, and none spake a 
 word unto him^ for they saw that his grief was very 
 
148 PRAYER. 
 
 great/ ^ than when they exhausted upon him all their 
 arguments. Job ii, 13. The sympathy of silence is^ 
 alas ! but little understood. 
 
 At such seasons at these^ God shuts us up unto Him- 
 self; He takes us into the wilderness^ where our eye can 
 light upon nothing that delights us ; where our ear can 
 hear no sound that pleases us ; He removes from us all 
 the ordinary occupations of hfe^ so that there is nothing 
 to divert us ; we have no resource except it be in Him. 
 
 At such seasons of trouble as these^ the soul often feels 
 as though it can be spoken to by God ; or, perhaps, half- 
 numbed, it scarce feels as though it can. When the soul 
 feels as though it can be spoken to by God, it realizes 
 that there is One who has access to the hidden springs of 
 its being; One who has a voice, which can penetrate 
 where human voice cannot reach ; if He will speak, it 
 will be to say, what will suit the souFs sad case. Such a 
 belief is, under circumstances Hke these, very conducive 
 to prayer ; the eye is turned simply upon God ; the 
 afflicted one asks Him to speak, and believes that He will. 
 But it is not always thus ; grief and trouble sometimes 
 numb, and half stupify the afflicted one ; he thinks that 
 his woe is beyond the reach of any, whether it be God 
 or man ; he feels so blunted that he can scarce receive 
 any comfort ; he has now no courage to look upward ; 
 and unless God give, at least, so much quickening, as 
 will make that man believe that something can be done 
 for him, disastrous results ensue. 
 
 In your trouble, dear reader, may it be ever given to 
 you to retain the sensitive powers of the heart; far better 
 is it to retain sensitiveness, and the capacity for being 
 acted upon by God, than to be numbed, and for a long time 
 
PRAYER. 149 
 
 to bear the heavy oppression of the heart/, as well as, 
 subsequently, the stingings which accompany the return 
 of sensation. As we naturally seek for help, where we 
 believe it is to be found, so the bare fact of realizing 
 that God can help us, will in itself lead our minds 
 upward to Him, who, in man^s trouble, is not looked up 
 to in vain. 
 
 The points, then, upon which we shall now dwell, are 
 these : — 
 
 The hearfs fixing upon God. 
 
 The hearfs desire from God. 
 
 The hearfs dependence upon God ; and 
 
 The hearfs hopelessness apart from God. 
 
 " Unto Thee'' says the Psalmist , " do I cry.'' Now 
 it is of the utmost importance that we should have a 
 definite object on which to fix our thoughts. Man, at 
 the best of times, has but little power for realizing 
 abstractions; but least of all in his time of sorrow. 
 Then he is helpless ; then he needs every possible aid ; 
 and if his mind wander in vacancy, it will soon weary, 
 and sink down exhausted. God has graciously taken 
 cg,re that this need not be done. He has so manifested 
 Himself to man in His word, that the afflicted one can 
 fix his mind's eye on Him, as the definite object of his 
 faith, and hope, and prayer. " Call unto Me, and / will 
 answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things 
 which thou knowest not." Jer. xxxiii, 3. This was 
 what the Psalmist did ; and the definiteness of God, as 
 the object of his trust in prayer, is very clearly marked. 
 " Unto Thee lift I up mine eyes, O Thou that dwellest in 
 the heavens. Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto 
 the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden 
 
 o 2 
 
150 PRAYER. 
 
 unto the hand of her mistress, so our eyes wait upon the 
 Lord our God, until that He have mercy upon us." 
 Psalm exxiii, 1, 2. 
 
 And specially great is the privilege of the Christian in 
 this matter. He can fix his eye on Jesus ; he, without 
 any very great stretch of imagination, can picture that 
 Holy One looking down upon him ; listening to him ; 
 feeling for him ; preparing to answer him. Dear reader, 
 in the time of your trouble, do not roam ; do not send 
 out your sighs into vacancy ; do not let your thoughts 
 wander, as though they were looking for some one on 
 whom to fix ; for some one to whom you could tell the 
 story of your heart's need, and desolation. Fix your 
 heart, as the Psalmist did, and say, " Unto Thee will I 
 cry.'' What a comfort is it to the child, that he can run 
 and tell his sorrows, or his fears to his parent ; that he 
 can go at once to the living sympathizer, or helper, as the 
 case may be ; thus many woes have been lightened ; 
 many evils been averted. Such comfort may be ours, if 
 we know where to take our troubles ; on whom to lay 
 them; to whom to confide everything connected vrith them. 
 
 Let us, as speedily as possible, seek to obtain this 
 personal definite view of God, if we have it not as yet ; 
 many reasons combine to make it most advantageous so 
 to do. For, first, should trouble come upon us speedily, 
 how dreadful will it be to have then to learn that we are 
 practically without resource. We believe, indeed, that 
 there is One who can sympathize with, and help us, but 
 we do not know where to find Him, we have not been 
 used to speak personally with Him, we cannot go upon 
 experience, all our knowledge we have to acquire. 
 And while things are in this state, considerable mischief 
 
PRAYER. 151 
 
 is going on^ we have to bear our load alone ;' we have to 
 bear it_, not sitting down, but going about seeking for one 
 to help ns ; and under these circumstances the burden 
 must be the heavier. Much valuable time is thus lost, 
 wounds are being galled and opened, instead of mollified 
 and closed, the heart is being crushed under its own 
 weakness, instead of being lightened by reposing on 
 heavenly strength. Moreover, while turning hither and 
 thither, there is a danger of our being led far astray. 
 Satan will be sure to be at hand, and ready to lead us 
 away from God instead^of to Him. That soul is in a 
 dangerous case, which is found wandering about by 
 Satan in the day of trouble ; he has refuges of his own, 
 to which to lead it ; and many a poor stricken one has 
 been thus deceived, and has plunged into his pitfalls, by 
 way of drowning sorrows, which Jesus would have taken 
 and borne Himself. 
 
 Oh ! how happy is that man, who feels and knows that 
 when trouble comes, he cannot be bewildered and 
 confused by the stroke, no matter how heavy it may be. 
 Sorrow-stricken he will be, sorrow- stricken God may 
 intend him to be, but he has his resource, and he knows 
 it, and will avail himself of it. His is no vague theory 
 of the general sympathy of God for man ; his is a know- 
 ledge of God, as a personal and feeling God ; he says 
 with the Psalmist, " Unto Thee will I cry." 
 
 And that object is the right one. What terrible 
 mistakes do men often make in their choice of a friend ! 
 Some cannot understand our case ; some will take base 
 advantage of it ; some, meaning well, will wholly mislead 
 us; and, after all, the heart, with the addition of some 
 fresh bitter experience, may be thrown back upon itself. 
 
152 PRAYER. 
 
 The present is tlie time for learning, that God is the 
 One on whom to fix the heart_, in the day of trouble. 
 We shall always learn something fresh of God, when 
 looking to Him in our troublous time ; but it is not then 
 that we should begin to seek Him ; we should be able to 
 go to Him as a tried, as a well-known God ; as One 
 who is not now to be tried, but rather to be depended, 
 and leant upon. It is one thing to have attained to 
 making an effort to lean on the right one for help ; it is 
 another to be able to dispense with effort, and to repose 
 on Him. • 
 
 Such, then is the hearths fixing upon God ; we may 
 rest assured that such heart fixing is well pleasing to Him. 
 He loves His people to come first and straight to Him ; 
 He wills to be the One to come uppermost in their 
 minds, when they need a friend — He is honoured in this 
 trust; and those that honour Him, He will honour in 
 return; when He is the first object of His people^s 
 thought, in their time of trouble. He will shew them 
 that the confidence they repose in Him, by coming to 
 Him first in prayer, is not misplaced. 
 
 Let us next observe what the heart desires from God. 
 It is that He would speak. "Be not silent unto me." 
 Under these circumstances, when we make our prayer, 
 we desu'c that God would let us know tnat He hears 
 us — and that he would appear for us — and that He 
 would say. He is our Father. 
 
 And what do we desire God to say? AVe want Him 
 to let us know that He hears us ; we want to hear Him 
 speak as distinctly to us, as we feel that we have spoken 
 to Him. We want to know, not only by faith that we 
 
PRAYER. 153 
 
 have been heard^ but by God's having spoken to us, on 
 the very subject whereupon we have spoken to Him. 
 When we feel thus assured that God has heard us, we 
 can with the deepest coniidence_, leave the whole matter 
 about which we have been praying, in His hands. 
 Perhaps an answer cannot come for a long time ; perhaps 
 things, meanwhile, seem working in a contrary way; 
 it may be, that there is no direct appearance at all of 
 God upon the scene; still faith will hold up and be 
 strong ; and there will be comfort in the heart, from the 
 felt consciousness that God has heard our cry about the 
 matter, and that He has told us so. We shall say to 
 ourselves, " God knows all about it ; God has in point of 
 fact told me so ; therefore I am in peace." And let it 
 be enough for us that God tells us this, when He will 
 perhaps tell us no more ; let us not want to try and 
 induce Him to speak much, when it is His will to speak 
 but little — the best answer we can have at certain times 
 is simply the statement that " He hears ;" by this answer 
 to our prayer He at once encourages, and exercises our 
 faith. " It is said," says Rutherford, " speaking of the 
 Saviour^ s delay in responding to the request of the 
 Syrophenician woman, ' He answered not a word ; ' but 
 it is not said, He heard not a word. These two differ 
 much. Christ often heareth when he doth not answer — 
 His not answering is an answer, and speaks thus — ' pray 
 on, go on and cry, for the Lord holdeth His door fast 
 bolted, not to keep you out, but that you may knock, 
 and knock, and it shall be opened.^" 
 
 But what if God be silent, and continue so for a 
 lengthened time ? Has this ever been the experience of 
 a believer ? It undoubtedly has ; and men have risen 
 
154 PRAYER. 
 
 from tbeir knees, not knowing whether they had been 
 heard or not. These are seasons of pecuhar distress, to 
 the praying people of God ; and they have to take up 
 the words which we find a little further on, in the verse, 
 '^ lest if Thou be silent unto me, I be like unto them 
 that go down into the pit.^' 
 
 Many of God^s people have, from time to time, been 
 oppressed in prayer with the feeling, that God has not 
 heard them ; that their prayers have never pierced the 
 skies at all, but have fallen back heavily upon themselves ; 
 depression has come over their hearts ; they have prayed 
 in vain. 
 
 There is a peculiar depression consequent upon the 
 feeling of not having been heard ; a depression, distinct 
 from that which accompanies the thought, that God may 
 not grant our requests. In the present instance, we 
 appear thrown back upon ourselves ; our labour, it may 
 be our agony in prayer, seems useless ; we almost think 
 ourselves thrown out of our connection with the spiritual 
 world — unable to gain even a hearing, no matter what 
 the consequence of that hearing might be. By sup- 
 posing ourselves similarly circumstanced in matters of 
 daily life, we can easily understand how painful this 
 state of things is — happy are we if we do not understand 
 it from actual experience ! 
 
 Suppose the suitor cannot get a hearing for his case 
 from the judge; suppose that applications for help are 
 written, again and again, and no answer comes in return; 
 at least, to say that they have been received; suppose 
 we have offended some one that we love, and that now, 
 repentant and distressed, we address letters of sorrow for 
 the past, but that no acknowledgement leads us to know 
 
PRAYER. 155 
 
 that they have been opened, or even rcceived ; we can 
 imagine the numbing, and distressing influence on the 
 heart. 
 
 If only we could get a hearing, we think that all would 
 be well, or at any rate, that matters would be better 
 than they are now; we might be able successfully to 
 plead our cause, or, if we could not, ours would be at 
 least the satisfaction of knowing that we had left no 
 stone unturned, and that things would have been different 
 if only we could have been heard. It is more depressing 
 and irritating not to be able to get a hearing, than to 
 succeed in getting one, and then to fail in obtaining our 
 desires. 
 
 Now what the soul often wants in prayer, is just this 
 assurance of being heard. If only the petitioner can feel 
 that every word he says, every thought he has upon the 
 matter in hand, really enters into the ears of God, one 
 half his difficulties are passed, he can experience more 
 comfort, and exercise more power in prayer. 
 
 It is indeed of the utmost importance that we should 
 feel that we are being heard ; one sentence uttered under 
 this consciousness, is of more power than many when it 
 is not present. 
 
 We shall be greatly helped in this matter, if, when we 
 go to prayer, we take pains about being sure that we 
 come into the very presence of God.^ If we be sure that 
 
 * This may not be an unfitting place to make an observation 
 upon the great value of mental realization in prayer, and some of 
 the aids thereto. Very many find great difficulty in making 
 prayer, as matter of fact a transaction, as any of the ordinary 
 proceedings of daily life ; Satan uses the sacredness of prayer to 
 destroy its reality ; with consummate craft he removes it from 
 
156 PRAYER. 
 
 we are in His presence, we must also be sure that we are 
 heard. That time is well occupied,, which we spend iri 
 the act of coming into the Divine presence. True, some 
 can find themselves there in a moment, but some cannot; 
 
 what is customary and real, to what is speculative and ideal. Let 
 us make prayer a common transaction between ourselves and oui 
 God ; until we do so, it will never exercise a matter of fact in- 
 fluence, a working power. The author knows a minister who 
 finds it very helpful to act as well as pray his prayers ; e. g., il 
 an unpleasant or perplexing letter comes, he spreads it open upon 
 the chair or table at which he is kneeling, and he x^oints with his 
 finger to the passages in question, and prays about them. If he 
 has to preach, he lays his hand in prayer upon his forehead and 
 says, " O Lord, anoint my thoughts, that I may be able to think 
 aright on the subject on which I am now about to preach" — he 
 passes his hand across his lips, and says, " O Lord, anoint my 
 lips, that wise words may come forth from them, and prudent and 
 skilful words, that I may not only know what to say, but how to 
 say it ; that no unadvised word may come forth from my mouth ;" 
 — he opens his waistcoat and lays his hand upon his heart, and 
 says, *' O God, give right afiections here, give warmth of feeling, 
 and love, and fervour," &:c. . . and thus he has the consciousness 
 that, so far as he himself is concerned, he has really sought God's 
 influences in prayer. Then, with regard to the congregation — in 
 his mind's eye he takes in, not the whole church, but one side of 
 the aisle, and he prays for those who will be there ; then for the 
 other side, and so on, for the diff'erent parts of the church ; then 
 when the time comes for him to preach, and he looks down from 
 his pulpit, he feels that he has prayed for all. 
 
 If the reader have a letter of importance to write, let him put 
 the unwritten sheet of pamper before him ; let him point to it, before 
 the Lord, and say, " O Lord, teach me what to write on this 
 paper;" — if he be going to distribute a bundle of tracts, let him 
 bring the tracts themselves before God, and put his hands upon 
 them and pray over them ; if the mother have a child that grieves 
 her, let her creep quietly into its room when it is sleeping at night, 
 
PRAYEIl. 157 
 
 and there is no reason why a man should not pause 
 before he begins to pray, and solemnly perform the act 
 of approach in his own mind, and thus reverentially 
 proceed into the presence of the Most High. When 
 sure that we are in His presence, and that we are ad- 
 dressing Him, we then, as has been said, feel sure that 
 we are heard. 
 
 But we seek for more than this ; our hearths desire is 
 that God will speak to us, and thus let us know that He 
 hears us ; we say " Be not silent unto me." 
 
 Now, when God gives us an inward witness that our 
 prayer has been heard, that witness brings peace to our 
 hearts. God may not say, " I will grant this petition," 
 but He does, in point of fact, say, " It now rests with 
 me ; I know thy desires ; " and then, if we know anything 
 of Him at all, we feel that He will send such an answer 
 as is for our truest good. 
 
 There is great sustaining influence in the realization 
 that God has heard us ; in His having said even no more 
 than this, " I have heard thee." If things seem to be 
 going wrong in the matter concerning which we have 
 prayed, we shall feel we know that God has it before 
 Him, because He witnessed to our hearts that he heard 
 us about it ; if there be long delays, and the heart seem 
 
 and pray over it, and point to it, before the Lord, and say, "0 
 Lord, for this child I ask," &c. And in the common things of 
 daily life, this embodying- of prayer will be very useful — let the 
 sick man hold his medicine in his hand and pray over it — let the 
 teacher spread her books before the Lord, and say over them, 
 " Lord help me to communicate the knowledge I am to impart," &c.; 
 and thus, and thus only, we bring the might of heaven into the 
 little things of daily life, and live in the enjoyment of a privilege 
 which is surely ours. 
 
158 PRAYER. 
 
 inclined to become sick under the influence of "hope 
 deferred/' we shall stay ourselves upon tliis thought, 
 " God has said to me that He listened to my supplications 
 on this point/' When once we are certain that God 
 has heard us about any matter, there we must leave it, 
 results are with Him ; and being willing to leave results 
 with Him, we are entitled to seek the full assurance that 
 He has listened to us, by His own witness to us on the 
 point. 
 
 Another part of the heart's desire is, that God would 
 appear for us in these circumstances. 
 
 Now this appearance need not have reference to the 
 outer world at all. The desire of the Psalmist is, that 
 God would speak to him. " Be not silent unto me." He 
 wants to hear God assure him, that He is noting all the 
 circumstances of his case; and this voice need not, for 
 purposes of comfort, go beyond himself. What powerful 
 comfort there is in the thought that God has spoken to 
 our soul; that He has spoken with reference to the 
 points, in which we are at that moment troubled; that 
 He has thus made His appearance on our behalf. At 
 the sound of this voice, our fears are stilled ; and if we 
 cannot attain to being joyful, we are at least in peace; 
 the appearance of cu'cumstances may have in no wise 
 changed : our own resources may have in no wise in- 
 creased; but God has spoken to us, and in this our heart 
 finds rest. 
 
 Let us not want immediate displays of active inter- 
 ference ; let us rest in the fact of having heard the voice 
 of God, in answer to our prayers. If we know God 
 aright, that fact will involve many others. We shall 
 
PRAYER. 159 
 
 have His secret ; we shall know that it is impossible for 
 God to hear and not to act, and so we shall wait 
 patiently until He work, how and when He please. 
 
 The hearths dependence upon God, is another point 
 prominently brought before us here. The Lord seems to 
 be everything to the Psalmist in his trouble. "Unto 
 Thee will I cry, lest if Thou be silent unto me, I be- 
 come like them that go down into the pit." 
 
 This dependence is well pleasing in the sight of God. 
 Man does not often like to find his fellow man leaning 
 upon him, much less, throwing himself wholly upon him; 
 he is afraid of the drag that will be made upon his 
 resources ; he does not like to be clogged, and em- 
 barrassed with a helpless creature. But it is not so with 
 God. Infinite in His resources, He never can be 
 embarrassed ; the larger the demand made on Him, the 
 better pleased He is. 
 
 If we had deep realizations of God's wealth, and of 
 His desire to see men draw largely upon it, we should 
 know more of heart dependence, than we do now ; but 
 the truth is, that we, imperceptibly perhaps to ourselves, 
 measure God by our own little standard ; and so fail to 
 lean upon Him, with that thorough dependence which 
 He loves. Not long since, a considerable sum of money 
 was wanted for a special purpose, in which God's cause 
 was concerned ; and a worthy man, when conversed with 
 about itj and told that it was confidently expected from 
 the Lord, answered, that it was expecting too much from 
 God; the homely phrase used meaning, that it was 
 ^* pushing God too hard ! '' This worthy man's idea was 
 by no means an uncommon one ; many think that it is 
 
160 PRAYER. 
 
 exacting y to expect much from God; that it is not 
 modest to expect too much from Him ; in a word^ that 
 He, the Infinite One, should be dealt with as though He 
 were finite, as though He could be exhausted by our 
 petitions. Concentrated dependence is what God likes 
 to see in His people. Dependence of the deepest, 
 and most perfect kind; dependence concentrated upon 
 Him. He loves His people to feel that ^'^if He be 
 silent unto them, they become like them that go down 
 into the pit." 
 
 And this mention of the pit introduces us to the last 
 point, which is to be noticed in this chapter, viz.. The 
 hearfs hopelessness apart from God. ^' Lest if Thou be 
 silent unto me, I become like them that go down into 
 the pit.'' 
 
 The word " pit,'' taken by itself, may mean any kind 
 of pit; but in the phrase in which it is here and else- 
 where found, it means the place of the departed, either 
 of their bodies or souls. The sense, then, of what the 
 Psalmist says is this, " Unless Thou, O Lord, wilt 
 hearken to my cry, I cannot be sustained even in life; 
 there is no hope for me upon earth." 
 
 We shrink, in all probability, from being reduced 
 to such a state as this; we cannot bear to have to say, 
 " Attend unto my cry, for I am brought very low," but 
 it is necessary that we should come to this. The last 
 resource of the heart of poor fallen man is God; He 
 should be the first. He is the last ; and as long as there 
 is anything for the heart to lean upon or hope from, it 
 will not go to Him. Even God's own people are prone 
 to forget this; and, from time to time, grounds of 
 
PPvAYKR. 161 
 
 human hope imperceptibly take the place of the One 
 great object of hope^ God, the all-suflScient God Him- 
 self. 
 
 There is no doubt but that God sees it expedient from 
 time to time, as the Great Physician, to reduce His 
 patients very low ; to make them feel what they knew 
 well enough in theory, viz., that without Him, they are 
 utterly undone. At such seasons, visions of the pit seem 
 to come before their eyes ; they seem shut up to it, and 
 there is little likelihood of escaping from it. These are 
 terrible times, but they are also times of immense 
 spiritual acquisition; we sometimes learn more of God in 
 them, than in the evenly flowing events of one half our 
 lives. We know that in our ordinary lives, there are 
 periods of very short duration in which we seem to learn 
 more than we had learned in years previously. When 
 death has taken away some one very near our heart, we 
 seem to live a whole lifetime in a very few days or hours, 
 and not only to live but to learn in proportion. I can 
 well understand a man's saying " I learned more in those 
 few hours than in all my life beside /' it may be that then, 
 for the first time, such an one was shut up between God 
 and the pit, and obliged to cast himself upon Him, in a 
 way which he had never done before. There are times 
 in which the spiritual man will age many years in a few 
 short hours. And this will just shew us how little we 
 can guage another man's spiritual experience, and how- 
 presumptuous it is for us to sit in judgment upon it. 
 " Is not this the carpenter's son ?" say the Jews, '^ whence 
 then hath He these things ? and they were offended at 
 Him." They knew not His communion with the Father, 
 and how different it was from theirs. And much the 
 
 p 2 
 
16.2 PRAYER. 
 
 same form of question is asked by some, with regard to 
 those for whose knowledge and experiences they cannot 
 account. They know that such an one could not have 
 grown into his present advanced state ; how is it then 
 that, all at once, he has made such a stride in spiritual 
 things ? He has seen the pit, he has seen no deliverer 
 from the pit hut God alone ; he has been brought into 
 such terrible nearness to that pit that he must go into it 
 unless God interfere on his behalf; let us be assured 
 that there are seasons, when five minutes are more 
 pregnant with deep spiritual teaching, than thrice as 
 many years. Jesus lived far more than an ordinary 
 lifetime of sorrow, in the moments of His bitter agony 
 in Gethsemane. Spiritual life may be measured by 
 intensity as well as length. 
 
 Let your heart then, dear reader, fix itself upon God ; 
 say, " Unto Thee will I cry, O Lord, my rock.'' Let 
 your heart's desire be from Him, that He wo aid speak 
 to you ; say, " Be not silent unto me." Let your heart's 
 dependence be upon Him, yea, let your heart be hopeless 
 apart from Him; say, "lest if Thou be silent unto me, I 
 become like them that go down into the pit." Thus 
 cast yourself upon God, and He will accept the trust, 
 and He will keep you from the deep, dark, dungeon-pit 
 of despair ; and if, for His glory, there be any pit into 
 which you have to descend. He will not be silent to you; 
 He will not leave you nor forsake you ; but will walk 
 with you in furnace fires heated seven-fold more than is 
 their wont, and sit with you, even amid all the horrors 
 of the lions' den. 
 
163 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE ''I WILL" OF PRAYER m THE TIME OF 
 TROUBLE. 
 
 Psalm Iv, 16, 17. "As for me I loill call upon God, and the 
 Lord shall save me. Evening, morning, and at noon, will I pray, 
 and cry aloud : and He shall hear my voice" 
 
 DAVID was a man wlio not only worshipped God, 
 but who lived and walked with him also. His 
 communion and his prayer were morning, noon, and 
 evening — when the sun was rising, when it was hot, and 
 when it was setting — he lived with God, and so he lived 
 in a spirit of prayer. 
 
 David, then, could well say the "I will^^ which we 
 are about to consider now ; so also could Christ, to whom 
 prophetically this psalm belongs. 
 
 In the days of His flesh, our Lord caUed evening, 
 morning, and at noon, upon His Father ; He cried aloud ; 
 and we know that He was heard. Thus much we know 
 of Jesus, that He prayed continually : that He remained 
 all night upon the mountain side in prayer; but how 
 little do we know of His " cryings aloud." Such as are 
 revealed to us, may, perhaps, give us a clue to what many 
 others were; the bitter cries of Gethsemane were not 
 
164 PRAYER. 
 
 strange sounds in the ears of God ; many sucli had, 
 doubtless_, come before His throne from the mountain 
 side, on which His Son was keeping His lonely vigil, of 
 meditation and prayer — and not only from the solitude 
 of the mountain side, but also from the crowded haunts 
 of the resorts of men. "When Jesus sighed, when He 
 looked up to heaven, little, or it may be, nothing was 
 heard by human ear ; but a loud voice was heard before 
 the Father^s throne in heaven. "I know,^' said Jesus, 
 " that Thou hearest me always." " Evening, morning, 
 and at noon will I pray, and cry aloud : and He shall 
 hear my voice." 
 
 Humbly and at a great distance, no doubt, must Jesus' 
 people ever follow Him; still we may, yea, we must 
 follow Him on earth, even as we hope to follow Him to 
 that place whither He has gone before ; and so we also, 
 it is to be hoped, can take up this ^ I Will ^ of Jesus, and 
 of David, and say, '^As for me, I will call upon God, 
 and the Lord shall save me. Evening, and morning, 
 and at noon, will I pray and cry aloud; and the Lord 
 shall hear my voice." Feebly and imperfectly, owing to 
 the weakness of the flesh, will we carry out such a 
 declaration as this ; but our feebleness must not deter us 
 from entering on it. Of that feebleness God will take 
 no account in wrath, but much account in pity ; so much, 
 that we may in all faith take up the Psalmist^s words, 
 and say, '^ And He shall hear my voice." 
 
 There are some points of practical instruction brought 
 before us here, from which we may gather teaching, in 
 matters connected with our ordinary spiritual life. 
 
 Observe, I. The standing out in strong distinctiveness, 
 "As for me." 
 
PRAYER. 165 
 
 Circumstances were now about as bad as tliey well 
 could be. The voice of the enemy was heard; the 
 oppression of the wicked was felt : " they cast iniquity 
 upon me/^ says the Psalmist^ '^ in wrath they hate me." 
 And these circumstances became aggravated by the fact^ 
 that some of the actors upon the scene^ were those who 
 ought to have occupied the position of friends. ^^It 
 was not an enemy that reproached me, then I could have 
 borne it; neither was it he that hated me, that did magnify 
 himself against me, then I would have hid myself from 
 him ; but it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and 
 mine acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together, 
 and walked unto the house of God in company." 
 
 Let us here, first of all, observe that there is no 
 disarming of malice by compromise. Had the Psalmist 
 chosen to compromise, he might often, no doubt, have 
 disarmed the enmity of his foes; had Jesus chosen to 
 compromise, he also might have done the same. A half- 
 and-half man, a half-and-half creed, will never meet with 
 violent opposition or enmity from the world. Even what 
 might be called a three-quarters man will escape without 
 very much hurt. It is the out-and-out Christian, and the 
 out-and-out creed that tha world hates. Making com- 
 promises is an old trade of Satan^s; it is one at which he 
 shews consummate skill; he is willing to be large and 
 liberal ; he will concede far more than, at first sight, any 
 one would suppose ; in fact, he will go so far as to say, 
 ^'You may be nine- tenths Christ^ s, if only, as regards 
 the remaining tenth, you will agree to be mine." 
 
 The man of God must pray for grace, never even to 
 listen to the smallest word on the subject of compromise. 
 
166 PRAl'EIl. 
 
 He ought to nail Ms colors to the mast, and not listen, 
 even for a moment, to any terms upon which those colors 
 are to be struck. " No surrender ! ^' No compromise V' 
 These should be the mottos, and the watchwords under 
 which he fights. 
 
 Let us see how some of the ancient saints and martyrs 
 dealt with the endeavours which were made to induce them 
 to a compromise. "When Polycarp was apprehended, 
 and was on his way to the tribunal, the irenarch Herod, 
 and his father Nicetes, met him, and, taking him up into 
 their chariot, began to advise him, asking, ' What harm 
 is it to say. Lord Caesar ! and to sacrifice, and be safe?' 
 At first he was silent ; but being pressed, he said, ' I will 
 not follow your advice.^ When they could not persuade 
 him, they treated him abusively, and thrust him out of 
 the chariot ; so that in falling he bruised his thigh. But 
 he, still unmoved, as if he had sufiered nothing, went on 
 cheerfully, under the conduct of his guards, to the 
 Stadium. There, the tumult being so great that few 
 could hear anything, a voice from heaven said to Polycarp, 
 as he entered on the Stadium, ' Be strong, Polycarp, and 
 behave yourself like a man.^ None saw the speaker, but 
 many of us heard his voice. When he was brought to 
 the tribunal, there was a great tumult, as soon as it was 
 generally understood that Polycarp was apprehended. 
 The proconsul asked him if he were Polycarp ; to which 
 he assented. The former then began to exhort him : — 
 ' Have pity on thy own great age ' — and the like. 
 ^ Swear by the fortune of Caesar — repent — say ^Take 
 away the atheists/ ^ Polycarp, with a grave aspect, 
 beholding all the multitude, waving his hand to them, 
 and looking up to heaven, said, ' Take away the atheists.' 
 
PRAYER. 167 
 
 The proconsul urging him, and saying, ^ Swear, and I 
 will release thee; reproach Christ/ Polycarp said, 
 'Eighty and six years have I served Him, and He hath 
 never wronged me; and how can I blaspheme my King 
 who hath saved me?^ The proconsul still urging, 
 ' Swear by the fortune of Csesar,^ Polycarp said, ^ If you 
 still vainly contend to make me ^ swear by the fortune of 
 Caesar,^ as you speak, affecting an ignorance of my real 
 character^ hear me frankly declaring what I am : — I am 
 a Christian, and if you desire to know the Christian 
 doctrine, assign me a day, and hear/ The proconsul 
 said, 'Persuade the people/ Polycarp said, 'I have 
 thought proper to address you, for we are taught to pay 
 to magistracies, and powers appointed by God, all 
 honour, which is consistent with a good conscience/ 'I 
 have wild beasts,^ says the proconsul ; ' I will expose you 
 to them, unless you repent/ 'Call them,^ replies the 
 martyr; 'our minds are not to be changed, from the 
 better to the worse ; but it is a good thing to be changed 
 from evil to good/ 'I will tame your spirit by fire,^ 
 says the other, ' since you despise the wild beasts, unless 
 you repent/ 'You threaten me with fire,' answers 
 Polycarp, ' which burns for a moment, and will be soon 
 extinct; but you are ignorant of the future judgment, 
 and of the fire of eternal punishment, reserved for the un- 
 godly. But why do you delay ? Do what you please.' '^ 
 
 To swear by "the fortune of Csesar'' seemed but a 
 small concession, how much less evil did it appear than 
 cursing Christ ; but the Christian martyr would hear of 
 no concession at all, and rather than make any, he died. 
 
 We may rest assured that we fall into a decided trap 
 of Satan's^ when we offer to yield even ever so little to 
 
168 PRAYER. 
 
 the world in order to disarm its malice ; we shall^ in all 
 probability, be driven from one concession to anotlier_, 
 and even if this be not the case, we shall find that, after 
 all, the malice of the world is as strong as it was before. 
 I doubt much whether its malice will not be even 
 stronger, for now it will despise, as well as hate. 
 
 The Psalmist took his stand, he said, " as for me/' 
 just as Joshua did, who took up his own ground, 
 irrespective of what all others might do, saying, " As for 
 me and my house, we will serve the Lord.'' 
 
 Why need we resort to compromise, to disarm the 
 world of its malice, or rather to neutralize its power, for 
 disarm it we never can. To think of compromise, is as 
 much as to say, " we have not a sufficiency of resource in 
 God, we are driven by hard necessity to these disreputable 
 shifts." If we knew our resources, in prayer, we should 
 never think of compromise for a moment, we should say 
 to ourselves " there is no need for anything of the kind, 
 my God to whom I commit the malice of my enemies in 
 prayer, is able and willing to deal with them, ' as for me, 
 I will call upon God, and the Lord shall save me.'" 
 
 Let us further observe, that the Psalmist does not 
 faint at the isolated position in which he is placed. His 
 enemies were many, he seemed to stand alone, but 
 instead of succumbing, he flees to God, he says, " I will 
 call," and "the Lord shall save." 
 
 Now an isolated position is a very hard and a very 
 depressing one to occupy for any length of time. Men 
 will do and bear in company, what they can neither do 
 nor bear alone; in loneliness there comes the sense of 
 weakness, and oftentimes the temptation to give up. 
 
PRAYEK. 169 
 
 If any one who reads these lines has to sustain the 
 isolated position^ whether it be in his own family or 
 elsewhere, let him remember that in this, as in all other 
 forms of suffering, Christ Jesus has gone before. He 
 was not only the most sad amongst the sad, but He was 
 also the most lonely amongst the lonely. True! multitudes 
 thronged Him, but, as we have often felt ourselves most 
 lonely when in a crowd, because none there sympathized 
 with us or knew us, so Jesus doubtless felt Himself 
 lonely indeed, when crowds pressed upon Him who had 
 no sympathy with Him, and who, in the truest sense of 
 the words, did not know Him. 
 
 Oh! there are times of awful loneliness upon the 
 earth ; times when, as the sun sinks beneath the horizon, 
 our hearts sink with it, and long deep shadows fall 
 athwart our souls ; times when, as the sun rises again in 
 its freshness and its strength, we feel that it brings to us 
 no light, no heat, no healing on its wings. We have 
 now no flowers in our hearts to unfold beneath its beams, 
 our flowers have been plucked, and bloom with us no 
 more; we have no jewels to flash and glitter in its rays, 
 we have had our treasure taken from us, and our heart 
 is like the rifled casket, good for nothing in itself. Have 
 we not been startled by our own foot-falls ? have we not 
 been choked by our own breath ? have we not looked 
 out into vacancy ? have we not dreamed while our eyes 
 were open ? have we not felt as though our very selves 
 had been cut in twain, and that we were incomplete, as 
 though a part of our very being had been stolen away ? 
 Then, did we not become faint and sick at heart, did we 
 not taste that which he who has once tasted will never 
 forget — the nausea of grief? 
 
 Q 
 
170 PRAYER. 
 
 Now, be our loneliness what it may, it never can 
 exceed the loneliness of Christ. True ! He Himself tells 
 us that He was not alone ; for He had the Father with 
 Him : (John xvi, 32) but as far as human feelings and 
 sympathies were concerned, Jesus was alone. The man 
 Christ Jesus was often lonely ; and paint what dreary 
 scene we will. He, from the experience of His earthly 
 sorrows, can sketch us a drearier ; heave what deep and ex- 
 hausting sigh we may, it will be but a faint and feeble echo 
 to those which came from Him in His sorrowing hours. 
 
 It is inexpressible comfort to the believer that he can 
 feel Christ's sympathy in seasons such as these ; that this 
 his loneliness is known and understood by Jesus ; but this 
 loneliness is not the trial upon which we wish now to 
 dwell. The isolated position presented here is one con- 
 nected with desertion, and bitterness, and opposition, and 
 all which is calculated to appal and unnerve the heart. 
 
 Let us observe that there is no fainting under all this ; 
 instead of any such yielding, there is a falling back upon 
 God in prayer ; a determination to stand upon individual 
 relationship to Him, individual realization of Him ; upon 
 the consciousness of His all-suf&ciency. " As for me, I 
 will call upon God, and the Lord shall save me.'' 
 
 The isolated position may assume many forms ; under 
 whichever one it comes to us, may the Lord give us 
 grace to be of good courage, and not to faint. It may 
 be that some reader must stand alone in his own family ; 
 that his life must be a protest against theirs in almost 
 every daily act ; or perhaps he may be one of a godly 
 family, but is yet, by circumstances, compelled to sojourn 
 amongst the ungodly ; obliged to take up the Psalmist's 
 words^ " Woe is me that I am constrained to dwell with 
 
PRAYER. 171 
 
 Mesech and to have my habitation among the tents of 
 Kedar/' Psalm cxx, 5. Or perhaps the reader^ s isolated 
 position may not be an habitual, but only an accidental 
 one, one which is to last for a few days, or only a few 
 hours ; whatever it may be, do not for a moment think 
 of succumbing under it ; do not allow your mind for an 
 instant to dwell upon the idea of your being alone; see 
 that you have God on your side ; God ready to befriend 
 you, and say, "As for me I will call upon God, and the 
 Lord shall save me/' 
 
 When we are in the most complete state of isolation 
 so far as man is conr^erned, we are not, we cannot be, 
 thoroughly alone. It is Satan's policy to direct our 
 attention to ourselves; to shew us that we are by 
 ourselves ; to appal us by our isolation ; but we must 
 hold our ground under the deep conviction that God is 
 near. When the King of Syria sent horses, and chariots, 
 and a great host, to seize Elisha, and they compassed 
 the city about in which he was, Elisha's servant cried, 
 "Alas, my master! how shall we do?'' Then Elisha 
 answered, " Eear not ; for they that be with us are more 
 than they that be with them. And Elisha prayed, and 
 said. Lord, I pray Thee, open his eyes, that he may see. 
 And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man ; and 
 he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and 
 chariots of fire round about Elisha." 2 Kings vi, 15, &c. 
 
 The heart, if left to itself, must sink and fail ; flesh 
 and blood, when thrown upon their own simple resources, 
 are not equal to sustaining heavy pressure; they will 
 faint, not only under the pressure, but even at the pros- 
 pect of it ; the one resource is prayer. " As for me, I 
 mil call upon God." 
 
172 PRAYER. 
 
 When Luther was about to appear before the Emperor 
 Charles^ and the assembled princes, at the Diet of 
 Worms, he was troubled and dismayed ; the emperor, 
 whose sovereignty extended over great part of the old 
 and new world, his brother the archduke Ferdinand, six 
 electors of the empire, twenty-five dukes, eight margraves, 
 thirty archbishops, bishops, and abbots, seven ambassa- 
 dors, ten deputies, and a great number of princes, counts, 
 sovereign barons, and papal nuncios, in all two hundred 
 and four persons, had to be faced by the solitary monk ; 
 what wonder if he was dismayed ? The historian tells 
 as that " his heart had been troubled in the presence of 
 so many great princes, before whom nations humbly bent 
 the knee/^ The reflection that he was about to refuse 
 to submit to these men, whom God had invested with 
 sovereign power, disturbed his soul, and he felt the 
 necessity of looking for strength from on high. " On 
 the morning of the 18th of April, Luther was not with- 
 out his moments of trial, in which the face of God 
 seemed hidden from him. His faith grew weak, his 
 enemies multiplied before him, his imagination was over- 
 whelmed at the sight, his soul was as a ship tossed by a 
 violent tempest, which reels and sinks to the bottom of 
 the abyss, and then mounts again to heaven." Never 
 was any man in a greater state of isolation ; and what 
 does he do ? In this hour of bitter sorrow, in which he 
 drinks the cup of Christ, and which was to him a little 
 garden of Gethsemane, he falls to the earth and utters 
 these broken cries, which we cannot understand unless 
 we can figure to ourselves the depth of the anguish 
 whence they ascend to God. 
 
 "O Almighty and everlasting God ! how terrible is this 
 
PRAYER. 173 
 
 world ! Behold it openeth its mouth to swallow me up, 
 and I have so little trust in Thee ! . . . . How weak is 
 the flesh, and how powerful is Satan ! If it is in the 
 strength of this world only that I must put my trust, all 
 is over ! . . . . my last hour is come, my condemnation has 
 
 been pronounced ! . . . . O God ! O God ! O God, do 
 
 Thou help me against aU the wisdom of this world ! Do 
 
 this; Thou shouldest do this Thou alone for this 
 
 is not my work, but Thine. I have nothing to do here; 
 nothing to contend for with these great ones of the 
 world ! I should desire to see my days flow on peaceful 
 
 and happy. But the cause is Thine and it is a 
 
 righteous and eternal cause. O Lord ! help me ! 
 Faithful and unchangeable God ! In no man do I place 
 my trust. It would be vain ! All that is of man is 
 uncertain ; all that cometh of man fails. Oh ! God ! my 
 
 God, hearest Thou me not? My God, art Thou 
 
 dead? No, Thou can^st not die! Thou hidest 
 
 Thyself only ! Thou hast chosen me for this work, I 
 
 know it weU ! Act, then, O God ! stand at my side, 
 
 for the sake of Thy weU beloved Jesus Christ, who is my 
 defence, my shield, and my strong tower .^^ 
 
 After a moment of silent struggle he thus continues, 
 " Lord ! where stayest Thou ! Oh my God, where art 
 
 Thou? Come! come! I am ready! I am ready 
 
 to lay down my life for Thy truth patient as a lamb. 
 
 For it is the cause of justice — it is Thine I wiU 
 
 never separate myself from Thee, neither now, nor 
 
 through eternity and though the world should be 
 
 filled with devils — though my body, which is still the 
 work of Thy hands, should be slain, be stretched upon 
 
 the pavement, be cut in pieces reduced to ashes 
 
 Q 2 
 
174 PRAYER. 
 
 my soul is Thine Yes, I have the assurance of Thy 
 
 word. My soul belongs to Thee ! it shall abide for ever 
 
 with Thee ! it shall abide for ever with Thee. Amen ! 
 
 O God! help me! Amen!'' 
 
 And God did help him ; for we are told that ^' after 
 ne had thus prayed, he found that peace of mind, with- 
 out which, man can effect nothing great. He then read 
 the word of God ; looked over his writings ; and sought 
 to draw up his reply in a suitable form. The thought 
 that he was about to bear testimony to Jesus Christ and 
 His word, in the presence of the emperor and of the 
 empire filled his heart with joy. As the hour of His ap- 
 pearance was not far off, he drew near the holy Scriptures 
 that lay open on the table and with emotion placed his 
 left hand on the sacred volume, and raising his right 
 toward heaven, swore to remain faithful to the gospel ; 
 and freely to confess his faith, even should he seal his 
 testimony with his blood. After this he felt still more 
 at peace.'' 
 
 Such was the conduct of a great man in a great trial ; 
 natural boldness he doubtless had, but his trial was too 
 strong for mere flesh and blood, his resource was in 
 prayer; there he sought for, and there he found, the 
 strength that he required. As he did, so may you, dear 
 reader, do also ; and whenever you have to stand alone, 
 be it in your own families, or in company, or before the 
 people of the world, for the sake of Jesus, never dream 
 of getting rid of your isolation by giving up your dis- 
 tinctiveness ; hold on, hold out, say " As for me I will 
 call upon God, and the Lord shall save me." 
 
 Let me guard the reader from thinking that I would 
 not have him recognize his isolated position because I 
 
PRAYER. 175 
 
 point out to him the need of looking at God^s presence 
 with him, instead of his own solitude. When we are in 
 a position of isolation, it is necessary to perceive it; 
 indeed a part of our safety will consist in our full 
 and distinct recognition of it. There is no small amount 
 of power in the words '^ As for me" — these words bring 
 before us at once our separation from the enemies of 
 God, and our being on the Lord's side; they tell us of our 
 resources, of God's regard to us in our distinctive state, 
 of the position we occupy in His sight. In the contem- 
 plation of our isolation there may be weakness, in the 
 recognition of it there is strength. 
 
 We see then how the Psalmist stood out in strong 
 distinctiveness ; let us now see how he recognises God as 
 a friend in the midst of all this trouble. "As for me, I 
 will call upon God, and the Lord shall save me." It is 
 very important to observe that the Psalmist did not allow 
 the multitude to hide out God from his view. We see 
 that there were many against him, and the tendency of 
 the natural mind would have been to look at the 
 multitude who were close at hand, and not at God, who 
 might have been considered to be afar of. 
 
 This recognition of God the Psalmist made in prayer ; 
 he could have made it in no more effectual way, because 
 prayer is a matter immediately between the person 
 praying and the person prayed to, and thus the Psalmist 
 had God steadily before his eyes, no matter what the 
 number of his foes. When we are hard pressed we shall 
 often get a clear view of God in prayer, when we could 
 not in any other way. 
 
 Let us, dear readers, take care that in our times of 
 
176 PRAYER. 
 
 trial we do not allow the multitude to hide out God ; 
 that we do not permit our troubles to assume a promi- 
 nence which would make them absorb our minds ; if we 
 permit this^ Satan^s purpose is, to a great extent, gained ; 
 he will have separated us from our source of strength. 
 We have often met with believers whose troubles had so 
 overwhelmed them that they shut out God; these 
 troubles were like a flight of locusts, whose numbers we 
 are told are sometimes so great as even to obscure the 
 sun. Now we cannot help having troubles, and more 
 than this, we cannot help their coming in multitudes, but 
 the eye of faith can pierce through them all, and herein 
 it has great advantage over the eye of sense. It would 
 be mere afiectation to say, " We will ignore the existence 
 of these trials altogether," we cannot do so; trials are 
 hard, solid facts; enemies are substantial realities, as 
 perhaps many of us know to our cost : and when these 
 thicken upon us, we must know and feel the serious 
 nature of our case. It is foolish to hide our eyes from 
 the reality of facts, and, like the ostrich in the desert, to 
 think to escape by shutting our eyes ; she supposes, as 
 she hides her head in the sand, that none can see her, 
 because she cannot see them ; shall we suppose that our 
 enemies cannot see us, because we do not choose to see 
 them? No, let us give our enemies fall credit for 
 their numbers and their might, then let us pass above 
 them all in prayer, and clearly look on God. Satan has 
 continually tried to perplex God^s people by number ; no 
 single foe was particularly strong or unmanageable, but 
 the many were hard to deal with, the multitude could 
 distract the thoughts. Let us be on our guard against 
 this form of spiritual danger, and say, " As for me, I will 
 
PRAYER. 177 
 
 call upon God, and the Lord shall save me." Zaccheus 
 was very mucli in earnest in his desire to see Jesus, and 
 so he found means, despite his natural incapacity, of not 
 being thwarted by the crowd ; and the woman who had 
 the issue of blood was very earnest in her desire to touch 
 the Lord, and she accomplished her wish, although the 
 multitude thronged and pressed Him; and the friends 
 of the man with the palsy were very intent upon laying 
 their burden at the very feet of Jesus, and so they broke 
 up the roof and let the afflicted one down immediately 
 before the One by whom he could be saved. As they 
 did, so let us do also, and we may rest assured that we 
 shall succeed. 
 
 Let us further observe, that the Psalmist did not allow 
 the closeness of his suffering, which touched him to the 
 very quick, to obscure his vision of God. Suffering 
 which touches to the quick, has a tendency to make us 
 absorbed in ourselves, or perhaps, to make us dissatisfied 
 with God; we are often so occupied with what we are 
 feeling, so absorbed with our pains and distresses, that 
 we can think of nothing else. Satan has often had great 
 advantage over the saints of God, in their times of deep 
 distress ; and the way by which he gained this advantage, 
 was by absorbing the mind on self. In self there was, 
 of course, no resource ; self was to be the endurer and 
 sufferer ; and by looking at self, and not at God, the pic- 
 ture presented to the mind was " suffering without help." 
 What picture could be darker ; what could better suit 
 the purposes of the Evil One? Self without God! 
 Surely this is an equivalent for despair. Many can go 
 through ordinary sufferings without losing sight of God, 
 
178 PRAYER. 
 
 wlio yet fail wlien there comes suffering to the very quick ; 
 they are then too hard pressed, even to bethink them of 
 their having a friend. 
 
 Let us see how the blessed Lord Jesus Christ acted 
 under such circumstances as these ; and let Him be our 
 example. In His agony in Gethsemane, His nature was 
 touched to the very quick; an apostle was then almost 
 in the very act of betraying Him; those who should 
 have watched with Him were sleeping; the cup of ex- 
 tremest anguish was just about to be put into His hand ; 
 surely, if ever any one might have been absorbed with 
 his own suffering, that one was Jesus. But God was not 
 hidden out from Him; on the contrary, it was His 
 Father's face He sought; and the appearance of the 
 strengthening angel was a proof that He sought it not in 
 vain. Oh ! be His example ours, in the time when we 
 are touched in the very quick and marrow of our natures ; 
 then, closeness of suffering will be blessed ; the pressure 
 will force us upward, ever higher and higher, until we 
 come with our sorrows before the throne ; and perhaps 
 we shall find, that suffering in the very quick, has led to 
 blessing in the very quick also; that blessing has per- 
 vaded an inner depth of the soul, of whose very existence 
 we were not aware before. 
 
 Observe, also, how the Psalmist did not allow the dis- 
 covered hollowness of human friendship to throw a shadow 
 on the divine. His chief suffering was from his own 
 familiar friend ; so also was Jesus' ; to which suffering 
 this portion of the psalm prophetically applies. " For it 
 was not an enemy that reproached me, then I could have 
 borne it; neither was it he that hated me, that did 
 
PRAYER. i 79 
 
 magnify himself against me, then I would have hid myself 
 from him; but it was thou, a man mine equal, my 
 guide, and mine acquaintance; we took sweet counsel 
 together, and walked unto the house of God in 
 company/^ 
 
 We are all of us very apt to lean on human friends, 
 and seek in their advice and sympathy, both direction 
 and support. We would raise friendship above the or- 
 dinary ebbs and flows of human things, and consider it 
 in a poetical and beautiful light, as able to resist all the 
 fluctuations and changes, which are occurring in the daily 
 wear and tear of life. Nothing shocks our sensibilities 
 more, than a discovery of the hollowness of some 
 friendship on which we built ; and the effects of such a 
 discovery, are often very painful indeed. One of these 
 effects is, to throw us in upon ourselves ; we have been 
 betrayed, deceived ; and we are indignant, and will not 
 subject ourselves to the like again. Satan, ever on the 
 watch to turn each circumstance and feeling to his own 
 purpose, and make something out of it, will now 
 endeavour to throw forward the dark shadow of broken 
 human friendship upon that Divine Friend who " sticketh 
 closer than a brother,'^ and to shake as much as he can 
 our dependence in the friendship of God and Christ. 
 Let us observe where Jesus was found, in the time both 
 of impotent, and of violated friendship. He was in 
 prayer with God, and that Father and truest Friend was 
 unshaken, amid all the shiverings of the potsherds of 
 the earth. 
 
 Painful as it is to enunciate such a truth, and treason- 
 able to all sentimentality and poetry, it yet is true that 
 human friendship is not to be relied upon. The friend of 
 
180 PRAYER. 
 
 to-day will look coldly -Qpon us to-morrow ; the man from 
 wliom we receive a grasp of the hand now, will perhaps 
 in a little while not even recognise ns_, should he meet 
 us in the street. Let us be thankful for human friend- 
 ships such as they are, and while they last ; but let us 
 by no means build upon them ; they may fail us in the 
 trying hour. But let us be careful to give the Great and 
 True Friend a position in our hearts, and in our 
 judgments, far higher than that occupied by any earthly 
 friend : let us firmly fix the truth in our minds, that He 
 is the friend, "that sticketh closer than a brother/' 
 let us never so much as entertain, for a moment, the 
 thought of its being possible that He can change ; let 
 Him be as far removed from all such doubts, as the sun 
 is from the shadows that flit to and fro upon the earth. 
 Thus deeply trusting God, we shall be ready to resort to 
 Him in prayer, in the times when we are thrown off by 
 earthly friends ; we shaU not have to stop and deliberate, 
 as to whether we have a friend or no ; we shall allow 
 no time for a morbid feeling to take possession of our 
 minds ; we shall not fall into a state of depression and 
 weakness, which would leave us an easy prey to Satan. 
 We could not sustain ourselves, under the consciousness 
 of being altogether friendless ; many of the troubles which 
 we meet are too heavy to be borne alone ; henceforth 
 let us go at once to God in prayer, when our trouble 
 comes upon us ; let us go in the full conviction that in 
 Him we have a friend, however friendless we might be 
 on earth ; let us make the Psalmist^s determination ours. 
 " As for me I will call upon God, and the Lord shall 
 save me ; evening, morning, and at noon, will I pray and 
 cry aloud : and He shall hear my voice.'' 
 
PRAYER. 181 
 
 There remains yet one more point brought before us 
 here^ which is of great importance ; i. e., the Psalmist^ s 
 determination to continue in prayer ; ^^ evening, morning, 
 and at noon, will I pray and cry aloud." 
 
 We have here continuous prayer under continual pres- 
 sure. We find that the natural tendency of continual 
 pressure is to wear us out. Many of us can bear a quick, 
 sharp pain, the very thought of its being soon over 
 helping to carry us through : but prolonged trial, even 
 though in the aggregate it be not so bad as the one 
 quick, sharp pain, we cannot endure. I believe that the 
 only way by which continual pressure can be met, is 
 continuous prayer ; when the pressure is actively upon 
 us, prayer in the morning to be kept till noon, and at 
 noon to be kept till night, and at night to be kept until 
 morning dawn again. There is, perhaps, an advantage 
 in thus looking to prayer to carry us on, as it were, fixed 
 stages of our sad and weary way. There is a definiteness 
 in our supplication, which gives it peculiar reality and 
 life ; and seeing that the answer, if it come at all, must 
 come at once, we are on the look out for it, and our faith 
 is stirred up to special exercise. Take the case of a 
 person in pain ; every hour, even every minute, is a trial 
 of endurance ; there is no immediate prospect of release ; 
 the very indefiniteness of the time for which the pain 
 may endure, adds to the sufferer^ s trial ; what can uphold 
 like continual prayer, and the strength flowing from it 
 like the supplication, morning, noon, and night ? We 
 are sometimes placed under continuous pressure, by the 
 provocations of those with whom we live, or with whom 
 our lot is cast in following the ordinary avocations of 
 Hfe; some persons^ circumstances in their trades or 
 
182 PRAYER. 
 
 professions are such^ that they are perpetually harassed 
 to make both ends meet^ and many a poor man lives 
 in continual trouble, day by day, to feed and clothe 
 those who are dependent on him ; there is nothing 
 like continuous prayer for meeting all this pressure, it 
 will sustain under any amount of burden, and for any 
 length of time. 
 
 Some of Satan^s temptations might be called " wearing 
 out temptations," the very principle on which they act 
 is the exhaustion of the believer; Satan calculates the 
 limits of man's endurance, then he lays on a pressure 
 which will exceed those limits, and thus act upon the 
 exhausted believer as he will. Continuous prayer will 
 effectually cope with, and foil, such an attempt as this; 
 and the probability is, that when the Evil One sees that 
 the Christian has the secret of success, he will turn to 
 some other method of attack. The believer is now like 
 a garrison in a state of siege ; to hold out long enough is 
 to come victorious out of the strife. As long as Abraham 
 continued in prayer, so long God continued to bless, and 
 had the patriarch continued yet further than he did, who 
 can tell what would have been the result ? 
 
 We have a specimen of the continuance of assault, and 
 the resistance of continuous prayer, in the case of the 
 martyr Glover. 
 
 Robert Glover remained in prison eight days, till the 
 bishop's arrival ; " in which time," he says, ^^ I gave myself 
 continually to prayer, and meditation of the merciful 
 promises of God, made unto all, without exception of 
 person, that call upon the name of His dear son Jesus 
 Christ. I found in myself daily amendment of health of 
 body^ increase of peace in conscience^ and many consola- 
 
PRAYER. 183 
 
 tions from God^ by the help of His Holy Spirit ; and 
 sometimes^ as it were^ a taste and glimmering of the life 
 to come^ all for His only son Jesus Christ^s sake ; to Him 
 be all praise, for ever and ever ! The enemy ceased not 
 to assault me, often objecting to my conscience, my own 
 unworthiness, through the greatness of the benefit, to be 
 counted among the number of them that sufier for 
 Christ, for His gospel's sake. Against him I replied 
 with the word of God on this sort : — ' What were all those 
 whom God hath chosen from the beginning to be His 
 witnesses? Were they not men, even as Paul and 
 Barnabas declared. Acts xiv, 15 ; subject to wickedness, 
 sin, and imperfection as other men be ? They were no 
 bringers of goodness to God, but altogether receivers. 
 They chose not God first, but He chose them. They 
 loved not God first, but He loved them first. Yea, He 
 both loved and chose them when they were his enemies, 
 full of sin and corruption, and void of all goodness. He 
 is, and will be, still the same God ; as rich in mercy to 
 forgive sins, without respect of person, to the world's 
 end, to all them that call upon Him. God is near. He 
 is at hand; He is with all, I say, and refuseth none, 
 excepteth none, that faithfully, in true repentance, call 
 upon Him, in what hour, what place, or what time 
 soever it be.' It is not arrogancy nor presumption in any 
 man, to burden God (as it were) with His promise, and 
 to claim and challenge His aid, help, and assistance in all 
 our perils, dangers, and distress ; calling upon Him, not 
 in the confidence of our own godliness, but in the trust of 
 His promises, made in Christ. In whom, and by whom, 
 and for whose sake, whosoever boldly approacheth to the 
 mercy-seat of the Father, is sure to receive whatsoever is 
 
184 PRAYER. 
 
 expedient or necessary^ eitlier for body or soul, in more 
 ample wise, and large manner, than lie can well wish or 
 dare desire. His word cannot lie ; ^ call upon Me in the 
 day of trouble, and I will hear thee, and thou shalt 
 praise Me.' I answered the enemy also in this manner : — 
 ^ I am a sinner, and therefore unworthy to be a witness of 
 this truth. But what then? Must I deny His word, 
 because I am unworthy to profess it ? As Christ Himself 
 beareth witness, ^ he that is ashamed of Me, or of My 
 words, of him I will also be ashamed before My Father^ 
 and all His angels.' I might, by like reason, forbear to 
 do any of God's commandments, because I am not 
 worthy to do them. These are the delusions of the 
 devil, and Satan's suggestions ; which must be overcome 
 by continuance of prayer, and with the word of God, 
 applied, according to the measure of every man's gift, 
 against all assaults of the devil.'" 
 
 These extracts record the patience and faith of the 
 saint. The conclusion of his history demands attention. 
 Shortly before his martyrdom he felt his doubts and 
 apprehensions return; he mentioned the deadness of his 
 soul, and his want of spiritual comfort, notwithstanding 
 his earnest prayers night and day, to Augustine Beruher, 
 one who continually visited the sufferers for Christ when- 
 ever he could find opportunity. Beruher earnestly prayed 
 him to wait the Lord's pleasure, and not to doubt but 
 that God would visit him in his own good time, and 
 satisfy him with abundance of consolation. Beruher not 
 only expressed himself thus confidently upon the subject, 
 but desired his friend to make some sign, whereby he 
 might know when this support was vouchsafed. 
 
 Glover continued in doubt and gloom, but was still 
 
PRAYER. 185 
 
 enabled to hold fast his purpose. *' He had continued all 
 night in prayer j and was even come in sight of the stake, 
 yet his mind was still weighed down with a burden, 
 almost too heavy to be borne. But though cast down, 
 he was not forsaken. The evening of a dark and stormy 
 day is sometimes illumined by the bright beams of the 
 parting sun ; thus the Sun of Righteousness shone upon 
 the last moments of this blessed martyr '^with healing 
 in His wings.^ On a sudden he was powerfully filled 
 with God's holy comfort —a foretaste of heavenly joys ; 
 clapping his hands together, and turning to his friend, 
 who stood among the crowd, he exclaimed, ^ Austen, He 
 is come. He is come!' and that with joy and alacrity, 
 rather as one who had been delivered from the fear of 
 dying, than as one about to suffer the bitter pangs of a 
 cruel death. Surely this was the Lord's doing.'' 
 
 A call for continuance in prayer, in behalf of their 
 children, is often made on parents. They pray, and yet 
 see no result of their prayers; the one they had 
 endeavoured to train up in the nurture and admonition 
 of the Lord, runs riot in sin, goes farther and farther 
 down the road to ruin, plunges deeper and deeper into 
 vice or carelessness ; surely it seems almost vain to pray 
 for such an one as this. Even the very ones who would 
 pray for this unhappy creature are spurned and despised 
 by him, he would stop their prayers if he could, but the 
 trial is perhaps one of continuance, and if they continue 
 it may be that they will gain the victory, and this soul 
 will be given to them at last. 
 
 St. Augustine has left us, in his Confessions, an affect- 
 ing account of the perseverance of a mother's love and 
 prayers. True, she had to bear long ; rebuff, and scorn, 
 
 R 2 
 
183 PRAYER. 
 
 and deceit seemed for many a year to be tlie only 
 payment of her prayers ; but " in due season/' says the 
 apostle, "ye shall reap^ if ye faint nof — she fainted not, 
 and so she reaped. 
 
 " My God_," says St. Augustine, " thou spakest to me 
 by her, and warnedst me strongly against the ways of 
 vice. Thy voice in her I despised, and thought it to be 
 only the voice of a woman, which made not the least 
 impression on my mind." 
 
 How Augustine's mother prayed for him will best be 
 seen by what he himself says in his Confessions. ^' In 
 much ignorance, I at that time derided Thy holy 
 servants, and was justly exposed to believe most ridicu- 
 lous absurdities. And Thou sentest Thy hand from 
 above, and freedst me from this death of evil, while my 
 mother was praying for me, more solicitous on account of 
 the death of my soul, than other parents for the death of 
 the body. She was favoured with a dream, by which 
 Thou comfortedst her soul with hope of my recovery. 
 She appeared to herself to be standing on a plank, and 
 a person came to her and asked her the cause of her 
 affliction, and on being answered, that it was on my 
 account, he charged her to be of good cheer, for that 
 where she was there also I should be. On which, she 
 immediately beheld me standing by her on the same 
 plank. Whence was this but from Thee, gracious 
 Omnipotent, who takest care of each and all of us as of 
 single persons ? Yv'hen she related this to me, I endeav- 
 oured to evade the force of it, by observing that it might 
 mean to exhort her to be v/hat I was. Without hesita- 
 tion she replied, ' It was not said, where lie is, there thou 
 slialt be ; but, where thou art, there he shall be.' Her 
 
PRAYER. 187 
 
 prompt answer made a stronger impression. on my mind 
 than the dream itself. For nine years, while I was 
 rolling in the filth of sin, often attempting to rise, and 
 still sinking deeper, did she, in vigorous hope, persist in 
 incessant prayer" 
 
 Augustine had been carried away with the errors of 
 the Manichees, and Monica his mother^ in her anxiety 
 for his soulj entreated a certain bishop to undertake to 
 reason him out of his errors. St. Augustine says^ '^ He 
 was a person not backward to attempt this, where he 
 found a docile subject. *^But your son/ says he, '^is too 
 much elated at present, and carried away with the 
 pleasing novelty of his error, to regard any arguments, 
 as appears by the pleasure he takes in puzzling many 
 ignorant persons with his captious questions. Let him 
 alone ; only continue praying to the Lord for him ; he 
 will, in the course of his study, discover his error. I 
 myself, perverted by my mother, was once a Manichee, 
 and read almost all their books, and yet at length was 
 convinced of my error without the help of any disputant.^ 
 All this satisfied not my anxious parent ; with floods of 
 tears she persisted in her request; when at last he, a 
 little out of temper, on account of her importunity, said, 
 ^ Begone, good woman, it is not possible that the child of 
 such tears should perish.^'' For the space of nine years, 
 viz., from the nineteenth to the twenty-eighth year of his 
 age, Augustine lived, as he himself tells us, '' deceived 
 and deceiving others, seducing men into various lusts, 
 openly, by what are called the liberal arts, and secretly, 
 by a false religion ; in the former, proud, in the latter, 
 superstitious; in all things seeking vain glory, and, to 
 complete the dismal picture, a slave to the lusts of the 
 
188 PRAYER. 
 
 flesh/' In his twenty-ninth year^ we find his mother 
 still praying , although things seemed as bad or worse than 
 they had been before. God was, however, about to work 
 a great change upon Augustine's heart, and as he begins 
 to trace His dealings with him, he shews us his mother 
 still praying. "Thy hands, my God, (said he in his 
 Confessions) in the secret of Thy providence, forsook not 
 my soul. Day and night the prayers of my mother came 
 up before Thee, and Thou wroughtest upon me in ways 
 marvellous indeed, but secret.'' Augustine sails for Rome, 
 proposing to teach rhetoric in that city ; but God had 
 arranged that his going there should be the first step in 
 the immediate chain of providences which were to lead to 
 his salvation. And where was Monica? Following him 
 to the sea-shore, to prevent his going. God's arrange- 
 ments for the answers of her prayers were about to work 
 the one into the other ; but, like many a praying mother, 
 Monica knew not this. " The true cause of this removal 
 was at that time hidden both from me and my mother, 
 who bewailed me going away, and followed me to the 
 sea-side ; but I deceived her, though she held me close, 
 with a view either to call me back, or to go along with 
 me. I pretended that I only meant to keep company 
 with a friend, until he set sail; and witd difficulty 
 persuaded her to remain that night in a place dedicated 
 to the memory of Cyprian. But that night I departed 
 privily ; and she continued weeping and praying. Thus 
 did I deceive my mother, and such a mother ! Yet was 
 I preserved from the dangers of the sea, foul as I was in 
 all the mire of sin ; and a time was coming, when Thou 
 would'st wipe away my mother's tears with which she 
 watered the earth, and even forgive this my base undu- 
 
PHAYER. 189 
 
 tifulness. And what did she beg of Thee^ my God, at 
 that time, but that I might be hindered from saihng? 
 Thou, in profound wisdom, regarding the hinge of her 
 desire, neglectedst the particular object of her present 
 prayers, that Thou mightest gratify the general object of 
 her devotions. The wind favoured us, and carried us 
 out of the sight of the shore, when in the morning, she 
 was distracted with grief, and filled Thine ears with 
 groans and complaints ; whilst Thou, in contempt of her 
 violent agonies, hurriedst me along by my lusts to 
 complete their desires, and punishedst her carnal desire 
 with the just scourge of immoderate griefs. She loved 
 my presence with her, as is natural to mothers ; though 
 in her the affection was micommonly strong; and she 
 knew not what joy Thou wast preparing for her from my 
 absence. She knew not, therefore she wept and wailed. 
 Yet after she had wearied herself in accusing my perfidy 
 and cruelty, she returned to her former employment of 
 praying for me, and went home, while I went to Rome.*^ 
 
 At Rome Augustine was seized with illness, and as he 
 himself says, " drew nigh to hell ; " and when, after his 
 conversion, he writes the story of his escape from the 
 very jaws of the grave, his motlier's prayers are again 
 the prominent features which meet our view. " Morning 
 and evening,'^ he says, " she frequented the church, to 
 hear Thy word, and to pray, and the salvation of her son 
 was the constant burden of her supplications. Thou 
 heardedst her, O Lord, and performedst in due season 
 what Thou hadst predestinated. Thou recoveredst me 
 from the fever, that at length I might obtain also a 
 recovery of still greater importance.^^ 
 
 From Rome, Augustine went to Milan, and there we 
 
190 PRAYER. 
 
 find the praying mother again. Augustine describes her 
 as "courageous through piety, following him by land 
 and sea, and secure of God's favour in all dangers." And 
 there she was, the same praying mother that she had 
 been elsewhere, her son's salvation being her one grand 
 absorbing thought. At length, the long looked, long 
 prayed for time arrived, and Monica's petitions were 
 heard. The teaching of Ambrose, was made, in part, the 
 means of Augustine's conversion ; " in part " we say, for 
 there were special interferences of God in its accomplish- 
 ment ; and after a fierce struggle, after the Evil Spirit 
 had rent and torn him, now throwing him into the fire, 
 and now into the water, he was delivered from his power, 
 he arose from the earth a victor in the strife, a converted 
 man ! an heir of glory ! an answer to a mother's con- 
 tinued prayers ! 
 
 The closing scene of Monica's life may cheer some 
 sorrowing parent, who has long prayed and apparently 
 prayed in vain. Were not years of prayer well repaid by 
 that one hour by the river side, which almost closed the 
 intercourse of the praying mother and the converted son. 
 *^^It was through Thy secret appointment," says Augus- 
 tine, " that she and I stood alone at a window facing the 
 east, in a house at the mouth of the Tiber, where we 
 were preparing ourselves for our voyage. Our discourse 
 was highly agreeable, and forgetting the past, we 
 endeavoured to conceive aright the nature of the eternal 
 life of the saints. It was evident to us, that no carnal 
 delights deserved to be named on this subject; erecting 
 our spirits more ardently, we ascended above the noblest 
 parts of the material creation, to the consideration of our 
 own minds, and passing above them, we attempted to 
 
PRAYER. 191 
 
 reach heaven itself, to come to Thee, by whom all things 
 were made. There our hearts were enamoured, and 
 there we held fast the first-fruits of the Spirit, and 
 returned to the sound of our own voice, which gave us 
 an emblem of the Divine A¥ord. We said, ' if the flesh, 
 the imagination, and every tongue should be silenced, 
 for they proclaim, ' We made not ourselves, but He who 
 remaineth for ever ; ' if these things should now hold 
 their peace, and God alone should speak, not by any 
 emblems or created things, but by Himself, so that we 
 could hear His word ; should this be continued and other 
 visions be withdrawn, and this alone seize and absorb 
 the spectator for ever, is not this the meaning of ^ Enter 
 thou into the joy of thy Lord?^ At that moment the 
 world appeared to us of no value : and she said, ' Son, I 
 have now no delight in life. What I should do here, 
 and why I am here, I know not, the hope of this life 
 being quite spent. One thing only, your conversion, was 
 an object for which I wished to live. My God has given 
 me this in larger measure. What do I here?^ ^' Five 
 days after this, this praying mother fell into a fever, and 
 on the ninth day she died ; but she being dead yet speak- 
 eth, and her voice says, " Christian mothers, continue in 
 prayer." 
 
 Yes, Christian parents, continue in prayer on behalf of 
 the apparently lost and ruined one; if he go to the 
 haunt of vice, let your prayers track his footsteps like 
 angels of mercy ; if he snatch the intoxicating glass, let 
 your voice still seek for him the water of life; if he 
 gamble away his substance in riotous living, yet pray for 
 him, that even when he has lost all, or, if it must be, 
 yet through the loss of all, he may come to himself, and 
 
193 PRAYER. 
 
 say, '■^ how man}'- liired servants of my father's have bread 
 euough and to spare, and I perish with hunger ! I will 
 arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, 
 I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, and am 
 no more worthy to be called thy son, make me as one of 
 thy hired servants/^ Who can teU at what moment and 
 in what way, the many prayers of father and mother, of 
 sisters and brothers, will put forth their wondrous power ? 
 It may be that the prodigal will be arrested in the very 
 midst of his career of sin, as St. Paul was arrested by 
 the light from heaven, and suddenly find himself bound, 
 though not with hempen ropes ; struck down, though not 
 with human hand ; arrested, though not by any earthly 
 writ; at some unexpected time, in some unlikely place, 
 he may find himself under the influence of a spell which 
 he can neither fight against nor understand, and turn 
 homeward, although perhaps he knows not why, yet 
 never to leave it again. Thus have many wanderers 
 been reclaimed, and their voices now swell the chorus of 
 the redeemed; and the praises which they sing, and 
 which make melody in the ear of God Himself, are the 
 fruits which have been brought forth by many bitter 
 prayers ! * 
 
 * The Rev. Dr. Leland, Professor in the Theological Seminary 
 at Columbia, S. C. stated in a prayer meeting at Saratoga, that lie 
 had ascertained by personal inquiry that ninety nine of one 
 hundred students in that seminary received their first religious 
 impressions from pious mothers. At the convention of 'Young 
 Men's Christian Association" at Troy, N. Y. which was atten- 
 ded by about two hundred and fifty young men, those, whose 
 mothers were praying women were asked to rise, when nearly 
 all rose, thus testifying to the efficacy of the prayers of godly 
 mothers. 
 
PRAYER, 193 
 
 " A weather-beaten sailor^ on making his homeward 
 passage, as he doubled the stormy Cape, encountered a 
 dreadful tempest. The mother had heard of the ship 
 outside the Cape, and was waiting, with the anxiety a 
 mother alone can know, to see her son. But now the 
 storm had arisen, and that, when the ship was in the 
 most dangerous place. Fearing that each blast, as it 
 swept the raging deep, might howl the requiem of her 
 son, with faith strong in God, she commenced praying 
 for his safety. At this moment news came that the 
 vessel was lost. 
 
 " The father, an unconverted man, had till this, pre- 
 served a sullen silence, but now he wept aloud. The 
 mother observed, ' It is in the hands of Him who does 
 all things well ; ' and again the soft and softened spirit 
 bowed, commending her son and her partner, in an 
 audible voice, broken only by the bursting of a full 
 heart, to God. 
 
 "Darkness had now spread her mantle abroad, and 
 they retired — but not to rest — and anxiously waited for 
 the morning, hoping, at least, that some relic of their 
 lost one might be found. 
 
 " The morning came. The winds were hushed and 
 the ocean lay comparatively calm, as though its fury had 
 subsided since its \ictim was no more. At this moment 
 the little gate in front of the dwelling turned on its 
 hinges, the door opened, and their son, their lost, loved 
 son stood before them. The vessel had been driven into 
 one of the many harbours on the coast, and was safe. 
 The father rushed to meet him. His mother, hanging 
 on his neck, earnestly exclaimed, ' My child, how came 
 you here?' '^ Mother^' said he, as the tears coursed 
 
 s 
 
194 PRAYER. 
 
 down Ids sunburnt face, ^I knew you^d pray me home ! ' 
 What a spectacle! A wild_, reckless youth acknow- 
 ledging the efficacy of prayer ! It seems he was aware 
 of his perilous situation, and that he laboured with the 
 thoughts, '^My mother prays — Christian's prayers are 
 answered, and I may be saved/ This reflection, when 
 almost exhausted with fatigue, and ready to give up in 
 despair, gave him fresh courage, and with renewed effort 
 he laboured till the harbour was gained. Christian 
 mother, go thou and do likewise. Pray for that son who 
 is likely to be wrecked in the storm of life, and his 
 prospects blasted for ever. He may be saved." 
 
 One word I would add of counsel to such as are thus 
 praying. Do not shut the door against the answers to 
 your prayers, do not so act as in point of fact to say, '^ I 
 will leave no opening by which the wayward one can 
 return." Many a poor wayward one would have returned, 
 if only the wanderer's path had been kept clear, if only 
 the door of home had been kept upon the latch. We 
 may learn a lesson from the conduct of a poor woman 
 whose misguided daughter left the paternal roof, and 
 wandered into the ways of sin. Many were the prayers 
 which the mother offered for her misguided child ; and 
 when she finished her prayer at night, the last thing she 
 did was to go and see that the door was left on the latch. 
 If her child were moved by God to return, she should 
 always have a shelter to which to come. It was well 
 that God put this into her heart ; for one night the poor 
 girl turned her steps towards home, and tried the latch, 
 and came in, and crept upstairs to her accustomed room, 
 and went out to sin no more again. Keep the heart's 
 door, keep the house door on the latch, for the answer to 
 
PRAYER. 195 
 
 prayer may come in an hour of which you are not aware ; 
 that hearty that house, is not degraded, which has written 
 upon its portals, " The wanderer's home/' 
 
 The subjects of Intensity in Prayer, and of Belief in 
 Prayer, will meet us in subsequent pages, we need not 
 therefore dwell upon them here, even though they be 
 brought before us by the passage which we have been 
 considering; there is one point, however, to which I 
 wish to draw attention before this chapter comes to a 
 close ; i, e., the marvel of our voice being heard at all. 
 "Evening, morning, and at noon, will I pray and cry 
 aloud : and He shall hear my voice.'' 
 
 It is indeed a wonder that our voice is heard at all ! 
 So weak, so broken is it at times, that it seems mar- 
 vellous that it should be heard, even in silence the most 
 intense. But heard it is, not in the midst of silence, 
 but of myriad sounds. The cries of a groaning world 
 are entering the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth ; the songs 
 of praising and adoring beings are ascending continually 
 before His throne ; the rush of myriad worlds as they 
 whirl through space, is listened to by the One from 
 whose hand they were rolled forth upon their wondrous 
 paths ! but despite all these, the mind of the Infinite 
 One is undistracted, and listens in undisturbed calmness 
 to the whisperings of the least among His saints. O 
 my soul, be deep in thy belief of this ; and in that belief, 
 even though thou canst pray with but a whispering 
 voice, yet pray; let the belief of the Psalmist be also 
 thine, "Evening, morning, and at noon, will I pray, and 
 cry aloud : and He shall hear my voice" 
 
196 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE "I WILL" OE PRAYEB IN ^OVERWHELMING 
 TROUBLE.' 
 
 Psalm Ixi, 2. " From the end of the earth will I cry unto 
 Thee ; when my heart is overwhelmed, lead me to the rock that 
 is higher than J." 
 
 ¥E are told in the word of God, that '^ man is born 
 to trouble as the sparks fly upward ;^^ and these 
 troubles,, which are the heritage of man as a poor fallen 
 sinner, are not only many, but also various ; so that each 
 man has plagues which his own heart knows, and which 
 are, perhaps, unknown to all beside. To this heritage, 
 you and I, dear reader, were born, and into it we have 
 come; the heritages of earthly lands and gold are 
 alienable, but the heritage of sorrow is sure. 
 
 These troubles are, as we have just observed, of 
 various kinds ; some are provoking, some are gnawing , 
 some are perplexing , and some are overivhelming ; but 
 whatever form they assume, they are troubles, and are 
 part of the wear and tear of life. 
 
 There is a class of troubles which is eminently pro- 
 voking. Perhaps no serious results hang upon them, but 
 they are peculiarly calculated to try and vex our tempers, 
 
PRAl-ER. 197 
 
 to stir up our feelings, to disturb the equanimity of our 
 minds, to excite our combative propensities; tbey are 
 tlie stones in the shoes of daily life, and as such they are 
 troubles, and it would be foolish to call them by any 
 other name. 
 
 There is another class, which might be called gnawing 
 troubles. Such eat slowly into the hearths vitals ; such 
 fret silently, as the moth does the garment ; they destroy 
 life's brightest colourings, and its most beautiful patterns, 
 and leave nothing but wreck and ruin wherever their 
 tooth has come. There are many in the world who 
 have a gnawing at their hearts, which is to them what 
 the canker is to the bud ; it eats silently and surely, and 
 leaves a few shrivelled leaves, where there might have 
 been a bunch of full-blown flowers, i 
 
 Some are afflicted with perplexing and distracting 
 troubles. Such troubles do not gnaw the heart, they are 
 too intrusive and pressing for that ; they put a person to 
 his wits' ends ; they confuse and harass him, and almost 
 wear him out by the anxiety to which they expose him. 
 Such are very often the troubles of trade ; of mothers 
 with large families ; of persons placed in difficult circum- 
 stances in life, and so forth ; and many a time they are 
 half driven out of their senses, by the dilemmas in 
 which they are placed. If only they knew what to do, 
 they would do it; but that is the perplexity, and it 
 undeniably brings its trouble with it. 
 
 Then, there are overwhelming troubles. Troubles 
 which sweep over a man, just as the mighty billows of 
 the ocean sweep over, and submerge the sands. These are 
 troubles which struggle with us, as it were, for life and 
 death ;. troubles which would leave us helpless wrecks ; 
 
 s 2 
 
198 PRAYER. 
 
 troubles wliicTi enter into conflict with us in our prime, 
 which grapple with us in our health and strength_, and 
 threaten to conquer us by sheer force, no matter how 
 bravely we may contend. Such trouble the Psalmist 
 knew. '^'^When my heart is overwhelmed, lead me to 
 the Rock that is higher than I." 
 
 It is not, however, in this latter class of trouble alone 
 that we have need to take up the Psalmist^ s determina- 
 tion, and say, " I will cry unto Thee.^^ There is but the 
 one refuge in all trouble, be it great or small, and if we 
 seek any other, we shall assuredly but increase our 
 distress. He who is our refuge in the greater, will not 
 refuse to be our refuge in the lesser also ; the same love 
 which will befriend us in the overwhelmings of trouble, 
 will not cast us off in the time of perplexities and provo- 
 cations. 
 
 In the present chapter, we have to occupy ourselves in 
 deep waters, and passing from all minor trials, to con- 
 sider those overwhelmings, in which we need the Rock 
 that is higher than ourselves. 
 
 Cryings from the ends of the earth, 
 
 Cryings in overwhelmings of heart, and 
 
 The hearfs cry and desire under these circumstances, 
 are to form the subjects of our consideration now. 
 
 And first, a few words are to be said about " Cryings 
 from the ends of the earth. ^^ The centre of all worship 
 was Jerusalem, '^ whither the tribes go up, the tribes of 
 the Lord, unto the testimony of Israel, to give thanks 
 unto the name of the Lord :" Psalm cxxii, 4. To 
 be prevented then from coming up to Jerusalem was 
 a serious trouble to any one who really loved God, 
 
PRAYER. 199 
 
 and stood in covenant relationsliip to Him. '^^How 
 amiable (says the Psalmist in Psalm Ixxxiv) are 
 Thy tabernacles O Lord of Hosts. My soul longeth, 
 yea, even fainteth for the courts of the Lord, my 
 heart, and my flesh crieth out for the Living God, 
 a day in Thy courts is better than a thousand, I had 
 rather be a door-keeper in the house of my God, than to 
 dwell in the tents of wickedness." 
 
 The Psalmist here puts himself in the position of one, 
 who is not only prevented for a season from coming up 
 to the holy place, but who is driven as far as possible 
 therefrom — even to the ends of the earth ; he is separated 
 from all ordinances, helps, and privileges, but he will not 
 on that account allow himself to be separated from his 
 God ; " from the end of the earth will I cry unto Thee." 
 
 There are some who seem to be living on ordinances 
 rather than on God, and separation from them seems 
 almost to bring death into their souls ; they know much 
 of a God in ordinances, they know comparatively little of 
 a God without ordinances. 
 
 Now ordinances are very precious, and so weak are 
 we, that we need all the helps we can get ; but what, if 
 we be deprived of them, if we be as it were driven to the 
 ends of the earth ? 
 
 This may happen to us. Some of God^s dear children 
 have been laid for years upon beds of sickness, and some 
 have been located in distant regions, and others have had 
 their lot cast amid unsympathetic and ungodly people, so 
 that they have been constrained to cry, " Woe is me, that 
 I sojourn in Mesech, that I dwell in the tents of Kedar; 
 my soul hath long dwelt with him that hateth peace." 
 
 Under these circumstances what is to be done ? We 
 
200 PRAYER. 
 
 must cry unto God, from the place and position in which 
 we are, as Jonah did; and not wait until we are more 
 favourably circumstanced, for thus we might have to 
 wait for ever. God expects us to make the best of the cir- 
 cumstances in which we are placed. 
 
 Let us be careful not to allow ourselves to be overcome 
 by the depression which is the natural consequent of a 
 position of isolation, and of deprivation of privilege and 
 help. We are not without privilege even when visible 
 privileges are removed ; we have the highest privilege, 
 then, of all ; we can cry to God direct ; our cry will 
 ascend straight to His throne from the end of the earth. 
 
 Here there is assuredly great encouragement for many 
 an unhappily situated child of God; perhaps in his 
 family, father and mother, sisters and brothers, are all 
 against him ; perhaps in the lone corner of some far off 
 settlement, he never hears the sound of the sabbath bell, 
 he never sees the face of a minister of God ; or it may 
 be, that year after year he lies upon a bed of suffering 
 and pain ; oh let him not be downhearted ; oh let him not 
 think himself an outcast from the throne of heaven, from 
 the mercy seat, from the altar, from '^ The Priest V If 
 Jesus be ours, we may cry from the ends of the earth, as 
 well as from those spots which man has most consecrated 
 to the worship of the Lord ; no matter where we are, we 
 come in a moment before the mercy seat, we bring our 
 sacrifice to the altar, we have the services of a priest, the 
 services of Jesus, who knows in His wide-spread power 
 no limit of time, no boundary of space. 
 
 We now come to consider overwhelmings of heart — 
 times of sad and bitter trial, with which many a 
 
PRAYER. 201 
 
 tempest-tost child of God is only too familiar, and in 
 which the cry to Him is the only available resource. 
 We have many instances of these overwhelmings in the 
 Psalms. Psalms cii, Ixxvii, part of Psalm cvii, and 
 Psalm cxlii, will serve as examples ;^ and onr business 
 now is, to enquire into the condition of the poor heart 
 when thus overwhelmed. 
 
 The idea that is brought before us here, is that of a 
 man amid the waters — over whom those waters have the 
 mastery — who would fain buffet with them if he could — 
 but who is conquered by them, so that, unless there be 
 an interference on his behalf, he must die. In such an 
 overwhelming 
 
 The natural power of resistance is gone. Man makes 
 a great deal of his natural powers ; he will always use 
 them to repel anything which threatens injury to his life ; 
 but he may be reduced to such a state, as not to be able 
 to put forth those powers at all. His eagerness to act 
 
 * Jonah is a fit representation of a man crying from the ends of 
 the earth, and from amidst overwhelmings of the most terrible 
 kind. " Then Jonah cried unto the Lord his God, out of the 
 fish's belly, and said : * I cried by reason of mine affliction unto 
 the Lord, and He heard me, out of the belly of hell cried I, and 
 Thou heardest my voice.' For Thou hadst cast me into the deep, 
 in the midst of the seas ; and the floods compassed me about ; all 
 Thy billows and Thy waves passed over me. Then I said, * I am 
 cast out of Thy sight ; yet I will look again toward Thy holy 
 temple.' The waters compassed me about, even to the soul ; the 
 depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my 
 head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains ; the earth 
 with her bars was about me for ever ; yet hast Thou brought up 
 my life from corruption, O Lord my God. When my soul fainted 
 within me I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came in unto 
 Thee, into Thine holy temple." Jonah ii, 1 — 7. 
 
202 PRAYER. 
 
 may be as intense as ever, his dread of injury as acute, 
 but his natural powers of resistance are gone. We can 
 scarcely imagine any circumstances more distressing 
 than these ; if the mind were stupified, and the impend- 
 ing danger thus unappreciated, the case would not be 
 half so bad ; but to feel the enemy coming upon us, or, 
 it may be, actually upon us, and to have no power of 
 resistance, is terrible indeed. The man overwhelmed by 
 waters, with his strength exhausted, and his limbs 
 powerless to resist, but flung hither and thither by the 
 wild billows at their will, must feel his last few moments 
 of perfect consciousness terrible indeed ; and yet this is 
 the condition of children of God at times. Men who 
 have been down in deep waters wQl tell you that they 
 have been thus tossed to and fro, and that they have had 
 a terrible consciousness of the power of the enemy, and 
 of their own helplessness while they were thus tried. 
 There are many degrees of spiritual trial, which we can 
 resist by the exercise of, what I might be permitted to 
 call, the natural powers of the soul. We can throw off 
 many doubts by reasoning against them, and we can 
 overcome many temptations, by a simple determination 
 that we will have nothing to do with them; but in 
 circumstances like the present we have lost our 
 old powers, we cannot resist, we are paralyzed for a 
 season. Intense depression generally accompanies such 
 a state as this ; we have ceased to be what we used to be 
 formerly, and as we miss the old powers which we once 
 exercised with effect, we feel inclined to say, there 
 remains nothing for us but to die. 
 
 At such a season as this, where is our faith ? I do 
 not mean any extraordinary faith, but the simple. 
 
PRAYER. 203 
 
 ordinary faith, wherewith we carried on the, ordinary- 
 business of our spiritual life. We used to do a good 
 deal through the instrumentality of that faith ; it seemed 
 just as natural to us in daily use, as any of the ordinary 
 powers of our bodies ; we threw off many Satanic assaults 
 by it ; now it can do absolutely nothing : we judge our- 
 selves and say, " we have no faith at all.^^ This is, no 
 doubt, being brought very low ; and when we are in this 
 state, there are no fierce strugglings of soul; we are 
 too nearly drowned for them ; we are past struggling, and 
 we seem to be almost at the mercy of the Evil One. 
 
 As to our love to God, there was a time when we 
 could have done much through that also; that love 
 would have carried us through great trials, it would, by 
 the simple fact of its keeping us close to Christ, have 
 enabled us to defeat many of the temptations which 
 are now almost triumphant : but now that love seems 
 cold, it appears to us to have lost its energies, it certainly 
 does not keep our heart in peace as it used to do. The 
 very consciousness of our dead state as regards love 
 helps to unnerve us, and to make us more helpless amid 
 the waves which buffet and submerge us. Some of our 
 readers have, perhaps, never had any sad experiences like 
 these, but others no doubt have ; they have felt themselves 
 helpless amid the billows, their powers were numbed, 
 and their case seemed well nigh as bad as it could be. 
 Oh ! what an inexpressible mercy is it, that when we are 
 thus bereft of our ordinary spiritual powers, and apparently 
 at the mercy of every billow that dashes over us, we are 
 not left to " self," or " selFs " resources, or anything 
 belonging to ^^ self " at all ; that One whom the spiritual 
 as well as the natural waves must obey, is ready to put 
 
204 PRAYER. 
 
 fortli His Sovereign power on our behalf ! But for this,, 
 many a Christian man must have been drowned ; but for 
 this, the demons of the storm must have had their own 
 way with him; his limbs were unstrung, his eyes were 
 blinded, his brain was reeling, his heart was chilling ; 
 and what hindered their doing withhim even as they listed ? 
 God gave his poor child, under these circumstances, just 
 strength enough to cry to Him ; the cry was perhaps 
 feeble; it was almost drowned by the violence of the 
 storm ; it seemed more like the gurgling of a drowning 
 man than anything else, but it was a prayer, and the 
 prayer hearing and prayer honouring God did not despise 
 it ; He heard, and when He hears His child is safe. 
 
 Let us, when we find our ordinary powers of resistance 
 gone, take care lest we abandon ourselves to despair, as 
 though now, indeed, there is no hope, now we must 
 most surely die. It is true we must abandon all hope 
 in '' self ;^^ we must feel ourselves impotent, like Samson, 
 shorn of his locks, but we can utter a cry, be it never so 
 subdued ; let us utter it and leave the rest to God. 
 
 The heart is here represented to us as being overwhelmed, 
 or, as it is otherwise translanted, '^ covered over ;'^ it is 
 smothered in, unable to perform its functions with proper 
 action, unable to throw out the blood to the extremities, 
 to give them needed vitality, and power for necessary 
 effort. When the action of the heart is paralyzed, even 
 temporally, it will tell upon all the members, a chill there 
 sends its cold vibration through every limb ; Satan knows 
 this well, and so all his dealings are heart dealings, 
 efforts to paralyze the very spring of life itself. This 
 is precisely what we ourselves have experienced, we 
 have partially felt death within us, we have felt a 
 
PRAYER. 205 
 
 gradual numbing of our lieart_, a gradual diminution in 
 the quickness of its beat, a gradual closing in, and 
 pressure of a weight upon it, and this was the over- 
 whelming process. 
 
 Our Lord Jesus Christ had overwhelmings, and it 
 will be worth our while reverentially to consider them 
 for a moment. They were unlike ours, inasmuch as they 
 could not in any wise impair the vitality of His heart ; 
 but they were like ours, inasmuch as they were able to 
 inflict upon Him oppression and pain. Jesus^ heart 
 was unquestionably overwhelmed in Gethsemane, and 
 still more so upon Calvary ; there the heavy waters came 
 in upon His soul, but we know that His vitality. His 
 power of action, was in nowise impaired ; in Gethsemane 
 He says, ^'^the cup that My Father hath given Me, 
 shall I not drink it?^^ and on Calvary, on the cross, 
 He is stronger in action than ever He was elsewhere. 
 He laid down His life, no man took it from Him, 
 He laid it down of Himself; He had to die as a 
 deliberate act."^ 
 
 We must die whether we will or not ; He had to will 
 to die : and He did so will, and He carried out that will, 
 by formally giving up His life ; and so in the hour when 
 He was most overwhelmed, He put forth the greatest 
 power of action, and proved that no crushing, no over- 
 whelming, could touch for a moment the vitality which 
 dwelt in Him. Does not this speak to us, and say, '' If 
 Jesus was so powerful on behalf of His people, in the dark 
 
 * Matthew xxvii, 50. Ai^jjxg to crvsy.aa, "He gave up the 
 ghost," rather, " He dismissed His Spirit." He acted as the 
 priest. He was not only passive as the sacrifice, but active in 
 cutting short His life. None took it from Him. 
 
 T 
 
206 PRAYER. 
 
 hour when His heart was overwhelmed^ what must He 
 now be^ when this pressure is removed^ and His heart 
 beats freely in love to them, at the right hand of His 
 Father's throne?'' 
 
 It was necessary that Jesus should take experience of 
 overwhelmings of heart, as well as of the other tempta- 
 tions and trials, to which poor human nature is subject; 
 '' He was tempted in all points like as we are/' and this 
 must not be excluded. It is a matter of great moment to 
 us, that we should be enabled to see that Jesus endured 
 overwhelmings ; for if we are sustained in other trials by 
 thinking that He had experience of them, how shall we 
 be sustained in this, except in the same way. 
 
 Let us now look at some of the overwhelmings which 
 come in upon the believer's soul, in which his only re- 
 source is prayer. 
 
 There are times when the poor heart is completely 
 overwhelmed, by visions of sin. The memory with all 
 its powers, awakes and reproduces, with terrible distinct- 
 ness, the sounds and sights of, as we thought, bygone 
 days. The remembrance of these things is grievous to 
 us, the burden is intolerable; we shrink within our- 
 selves ; we wince at the fearful visions which come before 
 our minds. We had no such fearful visions when we 
 were committing sin, sin is sweet at the moment ; its 
 bitterness is in its dregs, its memories, its judgment. 
 And now, in the believer's case, the remembrance of sin 
 is made ten-fold worse, from the knowledge which he 
 has acquired of the holiness of God ; and the vision of 
 sin comes upon him with that extra power. Perhaps 
 since last he had such a vision, he has increased in 
 
PRAYER. 207 
 
 knowledge of God's holiness and character : and thus 
 his sin becomes subjected to a stricter test than any by 
 which it had ever been tried before^ and so, deeper 
 overwhelmings are his portion now. Such visions of sin 
 are able with great ease, to gain the mastery over any 
 spiritual powers, which the believer may possess; they 
 can soon drown him, there is no use in his attempting to 
 buffet them, they will dash him to and fro, they will 
 numb his vitality, they will break his limbs in pieces ; 
 Prayer is the Christian's only resource under these cir- 
 cumstances — the prayer which we find here — that he 
 may be led to the rock that is higher than he. 
 
 It may be, that these visions of sin are not the heavy 
 waters in which he is cast; doubts of Divine love are, 
 perhaps, his trouble. Not doubts of God's love generally, 
 but of that love as beaming upon himself personally. 
 Hiding of the Father's face is bitterness to the soul; 
 and when doubts come in upon the soul, which hide out 
 the sense of God's love, the overwhelming waters might 
 be said to have begun to break over our heads. Such 
 doult3 have come terribly upon many who are plainly 
 marked people of God; they have rolled in one after 
 another upon the heart, until at length they have 
 brought with them actual despair ; and all that the poor 
 tempest-tossed believer could do, was just to utter such 
 words as we have here, "Lead me to the rock that is 
 higher than I." 
 
 A remarkable instance of a soul under this trouble 
 came under the author's observation some years ago. A 
 Christian man, who had served God for a lifetime, was 
 seized with consumption. The repeated visits of the 
 attending minister seemed to afford no consolation, and. 
 
203 PRAYER. 
 
 in truth_, all the ordinary means of comforting were tried 
 in vain. Thus matters went on for a long time, and at 
 length the invalid went abroad for the winter. At the 
 end of the winter, he returned, and the minister having 
 heard that he continued in the same state of mind as 
 before, held back from visiting him. The invalid, how- 
 ever, desired to partake of the Holy Communion, and 
 so his pastor went to him. It was a very painful scene ; 
 the agitation of this poor afflicted Christian was such, 
 that all present were greatly distressed. For many 
 weeks did he linger, the minister now visiting him 
 regularly as before, but the same distressing doubts con- 
 tinued; and to all human appearance, they were likely 
 to shroud him, even in his departure. The mercy of 
 God, however, at length dispelled the gloom. One 
 night the sick man asked for his dressing things, and 
 washed and shaved himself; then he asked for a clean 
 shirt, and when he put it on, and was set up in the bed, 
 he said, "Now I am dressed for my last journey;" thus 
 he remained for a couple of hours, when lo ! all clouds 
 and mists rolled from before his eyes ; the light of 
 heaven shone in upon him, a ray of brightness streamed 
 through the golden gates upon his soul, and he departed 
 full of joy. 
 
 After the death of this worthy man, the author visited 
 his widow, and found from her that one of the strongest 
 characteristics of her departed husband^s mind was the 
 doubting of the love of others to him. Satan ever on 
 the watch, to use our own peculiarities of character 
 against ourselves ; and ever skilful in working with the 
 tools which he finds ready to his hand ; gave this 
 Christian man months, and even two years of grief in 
 
PRAYER. 209 
 
 this very way. We often supply ourselves, the waters 
 for our own overwhelming. 
 
 Our very sense of weakness has, at times, proved an 
 overwhelming billow. Thrown in upon ourselves, we 
 have been fiercely agitated with thoughts as to what 
 would become of us at last ; and Satan pressed us hard ; 
 he exercised his pressure upon our very weakest points ; 
 and in a short time we felt ourselves amid the waters, 
 with no possibility of escape, unless by the interference 
 of One far stronger than ourselves. 
 
 These will serve as specimens of the overwhelmings 
 which come over the people of the Lord ; but they are 
 only specimens; Satan's waves and billows are as many 
 as those which break upon the shore, or toss and swell in 
 the open sea. He has the means of overwhelming every 
 heart, and when he makes the attempt, our only refuge 
 is in prayer. Very possibly some of our readers may not 
 be often subjected to such fierce temptations as these ; 
 but they may rest assured, that Satan will not allow any 
 soul to gain the haven of everlasting rest, without having 
 first tried upon it his overwhelming powers. 
 
 Let us turn for a moment or two, to the overwhelming 
 troubles which come in upon the poor heart, in things 
 pertaining, it is true, only to this life, but still of great 
 importance to us while we are here. Overwhelmings of 
 heart are often the lot of man, as he performs the voyage 
 of life. This man is overwhelmed by the treachery of a 
 friend, whose iniquity has ruined him ; and this woman 
 is overwhelmed by the conduct of the child she reared, 
 amid many watchings, and many tears ; look on this side, 
 and you will see one, who has his heart overwhelmed by 
 
 T 2 
 
210 PRAYER. 
 
 the loss of tlie one he held most dear; he is choking under 
 the deep waters of bitterest sorrow, and they are howling 
 and dashing over his devoted head; look but a little 
 distance off, and there is another_, who to all appearance 
 must drown_, suffocating under the prospect of trial which 
 must surely come; (and which is perhaps worse in the 
 anticipation,, than in the event.) Let us not make light 
 of any of these things ; they are overwhelmings, and in 
 the case of men unhelped of God, they have proved 
 themselves so, by taking away even life itself. Oh ! be 
 advised, dear readers, never to face these billows alone ; 
 you have no strength in yourselves for bearing up, amid 
 the deep waters of grief; when first they begin to break 
 in upon you, ask to be led to the rock that is higher 
 than you. 
 
 Would that we could persuade the Lord's people who 
 read these lines, to believe that the overwhelmings which 
 have reference to this life, are to be brought before God, 
 just as much as those which appertain to another. Would 
 that we could dissuade them from the attempt to buffet 
 the waves by themselves, for this buffeting must end in 
 their being sorely hurt ; the longer we buffet by ourselves, 
 the deeper shall we find the water becoming, the stronger 
 the billows, the fiercer their crest, and the more impetuous 
 their rush ; yes, and the weaker also our strength. O 
 child of God, when first the waters begin to rise, seek 
 refuge in prayer ? and if thou must be tried in the heavy 
 surges of temptation or of sorrow, prepare for them upon 
 thy knees ; as the camel kneels to receive its load, so 
 kneel thou to receive thine, say, " when my heart is over- 
 whelmed, lead me to the rock that is higher than I !" 
 
 Such, then, are overwhelmings of heart, some of 
 
PRAYER. 211 
 
 which are peculiar to the believer, others of which he 
 shares in common with his fellow men. 
 
 We now come to the hearVs cry and desire under these 
 circumstances. 
 
 We trace here several points of considerable im- 
 portance. There is, first of all, a recognition of a place 
 of safety ; then we have this place brought before us, as 
 abundantly sufficient, when personal weakness has been 
 realized ; we observe further, that this place cannot 
 be attained, without the helping of another's hand ; and 
 lastly we have the character of this refuge, and the posi- 
 tion of a believer, when availing himself of it ; the place 
 of refuge is " a rock,^^ and the position of the believer is 
 ''^upon a rock.^^ 
 
 The bare recognition of a place of safety is, in itself, a 
 matter of great importance. To know that there is a 
 refuge, that we need not perish, is cheering to the heart ; 
 nothing so daunts the spirit, and numbs every energy 
 which otherwise might have been put forth, as the feeling 
 of despair, that, " it is all no use,^^ that we cannot escape. 
 If only we believe in the existence of a place of safety, 
 and that it is possible for us to reach it, we shall feel our 
 spirits revive ; hope will enter into, and vivify the heart ; 
 and even though desperate struggles must be made, still 
 the heart will rise to the emergency, and success shall 
 crown its efforts, and its prayers. 
 
 That, however, with which we now have to do, is not 
 so much personal effort, as prayer made with the recog- 
 nition of a place of safety. It may be that we feel we 
 cannot by any struggling of ours, attain that place of 
 safety; that it may be like a rock seen by the drowning 
 
212 PRAYER. 
 
 man^ but at too great a distance to be reached by his 
 faihng strength ; if the recognition of it give us strength 
 to cry, that will be of incalculable worth. 
 
 The Psalmist saw the rock ; oh ! may you_, dear reader, 
 ever see safe standing ground, in the worst trial times, 
 May Satan never be able to say to you, " you are hope- 
 less as well as helpless ; there is no way of escape for 
 you.^^ Ever let us recognise the place of safety ; let us 
 say "it exists; I know where it is; my belief in that point 
 cannot be shaken.^^ It is true this is no very high putting 
 forth of Christian grace, (and yet in overwhelming cir- 
 cumstances, it is perhaps higher than some suppose) 
 but though not a high, it is a most useful, and important 
 one; many a tempest-tossed believer has effectively 
 made his escape, by prayer which was put up under the 
 consciousness of this fact. Should the overwhelming be 
 so terrible, as to make the tried and tempted man say, 
 " I doubt whether Christ will save me," oh ! may it 
 never pass that boundary, and make him say, " I doubt 
 whether Christ can save me." 
 
 In the passage which we are now considering, we have 
 the place of safety brought before us, as abundantly 
 sufficient, when personal weakness has been realized. 
 Personal weakness had been realized, for the heart had 
 been overwhelmed; now that which alone could avail 
 under the present sad circumstances, is realized also, viz., 
 the high Rock, " Lead me to the Rock that is higher than 
 I." The solidity of the Rock is brought into contrast 
 with the weakness of the believer tossed to and fro ; it 
 stands unmoved amid the waves, while he is beaten about 
 amidst them, almost at their will. There is no more apt 
 
PaAYER. 213 
 
 image of the position which the Lord Jesus occupies 
 towards His people, in the terrible hours of overwhelming 
 temptation_, than this of " the Eock/^ The Rock stands 
 immoveable amid the boiling waters_, which at times 
 sweep against it with heavy and unbroken billows^, as 
 though they would push it from its base^ and at times 
 leap towards it with seething foam^ as though they would 
 tear it into pieces^ and in their rage sweep in its fragments 
 upon the shore^ to add to the water- worn shingle there ; 
 now with a deep-toned boom, like the shot of a heavy 
 gun, one mighty broad-backed billow discharges against 
 it all its might ; and now, jostling and crowding, a mul- 
 titude follow quiokly in its path, as though they would 
 fling themselves into the breach which this artillery had 
 made; the shriek of the winds is heard in horrid 
 distinctness, as they madden the billows, and lash them 
 onward, with fresh paroxysms of rage ; but motionless 
 amid both winds and waves, without the loss of even the 
 smallest fragment, stands the Rock, silent, majestic, and 
 unmoved, the same in storm, as in calm. Such is " the 
 Rock,^^ and such is Jesus ; and such He has appeared to 
 His people, ofttimes battered, and almost smothered, 
 amid such waves as these. And it is very important to 
 God^s people to remember, that this Rock is always to 
 be found amid these heaving billows, these boiling surges 
 of the devil ; let them rage their very worst, there He 
 is, and there, for His people's sake, He ever must be 
 found. 
 
 But not only is the Rock recognised, but also its 
 height — this is no sunken rock, whose sharp and jagged 
 edges, submerged beneath the waters, amid which the 
 believer is being tossed, must have added fearfully to his 
 
214 PRAYER. 
 
 distress_, lacerating, and bruising him, and conspiring 
 with the waves to take away his life. No, this is a Rock 
 higher than himself, on which he can stand, whose 
 foundation, and whose height, are equally beyond the 
 reach of any power, which the enemy can put forth. 
 This is the recognition of the Psalmist here ; he calls it 
 " the Rock that is higher than I.^^ 
 
 There is great instruction in these last few words. 
 Self has been seen in all its weakness; it is now proved 
 that it can do nothing ; safety must be out of self, it 
 must be in something higher than self, it must be in 
 Christ. And Jesus is abundantly sufficient for us ; let 
 us but see this, and laying self aside altogether, seek to 
 stand on Him, and aU wiU be surely well with us. We 
 waste much strength, we incur much peril, in trying to 
 keep our own heads above water ; this is a vain attempt ; 
 the billows are much higher, and the waves are much 
 stronger than we are ; we are not constructed to fight 
 these spiritual billows by ourselves, any more than the 
 body is, to contend with the sweeping billows of the 
 seas. To buffet the waters was not the intent for which 
 the body was made ; to buffet the temptations of the 
 Devil was not the purpose for which the soul was created ; 
 this has come no doubt to be its lot, but it is not fur- 
 nished with any powers by which it can do it in itself; 
 that on which we stand must be something higher than 
 ourselves, if we are to stand at all. 
 
 In times, then, of fierce overwhelmings, let us look at 
 once for the high Rock ; let us seek for nothing from 
 self, let us just cry to have our feet set on Christ ; then 
 we shall feel that we have firm ground under us ; then 
 we shaU see the waves toss themselves, and we shall 
 
PRAYER. 215 
 
 hear them roar ; then we shall look at them as they 
 curl upwards^ and at last sink down exhausted^ spent by 
 their own fierce throes ; and we shall rejoice that all we 
 have to do, is simply to stand on Christ, to be in union 
 with Him, while He bears the storm's brunt, and at 
 once defies and defeats its utmost rage. Stand, beloved 
 Christian upon the Rock; if you ask, but what shall I 
 do? I answer, ^'only make sure that you are there;'' 
 feel the Rock under you ; then, as when a tempest-tossed 
 mariner has reached a rock, the contest is no longer 
 between the waves and him, but between the waves and 
 the rock ; so when you are on Christ, the contest will 
 not be between you and Satan, but between Christ and 
 Him. Unless Satan can vanquish Christ, the Christian 
 must be safe. 
 
 There remains one further particular to be looked at, 
 and i, e., the fact that this place cannot he realized 
 without the helping of another's hand. The Psalmist 
 here desires to be led to the Rock that is higher than he 
 was. In Psalms xxvii and xlii we find him recognising 
 the Lord, as the One who not only provided the shelter, 
 but also who enabled him to reach it. " He shall set me 
 up upon a rock." " He brought me up also out of an 
 horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon 
 a rock, and established my goings.'' 
 
 This helping hand of God we have brought before us 
 in Psalm xviii ; here we meet with the floods and deep 
 waters ; " the sorrows of death compassed me, and the 
 floods of ungodly men made me afraid, the sorrows of 
 hell compassed me about, the snares of death prevented 
 me ;" there were terrible dealings of God also, for ^^ the 
 
216 PRAYER. 
 
 channels of waters were seen and the foundations of the 
 world were discovered at Thy rebuke, O Lord, at the 
 blast of the breath of Thy nostrils'/' then what hap- 
 pened ? " He sent from above, He took me, He drew me 
 out of many waters/' 
 
 If we would find ourselves upon the Eock, and enjoy 
 the realization of being so, we must be dependent upon 
 another's hand. And that hand can do everything for 
 us, even in our worst of times. When we are so blinded 
 by the salt waves that dash into our eyes, so reeling in 
 brain that we cannot perhaps think, much less make 
 continuous efibrts, there is a hand which can lead us, 
 which can draw us out of the waters, which can set our 
 feet upon the Rock. Surely we have already experienced 
 the power and tenderness of that hand ; and it may be 
 that in the reader's case, the waves, as they made sure 
 of their prey, found it supernaturally drawn forth from 
 them, that it might be set upon a Rock, immoveable 
 amid all waters, and sufficient amid all storms ! 
 
217 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 THE *'I WILL" OE PRATEE IK TEOUBLE. 
 {Concluded.) 
 
 Psalm cxxi, 1. " I willlift up mine eyes unto the hills, from 
 whence cometh my help" 
 
 THERE is one resource,, of which no tyranny of man, 
 no complication of circumstances, can deprive the 
 Christian ; i. e.y Prayer. 
 
 The limbs may be chained, so that neither hand nor 
 foot can be stirred in self-defence; the view of the 
 natural heavens may be shut out, by the dark dungeon^s 
 arching waU ; yea, the very eye- sight may be extinguished, 
 so that the dull and heavy balls will reflect no objects 
 in the heavens above, or in the earth beneath ; still the 
 man of God can come into the posture of prayer in his 
 soul, can lift up his eyes to the heaven of heavens, can 
 worship, can supplicate, in a word, can pray. 
 
 Blessed be God that this is so ; for the body is often- 
 times so circumstanced that it cannot use hand, or knee, 
 or eye in prayer. 
 
 This chapter concludes the portion of our subject 
 which has reference to Prayer in Trouble ; and in the 
 
218 TRAYER. 
 
 passage which it is designed to illustrate, we have these 
 thoughts prominently brought before us : 
 
 I. The elevation of the Christian above surrounding 
 circumstances. 
 
 II. The power of spiritual sight in prayer. 
 
 III. The definite point on ivhich the eye is fixed. 
 
 The Psalmist says, " I will lift up mine eyes unto the 
 hills;" his own position, then, appears to be in the 
 valleys in the low ground ; and it does not appear 
 that he can extricate himself from them; all that he 
 can do, under present circumstances, is to look unto 
 the hills. 
 
 Many of the Lord's people are obliged to walk, for a 
 long and weary while, in the valleys ; they have to go 
 from one valley to another ; and the atmosphere of these 
 valleys is very damp and chilling to the soul. In some 
 dark places the deadly night-shade grows ; from some 
 gloomy caverns ill-omened creatures hoot; the foot-step 
 loses its elasticity, the heart its bound, and the wonder is, 
 how some of these valleys are ever passed safely through. 
 It is true that all valleys are not so bad as this ; there are 
 some which are simply dark and cold, some which are 
 rough and lonely, and some which are depressing, because 
 for many a long and weary mile, they shut out the sur- 
 rounding scenery, with all its variety and life ; but 
 whatever the peculiarity of each valley, it is able to act 
 upon the man that travels through it ; and who can tell 
 what such places have witnessed, in the way of deep 
 depressions of soul ? But why not make our escape out 
 of these valleys ? Simply because we cannot ; and because 
 God never intended that we should be able to do so ; 
 His design towards us is, that we should be taught to lift 
 
PRAYER. 219 
 
 up our eyes unto the hills ; that we should journey through 
 the valleys, looking to higher ground for all needful help. 
 What God often has in view for His children, is helping 
 I them in the valley, rather than helping them out of it. 
 
 What long and lonely journeyings have been made, by 
 many a widowed, many an orphaned heart ; the rocks 
 which shut in their valley were high ; a glimmering 
 light, seldom stronger than the twilight of the evening, 
 was all they had to illumine their weary path ; and as 
 day after day passed on, and night after night, these foot- 
 sore travellers said, " Lord, how long ?" 
 
 What long and stony journeyings have been performed 
 by poverty-stricken men and women, who often tried to 
 scale the precipice sides of the barren valley through 
 which they travelled, but they could not ; and faint and 
 cowed, their very heart withering within them, they 
 struggled forward another day's journey, without any 
 motive or any aim. 
 
 What dark and dismal j ourneyings have some Christian s 
 performed, in valleys where they seemed to be especially 
 exposed to Satanic temptation, where the Evil One could 
 cause horrid, slimy temptations to cross their path ; 
 where poisonous food seemed all that there was to eat; 
 where unearthly sounds whispered, and hooted, and rever- 
 berated, and echoed, and re-echoed again ; until the poor 
 wayfarer seemed almost driven out of his senses, as though 
 but yet a little more, and he must go mad. Oh ! this is 
 a dreadful valley, it is one not travelled by all believers, 
 but it is one only too well known to others. What is 
 there, which the poor believer has not heard in this 
 terrible place ? He shudders ! he hears a whisper, it 
 says, '^ There is no God at all." — He shivers with cold ! 
 
220 PRAYER. 
 
 he has put his foot upon some icy, slimy things^ and there 
 runs through his soul a chill shiver of terror ; a thought 
 has been infused into his heart that if there be a 
 God He does not care for him. What wild and un- 
 earthly hoot is that which now startles him afresh ? It 
 is an evil spirit, hooting out that all Christians are fools : 
 and that the wayfarer's Christianity has brought him 
 into this valley ; and that he is a fool for having come 
 into it, for that his old neighbours and friends, who 
 troubled not themselves about these things, are in the 
 sunshine, and well off enough. A hissing sound from 
 some reptile now vibrates upon his ear ; ah, who can tell 
 what that serpent would have done, had not some unseen 
 influence made it glide harmlessly away ? Perhaps that 
 was some evil, which no one in human flesh could have 
 resisted, and which the Lord in mercy, dealt with Him- 
 self. Now the Christian hears a whisper, " make away 
 with yourself;" now he hears sounds which have no 
 meaning, but which confuse him, (and that is their 
 design.) Thus it is with some poor souls ; oh ! wonder 
 of grace, and superhuman power, and love, that they ever 
 reach heaven at all. 
 
 Dear reader, to you, if unexercised in such dark valleys 
 as this, all that has now been said, may seem an over- 
 charged account of temptations, which are common to 
 all. This is not so ; all men are not tempted to infidelity, 
 to suicide, to despair, and to such like things ; there are 
 dark valleys, the inside of which some men never see ; 
 why one should see them, and not another, must be left 
 with God ; we cannot explain how this comes to pass, 
 but into this very valley, of which I have been speaking 
 now, some of the very holiest of God^s people have been 
 
PRAYER. 221 
 
 cast ; and in it, tliey "have performed no inconsiderable 
 part of their journey, towards their present rest. 
 
 The point, however, to which our attention is to be 
 especially directed, is. Elevation above surrounding 
 circumstances f and that elevation, in prayer. The Psalmist 
 says, "\ will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from 
 whence cometh my help." 
 
 The hills towered above the valleys ; and all that the 
 Psalmist could do, was to lift up his eyes in prayer, to a 
 height far above the place in which he was. In our 
 times of distress, our valley journeyings, whether the 
 valley be simply a lonely one, or one of stony poverty, 
 or one of darkness, and terrible distress, let us look up, 
 let us fix our eyes on the hills, yea, above the hills ; let 
 us say, *^*^my help cometh from the Lord, who made 
 heaven and earth." Looking at surrounding circum- 
 stances, has often been the sore hurt of the children of 
 God ; we must not ventm'c upon it ; we must fix our 
 ejes on the face of God; and He must discern prayer in 
 those eyes, if we are to be safe. Our blessed Redeemer 
 lifted up His eyes to heaven. "When He stood by the 
 grave of Lazarus, and the stone was taken away, and 
 He was about to enter into immediate conflict with 
 death, withdrawing from him his prey. He "lifted up 
 His eyes, and said. Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast 
 heard me. And I knew that Thou hearest me always : 
 but because of the people which stand by I said it, that 
 they may believe that Thou hast sent me. And when 
 He thus had spoken. He cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, 
 come forth." John xi, 43. And when the Saviour was 
 about to pass over the brook Cedron, and enter the 
 
 u 2 
 
222 PRAYER. 
 
 horrors of Gethsemane, He looked up above all surround- 
 ing gloom, and beheld the face of His Father, on behalf 
 of His disciples, yea, and also of Himself. '^ These 
 words spake Jesus, and lifted up His eyes to heaven, and 
 said. Father, the hour is come ; glorify Thy Son, that 
 Thy Son also may glorify Thee." John xvii, 1. 
 
 In our trial time we must lift up our eyes — we must 
 not try and pierce the far distance ; we must not speculate, 
 and derive our comfort from thoughts that matters may 
 turn out in this way or that way ; we must look above 
 the valley with its gloom, away from its windings, from 
 the fissures in its rocks, from places which seem likely 
 to afford an outlet, above all, away from all, to God. 
 
 We have no natural faculties for piercing the future of 
 our troubles ; experience shews us at times that all our 
 speculations, all our calculations are not to be depended 
 on, and that which we thought likely to prove our outlet 
 from the valley, has, in point of fact, but more straitly 
 shut up our path. So long as we endeavour to relieve 
 ourselves, by efforts of human reason, or vision, so long 
 must we remain perplexed, and anxious : the lifting of 
 the eye is, in point of fact, our only true resource. 
 
 And how are we to lift up the eye, if it be not in 
 prayer? — Prayer, in which God is distinctly seen, in 
 which His willingness to help is abundantly realised, 
 and acknowledged ; one moment's upturning of the eye 
 in this way is of more practical value than the most 
 earnest gaze into the future. Let us look up from the 
 valley to God, and He will look down into the valley on 
 us, and lead us through all its windings, all its gloom, to 
 the point which He can see from His lofty throne, as the 
 only one through which we can make our escape. 
 
PRAYER. 223 
 
 Elevation, then, above surrounding circumstances is 
 imperatively called for, from the child of God, when 
 journeying in the valley; at such a season he is to "lift 
 up his eyes." 
 
 And this leads us to consider the Power of 
 Spii'itual Sight in prayer. Spiritual sight is a reality, 
 just as much as the sight of the eye ; and in proportion 
 to the keenness of that sight will very often depend a 
 man^s power in prayer. 
 
 This sight varies in the people of God, just as natural 
 sight varies in power and clearness amongst men. There 
 are some who can see only the dim outlines of things ; 
 some who can plainly discern the form, but not the 
 colour of the object in view ; and others who, though 
 they can see both form and colour, cannot perceive the 
 details, upon the comprehension of which depends 
 admiration of the object^ s beauty, or appreciation of its 
 worth. Even thus it is with the children of God ; some 
 are dim- sighted, and an indistinct outline of God upon 
 His throne, and of His faithfulness, and love, and power, 
 is all they see ; others can clearly perceive all these, but 
 they see them as it were merely in the abstract, colourless, 
 without the warmth and glow imparted to them by 
 personal realization ; and there are others yet again, who 
 must have their eyes further opened of the Spirit, ere 
 they can realize in God those details of excellence in 
 which His glory and beauty are most plainly seen. 
 
 Let none, however, who read these lines be discouraged, 
 because they feel that in their case all that they have 
 attained to is a perception of the outline of God. All, 
 perhaps, that such can do is to look np unto the hills, to 
 try and see, rather than really to see God in their 
 
224 PRAYER. 
 
 troublous time. It is no doubt hard work to pray- 
 under such circumstances as these — to believe that the 
 One we cannot plainly discern can and will help us out 
 of the valley in which we go heavily, and in which we 
 are almost afraid that we shall die ; but God is on high, 
 however small may be our power of realizing Him, and 
 if we lift up our eyes and He sees that we would fain 
 look imploringly and trustingly rjpon Him, He will 
 surely look down upon us ; He will not visit us for our 
 blindness, but will honour our humble effort to lean upon 
 Him ; and the bare fact of our having looked unto Him, 
 however little we were able really to see Him, will bring 
 us all needful help. What encouragement is here for 
 many who are weak both in faith and prayer ! How 
 should such a thought as this lead them just to turn 
 their eyes upward in all their times of difficulty and 
 distress ! Satan well knows how bountiful God is, and 
 how He honours even the humblest effort at trusting 
 Him ; yea, he knows that just this upward look in prayer, 
 feeble though it be, will surely extricate the believer, at 
 the last, and therefore he would daunt the weak ones of 
 the Lord, by saying to them, " You cannot do well 
 enough in prayer to secure an answer." But do not per- 
 mit yourself to be deceived ; it is not the measure of 
 your power in prayer that is in question, it is the measure of 
 God^s faithfulness and love ; even looking upward from 
 the valley's depth will be counted by Him as prayer. 
 
 Happy, however, is he who can see more than the dim 
 outline of the One to whom he would address himself in 
 his hour of need ; who does not merely stand as Moses in 
 the cleft of the rock, to see as it were the back parts, 
 while the face of God is not seen, (Exod. xxxiii, 22,) but 
 
PRAYER. 225 
 
 who knows wliat it is to have ^' the light of the knowledge 
 of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Clirist/^ (2 Cor. 
 iv, 6 ;) whose outline of God is filled in with the details of 
 His excellence, with attributes, in which he, as a praying 
 man, has especial interest. When such an one lifts up 
 his eyes unto the hills, when he looks upon God, he sees 
 enough in Him for all his wants, no matter how long the 
 journey may prove through the valley, no matter how 
 terrible its horrors, and no matter how accumulated his 
 need. Such an one knows the tenderness of God, and 
 sees that He will not allow the trusting soul to faint for 
 want of a needful supply ; he dwells upon the faithfulness 
 of God, and sees that He will not, that He cannot desert 
 him in his trial hour ; he sees Him in all His excellencies, 
 all His glorious attributes; he looks closely upon Him, 
 (and he can do so, for these attributes shine upon him 
 with a mellowed light, as existing in, and beaming from 
 his Father in Christ,) and then he is assured of help, he 
 speaks of it as sure, " I will lift up mine eyes unto the 
 hills from whence cometh my help." 
 
 Let us seek, ever more and more, for an increase of 
 clearness and power in spiritual vision ; that we may see 
 the One who is exalted above the hills, caring for us in 
 our travel through the valleys; that we may perceive 
 Him to be a God nigh at hand, and not a God afar off; 
 no peril, weariness, want, temptation, device of the Devil, 
 or positive assault of his, can do us any hurt while we 
 are in the valley, if only (however feebly) we lift up our 
 eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh our help. 
 
 And here, I would impress upon the reader the 
 importance of the words, "I will." This power of 
 
226 PRAYER. 
 
 spiritual sight has to be exercised by distinct action. 
 Just as the man possessed of natural sight has to use the 
 muscles of the eye to bring it to bear upon the object he 
 would see, so the man possessed of spiritual vision must 
 use that spiritual faculty if he would see God. Blessing 
 is given to distinct action. Distinct action shews 
 practically the wish of the mind ; and that the mind is 
 willing to make exertion to attain to what it desires, and 
 this action God will always honour. " Seek and ye 
 shall find/^ is as true in this, as in other particulars of 
 the spiritual life. Have not you, dear reader, come very 
 short in this exercise of distinct action when you were 
 in the valley ? You have walked long and wearily with 
 the eye downcast, and it may be watering the ground 
 with your tears; the lid drooped, and it was Satan's 
 purpose that it should ; have not you felt yourself scarce 
 equal to the exertion of raising the lid and turning the 
 eye on God? It answers Satan's purpose well enough 
 that you should be occupied in looking round, and taking 
 care of yourself, provided that by so doing, you are too 
 much occupied to look up ; he does not mind how busy 
 you are with yourself, provided you be not busy with 
 God ; be encouraged then to bethink yourselves of, and 
 to exercise distinct action in spiritual sight ; the very act 
 of so doing will make you feel the reality of your con- 
 nection with Him, will enlarge your expectation from 
 Him ; you cannot reasonably expect to see, unless you 
 lift up your eyes and look. 
 
 And when you thus lift up your eyes, let there be a 
 definite point on which your sight is fixed. Look straight 
 to the throne — do not lose time in asking where shall I 
 find help, who will sympathize with and succour me? 
 
PRAYER. 227 
 
 Let us look to God at once ; we have a definite trouble, 
 a definite enemy, let us have a definite resource also in 
 our time of need . 
 
 A word or two of caution will conclude this chapter. 
 
 Let us not try to manage our little troubles by our- 
 selves, lest greater ones spring out of them. Little 
 troubles are like little seeds, they are small enough in 
 themselves, but they are capable of producing great and 
 important results. The oak is the produce of the acorn, 
 the tangled briar comes from a seed on which no thorn 
 is to be seen ; the Christian who will manage his little 
 troubles by himself, will soon find that he must manage 
 much greater ones than he bargained for at first. 
 
 Let us not allow om'selves to be kept from prayer by 
 the great disproportion between God^s resources and our 
 little needs. Satan is able to argue at times apparently 
 on God^s behalf; he is all for God^s honour, if by 
 magnifying His honour, he can keep the poor sinner 
 away from Him; it is for this purpose, and for this 
 alone, that God^s honour is ever magnified by Satan. 
 Let us, however, see through this cheat; let us be 
 thankftd, instead of being daunted at the vastness of 
 God^s resources, at the great disproportion between them 
 and our wants. By this disproportion, we are all the 
 more secured, and we may rest assured, that however 
 small our troubles or our need, a Father^ s love will 
 always make God consider them as great. 
 
 In all troubles, then, be persuaded, dear reader, to put 
 forth this " I Will '^ of prayer. If you can do no more 
 than barely upturn the eye, then say, '' I will ^^ do that. 
 Do not undertake the management of even the smallest 
 
228 PRAYER, 
 
 trouble by yourself; do not shrink from bringing any 
 trouble^ no matter how small, to God ; around, all may 
 be darkness, perplexity, and doubt ; if you would dispel 
 all these, say with the Psalmist of old, " I will lift up 
 mine eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my 
 help/' 
 
229 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 THE ''I WILL" OF CONXINTJANCE IN PRAYEE. 
 
 Psalm Iv, 17. ^^ Evening, and morning, and at noon, will 1 
 pray, and cry aloud: and He shall hear my voice" 
 
 JUST as a scliolar may excel in some one brancli of 
 learning, or an artizan in some particular department 
 of his trade, so a Christian may pre-eminently excel in 
 some one spiritual grace or power. 
 
 And further, as the scholar or artizan may do some 
 one portion of that, their special work, better than 
 another; so the Christian may peculiarly excel, not only 
 in some one grace, but in some particular working of 
 that grace. 
 
 Some Christian men are great in one thing, and some 
 in another. Several may be great in the self-same thing, 
 but in different departments of it. Thus is it with 
 prayer. One man may excel in the lightning speed and 
 power of his prayer in sudden emergencies; another 
 may excel in making prayer with the deep and abiding 
 assurance of an answer, and with patient determination 
 to wait for it; while a third has peculiar power of 
 
 X 
 
230 CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 
 
 realizing God in prayer ; and a fourth is especially able 
 to gather in his thoughts,, and concentrate his mind^ 
 when he is thus engaged in prayer. 
 
 It may be that a Christian is great in all these de- 
 partments of prayer^ and yet that he comes short in 
 Continuance in Prayer ; which is the subject I am about 
 to consider now. " Continue in prayer^ and watch in the 
 same with thanksgiving," says St. Paul in his Epistle to 
 the Colossians. "Evening, and morning, and at noon, 
 will I pray, and cry aloud : and He shall hear my voice,'' 
 says the Psalmist. 
 
 The subject, then, which we are now to consider is 
 Continuance in Prayer. 
 
 I. Continuance in Prayer as "a Habit. ^* 
 
 II. Continuance in it ''at any one time.'' 
 
 May grace be given to you, dear reader, to say " I 
 WILL.'' "Evening, and morning, and at noon, wiU I 
 pray^ and cry aloud." 
 
 Let us enquire, first of all, what this continuance in 
 prayer is, looked at as a Habit. 
 
 It is the habit of speaking to God at all times and in 
 all places; when there are immediate occasions for 
 prayer, and also when there are not."^ 
 
 Yes ! speaking to God at all times— not merely saying 
 a prayer, or even praying in the morning when we get * 
 up, and in the evening when we go to bed; but at 
 many another time of the day; or if we lie wakeful 
 upon our beds, at many a time in the night. Those 
 
 * St. Augustine's wish was, that Christ when He came might 
 find him " aut precantem, aut praedicantem " — either praying or 
 preaching. 
 
CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 231 
 
 who thus continue in prayer, often put up more than a 
 hundred distinct petitions in the day — it may be that 
 they have only a few minutes leisure between one 
 occupation and another, still in these few minutes how 
 much may be said; or perhaps their occupation is a 
 solitary one, and then, if they so will, they can talk to 
 God nearly all day long. Prayer may be made in one 
 short sentence, yes, in one short word, yes, without even 
 a word at aU. There is prayer in the upturning of an 
 eye ; there is prayer in the heaving of a breast ; and it 
 is often to no more than these, that answers have been 
 sent, the results of which affect the soul, even for eternity 
 itself. 
 
 This continuance in prayer, is independent of place, as 
 well as time. Some people are very dependent upon 
 place, and becoming slavishly so, they are, from this 
 very cause, hindered in continuance in prayer. The 
 old minister's servant maid will teach us how to be in^ 
 dependent of time and place in prayer. A number of 
 ministers were assembled for the discussion of difficult 
 questions, and among others it was asked, how the com- 
 mand to "pray without ceasing '^ could be complied 
 with. Various suppositions were started, and at length 
 one of the number was appointed to write an essay upon 
 it, to be read at the next monthly meeting ; which being 
 heard by a plain, sensible servant girl, she exclaimed, 
 " What ! a whole month wanted to tell the meaning of 
 that text? It is one of the easiest in the Bible.'' 
 "Well, well," said an old minister, "Mary, what can 
 you say about it ? let us know how you understand it. 
 Can you pray all the time ? " " Oh, yes Sir." " What, 
 when you have so many things to do ? " " Why, Sir, 
 
232 CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 
 
 the more I have to do^ the more I can pray/^ '^ Indeed ! 
 Well, Marjj do let us know how it is^ for most people 
 think otherwise/^ '' Well^ Sir/^ said the girl^ " when I 
 first open my eyes in the morning, I pray, ' Lord, open 
 the eyes of my understanding ;' and while I am dressing 
 I pray that I may be clothed with the robe of righteous- 
 ness ; and when I have washed me, I ask for the washing 
 of regeneration ; and as I begin to work, I pray that I 
 may have strength equal to my day. When I begin to 
 kindle up the fire, I pray that God^s work may revive in 
 my soul ; and as I sweep out the house I pray that my 
 heart may be cleansed from all impurities; and while 
 preparing and partaking of breakfast, I desii'C to be fed 
 with the hidden manna and the sincere milk of the word; 
 and as I am busy with the little children, I look up to 
 God as my Father, and pray for the spirit of adop- 
 tion, that I may be His child; and so on all day. 
 Everything I do furnishes me with a thought for prayer." 
 " Enough, enough," cried the old divine ; " these things 
 are revealed to babes, and often hid from the wise and 
 prudent. Go on, Mary," said he; ^'^pray without 
 ceasing. And as for us, my brethren, let us bless the 
 Lord for this exposition, and remember that He has 
 said, 'The meek will He guide in judgment.^" The 
 essay, as a matter of course, was not considered necessary 
 after the occurrence of this little event. 
 
 Now, to pass over the ideas which are held by some, 
 as to the extraordinary value of prayer made in certain 
 edifices, set apart for that purpose, let us come to the 
 more domestic life of the Christian, and see how he is 
 afiected in this matter. 
 
 Some, (and they are often true children of God,) 
 
CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 233 
 
 cannot pray except it be at the bed-side, where they are 
 accustomed morning and evening to kneel, or in some 
 special place in their house, which they have set apart 
 for that purpose. 
 
 I say nothing against their having a special place — 
 there are advantages in having such a special place, 
 when practicable ; but he who exercises himself in con- 
 tinuance in prayer, must be wholly independent of place. 
 He will often have to pray in very strange places indeed. 
 Not long since, I met with a young Christian lady, who 
 was compelled, against her will, to be present at the 
 opera, a place wholly unfit for a child of God, and I 
 suppose in the opinion of most, a very unsuitable one 
 for prayer — but the testimony of that person was, that 
 she never felt herself nearer to God in her life. She 
 was there against her will, and God knew it; and He 
 gave her power wholly to abstract herself from the sights 
 and sounds around, and speak with Him. 
 
 A Sunday school teacher, knowing that all the boys in 
 his class were constantly occupied during the week, 
 feared much that prayer was sometimes neglected. 
 He insisted, one Sabbath, on the importance of prayer. 
 At the close, he asked a little boy, of ten years of age, 
 who led a very uncomfortable life in the service of a 
 master sweep, " And do you ever pray ? " " Oh, yes ! 
 Monsieur." '^^And when do you do it? You go out 
 early in the morning, do you not?" ^^ Yes, Monsieur; 
 and we are only half awake when we leave the house. 
 I think about God, but cannot say that I pray then." 
 " When then ? " ^^ You see. Monsieur, our master orders 
 us to mount the chimney quickly, but does not forbid us 
 to rest a little when we are at the top. Then I sit upon 
 
 X 2 
 
234 CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 
 
 the top of tlie chimney and pray/' " And what do you 
 say?'' "Ah ! Monsieur, very little ! I know no grand 
 words with which to speak to God. Most frequently I 
 only repeat a verse that I have learned at school/' 
 "What is that?" The scholar repeated with fervour, 
 " God be merciful to me a sinner." 
 
 Here are some instances ; and if a man, whose habit 
 is " to continue in prayer," were to note down, for a 
 single week, all the places in which he had prayed 
 during that week, some persons would be very much 
 surprised indeed. The railway carriage, the road, the 
 shop, the garden, would be found to have been places 
 of prayer — and one, just as acceptable as another, 
 before God. 
 
 It is a mistake to suppose that it is hard to pray in 
 any of these places. It is the spirit of a man that prays, 
 and the spirit may be quietly before the throne, while 
 the body is whirling along amid the noise and dust 
 of travel. There is many a railway carriage in this 
 kingdom, the corner of which has served as a place of 
 prayer for the child of God — the man that was sitting 
 there was not asleep — behold, he prayed ! And many a 
 prayer has gone up from the believer, as he walked along 
 the road. When we are walking alone on the road, or 
 in the fields, is an excellent time for prayer. It is not 
 by any means impossible to pray short prayers, while 
 threading one's way amid the people and carriages which 
 throng the streets of a large town ; how much less so to 
 pray, as we walk along in quiet. And thus it will 
 be seen, how entirely vain must be the excuse of those, 
 who say that " they have no time, or no opportunity to 
 pray." If they say, " We have no inclination," will it 
 
CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 235 
 
 not be nearer the truth ? God will accept real prayer, 
 no matter from what locality it is sent up, no matter at 
 what time. He will listen to the prayer of the poor 
 woman as she bends over her wash tub or ironing board, 
 or plies her needle ; and it will be as acceptable to Him, 
 as though it ascended from the fretted aisles of the 
 gorgeous temple, as though it were embodied in " the 
 chantings of the minister, and in the responses of a 
 surpliced choir. Pick out the meanest of man^s occu- 
 pations, (provided it be not a sinful one,) — let it be the 
 sweeping of the streets — let it be the gathering, from 
 house to house, of the offal of lifers daily supplies; 
 while engaged in such an occupation, prayer, brighter 
 than eartVs brightest jewels, prayer, sweeter than 
 earth^s daintiest perfume, may be made by the poorest 
 of the sons of men — aye, and while men pass with pity 
 or contempt the man that they think degraded by this 
 miserable occupation, they may, unknown to themselves, 
 have passed a man who, while handling eartVs most 
 contemptible things, was moving heaven itself, and 
 holding immediate communion with his God. 
 
 Let not this, dear reader, be pointed out to you 
 without some practical result. Something will be gained 
 if you get the well defined idea, that prayer may be made 
 in every time, in every place ; that you may thus pray ; 
 that there need be no formality of posture when you 
 thus, apart from the stated time of prayer, come before 
 your God. The soul may come into a posture of prayer 
 when the body cannot ; when we walk, or ride, or sit, 
 our soul may be in reverence before the throne ; he who 
 is able to continue in prayer, knows this ; he prays at all 
 times, and in all places. 
 
236 CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 
 
 We must observe, further, on this point, that prayer is 
 thus made, not only with some special occasion, but also 
 without it. 
 
 We have indeed occasions enough continually pressing 
 upon us, and making us, if we be men of God, to engage 
 in prayer. He who knows, and experimentally realizes, 
 that all things must be brought to God in prayer, and 
 that all things may be brought to God in prayer, will 
 surely never be at a loss for matter for his prayers ; he 
 will never say, " I have nothing particular to pray about, 
 I have nothing particular to say." Scarce a day passes 
 over our heads, without affording special matter for 
 prayer. Dangers are apprehended; some of the wheels 
 of lifers daily machinery get out of repair, or need to be 
 oiled with an unction which we cannot give, so that they 
 may run smooth; children or friends are ill; vexations 
 have to be borne ; all these, as they arise, either in fact, 
 or in our thoughts, are matter enough for prayer. But 
 let us suppose that everything in life is going on 
 smoothly; God^s people have plenty to pray about, 
 nevertheless. They have some temptation to overcome ; 
 they have some spiritual comfort and blessing to be 
 obtained, of which they are feeling sore and pressing 
 need ; these things are uppermost in their thoughts, and 
 as out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh, 
 so out of the abundance of the heart does the mouth 
 speak in prayer. 
 
 Men who are unacquainted with divine things may 
 say, '' We never feel these pressing occasions, indeed, 
 very often when we kneel down, we don^t know what to 
 pray for next, and, therefore, as we wish to do right, we 
 have bought a book ! " Ah, dear reader, was the book 
 
CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 237 
 
 ever written that contained all that a Spirit-taught man 
 would say to God? A book is at best a crutch — no 
 doubt it is better to walk with a crutch^ than not to 
 walk at all — but surely we ought to have thoughts 
 enough in our hearts_, to supply words enough for 
 our lips. 
 
 But let us now set the '^ pressing occasions'^ entirely 
 aside J and see how God's people find abundance about 
 which to continue in prayer, even without them. Just 
 as a man is full of thoughts and interests in his natural 
 life, so also is he in his spiritual existence ; supposing, of 
 course, that he is a real child of God. These give him 
 matter for continuous prayer — some or other of them 
 are continually coming uppermost in his mind, and he 
 speaks about them to the Lord. 
 
 Take, first of all, the thoughts of a child of God. He 
 longs to be holy ; he is deeply conscious of how unholy 
 he is ; then the thought gives birth to prayer ; he may 
 be walking, or travelling, or, perhaps, sitting by his fire- 
 side ; but his heart goes up to God, he begins to pray. 
 I do not say that he makes a long prayer ; but with all 
 his heart he says to God, '^ O Lord, may the Spirit 
 sanctify me, and make me more like Christ'' — the prayer 
 is never breathed in words which fall on human ear, but 
 passes straight upward from his heart of hearts to the 
 throne of the Majesty on high. 
 
 Or perhaps his thought is upon loving Jesus, (and 
 thoughts upon this subject continually enter and abide 
 in the believer's mind) and this thought soon turns 
 to prayer. Christ's people all deeply feel that they do 
 not love Him more ; they are often angry with themselves 
 about this ; they often are anxious about it ; and soon 
 
238 CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 
 
 the thought changes into prayer. They say_, ^' O Lord, 
 how coldj how stony is this poor heart of mine ; I cannot 
 love Thee by myself; oh make me love as Thou Thyself 
 wonldest have me love/^ — perhaps they repeat the same 
 few words over and over again; yes, twenty times or 
 more — ^' Lord, make me love." And thus, even so far as 
 thoughts are concerned_, the Christian is never at a loss 
 for subject-matter for his prayers. ' 
 
 Now turn for a moment from his thoughts to his 
 interests. 
 
 We all know what it is to have certain subjects of 
 interest to our minds. We take an interest in, it may 
 be, political, town, or social matters, or in persons or 
 pursuits; all of which are, strictly speaking, outside 
 ourselves. Thus does the child of God — as such ; he has 
 an interest in God's cause, perhaps as regards the place 
 in which he is, perhaps in the case of certain individuals ; 
 or that interest may take a wider range than either of 
 these. These interests will find their way into the sup- 
 plications of the man that knows what it is to continue 
 in prayer. He will make such petitions as these — " Lord, 
 awaken such an one to a sense of the ruin which lies 
 before him ;" '' Lord, deepen the impressions which have 
 been made in the mind of such an one ;" " Lord, open 
 Thine hand, and provide the means for carrying on Thy 
 work ;" '' Lord, prosper Thine own cause in the place in 
 which we live." The man who continues in prayer will 
 say, as he walks to the house where the sick person lives, 
 to whom he would minister in the name of Christ, '' Lord, 
 give me access here, make my visit acceptable and use- 
 ful;" and in all probability he will add another little 
 petition as he goes away. If he hear the funeral bell and 
 
CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 239 
 
 knows that at that moment a neighbour is iabout to be 
 carried to the grave,, he will say, ^' Lord, comfort the 
 bereaved and mourning ones; Lord, bless the solemn 
 season to their souls^^ — and so on, aU days, all weeks, all 
 months, all years, until his own tongue be silent in death ; 
 and he has passed from the place of prayer to that of 
 praise. 
 
 May it be given to us to know more and more of this 
 continuance in prayer, for it is not anything high-flown 
 or chimerical in the Christian life, it is solid matter of 
 fact. Some thus pray; so also, by the influence of the 
 Spirit, may many more of us. The Lord pour out that 
 Spirit, and enable us to say with the Psalmist, " Evenings 
 and morning, and at noon, will I pray and cry aloud : and 
 He shall hear my voice !" 
 
240 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 THE 'a WILL" OF CONTINUANCE IN PRAYEE. 
 
 Psalm Iv, 17. "Evening, and morning, afid at noon, will I 
 pray, and cry aloud : and He shall hear my voice" 
 
 ¥E see from what lias been said, what it is to con- 
 tinue in prayer ; and that this continnance is a 
 solid practical reality, attainable by ordinary Christians, 
 and, in point of fact, weU known to many in the ex- 
 periences of their daily spiritual life. 
 
 We now turn to the consideration of what is ne- 
 cessary, FOR ENABLING A MAN TO ATTAIN TO THIS 
 CONTINUANCE. 
 
 One very important point is. Realization of privilege — 
 that a man should feel that he is privileged to take up a. 
 higher standing, than that of a mere worshipper, that he 
 may hold communion with God. 
 
 It will of course be understood that, no matter how 
 closely a man be drawn to God in sonship, worship is 
 what is due from him as a creature, to God as his 
 Creator. The deepest reverence and awe will ever fill the 
 mind which knows the Holy One aright. Before Him. 
 
CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 241 
 
 even the angels veil their faces, and the heavens are 
 not pure in His sight ; this he, who continues in prayer 
 will always keep in mind, and he will never presume to 
 be irreverent, because he has been privileged to hold 
 communion. 
 
 There is, unquestionably, a position higher than that 
 of a worshipper. Unconverted men may worship, but 
 higher than that they cannot go. Mere natural religion 
 and education may make a man a worshipper ; the first 
 may send a thrill through the mind, as the vastness of 
 creation is thought upon, and the power of the Creator 
 is linked with it; the other may ingraft the idea that 
 God ought to be worshipped and honoured, as the 
 Supreme Being in the universe ; but here worship ends, 
 and it can never expand into communion. Worship is 
 a duty, communion is a privilege. 
 
 He who is enjoying the privilege of communion with 
 God, is in a far higher position than the worshipper ; and 
 the realization of this will be a great help to the habit 
 of continuance in prayer. A little consideration will 
 easily shew us how this may be. 
 
 If we feel that we have the privilege of sons, we shall 
 act towards our Father as children do towards a parent. 
 A child, from the simple realization of his connection 
 with his parent, comes to him at all times, and asks him 
 about everything. His reverence for his parent is not 
 diminished by the fact, that he may thus come to him ; 
 that the father does not require set forms and ceremonies 
 to be gone through, before the child can open his lips. 
 Were this the case, the child would, in all probability, 
 stay away when he had only apparently little things to 
 speak about, or ask for ; and would draw near only when 
 
 Y 
 
242 CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 
 
 the greatness of the matter in hand would appear to 
 warrant his approach. It will not be difficult to trace 
 what serious consequences may result from such a state 
 as this : great evils often come from very small be- 
 ginnings, and the little things about which we might 
 have spokeU; had we felt our privilege of doing so, are 
 perhaps, some of the very beginnings from which evils 
 are destined to proceed. The buds of evil are nipped, in 
 the privileged communications which pass between the 
 believer and his God ; when the first pains of a cliild are 
 brought before the notice of the tender parent, he takes 
 measures which avert a grievous illness, and much after 
 suffering. 
 
 Moreover, if we do not feel that we have the privilege 
 of talking to God, we shall perhaps think we ought not 
 to commend such things to Him at all, for we may think 
 that they are not important enough to be made the sub- 
 jects of set and solemn prayer. This is a mistake, but 
 our business now is with the results of the error; the 
 result is simply this, we take the small matter into our 
 own hands, and do it wrongly, or do it without a blessing, 
 and thus trouble or loss are sure to attach themselves to 
 it. A few words of prayer — even a look to God upon 
 the subject, might have set the whole matter right; 
 these were not given, not because of any unbelief, but 
 because of a want of realization of privilege, and the con- 
 sequences we see. 
 
 Let us remember that a man may fail in this point, 
 even though he may not be unacquainted, and that 
 practically, with many of the other privileges of sonship. 
 For example, he may clearly see that God, as a gracious 
 Father, is educating him when He sends him trials ; and 
 
GONTTNUANCE IN PRAYER. 243 
 
 that as a Father,, He will^ in a general way, make all 
 needful provision for him^ and will love him, and event- 
 ually sscure his eternal happiness ; but he fails in this 
 particular point, of realization of privilege. 
 
 Let us endeavour ever more and more, to realize the 
 privileges connected with sonship with God ; so to realize 
 them, as to use them; let ns remember that we have 
 been called to a position far higher than that of a mere 
 worshipper — and not only far higher, but far closer also 
 — and that that position confers upon us the privilege of 
 talking to God about everything, and doing so at every 
 time, and in every place. 
 
 Some instances of God's answers to prayer will be 
 given in a future chapter; it may be well, however, to 
 impress this subject upon the reader's mind, by some 
 examples ; perhaps when these are thought on, they may 
 ^icourage him to seek God in what may be called the 
 common things of daily life. 
 
 Two Christian parents had a little child, whose rest- 
 lessness at night, accompanied with continual and violent 
 crying, had almost worn out a valuable nurse. At last, 
 in order to give the nurse some rest, the parents determined 
 on taking the little one for a night themselves. At first 
 all was quiet; but in a very little while, the crying 
 commenced, and was carried on until one of the two 
 parents, who was ill, was almost worn out. All efforts 
 to hush the little one were in vain; and at last the parents 
 bethought themselves of doing what they should have 
 done at first. They jointly asked God to still the child's 
 crying for the night ; and in answer to that prayer the 
 child then ceased, and went to sleep, and had restless 
 nights no more. Those are true words in the collect, — 
 
244 CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 
 
 " Who art always more ready to hear^ than we to pray, 
 and art wont to give more than either we desire or 
 deserve/' What could seem more insignificant, as a 
 subject of prayer, than the crying of a child? but God is If 
 honoured by the faith that casts little things upon Him, \ 
 recognising at once the comprehensiveness of His mind, 
 and of His love. 
 
 Two Christian persons were about to perform a long 
 and trying journey ; one of them was in such a state of 
 health, as to make it likely that the journey would be a 
 very considerable trial to flesh and blood. The mind of 
 one of these travellers was led to commend this matter 
 to the Lord, and to ask Him for such especial travelling 
 mercies, and strength, for his friend, that the journey 
 might not prove wearisome, or too much for the frame 
 which had to sustain it. The hours of night rolled on, 
 and as the morning broke, the one for whom the prayer 
 had been offered, and who had shewn no sign of fatigue, 
 turned to the other and remarked, that, strange to say, 
 no fatigue was being experienced, and that the time 
 seemed flying by rapidly. Then the reason was told, 
 and the secret of the prayer let out ; and when the journey 
 was finally accomplished, and rest could easily be had, 
 the traveller did not need it, or take it, but was able to 
 go about, as if the previous night had been spent in bed, 
 and not in a railway train. 
 
 A Christian man, a relative of the author, was in great 
 difficulty with reference to a paper of consequence, which 
 was required immediately, but could not be found. 
 Search was made in all parts of the counting house; old 
 drawers and pigeon holes, seldom disturbed, were ran- 
 sacked, but to no purpose ; the document could not be 
 
CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 245 
 
 found. When reduced almost to despair^ he. bethought 
 himself of the power of prayer, and asked the Lord to 
 guide him to the place where the paper was. It now 
 came into his mind to go to a certain spot, and there ne 
 found the object of his search. 
 
 Somewhat similar to this, is the instance of a worthy- 
 man who lost a purse containing a considerable sum of 
 money, as he was returning home. As the money was 
 not his own, he was greatly distressed, for it was not 
 probable that his statement of having lost it would be 
 believed. On reaching a roadside inn he got a lantern 
 and carefully retraced his steps, examining the road as 
 closely as he could, but with no success. At length, 
 well nigh in despair, he went to the roadside, and 
 earnestly besought God to help him in his difficulty, and 
 enable him to find the purse. At that moment he struck 
 his foot against something hard, and on putting down 
 his hand to ascertain what it was, he discovered to his 
 great joy, the purse which he had lort. God had guided 
 him to the very place in which he intended to answer 
 his prayers. 
 
 The author remembers a case where it was very neces- 
 sary that an invalid should take a certain medicine. 
 Three portions had been sent by the surgeon, and the 
 first two were immediately rejected. There remained 
 now but one, and there was every probability that it 
 would share the fate of the previous two. It was a 
 matter of consequence that it should not, and a prayer 
 was offered by a bystander to that effect, and the medi- 
 cine was taken without any difficulty. 
 
 It was necessary that a minister should undertake a 
 journey, for which, however, he had not a sufficiency of 
 
 Y 2 
 
246 CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 
 
 funds. Special prayer was made to the Lord to supply 
 the means^ and on retiring to rest at a friend's house, 
 which was on the way, the person in question saw an 
 envelope on his looking glass, which on being opened was 
 found to contain a ten pound note, and a line saying it 
 was for "travelling expenses.^' The minister's hostess 
 said " she could not go to rest until she put it there ; she 
 felt constrained to do it." 
 
 Everything which is not sinful we may bring to God ; 
 the minuteness of His love will always make Him con- 
 descend to the minuteness of our need. 
 
 That, however, which above all things will enable us 
 to continue in prayer, is the Holy Ghost's operation 
 upon the ' habit ' of our minds. 
 
 There are diverse operations of the Spirit, He works 
 upon the mind's reasoning, and imaginative, and receptive 
 powers; He works upon its habit also. YIq know, it is 
 to be hoped from experience, what some of His operations 
 are in these former particulars. Our reasoning powers 
 have been rectified, and adjusted, and strengthened, in all 
 things connected with the spiritual world ; our imagina- 
 tion has been cleansed, and sweetened, and our powers 
 of receiving truth have been deepened and enlarged ; but 
 has the habit of our mind been wrought upon by the 
 Holy Ghost? 
 
 If the mind's bent has been turned heavenward, the 
 very fact of its being fixed on God will, in itself, be a 
 great stimulant to continuous prayer. The mind thus 
 sanctified will, as it were, naturally fall into holy thought, 
 and begin to speak with God. 
 
 Seek, dear reader, for a sanctified habit of mind, for 
 
CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 247 
 
 it will enable you continually to pray, and will bring 
 down upon you continual blessing. Prayer will thus be 
 not an effort, but an outflowing of the mind. No doubt 
 there will be times when prayer will require intense 
 effort; times of special temptation, special sorrow, or 
 special conflict — then, the occasion being extraordinary, 
 the prayer must be so also ; but in all ordinary commu- 
 nings with God, the sanctification of the habit of the 
 mind will give us both continuance and power 
 
 Let us now enquire into the results of this continuance 
 in prayer as a habit. 
 
 One result has reference to what we have this moment 
 been speaking about. Continuance in prayer will help 
 to keep up the spirituality of our tone of mind. Do we 
 not find ourselves day by day prone to slip down from 
 any spirituality to which we may have attained? Are 
 we not very like some stringed instrument, the continual 
 tendency of which is to decline from concert pitch? 
 Unless the body be continually refreshed by breathing 
 in pure air, it will droop ; the soul is as dependent upon 
 refreshment as the body, and the souVs refreshment is in 
 prayer. 
 
 Another most important result is this, we cannot 
 become strangers to the throne of grace : nothing pleases 
 Satan more, than to interrupt our appearances before 
 the throne of grace. He will disturb our regular times 
 and opportunities of prayer, if he can ; and failing that, 
 he will make us, strangers to ejaculatory and continuous 
 prayer. 
 
 How often do we find in daily life that we insensibly 
 become almost strangers to those whom once we knew 
 
248 CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 
 
 well_, but frequent intercourse with whom had become 
 gradually broken ! And have we not also found that, as 
 time rolled on_, we missed the accustomed intercourse 
 less and less, until at length we found that we could do 
 very well without those in whose society we once found 
 pleasure ? Such a thought would at one time have been 
 repudiated, and deemed treasonable against all friendship 
 and fine feeling; but experience shows us that the 
 thought is true. 
 
 To make the child of God a stranger to the throne of 
 grace, is a continual effort of Satan ; he knows that the 
 heart will gradually become less and less willing to talk 
 with God, the confidence of the heart will decrease, its 
 openness and communicativeness will diminish; and as 
 it becomes more and more reserved, it will turn in more 
 upon itself; it will become suspicious and timid, and 
 have the feeling that it has something to do, something 
 to overcome, before it can speak with God, as it used 
 easily to do in former times. Let us be assured that the 
 feeling of strangeness is one which grows rapidly, and 
 that in an increasing ratio. 
 
 Another good result of continuance of prayer is this ; 
 we can bring multitudes of things before God as they 
 arise, which otherwise we might have forgotten. Little 
 things are soon forgotten, and yet, as we have already 
 observed, they are often of great importance ; being, in 
 fact, but the pivots on which greater things turn. So 
 easily are little things forgotten, that many of them are 
 gone, even before the time for our usual evening prayer. 
 They are gone from our memories, without ever having 
 been committed to God — but though gone from our 
 memories, they have not gone from the field of action ; 
 
CONTINUANCE IN PRAYER. 249 
 
 they have amalgamated with other things/ or linked 
 themselves with them, for the production of some result. 
 
 There is just one point more which I would notice_, and 
 that is, as a result of continuous prayer, we shall have a 
 blessing in special acts. "When we are about to do a 
 thing, if we ask a blessing upon it, and if that thing be 
 not evil we shall receive the blessing. We should seek 
 for special as well as general blessings. We often lose 
 the special in the general, and consequently do not 
 receive because we do not ask. Let us have the spirit 
 of continuous prayer, and say, " Lord, help me in thiSj 
 Lord, avert that,^' and the special blessing will surely 
 come. 
 
 Thus, dear reader, ever living in supplication, we shall 
 also ever live in giving of thanks ; and no matter how 
 varied be our need, we shall ever have a resource ; no 
 matter how many our enemies, we shall ever have a very 
 present help — ours surely, amid all the changes and 
 chances of this mortal life, will be that peace which the 
 world never gave, and which the world can never take 
 away. 
 
250 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 THE 'a WILL" OF EXPECTATIOT^ IN PRAYER. 
 
 Psalm Iv, 16, 17. ^^ As for me I will call upon God; and the 
 Lord shall save me. Eoenhig, and morning, and at noon, will I 
 pray, and cry aloud : and He shall hear my voice." 
 
 HAPPY is that man wlio has an expecting heart ; who 
 goes upon his knees as a living reality^ believing 
 that his words are full of meaning, that God hears them, 
 and that God will certainly answer them ; such an one 
 will be great in prayer, and will surely receive signal 
 answers — real answers to real prayers. 
 
 The subject of which this chapter proposes to treat, is 
 one of great interest to the believer ; it is one to which 
 in all probability the believing reader could add much 
 out of his own experience. Who is there that prays at all, 
 who cannot bring forward some practical proofs from the 
 diary of his own life, that God is a prayer hearing and a 
 prayer answering God ? 
 
 Faithful Expectation in Prayer is the subject 
 which we are to consider now; and here we shall have 
 an opportunity of bringing forward some examples of 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 251 
 
 God's faitlifulness in answering prayers ; ' and very 
 precious such examples are, for the mind loves to dwell 
 on facts_, and to argue from them ; and with very many, 
 one fact has more weight than a thousand arguments. 
 
 Our first enquiry is_, ivhat is it to expect in Prayer ? 
 
 It is to believe that an answer will come, to be looking 
 out for an answer, and to be patient in expecting it. 
 
 Vast multitudes of prayers are offered without any 
 positive expectation being connected with them. They 
 are offered up because men think that the proper thing 
 to do under certain circumstances is to say a prayer ; or 
 perhaps because men have been used to say prayers, but 
 the living reality of expectation is not found in them. 
 
 How differently do we act towards God and man. 
 When we go to our fellow man for anything, we are in 
 expectation of receiving it, or we hope so to do; we 
 have some definite idea connected with our words. But 
 when we pray to God, and that, oftentimes for fixed and 
 definite things, we never think about the coming of the 
 answer, we are not really on the look out for it, expecting 
 it, just as we should be on the look out for the post 
 with a letter to us containing money, from a well tried 
 and wealthy friend to whom we had applied in our dis- 
 tress. I can give the reader no better example of such 
 expectation than one which is to be found in Miiller's 
 narrative of the orphan houses at Bristol. The account 
 is given in his own words. 
 
 " To suppose that we have difficulty only about money 
 would be a mistake ; there occur hundreds of other wants 
 and hundreds of other difficulties. It is a rare thing that a 
 day comes without some difficulty or some want ; but often 
 
252 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 there are many difficulties and many wants to be met and 
 overcome the same day. All these are met by prayer and 
 faith, our universal remedy for every difficulty and every 
 want ; and I have never been confounded. Patient^ perse- 
 vering, and believing prayer, offered up to God in the name 
 of the Lord Jesus, has always, sooner or later, brought the 
 blessing. I do not despair, by God's grace, concerning 
 the obtaining of any blessing, provided I can be sure my 
 obtaining it would be for my real good, and for the glory 
 of God. I relate here for the benefit of the reader one 
 instance, out of many, to show what are our difficulties 
 under which we give ourselves to prayer, and under 
 which we are helped. 
 
 " It was towards the end of November, of 1857, when I 
 was most unexpectedly informed that the boiler of our 
 heating apparatus at the New Orphan House, No. 1, 
 leaked very considerably, so that it was impossible to go 
 tlu-ough the winter with such a leak. Our heating 
 apparatus consists of a large cylinder boiler, inside of 
 which the fire is kept, and with which boiler the water- 
 pipes which warm the rooms are connected. Hot air is 
 also connected with this apparatus. This now was my 
 position. The boiler had been considered suited for the 
 work of the winter ; the having had ground to suspect 
 its being worn out, and not to have done anything 
 towards its being replaced by a new one, and to have 
 said I will trust to God regarding it, would be careless 
 presumption, but not faith in God. It would be the 
 counterfeit of faith. 
 
 " The boiler is entirely surrounded by brickwork, its 
 state, therefore, could not be known without taking 
 down the brickwork ; this, if needless, would be rather 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 253 
 
 injurious to tlie boiler than otherwise; and as year after 
 year_, for eight winters^ we had had no ditficulty in this 
 way, we had not anticipated it now. But suddenly, and 
 most unexpectedly, at the commencement of the winter, 
 this difficulty occurred. What then was to be done? 
 For the children, especially the younger infants, I felt 
 deeply concerned, that they might not suffer through 
 want of warmth. But how were we to obtain warmth ? 
 The introduction of a new boiler would, in all probability, 
 take many weeks. The repairing of the boiler was a 
 questionable matter, on account of the greatness of the 
 leak ; but, if not, nothing could be said of it, till the brick 
 chamber, in which the boiler with Hazard^s patent heating 
 apparatus is enclosed, was at least in part removed ; but 
 that would, at least, as far as we could judge, take days, 
 and what was to be done in the meantime to find warm 
 rooms for three hundred children ? It naturally occurred 
 to me to introduce temporary gas-stoves, but on further 
 weighing the matter, it was found that we should be 
 unable to heat our very large stoves, which we could not 
 introduce, as we had not a sufficient quantity of gas to 
 spare from our lighting apparatus. Moreover, for each 
 of these stoves we needed a small chimney, to carry off 
 the impure air. This mode of heating, therefore, though 
 applicable to a hall, a staircase, or a shop, would not 
 suit our purposes. I also thought of the temporary 
 introduction of Arnott^s stoves; but they would be 
 unsuitable, as we needed chimneys, long chimneys, for 
 them, as they would have been of a temporary kind, and 
 therefore must go out of the windows. On this account, 
 the imcertainty of its answering in our case, the dis- 
 figurement of the rooms almost permanently, led me to 
 
254 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 see it needful to give up this plan also. But what was 
 to be done? Gladly would I have paid £100, if 
 thereby the difficulty could have been overcome, and the 
 children not be exposed to suffer for many days from 
 being in cold rooms. At last I determined on falling 
 entirely into the hands of God, who is very merciful and 
 of tender compassion, and I decided on having at all 
 events the brick chamber opened, to see the extent of 
 the damage, and to see whether the boiler might be 
 repaired, so as to carry us through the winter. The day 
 was fixed when the workmen were to come, and all the 
 necessary arrangements were made. The fire, of course, 
 had to be let out while the repairs were going on. But 
 now see. After the day was fixed for the repairs, a 
 bleak north wind set in. It began to blow either on 
 Thursday or Friday before the Wednesday afternoon, 
 when the fire was to be let out. Now came the first 
 really cold weather which we had in the beginning of 
 last winter, dming the first days of December. What 
 was to be done ? The repairs could not be put off. I 
 now asked the Lord for two things, viz., that He would 
 be pleased to change the north wind into a south wind, 
 and that He would give to the workmen ^^a mind 
 to work,^^ for I remembered how much Nehemiah 
 accomplished in fifty-two days, whilst building the walls 
 of Jerusalem, because " the people had a mind to work.^' 
 Well, the memorable day came. The evening before, 
 the bleak north wind blew still, but on the Wednesday 
 the south wind blew, exactly as I prayed. The weather 
 was so mild that no fire was needed. The brick- 
 work is removed, the leak is found out very soon, the 
 boiler makers begin to repair in good earnest. About 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 255 
 
 half-past eight in the evening, when I was going to leave 
 the New Orphan House for my home, I was informed at 
 the lodge, that the acting principal of the firm whence 
 the boiler makers came was arrived, to see how the work 
 was going on, and whether he could in any way speed 
 the matter. I went immediately, therefore, into the 
 cellar, to see him with the men, to seek to expedite the 
 business. In speaking to the principal of this, he said, 
 in their hearing, " the men will work late this evening, 
 and come very early again to-morrow.'^ "We would 
 rather, sir,^' said the leader, " work all night.^' Then 
 remembered I the second part of my prayer, that God 
 would give the men ^' a mind to work.^' Thus it was ; 
 by the morning, the repair of the boiler was accomplished, 
 the leak was stopped, though with great difficulty, and 
 within about thirty hours, the brickwork was up again, and 
 the fire in the boiler ; and all the time the south wind 
 blew so mildly that there was not the least need of a fire." 
 
 Here, then, is a plain instance of expectation in prayer, 
 a definite blessing was sought, and a definite blessing was 
 obtained. 
 
 A tradesman was about to return to London from a 
 watering-place, where he had been staying for a few 
 weeks; his presence was necessary at his place of 
 business, where a number of hands were employed, 
 and where everything was not going on very smoothly. 
 This tradesman was to have started in the afternoon, 
 and in the morning he went to take a last plunge in the 
 sea. In plunging, he struck his head against the bottom, 
 and injured the vertebrae of the back; for weeks after- 
 wards he lay dead from his neck downward, but perfectly 
 alive and sensible, so far as his head was concerned. 
 
256 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 The great earthly trouble pressing upon this man's 
 mind_, was the state of affairs in his office in London ; 
 this he told the minister who attended him. The 
 minister said, "Let us commit the matter to God;" so 
 he knelt down and prayed that God would be graciously 
 pleased to operate on the minds of all the workmen, to 
 make them attentive and diligent, to make them feel 
 that God^s eye was upon them, and His hand over them, 
 to keep them from bad conduct of every kind, and to 
 make things run smoothly. It was also humbly sub- 
 mitted to God that this business was this poor man's 
 means of livelihood for himself and a large family. Two 
 or three days afterwards, some of the chief hands in the 
 business came to see their sick master, and told him that 
 "there was a wonderful change in the office, that 
 something had come over them, and that they all felt 
 they could not do enough for him !" 
 
 Or take the case of the worthy people mentioned in 
 the following occurrence; what could be more definite 
 than their petition, or what more definite than the 
 answer they received. 
 
 " Considerable difficulty and annoyance having arisen in 
 the affairs of a certain religious community, owing to the 
 perverse and contentious spirit of one of its members, it 
 became necessary that steps should be taken to prevent 
 his doing mischief. This could only be accomplished by 
 obtaining the signature of a gentleman who lived at some 
 distance. Two members of the church were deputed to 
 obtain the needful signature, and before they started on 
 their journey they knelt down and prayed that God 
 would further them in the work they had in hand. On 
 arriving at this gentleman's house and stating their 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 257 
 
 business^ he informed them that he never did anything 
 of that kind without the advice of a friend^ who lived at 
 a considerable distance. In vain they urged him, he 
 absolutely refused. At length they rose to take their 
 departure,, but on being pressed to remain to dinner, 
 stayed. While at dinner a horseman rode up to the 
 door — it was the very person whose advice was required, 
 and who said that he had been several miles on his way 
 in another direction, but had felt constrained to turn and 
 come and see his friend. The case was immediately laid 
 before him, his consent obtained, and the document 
 signed, just in time to disappoint the contentious man, 
 T7ho arrived immediately after." 
 
 Or take the case of the Cree Indian in Rupert's land, 
 who told his story to one of our native catechists. The 
 man and his family were in their wanderings exposed on 
 one occasion to a fearful fire, which was running across 
 the dry prairie with great violence and speed ; it was 
 burning all around fearfully, and there appeared no way 
 of escape. Suddenly he remembered what Pratt had 
 told him, of the one great God over all : and while his 
 family were crying, and clinging to him, he fell upon his 
 knees and said, " O Thou great One, who art above all, 
 whoever Thou art, save me from this fire ; " and ere the 
 fire touched him, or any one of them, there fell upon it 
 such a heavy shower of rain as totally extinguished it. 
 In consequence of this, that individual now denies the 
 Indians' gods, and acknowledges none but One. 
 
 One of the missionary periodicals furnishes us with 
 the following simple story of a definite request and a 
 definite answer, and though the request was small it was 
 definite, and its apparent unimportance adds to its value, 
 
 z 2 
 
258 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 for if we may be definite in that whicli is least, how 
 much more in that which is greatest. 
 
 ^' A poor servant girl was very anxious to do something 
 for the missionary cause. She gave what she could 
 herself, but that did not satisfy her. She was lirag in 
 a rich family, who she knew, could give plenty if they 
 chose. So she got a missionary box, and placed it on 
 the kitchen dresser, and then prayed to God to bring it 
 about so that it should find its way upstairs. She asked 
 advice of the living Lord of the mine. One day, the 
 pet of the house, little Amy, happened to come into the 
 kitchen with a message, and she saw the box, and begged 
 to have it to play with. Poor Peggy had her thoughts ; 
 but she did not say anything except ^ O yes, Miss Amy, 
 to be sure you may, and keep it as long as you like.' 
 Half an hour after the bell rang, and Peggy was called 
 upstairs; and there she found her master and mistress, 
 and the young gentlemen, and the young ladies, crowding 
 around the box, and she was asked what it was. She 
 told them, with many blushes and curtsies, that it was 
 for ' the missionaries who taught the blacks,' and that 
 she put her spare money into it. They all seemed 
 pleased, and begged to be allowed to put their spare 
 money into it too. So the little green box was promoted 
 from the kitchen dresser to the white marble mantlepiece 
 in the drawing room ; and it was not long before it was 
 sent down to Peggy with a thick penny sticking out of 
 its mouth — it was so brim full." 
 
 There is a very interesting instance of this definite- 
 ness both in the petition and the answer given us in a 
 work entitled, " The Ladies of the Covenant.'* We are 
 told that, " On the forenoon of the day on which he (the 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 259 
 
 Marquis of Argyll) was to be executed, slie (the 
 Marchioness) and Mr. John Carstairs were employed in 
 wrestling with God_, in his behalf, in a chamber in the 
 Canongate, earnestly pleading that the Lord would now 
 seal his charter by saying to him, 'Son, be of good 
 cheer, thy sins are forgiven thee ! '^ It is a striking 
 circumstance that, at the very time of their being thus 
 employed, the Marquis, while engaged in settling some 
 worldly affaii's, a number of persons of quality being 
 present with him, was visited in his soul with such a 
 sense of the divine favour, as almost overpowered him ; 
 and, after in vain attempting to conceal his emotions by 
 going to the fire and beginning to stir it with the tongs, 
 he turned about, and melting into tears exclaimed, ' I 
 see this will not do ; I must now declare what the Lord 
 has done for my soul ! He has just now, at this very 
 instant of time, sealed my charter in these words, ' Son, 
 be of good cheer, thy sins are forgiven thee ! ' This com- 
 fortable state of mind he retained to the last, and to this 
 scene he alluded in his dying speech on the scaffold. 
 Can it be doubted that the bestowment of the very 
 blessing, prayed for by this devout lady and that godly 
 minister, to the dying martyr, at the very instant in 
 which it was sought, was a signal answer to their be- 
 lieving prayers ? '' 
 
 A lady lay upon her bed suffering violent pain in the 
 head, and while thus suffering, she said to a friend, who 
 was watching by her side, '^'if only I could get ten 
 minutes sleep I should feel better/^ The friend said 
 nothing, but offered up a silent prayer to God to grant 
 the ten minutes sleep. True ! the petition was feeble 
 and the faith feeble, but the Lord, who is very tender. 
 
260 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 did not despise either the feebleness of the faith_, or the 
 smallness of the subject of the request. The patient 
 immediately slept, and described her sleep as most 
 delicious, that she had "the sensation of having been 
 fanned off to sleep.'' 
 
 Simeon gives us an account of a definite answer which 
 he received to a definite prayer, when he was in great 
 trial. 
 
 " Many years ago/' says he, " when I was an object 
 of much contempt and derision in this university, I 
 strolled forth one day, buffeted and afflicted, with my 
 little Testament in my hand ; I prayed earnestly to my 
 God, that He would comfort me with some cordial from 
 His word, and that on opening the book I might find 
 some text which should sustain me. It was not for di- 
 rection that I was looking, for I am no friend to such 
 superstitions as the sortes virgilianoe, but only for support. 
 I thought I would turn to the epistles, where I should 
 most easily find some precious promise ; but my book 
 was upside down, so without intending it I opened on the 
 gospels. The first text which caught my eye was this, 
 ' They found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name ; him 
 they compelled to bear His cross.' You know Simon is 
 the same name as Simeon. What a word of instruction 
 was here, what a blessed hint for my encouragement ! 
 To have the cross laid upon me, that I might bear it 
 after Jesus ! what a privilege ! It was enough. Now I 
 could leap and sing for joy, as one whom Jesus was 
 honouring with a participation in His sufferings." Re- 
 lating this on another occasion, Mr. Simeon added : — 
 "And when I read that, I said, ^Lord, lay it on me; I 
 will gladly bear the cross for Thy sake.' And I hence- 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 261 
 
 forth bound persecution as a wreath of glory round my 
 brow ! " 
 
 A friend some time since furnished me with the 
 following instance from his own knowledge. He gives 
 two instances in his letter, one of which will here 
 suffice. 
 
 " The first occurred to a person now living, with whom 
 I was formerly intimately acquainted. He was from 
 early life a sedulous reader of the Bible, and having 
 married a person of similar religious feeling, their store 
 of biblical information became considerable, and the 
 husband, to whom I allude, subsequently became a writer 
 
 on prophecy, and published a work, called ^ .' 
 
 In his career of mercantile life, his whole property was in- 
 volved in the speculations of his partner, and he was reduced 
 at once to very severe want, and his wife not choosing to 
 deprive the creditors of anything which they mutually 
 possessed, determined to submit her marriage jointure, 
 (which was considerable,) to the general wreck. In the 
 midst of their distressing indigence, they still spent 
 many hours in reading their Bible and in prayer, both 
 by day and night. During this period of gloom, which 
 would have thrown many into despair, he still entertained 
 views of hope, that God would open to him a way of 
 escape. His main anxiety was the immediate necessities 
 of a young family, whom he sustained, as well as he 
 could, by depriving himself. His clothes became bad, 
 and his shoes were so worn, that his feet were exposed 
 to the ground. He was desirous to supply himself with a 
 single pair, and had enquired their price, which was stated 
 to be nine shillings and sixpence. This he made the sub- 
 ject of special prayer, but determined not to buy them 
 
2G2 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 till he had the money in his possession. But whence it was 
 to come^ he had no idea. In due time_, he was walking 
 along the streets in Leeds, where he was then living, and 
 finding that he struck something with his foot which 
 bounded before him, he was induced to pick it up. It 
 was a small cotton bag, like a child^s purse, which he 
 opened, and found in it the precise sum, which for some 
 time had been the subject of his special petitions. He 
 was greatly struck with the coincidence. But thinking 
 an owner might be found for it, he employed the crier, 
 and went and reported the circumstance at the police 
 station. But no one coming forward as a claimant, 
 after waiting some time, he devoted his God-send, as he 
 considered it, to the purchase of his much needed 
 shoes." 
 
 A converted Jew who had suffered fearfully for con- 
 science sake, narrates the following instance' of special 
 help vouchsafed to him after special prayer. '' Here 
 again," he says, *' we were met by the goodness of God, 
 exercised to us through your instrumentality. Permit 
 me to call to your remembrance your having forwarded 
 to us at this time a hamper, containing the contributions 
 of your household, thus supplying us with the food 
 needed, in a way which we had not anticipated. I must 
 also mention another fact connected with this circum- 
 stance, which much affected me. Although you had 
 kindly supplied us with provisions, still we were without 
 money, and we were in great want of a small sum, which 
 we did not possess, and the next day being Sunday, we 
 had neither means nor opportunity to seek for it. In 
 this extremity we applied to Him who had so frequently 
 helped us through the wilderness, and never shall the 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 2C3 
 
 needy apply to Him in vain. In a singular way relief 
 came to our hands. As it was Saturday, my wife was 
 putting our house in order, cleaning every part, and 
 whilst so doing, she thought she discovered amidst the 
 sweepings of the room something folded up in a piece of 
 paper. She picked it up and opened it, and what was 
 her surprise when she found it contained the exact sum 
 we needed. We immediately concluded that in unpack- 
 ing your hamper we had overlooked this little paper, 
 which had dropped out of one of the parcels in which 
 you had enclosed it. Joy and gratitude filled our hearts. 
 We could not but observe how remarkably the Lord had 
 timed this relief. Had we discovered it before, we should 
 not have felt half so thankful, but having been made to 
 feel our necessity, and then having gone to the Lord to 
 ask for help, we received it more immediately as a gift 
 from Him. In a few moments it might have been swept 
 away in the dust."^ 
 
 Let us now turn to, the grounds and Scripture warrants 
 for Expectation in Prayer. 
 
 We have many statements in Holy Scripture which 
 
 * " Who else was it but the God of Elijah, who, only a short time 
 ago, so kindly delivered a poor man out of his distress, not indeed 
 by a raven, but by a poor singing bird ? The man was sitting 
 early in the morning at his house door. His eyes were red with 
 weeping, and his heart cried to heaven, for he was expecting an 
 oiiicer to come and distrain him for a small debt. Whilst sitting 
 thus with a heavy heart, a little bird flew over his head into the 
 cottage, and perched itself within an empty cupboard. The poor 
 man closed the door, caught the bird, and placed it in a cage, 
 where it soon began to sing very sweetly, and it seemed to the 
 man as if it were the tune of a favorite hymn, 'Fear thou not 
 
264 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 afford good ground for Expectation in Prayer. The 
 following will suffice for our present purpose. 
 
 "What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, be- 
 lieve that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.'' 
 Mark xi, 24. 
 
 " Ask, and it shall be given you.'' Matt, vii, 7. 
 
 " Whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that will I 
 do." John xiv, 13. 
 
 " If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye 
 shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.'' 
 John XV, 7. 
 
 '^ If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that 
 giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not ; and it 
 shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing 
 wavering." James i, 5, 6. 
 
 " If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do 
 this which is done to the fig-tree, but also, if ye shall say 
 unto this mountain. Be thou removed, and be thou cast 
 iato the sea ; it shall be done. And all things, whatso- 
 ever ye shall ask in prayer believing, ye shall receive." 
 Matt, xxi, 21, 22. 
 
 when darkness reigns ;' and as he listened to it, he found it soothe 
 and comfort his mind. Suddenly some one knocked at the door ; 
 but instead of the officer, whom the poor man so much dreaded, it 
 was the servant of a respectable lady, who said that the neigh- 
 bours had seen a bird fly into his house, and wished to know if he 
 had caught it- ' Oh, yes,' replied the man, ' here it is ; ' and the 
 bird was carried away. A few minutes after, she came back and 
 said, ' you have done my mistress a great service ; she sets a high 
 value upon the bird that had escaped. She is much obliged to 
 }ou, and requests you to accept this trifle, with her thanks.' The 
 poor man received it thankfully, and it proved to be neither more 
 nor less than the sum he owed ! " — From Krtimmacher's Elijahs 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 265 
 
 All these give us warrant for strong expectation ; so 
 also does sanctified reasoning upon the character and 
 attributes of God. 
 
 If we reason on God^s character, how can we but trust 
 that He will answer our prayer ? We know He is true ; 
 we have read His promises ; we believe that He will be 
 as good as His word ; His very character is a guarantee 
 on which we can rest. 
 
 Is He not also loving ; does He not care for the true 
 interests of His children; does He not wish them to 
 have everything that is good for them ; is not His hearths 
 affection set upon them ; if so, have they not a warrant 
 for expectation from the existence of this feeling in God ? 
 The consciousness of another^ s love emboldens us to ask 
 from those on earth ; how much more sho^dd it from the 
 One in heaven ! Never was love so true, so steady, so 
 large and ungrudging as His; He is our Father, and 
 we, if in Christ, are His children; and we should expect 
 from His love, just as a child expects from its parent's 
 love. 
 
 Is He not also omnipotent ; has He not all resources 
 at His command ; are not all the beasts of the forest 
 His, and the cattle upon a thousand hills ; can He not 
 " make all things work together for good to them that 
 love Him,'' and should not all these considerations 
 strengthen our expectations in prayer? We have to 
 limit our expectations from our fellow-men by their re- 
 sources ; they may be willing, and yet not be able to help 
 us ; they may be able to do a part of what we want, but 
 not the whole ; there should however be no limit in or.r 
 expectations from God; we should look at Him in 
 wayer as able to do aU we want, and to do it with the 
 
 A A 
 
266 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 greatest ease. If I want money for His cause,"^ or my 
 own need, I think '^ He owns every guinea in the world.-*' 
 As I walk along the road, I say " He can turn the very 
 stones into gold, if he will, He can make the dust on the 
 road side gold dust ; " I look up at the sky, and there I 
 
 * It is a matter of great importance that we should simply look 
 to God as the great and original proprietor of all wealth, without 
 allowing om-selves to be influenced by the possibilities of things. 
 The author had need of £10 for a specific work which he proposed 
 to undertake for God ; he committed the matter to God in prayer, 
 and said that he would consider the Lord's sending the money as 
 the token that the enterprize was to be undertaken. Unless 
 the money came within a limited time, the occasion for its ex- 
 penditure would have passed away. Day after day the matter 
 was laid before God, but the money did not come. At last, 
 one Saturday, a stranger called, and took five sovereigns out 
 of his pocket, and gave it to the author to spend in charity. The 
 latter asked him " to what he wished it applied ?" He answered, 
 " to anything you like :" " have you no object particularly in 
 view to which you wish it given ?" " No, you are to spend it any 
 way you like." He was then told of the enterprize in hand, and 
 how the Lord had been asked to put money at the minister's 
 own disposal, with a view to its being spent in that particular way, 
 " "Well," said he, "I have just come from your church, and I was 
 about to drop these five sovereigns into the boxes at the doors, for 
 the new schools ; but something said to me, 'Don't do it, perhaps 
 the minister will want them more for something else,' and if you 
 don't get the other £5 anywhere else, I'll give it to you." The 
 author was now anxious that it would please God to send him thf 
 £5 from some other quarter, so that the giver of the first £5 should 
 feel that he was not as it were come down upon for the whole 
 sum, and that he might not think that the Most High was limited 
 in His resources ; and it was put before the Lord in this way — 
 " Lord, is it not more for Thy honour and glory that this other £o 
 should come from some other person ?" This second £5 also, was 
 sent by post, a few days after, from a very unexpected quarter. 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 267 
 
 see white fleecy clouds, or clouds like heaps of glowing 
 gold, and I say, " if He willed, He could turn that fleecy 
 cloud into bank notes, and tear from it a thousand 
 for me; He could turn that glowing mass of vapour, 
 into solid metal, and break off a piece for me, which 
 would be a thousand-fold more than I require." 
 
 He has a great treasury ; and with my mind's eye I 
 contemplate that treasury, and I say to Him, " Put thine 
 hand into Thy treasury, O Lord ; take from it what I 
 need; give it unto me," and then expectation rises 
 under such considerations as these. 
 
 Is not God generous ; does not He love to give ; is He 
 not always giving ; did He not give up His only Son to 
 die for us, and " how shall He not with Him also freely 
 give us all things ? " Hear what He says to the Jews by 
 the mouth of His prophet Malachi, (iii, 10,) " Bring ye 
 all the tithes into the store-house that there may be meat 
 in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the 
 Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of 
 heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not 
 be room enough to receive it." When Jesus fed the 
 thousands, the fragments exceeded the original provision ; 
 when bread was rained from heaven upon the multitudes 
 in the wilderness, it feU in profusion, so that there was 
 abundance for all ; when Hannah asked for one son, she 
 received four sons and two daughters. The epistles are 
 full of the generosity of God ; we read of " the exceed- 
 ing and eternal weight of glory,"^ and of " the exceeding 
 greatness of His power,"t and of '^ the exceeding riches of 
 His grace," t and of "the grace of the Lord exceeding 
 
 ♦ 2 Cor. iv, 17. f Eph. i, 19. | Eph. ii, 7. 
 
268 EXPECTATIOIV IN PRAYER. 
 
 abundant/'"'^ and of "exceeding great promises/^f 
 "Now," says the apostle, after he had spoken of the 
 wondrous extent of the love of Christ, " unto Him that 
 is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask 
 or think, according to the power that worketh in us ; 
 unto Him be glory in the church, by Christ Jesus, 
 throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.^' Eph. 
 iii, 20, 21. 
 
 It would greatly help our expectation in prayer, if we 
 called all these attributes of God to mind, and meditated 
 on His character in connection with our need ; if, when 
 we were engaged in any hard matter, or when our faith 
 began to stagger, we exercised ourselves for a few minutes 
 in such thoughts as a preliminary to prayer. If we did 
 this, in all probability our faith would rise, our expecta- 
 tion would strengthen, and an earnestness and reality 
 which otherwise might have been wanting, would enter 
 into our prayer. Try this, dear reader ; it wiU not be 
 without good effect. 
 
 Let us now consider. The Results of Expectation in 
 Prayer. 
 
 One result will be, more precision of meaning in our 
 prayers. Many prayers are offered, with, it is to be feared, 
 but little precision of meaning; in fact with so little 
 meaning, that the petitioner would be in no small degree 
 astonished, if he were taken at his word in prayer ; per- 
 haps, if God were to say to him, " I will grant that fully,'' 
 he would be inclined to start back, and not repeat the 
 prayer again. 
 
 There are many things which we think we ought to 
 * 1 Tim. i. 14. + 2 Peter i, 4. 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 269 
 
 pray for, which our spiritual knowledge tells us a Christian 
 should desire; but do we really desire them, are we 
 really anxious to get them, when we ask for them in 
 prayer ? For example, we pray that God would by His 
 Spirit reveal more and more to us the naughtiness of our 
 own hearts and evil natures; is the petitioner really 
 desirous of an answer ; is he ready for disquieted hours_, 
 for humbling experiences, for deep depressions, for more 
 self-loathing than he has ever experienced as yet ? Or, 
 he may ask for higher exaltation above the world, and its 
 pursuits, and aims, and interests ; he knows that that is 
 a very fitting prayer for a true hearted Christian man to 
 make ; but is he really anxious that God should in His 
 own way grant the thing that He desires ? It is useless 
 to pray with the expectation of being answered in the 
 way, or by the process we desire ; if we pray, we must ^ 
 leave the method of the answer entirely with God ; and 
 when we offer a prayer like this, do we really mean that 
 God should answer it, and do what we have asked ? 
 
 If we have learaed to expect in prayer^ to believe that 
 an answer will really come in the very point in which 
 supplication has been made, we shall surely be precise in 
 what we say to God. If I have learned from experience 
 to expect an answer to prayer, then if I want money for 
 the Lord's cause, or even for my own necessities, what I 
 am to ask for is money ; if I am going a journey and 
 ask for divine protection, then what I am to expect is^ 
 that God wiU give His angels charge over me, and that 
 they wiU take care of my body, and that accidents which 
 were perhaps imminent wiU be averted, and obstacles 
 cleared out of my path ; these will serve as examples of 
 precision and meaning in prayer. 
 
 A A 2 
 
270 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 And wliy should we not be precise in prayer? We 
 are precise in our dealings with our fellow men ; no one 
 thinks of going to another with merely a vague petition 
 to give him something ; or with a string of meaningless 
 petitions, to give him things which he does not want, or 
 which he does not care to have ; this want of precision 
 would destroy all reality in the petitioner's supplications, 
 and would pretty surely be the means of sending him 
 empty away; oh, let us not deal with God with less 
 earnestness, and reality, than we employ with our fellow 
 man ; when we pray to Him let us at least mean what 
 we say. And we shall thus mean, if we expect ; and 
 thus meaning, and expecting, our prayers will be real, 
 and solid, and precise ; they will be divested of many 
 unmeaning words, and their very plainness will add 
 to their intensity, and plain answers will be sure to 
 come to such plain prayers. Dear reader, if you have 
 not hitherto been precise in your prayer, begin to be 
 so now; you will find incalculable advantage from 
 being so; offer no prayer, in which you are not both 
 willing and desirous that God should take you at 
 your word. 
 
 Another good result of this expectation in prayer, 
 will be a greater readiness to pray. If we think that 
 God will grant our petitions, we shall assuredly be all 
 the more ready to come and make them. "VVe are very 
 ivjth to go and ask a favour, where we think we are likely 
 to be denied ; we have not the heart to go and make our 
 petition ; but if we really expect from God, we shall be 
 very ready to come, and ask for what we want. Prayer, 
 when thus looked at, is too productive to be allowed to 
 remain unused ; we shall be quick to ask, when we are 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER, 271 
 
 sure to get. One cause of backwardness in prayer is our 
 doubt and uncertainty, if not our actual unbelief, about 
 getting an answer ; tliese take away our cbeerfulness and 
 readiness in prayer, and make it hard labour instead of 
 blessed privilege. 
 
 A further good result will be less expectation from, 
 and leaning on man, seeing we have the Everlasting God 
 Himself to go to. Man has always been a snare to his 
 fellow man, leading him to trust in human flesh, instead 
 of in the living God. Israel leaning upon Egypt is a 
 picture that is reproduced every day. We have a 
 beautiful instance of simple leaning upon God and 
 turning away from man, together with expectation from 
 God in prayer, in the book of Ezra. " Then I proclaimed 
 a fast there, at the river Ahava, that we might afflict 
 ourselves before our God, to seek of Him a right way 
 for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance. 
 For I was ashamed to require of the king a band of 
 soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy in 
 the way, because we had spoken unto the king, saying, 
 'the hand of our God is upon all them for good that 
 seek Him, but His power and His wrath is against all 
 them that forsake Him.^ So we fasted and besought 
 our God for this, and He was intreated of us." An 
 immense treasure was now put into the hands of a 
 helpless company of priests to convey to Jerusalem, their 
 only protection being the prayer ofiered on their behalf; 
 but that prayer was sufficient safeguard, not an ounce 
 of gold or silver was lost. " Then we departed from 
 the river of Ahava, on the twelfth day of the first month, 
 to go unto Jerusalem ; and the hand of our God was 
 upon us, and He delivered us from the hand of the 
 
272 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 enemy, and of such as lay in wait by the way." Ezra 
 viii, 21, 22, 23, 31. 
 
 To ean on man is to lean upon a broken reed, it is to 
 throw ourselves in the way of disappointment, and in 
 most instances it is to dishonour God. Why need we 
 thus lean, if we be really expecting what we want from 
 God ; why should we subject ourselves to vexations and 
 distress ; why should we consider our circumstances bad 
 when men fail us; why should we be dependent upon 
 them at all ? One of the best cures that we can possibly 
 have for all this, is to expect answers to our prayers to 
 God, to tell Him of our need, and then to expect from 
 Him, as one both able and willing to supply our wants. 
 
 A spirit of expectation in prayer would further make 
 our minds much more cheerful after our prayer has been 
 offered up. We should then have rolled off our pressing 
 care on God, and be proportionately unburdened in our 
 own minds. 
 
 The very fact of having committed a trouble to God 
 ought to give us cheerfulness and peace ; we may now, if 
 we have an expecting spirit, say, " my God will take this 
 matter in hand, and arrange everything for me for the 
 best; He will bring His resources and His wisdom to 
 bear on my behalf; my care is cast on Him." How often, 
 however, are we as sad after prayer as we were 
 before we went to commit our troubles to the Lord ; we 
 took our burden to the throne, and brought it away with 
 us again ; if we laid any, we laid only a part on God. A 
 certain man carrying a burden on his back was met by a 
 rich man as he drove along, and invited to get up behind 
 the carriage, which offer was thankfully accepted. After 
 a while the rich man turned round^ and saw the burden 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 273 
 
 still strapped to the traveller's back; he asked him why- 
 he did not lay down his pack on the seat beside him? 
 but he answered^ '^ he could not think of doing that ; it 
 was quite enough that he himself should be allowed to sit 
 behind the carriage^ without putting his burden on the 
 seat also." This is what many amongst us are doing; 
 we keep our burden strapped tightly to us ; we expect at 
 the best but some relief; we think it too much to expect 
 God to bear it all. 
 
 A certain man with small means,, and a large family^ 
 struggled on year after year ; and as each child was born, 
 he felt a fresh load of care come upon his shoulders. At 
 length when the eighth was born, he felt that the weight 
 of their provision was a burden heavier than he could 
 bear, let him toil never so hard ; so he deliberately handed 
 them all over to God, and henceforth became a cheerful 
 and prosperous man. 
 
 Surely if we rise from our knees without some sense 
 of relief, and some lightening of heart, we cannot have / 
 had an expecting spirit in prayer. 
 
 Go up, then. Christian reader, to your closet, with 
 tears in your eyes, but come forth from it without them, 
 having wiped them away as you rose from your knees ; 
 go up with a heavy tread, bearing almost a mountain of 
 care upon your heart, but come down with a lighter, if 
 not with an elastic step, expecting that God has heard 
 your prayer, and will answer it without fail ; you may 
 not be able to feel joyous, but surely you may feel cheer- 
 ful, and you will be cheerful, if you practically expect 
 an answer, if you believe that one will come. 
 
 It may, perhaps, be thought by some, Will not such 
 feelings as these take away a man's energy in the use of 
 
374 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 means? Far from it. We note as a further result of 
 expectation in prayer, that it will give more energy in the 
 use of means. The Christian is no wild enthusiast ; he 
 knows that while God can work without means,, He yet 
 in almost all instances works by them. It is very sel- 
 dom also that the means are not plainly indicated; 
 we may pray that they should be so, and when we have 
 thus prayed, and they are opened out, then in the expecta- 
 tion of a blessing we shall work with redoubled energy and 
 zeal. The probability is, that our very expectation will 
 give us such a spring of energy, as will produce with 
 God^s blessing the desired result. We know that there 
 is great difference in the work of a spirited and a spirit- 
 less man. A man who feels that he has no chance of 
 success, or that the chances are largely against him, has 
 little heart for his work ; difficulties easily daunt him ; 
 opportunities which open out before him, he does not avail 
 himself of; the very elements of success are wanting. 
 But let the same man, and in the very same position, 
 have a fair prospect of success ; let him feel that he can 
 succeed ; let him have a still stronger feeling that he is 
 destined to succeed, and he now appears a very different 
 man from what he was before ; he is alive in his work, 
 he is hearty in it, and that very life and heartiness go far 
 towards securing success. When Alexander was givingaway 
 estates and domains with lavish prodigality, before setting 
 forth on his eastward march, Perdiccas asked him what 
 he reserved for himself. Hope — was the sole reply. And 
 the whole secret of his wondrous career of insatiable 
 conquest, fearless intrepidity, and boundless aspiration, 
 lies wrapped up in that sublime answer. 
 
 Dear Christian reader, not only pray, but also expect 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYEH. 275 
 
 an answer to your prayer ; take up the Psalmist^ s " I 
 will/^ and say, " As for me I will call upon God, and the 
 Lord shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at 
 noon, will I pray, and cry aloud : and He shall hear my 
 voice/^ 
 
 He, however, who says with the Psalmist, " I will call 
 upon God, and the Lord shall save me,^^ must not only 
 believe that an answer will come, but must further 
 be on the look out for that answer. It might be truly 
 said, that many a Chistian is taken unawares by the 
 answers to his prayers. Is it not a fact that we often 
 send forth our petitions, and think no more about them, 
 as though it were a matter of indifference whether an 
 answer came or not, or as though it were a matter for 
 speculation whether our prayers were heard ? So much is 
 this the case, that there is little doubt but that we have 
 had many things in answer to prayer, which we have never 
 recognised at all as having come in that way, and for 
 which we have never thanked God. If we write to a 
 rich and kind friend to help us in some hour of need, we 
 watch the post for an answer ; if we invest money in any 
 enterprize, we look for a return ; we will not believe our 
 petitions or our hopes to be in vain, until they are proved 
 to be so ; in prayer alone do we act as though from the 
 very commencement we took it for granted that they 
 must be so. '^The Rev. Joseph Alleine, writing from 
 Ilchester prison to his flock at Taunton, says, ' Let 
 prayer never be a form ; always realize it as an approach 
 to the living God for some specific purpose, and learn 
 to watch for the returns of prayer.' A Sabbath 
 school teacher, in the village of Brading, in the Isle of 
 Wight, said to another teacher, 'W , I am quite 
 
276 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 sure I shall be made useful to-day, in the conversion of 
 some of my boys/ ' Why V was the reply. ^ Because/ 
 said he, ' I have had such nearness to God, and have 
 been enabled to exercise faith in His promises.^ That 
 praying Sabbath school teacher came expecting an answer 
 to his prayers, and was not disappointed. Four of the 
 boys were that day converted to God through his instru- 
 mentality; and for twenty years, those boys have evi- 
 denced that it was the work of the Holy Spirit upon their 
 hearts. Three of them became preachers of the gospel, 
 and the fourth lived a very consistent private Christian/^ ^ 
 
 It is not honouring God, to pray, and yet not look 
 out for the answer to our prayers ; what could we expect 
 from our fellow man if we showed such carelessness as 
 this? God is greatly robbed of His glory, when He 
 gives, and when we do not recognise what we receive as 
 His gift; the display of His attributes which unfolded 
 themselves in His answer to our prayer is thrown away 
 on us ; and can God be robbed of His glory without our 
 having to suffer chastisement in one form or another? 
 
 But we must be Patient in Expectation. This subject 
 of " Patience in Expectation^^ is one of the utmost im- 
 portance. God^s ways are not as our ways, nor His 
 thoughts as our thoughts, and some answers to prayer 
 have to be brought about by the working of complicated 
 machinery, event fitting into event, and influence working 
 with influence for many days. 
 
 If we be men of prayer, we must expect our patience 
 to be tried by many temptations ; God is honoured when 
 His people wait upon Him, and Satan will not see them 
 
 * Phillips's Remarkable Answers. 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 277 
 
 waiting aipon Him without endeavouring to shake their 
 faith. All attempts to hurry God's dealings are sure to 
 be productive of bad results; even when we are most 
 sure of having asked according to God's mind_, and of 
 receiving an answer_, we must leave the time unreservedly 
 to Him. 
 
 It is no doubt very hard to expect in patience, when 
 all things seem to be going against us ; when week after 
 week, and it may be year after year pass by, and the 
 answer appears no nearer at hand than it was before; 
 but let us remember that God gives liberal interest for 
 every year that He keeps our prayers unanswered ; and 
 that what becomes us, is to wait at His footstool, and not 
 to hurry His arrangements. The most luscious fruits 
 are often those which are longest in maturing, the 
 richest blessings are often those which take longest in 
 coming ; an unripe blessing may prove sour to the teeth, 
 and unheal thful when partaken of; impatience is almost 
 always accompanied by loss. 
 
 We add two or three instances of answers given to 
 prayer, after apparently long delay ; how full, how rich 
 are they — how well worth waiting for — how gradual in 
 their incoming — how grand in their results — verily there 
 are great answers for patient prayers. 
 
 " A mother had been for years the only Christian in the 
 family. Her husband and nine children were not im- 
 moral, but none of them gave evidence of piety. Had 
 this mother been less firm in character and faith, and 
 less resolute of purpose, she might have yielded to the 
 current, pleading that resistance was unavailing. But 
 fihe was qualified to meet the responsibility of her 
 position. She felt that God had committed to her trust 
 
 B B 
 
278 EXPECTATION IN PRAYEH. 
 
 ten unconverted souls_, dear as her own life_, and that she 
 must so fulfil the obligations resting on her^ that if any 
 were lost, it should not be through her neglect of duty. 
 She carefully endeavoured, first of all, that her own life 
 should be consistent with her profession, and she also 
 improved every propitious season in giving judicious in- 
 struction and warning. She used all appropriate means, 
 and in her various efforts, love was the dominant power 
 exhibited in those acts of kindness which is ^ a potent 
 winner of the heart.' But her great reliance was upon 
 fervent, unceasing prayer, sent upward to the mercy-seat, 
 with unwavering faith in the Divine promises. In the 
 many supplications offered in secret, the strength of ma- 
 ternal love added fervour to devotion. She used to say 
 that her thoughts were diverted, and the ardour of 
 intercession damped by passing over different topics; 
 and therefore, although she prayed for all her family at 
 once, yet so she could not ^ pour out her heart like water 
 before the Lord.' She presented each child separately 
 before the throne of grace. In this individual supplication 
 she formed the habit of what might be called concentrated 
 prayer. The power of supplication was expended upon 
 one child, as if it had been an only one; and intense 
 became the earnestness thus fixed and kindling upon a 
 single object. This was indeed prayer, and in His own 
 time it prevailed with God. 
 
 " But long had this mother seemed to pray in vain, and 
 her faith was sorely tried through years of ^hope de- 
 ferred.' Yet now the reaping time was near. She 
 who had gone forth weeping, sowing the precious seed, 
 was to return again, bringing her sheaves with her. 
 
 " The first convert was the eldest daughter ; the two 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 279 
 
 eldest sons soon after obtained the good hope through 
 grace. And successively, at intervals, the whole of the 
 nine children made a profession of faith. Unbounded 
 thankfulness and joy filled the mother's heart, but one 
 sorrow remained, the husband and father was still im- 
 penitent. There was great despondency on his account, 
 for he was now advancing in years, and he had begun 
 to form the habit of intemperance. For him, the many 
 prayers remained unanswered. Had the supplicating 
 wife, in the abundance of her blessings, received all that 
 God was willing to grant ? Must the father see all his 
 family in the kingdom of heaven, and he himself ' thrust 
 out?' This thought was a burden too heavy to be 
 borne, and yet she who by ' the fervent effectual prayer 
 of the righteous' had availed so much, feared that her 
 last desire, the salvation of her husband, might not be 
 granted. All her tears, entreaties, and prayers, had not 
 prevailed; and might not the harvest be past? After 
 much painful reflection, the faithful wife resolved to 
 make one final effort, and then leave the case with God. 
 She spent a night of anguish, with a fervour of supplica- 
 tion she had never before experienced; and in the 
 morning she thus addressed her husband : ' I have 
 offered for you many prayers ; have often entreated you 
 to attend to your salvation ; but it has been all in vain. 
 God has given me my children, but you are without 
 hope. I can do no more. We have lived happily to- 
 gether in time, but I fear we must be separated in 
 eternity; I have but one more request to make, and 
 then I must leave you with God. Do this moment seek 
 the salvation of your soul." 
 
 ^'This message, brought down from the ^ mount of 
 
280 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 God/ was irresistible. The husband seemed for a mo- 
 ment paralysed and speechless. Finding utterance^ he 
 simply replied_, with significant emphasis, ^ I will.^ He 
 immediately left his work and retired to the field, 
 resolving, as he afterwards said, never to return till he 
 had become a Christian. The whole long summer day 
 down to the deep shades of night was he absent, to the 
 alarm of his family, who sought but found him not. 
 
 '^ Thinking himself that they would be distressed at his 
 absence, he returned, not a Christian, but deeply laden 
 with the burden of sin. Some days passed away, and 
 then he experienced a change from death unto life. He 
 dare not at first trust the evidences of conversion, but 
 the light increased as he ^ followed on to know the Lord,' 
 and fear was overpowered by joy. 
 
 " A revival of religion had commenced at the time, 
 and the aged convert attended the evening meeting. He 
 supposed that none had heard of the change in his 
 character, but there was joy on earth as well as ^ among 
 the angels,' for the tidings had spread abroad. When 
 the meeting was dismissed, the young converts and 
 members of the church gathered around the new disciple, 
 taking him by surprise as they rejoiced over his salva- 
 tion. It was a moving scene. As he described it, ^ the 
 young people wept and I wept, we were all children to- 
 gether, and I as much a child as any of them.' The 
 cup of the praying mother could hold no more. God 
 had granted all that she asked, and she could now hope 
 to sit down at last with all her family in heaven ^ Oh, 
 infinite reward of faith and prayer! What glory of 
 earth can be named with this ? 
 
 " The praying mother still lives, extremely aged, blind. 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 281 
 
 infirm^ but retaining remarkably her mental faculties 
 and her spiritual vigour. She has seen her children 
 connected with pious families, and listened to some of 
 them as preachers of the gospel. Most of her grand- 
 children are also members of the church, one a missionary 
 to a foreign land, and for each of the unconverted she 
 continues the daily prayer. The aged disciple patiently 
 waits, but longs to depart. She often turns her sightless 
 orbs up towards heaven as if asking ' How long, Lord, 
 how long?^ But, long as her life has been protracted, 
 she has not lived in vain. Christian mothers, see in this 
 example what power God has granted you. Use it faith- 
 fully and well, for great is ' the recompense of reward.' " 
 It is told in the " Life of Mrs. Winslow,'' that she 
 determined, with God's blessing, that every member of 
 her family should appear with her at God's right hand. 
 She wrestled long in prayer, and she had the happiness 
 of seeing, one after another, her children brought to 
 God, until not one was left " without God in the world." 
 She ascribes this to no miracle, except the miracle of 
 grace that is wrought in every soul brought home, but 
 she does recognise answer to prayer in her having lived 
 to see this wondrous sight. 
 
 For many a long year did the seaman's prayer lie in 
 the old oak chest, but at length, like the chrysalis, it 
 burst its shell and came forth to life and light. Captain 
 
 Mitchell R was from early life accustomed to the 
 
 sea. He commanded a merchant's ship that sailed from 
 Philadelphia. After his marriage, he again went to sea, 
 and committed to writing, while in a highly devotional 
 frame of mind, a prayer for the temporal and eternal 
 happiness of his beloved wife and unborn babe. 
 
 B B 2 
 
282 EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 
 
 This prayer, nearly filling a sheet of paper, was de- 
 posited, with his other writings, at the bottom of an old 
 oak chest. The captain died before the completion of 
 the voyage, in the year 1757, and his instruments, 
 papers, &c., were returned to his wife. Finding they 
 were generally what she could not understand, she locked 
 up the chest for her babe, (who proved to be a son,) at 
 some future time. At eighteen this son entered the 
 army, and in 1775 marched for Boston, He gave the 
 reins to his lusts, and for many years yielded to almost 
 every temptation to sin. At length, he was called to the 
 death-bed of his mother, who gave him the key of his 
 father^s chest, which, however, he did not open, lest he 
 should meet with something of a religious kind that 
 should reprove his sins and harass his feelings. At 
 length, in 1814, when in his fifty-sixth year, he deter- 
 mined to examine its whole contents. When he reached 
 the bottom, he discovered a paper, neatly folded, and en- 
 dorsed, "The prayer of Mitchell R for blessings on 
 
 his wife and child, August 23, 1757." He read it; the 
 scene, the time, the place, and circumstances under 
 which it was written and put there, all rushed upon his 
 mind, and overwhelmed him, for often had his widowed 
 mother led him to the beach, and pointed to him the 
 direction on the horizon where she had traced the last 
 glimpse of flowing canvas that bore his father from her, 
 never to return. He threw the contents back into the 
 chest, folded up the prayer, and put it into the case 
 with his father^s quadrant, locked up the chest, and de- 
 termined never again to unlock it. But his father's 
 prayer still haunted his imagination, and he could not 
 forget it. At length his distress became extreme, and a 
 
EXPECTATION IN PRAYER. 283 
 
 person with whom he lived entreated to know, the cause. 
 He looked on her with mildness, and replied, " I cannot 
 tell you.^' This only increased her solicitude; he en- 
 treated her to withdraw; as she left the room_, she cast 
 an anxious and expressive look upon him_, and he 
 instantly called her hack. He then_, with all the feelings 
 which an awakened guilty conscience could endure_, told 
 the cause of his agonies — his father^ s prayer in the old 
 chest. She thought him deranged, his neighbours were 
 called in to comfort him, but in vain. The prayer had 
 inflicted a wound which the Great Physician of souls 
 only could heal. From that period he became an altered 
 man, forsook every way of sin, united himself to the 
 Church of Christ, set his slaves at liberty, and lived and 
 died a humble, exemplary Christian. 
 
 Let the parent, then, who prays for the conversion of 
 a child, or the husband or wife who prays for the con- 
 version the one of the other; let the man who prays 
 for some spiritual blessing, it may be perhaps for that of 
 deep assurance, or the perfect victory over some besetting 
 sin, let such, and all who are praying according to the 
 mind and will of God, be patient, " In due season they 
 shall reap if they faint not." " Behold, the husbandman 
 waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long 
 patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain, 
 be ye also patient," the answer is on its way, hail even a 
 little sign of it ; it was from a cloud no bigger than a 
 man^s hand, that the heavens became overcast, and then 
 there fell, in answer to the prophet's prayer, abundance 
 of rain. 
 
284 
 
 CHAPTEH XV. 
 THE ''I WILL" OF INTENSE PEATER. 
 
 Psalm xxviii, I. " Unto Thee will I cri/, O Lord my rock; he 
 not silent to me : lest, if Thou he silent to me, I become like them 
 that go down into the pit." 
 
 Psalm Iv, 17. "Evening, and morning, atid at noon, will I 
 pray, and cry aloud : and He shall hear my voice.'* 
 
 Psalm Ixiii, 1. " O God, Thou art my God ; early will I seek 
 Thee : my soul thirsteth for Thee, my flesh longethfor Thee in a 
 dry and thirsty land, where no water is." 
 
 HOW shall we undertake to speak of this subject? 
 What do we know of it ? Where is the pen that 
 can write worthily of it ? When we see a specimen of 
 it in Jesu^s prayer in Gethsemane^ when we think of the 
 agony of supplication there^ we are ashamed to take up 
 the subject of Intensity in Prayer; none could speak 
 worthily of it^ save He, who realized it in His own tears, 
 and woe, and bloody sweat. 
 
 And yet this subject must not be passed by, for it is 
 one of great importance to the Christian; the higher 
 we rise in our spiritual life, the more shall we know 
 practically of Intensity in Prayer. 
 
 We are to consider here, 
 
 The seasons of Intense Prayer. 
 
INTENSITY IN PRAYER. 285 
 
 There are two distinct seasons of intense prayer ; (1) 
 those with which circumstances have to do ; and (2) 
 those in which man is being wrought upon by immediate 
 and independent operations of the Spirit. 
 
 We are sometimes brought into such circumstances^ 
 that a fixed and speedy time must settle a question.^ 
 Perhaps the life or death of a beloved relative is in 
 jeopardy ; a decision in some important question has to 
 be made; relief is required for pain which must be borne 
 within the next hour; strength is needed to carry us 
 through an interview, which must come off within the 
 next few minutes ; grace and wisdom are needed for our 
 lips in dealing with some one whom we love, and whose 
 soul is in jeopardy, and now an opportunity is afforded of 
 speaking to him ; these are some examples of circum- 
 stances, in which time becomes an element of intensity 
 
 * " When tlie Rev. Mr. Clarke and Dr. Prince were in Western 
 Africa, they penetrated a part of the interior, where a warlike 
 tribe resided, which they had never before seen. It being a 
 perilous undertaking, they offered special prayer for the Divine 
 protection and blessing. At length, on the top of a hill, the 
 tribe appeared, with their weapons of war. At the command 
 of their chief, they rushed down the hill with their pointed 
 lances, as if intent on the destruction of the two strangers. The 
 missionaries again earnestly prayed that the Lord would mani- 
 fest His protecting power, and give them an opportunity of 
 proclaiming Christ to these savages. They encouraged each 
 other to exercise confidence in God, with the words, ' Stand 
 still, and see the salvation of the Lord.' They therefore stood 
 still and prayed. The tribe soon encircled them ; and when 
 death seemed most imminent, the warriors threw down their 
 weapons to the ground, and the missionaries at once made 
 known to them tlie glorious gospel." — Phillips's Remarkable 
 Answers. 
 
286 INTENSITY IN PRAYER. 
 
 in prayer. But they are only examples, for such cir- 
 cumstances are continually occurring ; if an answer is to 
 be given at all, it must be within a certain time. 
 
 God has often taught His people the meaning of 
 intensity in prayer, by bringing them thus decidedly to a 
 point ; they now find with how little intensity they had 
 often prayed before; they seem to themselves never to 
 have prayed at all ; they feel what a strong reality prayer 
 is. Many a mother has thus learned Intensity of Prayer, 
 by the bed-side of a fevered child ; many a father by the 
 bed-side of an almost dying wife ; into a few moments, 
 they seem then to compress all the prayers of former 
 years. Call not, dear reader, upon God, to teach you 
 how to pray intensely by such experiences as these : if 
 you be a child of God, you must be taught " Intensity 
 in Prayer," but you need not learn it thus; you may 
 obtain it by direct influences of the Spirit : and then, 
 when the time of need has come, you will be called upon 
 to use, not to learn intensity of prayer. 
 
 Another season of intensity in prayer, is when sudden 
 calamity comes upon us. There are occasions in life, 
 when we feel ourselves in a moment plunged into trouble, 
 bereft of our usual resources, and friends, and left 
 solitary to get out of our affliction as best we can ; we 
 awake as in a moment to find ourselves in circumstances 
 of great distress, from whatever cause that distress may 
 come. At such seasons, we find ourselves brought into 
 the immediate presence of God; we feel that we must 
 have more than human support, or we shall be unable 
 to bear up under the sudden pressure that has come 
 upon us ; we are driven by our sharp ^stress to intense 
 prayer. 
 
INTENSITY IN PRAYER. 287 
 
 And it is thus that sudden calamity should indeed be 
 met. Nothing will so calm the mind_, and fit it for 
 deliberation^ as a few moments of intense prayer ; in that 
 intense prayer, we may rest assured, God will be found 
 by His children ; and having secured Him on their side, 
 they will be able steadily to meet that, with Him, which 
 it would have been ill meeting indeed, without Him. 
 
 When we have had special realizations of the magnitude 
 or importance of the thing to be prayed for, is another 
 season of intense prayer. The true proportions of things 
 are not always seen; we often pray, little knowing the 
 greatness of that which we are praying for."^ We pray, 
 for example, that God would graciously preserve us in 
 health, and strength, continuing to us the use of our 
 faculties, and various blessings, and we pray languidly 
 enough : but let us be threatened with the speedy loss of 
 some of these blessings, or say, of one of them, of our 
 sight, — let us shut our eyes, and picture to ourselves a 
 :^tate of darkness continued as long as we live ; let us feel 
 ourselves about to be shut out from the loving faces of 
 our friends, from the flowers, and trees, and fields : let 
 us think that soon every step must be taken with uncer- 
 tainty — that we are destined, it may be, to be a burden 
 on those around us ; now we have special realizations of 
 the magnitude of that for which we are about to pray, 
 when we ask, it may be, that something troubling the 
 eye may be removed ; tli^ meaning of which now is, that 
 we may not be left to spend our days in blindness ; and 
 we shall pray with intensity when we bring this matter 
 before God. 
 
 We shall presently meet with these realizations of 
 * " Ye know not what ye ask." Matthew xx, 22. 
 
288 INTENSITY IN PRAYER. 
 
 magnitude in spiritual things ; the above will serve as an 
 example of what we mean with regard to such realizations 
 generally. 
 
 We little know, how great are the blessings for which 
 we are often praying, and on this account our prayers 
 are dull; God sometimes sets them before us in their 
 true light, and quickens us into intensity of prayer. 
 
 WJien we have been completely shut up in our oivn 
 resources, and there is heavy pressure upon us, we often 
 learn the meaning of Intensity in Prayer. It often 
 happens that, without our knowing or intending it, we 
 permit the possession of even one slender resource to 
 affect our intensity in prayer. We honestly do not wish 
 this to be the case; we wish to cast ourselves on God 
 alone; we wish to look to Him alone, but poor weak 
 human nature makes us squint out of the corner of our 
 eye at some means which seem at hand, or from which 
 we should hope much, if only we could get them within 
 our reach. Ask men who have been really " shut up," 
 and that " under pressure," and they will tell you the 
 meaning of Intensity in Prayer. 
 
 Let us turn, however, to those seasons of intense 
 prayer which are experienced, owing to immediate and 
 independent operations of the Spirit. We have now to 
 consider times, when no particular circumstances are 
 working upon the mind, to wind it up to such a pitch of 
 earnestness as might fitly be described by the word 
 " intense" — times unknown to the people of the world 
 — times well known to the people of God. 
 
 These workings of the Spirit may have reference to 
 man in a struggling state, or to man in a state of 
 
INTENSITY IN PRAYER. 289 
 
 attainment. Take man in a struggling state; lie has 
 perhaps just failed in some point in which he earnestly 
 desired, and in which he had determined, to do well, or it 
 may be that he is brooding over such past failures, and 
 is half maddened at them ; the Spirit of God is now 
 working upon him. He is shewing him his weakness. He 
 is proving to him what flesh and blood really are, what 
 man is in himself, even though he be honest, and well 
 intentioned, and active in making effort. Full of shame 
 and self reproach, and it may be of fear with reference to 
 the future, the soul now becomes quickened into intensity 
 of prayer, it looks to God, it enlists His strength, it 
 seeks to Him as a refuge from its own demerits and 
 shortcomings, it sees Him in Christ, and puts intensity 
 into some such words as these — ^' Unto Thee do I cry, 
 O Lord, my Rock, be not silent to me, lest, if Thou be 
 silent to me, I become like them that go down into 
 the pit/' 
 
 Or it may be that the pressure, and burden, and evil 
 of sin are now being peculiarly felt. There are times 
 when the Spirit of God deals especially with a believer 
 in this matter ; when the Lord reveals to a man more 
 than he ever knew before of his position before Him as 
 a sinner; when he feels sin to be exceeding sinful. Then 
 comes the cry, " O wretched man that I am,'' then 
 comes the deep consciousness of individual idleness and 
 baseness, then the heart groans, being burdened. There 
 is now no taste of sweetness about sin, but all is 
 unmingled gaU and bitterness; there is now playing 
 around it not a sparkle or gleam of hght, but all is 
 thick and oppressive darkness ; there is now no joy or 
 gladness connected with it, but it is like Ezekiel's roll, 
 
 c c 
 
290 INTENSITY IN PRAYER. 
 
 written botli within and without with woe. Oh ! when 
 the Holy Ghost is dealing with a man with reference to 
 sin, sin wears an aspect far more awful than that which 
 it wears simply under the reproaches of conscience. 
 Conscience can tell the difference between good and evil, 
 right and wrong, it can tell what is sin, but it cannot 
 tell the exceeding evil of sin. To know this, there must 
 be a revelation of the holiness of God; there must be a 
 revelation of the intrinsic evil and corruption of sin; 
 there must be certain teachings with reference to our 
 own nature; there must be certain feelings, not one of 
 which is it the immediate office of conscience to bestow, 
 but which, one and all, come from the operation of the 
 Holy Ghost. 
 
 When a man is under these operations of the Spirit, he 
 knows what it is to be intense in prayer — to pray as a 
 pressed and burdened sinner who sees sin to be exceeding 
 sinful. Jesus, though sinless, put himself in the position 
 of a sinner, and ha\4ng done so. He had to feel realizations 
 of what sin was. Although sin was not in Him, and had 
 never been committed by Him, all its anguish, all its 
 horror came upon Him ; these were, doubtless, some of 
 the ingredients of that cup of gall and wormwood which 
 He drank of in Gethsemane, and drained even to the 
 last of its dregs upon the cross. We need scarcely point 
 out that these experiences of sin, and intense prayer in 
 connection with them, are unknown to the people of the 
 world. Very superficial indeed are their views of sin, 
 very superficial their prayers about it ; but God's people 
 know something of all this; even though such seasons as 
 these of which we have been speaking are short, mercifully 
 short, and the prayer connected with them be but one 
 
INTENSITY IN PRAYER. 291 
 
 agonized look to heaven^ or one abashed and broken- 
 hearted look upon the ground. 
 
 Hard following upon this season comes that^ in which 
 man longs intently for inward comfort and peace. He 
 wants the peace of God which passeth all understanding ; 
 he wants rest in the Lord. There is a state of rest for 
 the soul, and that is what he craves. At this time what 
 might be called a vision of peace comes over him ; he 
 sees much of its blessedness, though he feels that he 
 possesses it not ; and this drives him to intense prayer. 
 It is God^s intention that this peace should be given, but 
 it is His intention also that it should be earnestly sought ; 
 and He stirs up the soul to such prayer as has power 
 with Him and will prevail. 
 
 There are, however, other immediate and independent 
 operations of the Spirit, which have reference to man, 
 not so much in a struggling state as in one of 
 attainment. 
 
 The Spirit is ever working, ever teaching, ever leading ; 
 and these workings, and teachings, often have reference 
 to prayer. Let us take the case of a man who has made 
 attainment in divine things ; there are seasons when such 
 an one's heart is under the special influences of the 
 Spirit for elevation. The Holy Ghost is raising the 
 man, is upheaving his nature, is kindling within Him 
 great desires, is gifting him with larger power of prayer. 
 That gift is working, and the man thus favoured is 
 enabled to pray under immediate influences from above. 
 These seasons are gifts from God ; may they be bestowed 
 upon us more and more ; they are sure to produce great 
 results, and they are manifest tokens of divine favour. 
 
 Then, there are times when there is kindled in the 
 
292 INTENSITY IN PRAYER. 
 
 soul earnest desire for some spiritual blessing. This 
 desire is kindled by the Holy Ghost. At such a time 
 the exceeding preciousness of this particular blessing is 
 brought vividly before us ; the want of it is made more 
 keenly felt ; the hearths eager and earnest desire is set 
 on the possession of it; it becomes, perhaps, the one 
 leading thought of life, and we wrestle with God in 
 prayer, and say ^' I will not let Thee go, until Thou bless 
 tclq" Thus many such blessings have been obtained; 
 happy is he whose earnest longing for spiritual blessing 
 has taken such a development as this; in intensity of 
 prayer the blessing has been won. 
 
 And who is there at all accustomed to exercise himself 
 in prayer, who has not experienced apparent denials; 
 denials which required faith to be borne with, denials 
 which seemed at the time to be harsh and rough ? At 
 times it appeared as though God had forgotten to bf 
 gracious, as though He had shut up His ear, as 
 though He would not listen to our request; and faint 
 hearts have sunk so low, that they restrained prayer, 
 until by some special dealing of the Spirit they were 
 roused to it again. Now in all purely spiritual blessings 
 we may, as it were, say, that we will take no final 
 denial from God. He has been graciously pleased to put 
 Himself in all such things within our power, so that He 
 cannot go away from us, leaving us without the spiritual 
 good, for which He Himself has given us the grace to 
 long. The history of Jacobus successful wrestling with 
 the angel is a palpable proof of this ; and we may be 
 sure, that what took place with the patriarch actually, has 
 taken place with many a man symbolically, and God has 
 graciously yielded, when He found Himself with one whc 
 
INTENSITY IN PRAYER. 293 
 
 by the power of His own Spirit could say^ " I will not 
 let Thee go, except Thou bless me." 
 
 Again we would repeat, that men may come to the throne 
 of grace for purely spiritual hlessings, with a determination 
 to receive no final denial from God — but let it be under- 
 stood, that this refers to spiritual blessings alone. All else 
 we must leave unreservedly to God; and even in the matter 
 of purely spiritual blessings, how, and when, and through 
 what instrumentality they are to be vouchsafed, must be 
 left wholly in God^s hands. It would be most sinful to 
 kneel down and pray, that without any special reference to 
 God^s wisdom and will, we should receive such and such 
 a blessing — that a child should recover — that a husband 
 or a wife should be spared — that a speculation in business 
 should succeed — that failing health should be restored — 
 or the anguish and debility of illness be taken away. 
 
 To be answered in many such desires, might be the 
 means of eventually excluding us from the kingdom of 
 heaven — in anger God has answered such prayers as 
 these; He has given men their hearths desires, and 
 ^^ withal sent leanness into their souls." All such things 
 must be left entirely to God's judgment and will; and 
 not only these, but a large class of spiritual blessings 
 also. You might come, and kneel down, and ask for 
 immediate peace of mind, or for immediate knowledge of 
 the deep things of God, or for deliverance from some 
 Satanic pressure upon your soul, or for a variety of 
 blessings of this class, each one of which is undoubtedly 
 most excellent and desirable in itself, and not only excel- 
 lent and desirable, but also a fit subject for prayer; and 
 yet the amount of the answer, and the time when that 
 amount shall be vouchsafed, must be entirely left in the 
 
 c c 2 
 
294 INTENSITY IN PRAYER. 
 
 hands of God. A spiritual blessings by coining at an 
 improper time_, migbt prove a spiritual curse ; and the 
 peace which we desire so much^ if given at once_, mighty 
 for all we know^ but provide the elements of some future 
 snare, or keep us back from a future high position which 
 otherwise might have been attained. For some blessings,, 
 however, we may ask, without any reservation or any 
 limit. The inestimable blessings of love, of grace, of 
 faith, of humility, of patience, and all such, may be 
 sought for with such eagerness, that he who seeks for 
 them might be said to appear determined to take no 
 denial ; and such a feeling is acceptable to God ; it is not 
 presumption, it is faith ; it is not audacity, it is boldness ; 
 it is not desperation, it is energy ; such a feeling shall 
 assuredly gain the blessing, and the perseverance which 
 it exercises shall be crowned abundantly with success. 
 
 But while denials of whatever is for our good, are only 
 apparent, delays are real, and often most distressing to 
 the soul. Promises have been so long delayed, as to 
 have been to all human appearances lost, and the 
 exercise of the spirit has been carried on, through great 
 disquietude of the flesh. Amid all delays, however, the 
 promises of God are sure ; though they tarry, they will 
 not tarry beyond the appointed time. And whilst we 
 are now waiting and watching for promised blessings, the 
 <:;ommand comes to us to ask, to seek, to knock ; silence 
 on God^s part, is not to be met by silence on ours; His 
 delays must not destroy our hopes.-^ There is not a child 
 
 * See the case of the Syro-phenieian woman in Matthew xv, 21, 
 &e. — first, " He answered her not a word ;" then He said, " I am not 
 sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel j" and lastly, " It 
 is not meet to take the children's bread and to cast it to dogs." 
 
INTENSITY IN PRAYER. 295 
 
 of God on earth, who has not from time to time been 
 exercised by delays ; tinder the trials of delay, some of 
 their finest graces have come forth, and the highest 
 lustre been conferred upon the jewels of their heavenly 
 crowns. Little did men know, what God was doing for 
 them, when He kept them a long time waiting, even for 
 that which He had positively assured them that He 
 would give ; little did they know, as they looked forward 
 in patience, and humble trust, that each day thus spent, 
 had appended to it its own reward — but thus, it has 
 ever been — God^s promises bear an interest, which 
 accumulates every day, and in full tale both principal 
 and interest shall be paid* 
 
 To us, then, dear reader, may it be given to pray — to 
 pray in trouble — to pray continuously — to pray expect- 
 ingly — to pray intensely — to pray in the Holy Ghost. 
 Let us tread our pilgrimage's rough road with prayer ; let 
 us face our fierce enemies in prayer ; let us be prepared to 
 meet, alike the perils of life's lonely places, and its 
 thoroughfares in prayer; the prayers of this life shall 
 soon be needed no more ; then shall our voices mingle 
 in the praises of the life that is to come. 
 
296 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 ^ctiaii. 
 
 Psalm Ixxi, 16. "J tcill go in the strength of the Lord Ood" 
 
 Psalm Ixxxvi, 11. "Teach me Thy way, O Lord, I will walk 
 in Thy truth." 
 
 Psalm cxvi, 9. " I will walk hefore the Lord in the land of the 
 living.''^ 
 
 Psalm cxix, 32. " I ivill run the way of Thy commatidments, 
 when Thou shalt enlarge my hearth 
 
 I|IiE men of the world are steeped in ignorance as 
 regards all tilings belonging to God^ and the 
 spiritual life. The world lies in darkness ; it loves dark- 
 ness; it cannot comprehend any other condition save 
 that of darkness; and it will not come to the light 
 because its deeds are evil. Nor was the condition of the 
 world changed by the coming of our Lord ; it rolls on in 
 darkness now, just as it did when He was upon the 
 earth ; and so it will roll, until He appear again in light 
 and glory, when the light shall overcome the darkness, 
 and that, when it is thicker and denser than ever it was 
 before. 
 
 It is true, we have daily displayed before us the in- 
 creasing knowledge of man; but knowledge is one thing. 
 
ACTION. 297 
 
 and true wisdom is another^ and the world by its wisdom 
 knows not God. 
 
 With all man^s increase in knowledge^ it is really 
 wonderful how little he has increased in practical wisdom. 
 The pages of history seem to have taught him but little ; 
 the experiences of others seem to be thrown away on him ; 
 and in kingdoms, societies, and the individual circles of 
 men's daily life, we see the same old faults and follies 
 renewed again and again. If we strip these of the adven- 
 titious circumstances connected with them, we shall find 
 how little variety there is in sin. If the people of the 
 world continue thus ignorant in those things which come 
 so easily within their comprehension, which come so 
 frequently under their observation, and in which their 
 own visible interests are concerned, is it any wonder 
 that they are ignorant of the things of God, of His 
 ways, of His laws, of His mind, of the fact that God 
 seeth not as man seeth, that His ways are not as our 
 ways, nor His thoughts as our thoughts ? 
 
 The wonder is, not that we were ignorant, but that we 
 were ever made wise ; and the wonder is dispelled, only 
 by our seeing that this was done by the immediate 
 working of the Spirit. 
 
 There is no point on which the world is more dark 
 than that of its own ignorance — we might truly say, 
 ^' it is ignorant of its ignorance'^ — it knows enough when 
 it learns by rote a few first principles of religion; it 
 comforts itself that it is not atheistical because it believes 
 that there is a God ; but as to knowing His ways, laws, 
 mind, or any such things, with them it has nothing at all 
 to do. 
 
 The people of the world do not care for enlightenment ; 
 
298 ACTION. 
 
 they feel no pressing need for it ; in all probability they 
 have an instinctive feeling that if enlightened they would 
 know a little more than they wish to know ; that their 
 newly acquired knowledge would interfere with their old 
 habits and ways, and this is one reason why all spiritual 
 teaching which goes beneath the surface is distasteful to 
 the majority of men. They cannot bear to be brought 
 into contact with God, in anything but a general way ; 
 the particulars of His character may not agree over well 
 with the particulars of their lives ! 
 
 It is the fashion in the present day to talk of man's 
 enlightenment, and to represent human nature as up- 
 heaving under its load, as straining towards a knowledge 
 of truth ; such is not in reality the case, and wherever 
 there is an effort in the mind untaught of the Spirit, 
 it is directed towards God as the great moral, and not as 
 the great spiritual Being. A man untaught of the Holy 
 Ghost may long to know a moral, he never can desire to 
 know a spiritual Being. 
 
 Dear reader, cease to wonder that spiritual truth has 
 made so little progress in the world, rather wonder that 
 it has made so much; marvel not that so few know 
 anything of God, rather marvel that even so many 
 are found, who say, " Teach me Thy way, O Lord.'' 
 
 The idea, then, of those whom we are accustomed to 
 call ^^good people" in the world, is that when they 
 recognise the existence of God, they do enough ; when 
 they acknowledge His moral government, no more can 
 be required ; the ideas of God^s people on these points 
 are, however, very different. In the first place, they feel 
 that they can neither know nor desire God's way by 
 themselves. This they have been taught by the Holy 
 
ACTION. 299 
 
 Ghost. The Spirit has made them feel that the natural 
 bent of their minds was away from God; they have even 
 detected their minds in the very act of loathing divine 
 things; they have felt themselves vile and wicked^ in 
 their distaste to all that is spiritual ; but with all this 
 knowledge they could make no advance^ the truth beings 
 that they had still the carnal heart_, which,, no matter 
 what it knows or feels^ is^ and must be^ " enmity against 
 God." 
 
 Dear reader^ your own experience may doubtless be 
 appealed to on this subject. Was there not a time when 
 you felt no desire to know more of God, of His laws, 
 and ways, than you had learned in the ordinary teaching, 
 which you received perhaps as a child ? That sufficed 
 for you ; and if from time to time you saw some 
 glimmering of light, it was just enough to make your 
 darkness visible, but you did not care to come to the 
 light, nor that that light should grow stronger, revealing 
 more and more of God. The retrospect of such a season 
 as this makes the believer see distinctly how completely 
 he is a debtor to grace ; he says, " had I been left to 
 myself, I should never have sought the Lord; never 
 could I have had a yearning of heart for spiritual views 
 of God; I remember my distaste to divine things too 
 well, to deceive myself by supposing that I have grown 
 into spiritual desires, or that I have struggled into them, 
 or worked myself up to them, or have had the smallest 
 part in procuring them for my self.'' Every man that is 
 born of the Spirit knows that he was ignorant, and that 
 he loved to continue ignorant, and that he felt a natural 
 aversion to be taken out of his ignorance, and that he 
 struggled against the workings and strivings of the Spirit, 
 
300 ACTION. 
 
 be it more or less, wlien that Spirit came into his heart, 
 to enlighten him about the ways of God. 
 
 Such, then, were the thoughts of God^s people in for- 
 mer times ; very different are they now. They say with 
 the Psalmist, ^' Teach me Thy way, O Lord." The 
 Spirit of God has taught them that ^^ there is a way 
 which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are 
 the ways of death ;" and that there is another way of 
 which it is written, "in the way of righteousness is life, 
 and in the pathway thereof there is no death." 
 
 Now, it sometimes happens that the process of discovery 
 is going on for a considerable time, before the process of 
 desire is wrought out in the heart. Many a man is 
 having the excellence of God^s ways set before him, and 
 conviction of their excellence forced upon his conscience, 
 before his heart is being wrought upon to respond to his 
 judgment. While a man is in this condition, he must 
 be very unsettled, in all probability he is very unhappy ; 
 he is losing, if he have not already lost, the measure of 
 satisfaction which he experienced in the old ways, he has 
 not attained to that which is to be found in " the more 
 excellent way ;" the old food is nauseous ; the new he has 
 not power to eat. And here we see how a true work upon 
 the soul must be begun, continued, and ended in the 
 Spirit ; He must not only give the power of leaving the 
 old way, but also that of entering on the new ; and when 
 He is carrying on this latter part of the work. He teaches 
 the soul to cry in earnest, such words as those before us 
 now, " Teach me Thy way, O Lord, I will walk in Thy 
 truth." 
 
 The ideas, then, of those who are under the teaching 
 of the Spirit, are, in this matter of " the ways of God," 
 
ACTION. 301 
 
 entirely distinct from those of sucli as , remain in 
 ignorance of divine things ; let us further enquire,, with 
 what sentiments of mind do such pei'sons desire to be 
 taught? The answer to this question will entirely 
 depend upon what their exact state is, when the question 
 is asked. 
 
 Some, who are under the early stages of the Spirit^s 
 work, simply desire to have an end put to their perplexity 
 and discomfort; they do not know as yet, that no 
 matter what they learn, they will be ever prompted, 
 under the living influences of the Spirit, to desire to 
 learn yet more and more; they think that they can get 
 some one teaching, which will put them in the same 
 road as that which is being travelled by the children of 
 God. There is ignorance in their wish ; yet would to 
 God, that such as it is, it were shared by more. When 
 they have attained their desire, and feel that they are 
 indeed upon the heavenly road, they will surely pass on 
 to a higher stage of spiritual life, and desire to know 
 more of God^s way, because they want to know more of 
 Himself Progression is the law of life. 
 
 Those, however, who are advanced beyond this low 
 point, say, " Teach me Thy way, O Lord,^^ with a higher 
 aim. They desire entire conformity of mind with God, 
 and as a consequent, entire conformity of life. They 
 know that their own ways, even when most clear, and 
 apparently unblameable, may be very far from the ways 
 of God; and they would no more grieve Him by an 
 ignorant, than by a wilful act. A wilful act of sin is far 
 more wicked than an ignorant one; it will be visited 
 with far severer punishment ; he who knew his Lord^s 
 will and did it not, shall be beaten with many stripes, 
 
 D D 
 
302 ACTION. 
 
 while lie who knew it not shall be beaten with but few ; 
 but the difference in the amount oi guilt does not set the 
 mind of the child of God at ease. No ! the Spirit- 
 taught man has spiritual sensibilities ; he feels a wound 
 if he feel that he has broken God's law, or departed from 
 His way, or left a portion of that way untrodden through 
 ignorance, or if he have come short of the glory of God. 
 Sensitiveness on these points is the consequent of the 
 new life, and it makes men not only quick to do what 
 they know should be done, but further, desirous of being 
 taught wherever they are ignorant. The child of God 
 aims at nothing short of perfect conformity to the mind 
 of God; he wants not only that his life should be 
 brought into exact obedience to all declared laws, but 
 that his mind should by God's Spirit be brought into 
 harmony with God's rules of action. He knovv^s that 
 God seeth and judgeth, not as man seeth and judgeth, 
 that He has principles of action of a standard infinitely 
 higher than any w^hich exists in man's highest code of 
 morality, and so he says, " Teach me Thy way." 
 
 Dear reader, what do you know of this in your own 
 practical experience ? Have you been content with your 
 own way, or with the laws of morality, or with what you 
 could pick up for yourself out of the recorded laws of 
 God ; or have you gone further, and feeling that much 
 more could be attained to, asked God by the Spirit to 
 teach you, ^^ His own way ? " 
 
 It will, doubtless, be one of the delights of heaven, 
 that there the saint shall have his mind in perfect con- 
 formity with the mind of God, but need we wait for 
 lieaven to have at least a longing for this ? Oh surely 
 not; we may say, "O teach me Thy way," now while we 
 
ACTION. 803 
 
 are upon earth. This recjuest is ever according to the 
 mind of God ; it is one^ we may rest assured, that He 
 will be pleased to grant. 
 
 It may be practically useful to enquire, for a few 
 moments, What it is that God's people desire to knoiu, 
 tvhen they say, " Teach me Thy ivay." We may make 
 the prayer in the passage before us either generally or 
 particularly ; no doubt the people of G od do both con- 
 tinually. 
 
 There are seasons ^i^hen we feel ourselves peculiarly 
 drawn out in desires after holiness and conformity to 
 God, seasons of high aspirations, and would to God that 
 we had them oftener and that they lasted longer. At 
 such times no special difficulty is before the mind, we 
 are simply absorbed in the longing to be like God, and 
 onr thoughts are expressed in the Psalmist^s words, 
 '^ Teach me Thy way.^^ The meaning of the prayer 
 under such circumstances is this, ^^O Lord, I want to 
 be like Thee ; I want to know all that will be pleasing to 
 Thee for me to do ; I would understand Thy principles of 
 action ; I would see more plainly the bomidary lines of 
 the path which Thou markest out for Thy people ; yea, 
 I would see the lines of the path on which Thou walkest 
 Thine own self; I have no spiritual eyesight of mine 
 own with which to discern all this. Thy way mnst be 
 revealed by Thyself, oh, teach it now to me.^^ 
 
 We may rest well assured, that whenever we feel 
 within us a spiritual aspiration, it is capable of being 
 productive of a spiritual result, and moreover it is 
 intended so to be. Spiritual aspirations come from the 
 Holy Ghost, and He bestows no gift which is not 
 capable of putting forth vital energy^ and jpi'oducing its 
 
304! ACTION. 
 
 own peculiar fruits. The aspiration of wMcli we have 
 now been speaking is no exception to the rule ; longing 
 for more knowledge of God, and conformity to Him in 
 His mind and ways_, will be sure to make us cry to Him 
 to reveal Himself to us_, for how can we know Him 
 unless He manifest Himself to us? "No man knoweth 
 the Father but the Son_, and he to whom the Son will 
 reveal Him." If, under such feelings as these, we cry, 
 " Teach me Thy way, O Lord," we shall be sure to have 
 an answer. God will, in all probability, reveal Himself 
 more and more to us in His holy character; He will 
 honour us by letting us more and more into the secrets 
 of His mind ; and when He reveals to us His mind, we 
 shall the more easily trace His way. When we say, 
 " Teach me Thy way," not under the pressure of any 
 present doubt or difficulty, we may be sure that God will 
 recognise the desire to know Himself. 
 
 But who is there that does not know, only, alas ! too 
 well, the need of being taught what is God^s way when 
 placed in difficult circumstances, and when difficult 
 questions arise ? It is very true, that if our py^inciples of 
 action are taught us of God, they will carry us through 
 innumerable difficulties, solving hard questions, pointing 
 out the one right way where many roads appear to meet, 
 but there are occasions when such principles of action 
 do not carry us through our need. The fault may be in 
 ourselves, but at such a time we need teaching as to which 
 is the way of God. We are now so circumstanced that 
 we must act one way or another ; we are pressed upon 
 from without, so that w^e must decide, and that perhaps 
 at once; we may fail to trace any external indications of 
 the Divine will ; what remains for us but the Psalmist's 
 
ACTION. S05 
 
 praj^er/^' Teach me Thy way?^^ We may confidently 
 assert that wherever this prayer is made in an earnest 
 and honest mindj it will be respected and answered by 
 God ; none can seek His glory in carrying out His mind 
 and will without being helped to act for it by Him. 
 We may be prepared for action ; to do whatever is to be 
 done, or to do the very reverse may be easy ; the ques- 
 tion is, ^^ what, or which is to be done ? '^ God will 
 shew, if we say in truth ^' Teach me Thy way." 
 
 God has many ways of giving guidance in action, 
 when the direction is thus left to Him. Sometimes He 
 will close up all avenues except the right one ; at times 
 He will so strongly impress the mind, that there can be 
 no doubt but that He is speaking to it ; or He will, 
 perhaps, give a wonderful unanimity of judgment to 
 those who are consulted about the matter, so that 
 looking at the question even from different points of 
 view they still come to the same conclusion ; it may be 
 that He will not use any of these means, but will so 
 order incidental circumstances, that they may gently and 
 almost imperceptibly put us into such a position, that we 
 can act in but one way ; he who says ^' what or which 
 is the way of God ? " shall never be left unguided. 
 
 If we turn to Psalm xxxii, 8, we have a beautiful 
 promise of guidance, which is well worth our considera- 
 tion, from the way in which that guidance is to be given ; 
 " I will guide thee with mine eye." What is the promise 
 here ? That of guidance. How is this guidance to be 
 given? By the eye. 
 
 By some no doubt it will be said, " Guidance ! well, 
 after all that is not much; we have sufficient sense to 
 guide ourselves; we have the Scripture, that is guide 
 
 D D 2 
 
306 ACTION. 
 
 enough ; we do not want a religion that deals in 
 specialities; we understand no such peculiarities as 
 'guidance with the eye/" This is no uncommon 
 language from the worlds and very often when men 
 shrink from saying this, they by no means slirink 
 from acting it out. But God^s people recognise in 
 the promise of guidance a most valuable blessing. They 
 know their position here_, that they are strangers and 
 pilgrims; they know how many roads cross, or for 
 a time run parallel with, the way of life; they are 
 not ignorant of the existence of myriads of evil spirits, 
 whose sole aim is to seduce them from the narrow path, 
 who spend every energy in trying to ruin their souls ; 
 all this they know; and they know moreover that if 
 left to themselves they must be seduced and finally 
 fall away. The people of God know their need of 
 continual guidance, and that, in every day life, as 
 well as in their purely spiritual things, in little matters 
 as well as great. But this is not always known at once. 
 Some of the Lord^s dear people have thought that they 
 could guide themselves ; they were well-intentioned ; they 
 really wished to do what was right ; they were possessed 
 of excellent natural abilities, but with all these advantages 
 they have gone deplorably wrong. God let them go 
 their own way for a while, just to teach them that their 
 way was not His, and that it was only so far as they 
 were under guidance that they were safe. 
 
 There are some who it seems must be taught in this 
 manner, or else they will not learn at all, no doubt such 
 are saved, but no doubt also such are sorely bruised. 
 
 In what position are you, dear reader, standing now ; 
 have you learned your need of guidance ; does this appeal 
 
ACTION. 307 
 
 to your experience ; are these matters well known to you; 
 or do you think they are things with which ordinary 
 people have nothing at all to do? The Lord^s people 
 know well that this guidance is a matter of positive 
 necessity. It is not more necessary that a little child of 
 two or three years of age should be guided in the 
 crowded street^ than that they should. It does not 
 matter how old or how wise we are, or how good our 
 natural abilities, or how often we have guided others, 
 and ad\dsed them well in their temporal affairs ; we need 
 guidance in eveiy thing, in every place, and every day. 
 
 Let us enquire what is our present standing ? Have 
 we entered God^s family, and learned to look into the 
 Father's face; have we been espoused to Christ, and 
 learned to read His looks ; do we feel that we cannot do 
 w^hat is right, imless we be specifically taught of God ? 
 
 The phrase " doing what is right," must not now be 
 taken in the low sense which is generally given to it by 
 many in the world. They mean by it, coming to 
 church, and giving subscriptions (generally the stereo- 
 typed '^ guinea'') to charities, and having family prayers, 
 and paying their debts, and keeping good company, and 
 being in the ordinary acceptation of the words '' good 
 living people." But God's guidance leads a man far 
 beyond all these. All these can be done without any 
 guidance from heaven at all. What is now meant by 
 " doing right," is acting consistently as a member of the 
 family of God. When we are placed in delicate and 
 difficult circumstances, when all ordinary landmarks are 
 removed, when our usual counsellors are silent, when 
 even outward providential circumstances are withheld, 
 are there such communications passing between God's 
 
308 ACTION. 
 
 mind and ours^ that we can feel tliat we are under 
 His guidance? Can we hear God speaking to us 
 when there is not a sound? can we see Him when 
 there is not a sign? can we read where nothing is 
 written ? have we the intelligence of love ? 
 
 Say, in what does the perfection of home relationship 
 consist ? is it in the fact that meals are spread at proper 
 hours, that cleanliness is the characteristic of the house, 
 that there is no open jarring or quari'clling, no gross 
 violation of well known rules, and such like things ? All 
 these have their value in the happiness of home ; but the 
 perfection of happiness requires something more. The 
 gross, or to use a gentler term, the unrefined mind 
 will be content with such things as are catalogued above; 
 but there are other minds too highly polished, too finely 
 strung for this ; their estimate of what the happiness of 
 home should be, is pitched too high to be reached by 
 what might be called the common decencies and civilities 
 of life. 
 
 No ! the perfection of home relationship consists in 
 the intuitive understanding of each other's heart, in the 
 mutual possession of that secret, which makes one look 
 stand for many words, yea, for feelings, which the great 
 Creator never intended to be expressed in words at all ; 
 such an instrumentality as this, stands in the place of a 
 thousand rules ; and gives guidance, and direction, in 
 countless emergencies, and difficulties, and apparently 
 little things. This is what makes brethren dwell together 
 in unity ; what anoints the wheels of life, so that they 
 never creak and jar; no, not when they have to bear the 
 heaviest load, or have to go over the roughest road ; this 
 is like the ointment which flowed do^n upon the skirts of 
 
ACTION. 30^ 
 
 the High Priest's robe; who can tell what springs up 
 beneath it, for it is as the dew of Hermon, and as the 
 dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion ? And 
 now, come back from all earthly homes, to the matter 
 which they have been illustrating, and remember that 
 as in them, so also in the family of God, much is 
 required, for which there is no rule, no guide, but the 
 intuition of love ; no remembrancer but (not the decla- 
 ration, but) the expression of God's mind ; and is it not 
 an inestimable blessing to all who wish to be one with God, 
 that they have given to them the promise which we have 
 been considering now ? Oh, that we so continually fixed 
 our minds upon our Father's face, that we so daily gazed 
 upon His looks, and that we were filled, yea, so fully, 
 with His love, that we needed neither bit nor bridle, 
 neither goad nor rod, nothing but a look, nothing but 
 the fulfilment of the promise, '^ I will guide thee with 
 mine eye." 
 
 May God give to all who read these lines, that delicate 
 organization of heart, by which they shall have intuitive 
 understanding of His look, and mind, and will. Oh 
 may He separate us more and more from the grossness 
 of mind, which requires the bridle or the goad ; oh may 
 He refine us by the mysterious processes of His un- 
 earthly love; then, in the midst of all perplexity, we 
 shall not be confused; in the midst of all failm'e we 
 shall not be cast down ; but calmly and peacefully shall 
 we pass onward to our rest, as safe in the darkness as in 
 the light, by the precipice as in the plain, in the crowd 
 as when alone ; each child of God a traveller through a 
 strange land to his own bright home, wayfaring, it is 
 true, yet wayfaring in the security of a promise from 
 
310 ACTION. 
 
 above, hearing at every hard pass of his onward path, 
 the promise we have here, a promise from the eternal 
 God Himself, " I will guide thee with mine eye/^ 
 
 Thus, then, the people of the Lord desire teaching, 
 and that from Him, preparatory to action. They want 
 to know God^s will, in order that they may do it, 
 "Teach me Thy way, O Lord, I will walk in Thy 
 truth." 
 
 Honesty of mind is a characteristic of every man really 
 horn again of the Holy Ghost. The Spirit-taught man 
 is led to say, without any reserve or limitation, " I will 
 walk." There are many who are prepared to go so far, 
 but no further. They will carry out God's teaching, 
 provided it does not make too great demands upon them. 
 Perhaps such persons are not themselves conscious of the 
 state of mind in which they are. They think that they 
 are prepared for everything ; and so they are " for every- 
 thing they know;" but what if God set before them 
 something much harder than anything that had ever 
 entered even into their imagination ? We have such a 
 case as this brought before us in Matthew xix, 16. A 
 young man comes to Jesus and says, '^'^Good Master, 
 what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life ?" 
 Jesus puts forth the moral law, as a simple answer to his 
 question, for no doubt if he kept that, without a single 
 flaw, he could be saved by it ; " if he did," but who ever 
 did ? who ever could, save Jesus ? and then proceeding 
 yet further. He says to Him, " if thou wilt be perfect, go 
 and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou 
 shalt have treasure in heaven, and come and follow Me. 
 But when the young man heard that saying, he went 
 away sorrowful ; for he had great possessions." 
 
ACTION. 311 
 
 Here was indeed a hard trial, an opening up of a path 
 far more difficult than had ever entered into this young 
 man^s mind ; and the hard trial discovers limitations, 
 and reservations, vrhich otherwise might never have been 
 perceived. Would a like trial discover like imperfections 
 in ourselves ? 
 
 If indeed we know ourselves, we shall almost tremble 
 at this thought; we shall feel the aw^ul solemnity of 
 saying such words as these, "Teach me Thy way, O 
 Lord, I will walk in Thy truth ;^^ and yet we shall not 
 dare to hold back from making them our own. 
 
 How can we be true-hearted, and yet hold back ! 
 What then shall we do ? Let us prepare to pray the 
 Psalmist^s words, from the bottom of our hearts ; let us 
 also prepare to make his determination, in deep reality 
 of soul. True ! there is something awful in this ; but if 
 we know our weakness, and simply rely upon Divine 
 strength, we shall be carried through ; God Himself will 
 undergird us for the storm-tossed waters, through which 
 we may be called upon to sail ; by Him shall we be shod 
 for the rough road on which we may be called upon to 
 tread ; and we shall be enabled to carry out, as well as 
 make the determination of the Psalmist, which is before 
 us now. Who can tell whither such a walk will lead 
 him upon earth ; whither, when he has done with earth 
 for ever ? 
 
313 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 THE "I WILL" OF HEAETINESS IIS" ACTION. 
 
 Psalm cxix, 32. " I loill run tJie way of Thy commandments, 
 when Thou shalt enlarge my lieart" 
 
 THE: great Pliysiciau knows at once where to look for 
 the cause, when He sees anything amiss in the 
 outward life of His people. He well knows that aU 
 spiritual disease is heart disease, and it is heart remedies 
 that He must apply. At one time, our Physician sees 
 symptoms which are violent in their nature ; at another, 
 He sees symptoms of languor and debility; but He 
 knows that both come from the heart ; and so, it is upon 
 the heart that He operates, when He is about to perform 
 a cui*e. 
 
 The strong action of the heart in all holy things comes 
 from the blessed operation of the Spirit upon it ; then 
 only can w^e run the way of God^s commandments, when 
 He has enlarged our heart. 
 
 Heartiness in Action is the subject to which the 
 reader's attention is here directed, and it is one of con- 
 siderable importance. 
 
 There are many believers, who for want of enlargement 
 
HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 313 
 
 of heart are occupying a poor position in the church of 
 God. They are trusting to Jesus for life eternal^ and 
 He will doubtless not disappoint them ; He will be true 
 to His word, that "he that believeth shall be saved;" 
 but they are stilly, alas ! to a deplorable degree^ shut up 
 in self; they have contracted hearts ; still do they take 
 narrow views of God^s claims, and their own privileges, 
 and the position in which they are set in the world ; and 
 however much they might be said to stand, or sit, or 
 walk in the way of God's commandments, they cannot 
 be said to " run'' in it. Running is a strong and healthy 
 action of the body ; it requires energy, it is an exercise 
 that needs a sound heart j none can run in the way of 
 God's commandments, except in strength and vigour 
 imparted by Him. The running Christians are com- 
 paratively few; walking and sitting Christians are 
 comparatively common ; but the running Christian is so 
 uncommon, as often to be thought almost mad. 
 
 Let us, for the sake of order, classify our observations 
 on this subject^ under the following heads : — 
 I. What Heartiness is. 
 II. Tf^hat Heartiness does. 
 
 III. Whence Heartiness comes. 
 
 The Heartiness spoken of here under the term " en- 
 largement of the heart," is cheerfulness in doing God's 
 will — love for that wiU — a drawing out of the affections 
 towards it — an interest in it ; aU this it is, and a great 
 deal more, which it is not easy to describe or define. 
 
 A good deal may be done by a man in the way of 
 keeping God's commandments, especially His prohibitive 
 ones, without his possessing anything worthy of being 
 called enlargement of heart. A man need not have an 
 
 E E 
 
314 HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 
 
 enlarged hearty to enable him to keep his hands from 
 picking and stealings and his tongue from evil speaking, 
 lying, and slandering ; nor to enable him to perform any 
 specified acts of duty which come before him with all 
 the force and authority of law; his affections have 
 nothing to say to this obedience ; he obeys because he 
 thinks he ought to obey ; he might be fitly described_, as 
 keeping within the bound of a commandment, (so far as 
 man can do) but not as running in the way of it. 
 
 We are very ready to admit that true religion has to 
 do with man^s judgment, and his conscience ; would that 
 it were readily and practically admitted, that it has to 
 do with the affections also. Alas ! how much coldness 
 may there be in a man, whose judgment is sound upon 
 the question of the excellence of God^s commandments. 
 Such an one may approve them, may see that they are 
 pre-eminently suited for the governance of man, may 
 believe that he will best consult his happiness by 
 observing them, and that he can never violate them 
 without entailing upon himself both misery and loss ; he 
 may be a philosopher in holy things, and yet have no 
 heartiness for God's commandments, have no insight 
 into their principles, which have their foundation in the 
 very nature of God. Our judgment may be well 
 informed, and we may act upon it in all we do, and aU 
 we abstain from, as regards the commandments of God ; 
 but let us be assured, that oui' judgment never can make 
 us hearty, in running the way of His commandments. 
 
 Nor can our conscience. Conscience can make us do 
 things because we ought to do them, and leave them 
 undone because we ought not to do them, but it cannot 
 make us hearty in our obedience. It is highly possible 
 
HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 315 
 
 to perform a duty, and in a certain sense to do it well, 
 and yet not to have our heart in it at all. 
 
 Where there is enlargement of the heart by God, 
 there is an outgoing beyond all the limits which fallen 
 selfishness assigns. The heart contracted at the fall ; it 
 shrank when sin entered into it; it became unequal to 
 containing great and generous thoughts ; it became a 
 bondaged heart. True ! the responsibilities of duty could 
 not be escaped, nor could the directions of conscience, 
 but the affections are voluntary, and the fallen heart 
 drew in its affections from God ; it felt that it had the 
 power of withholding them from Him and His com- 
 mandments, and it rejoiced to shew its enmity, in with- 
 holding its sympathy, where it could not withhold its 
 obedience. There is sin, there is the development of 
 fallen nature at the root of all want of Heartiness in 
 action for God. What an aspect, then, will many of the 
 performances of duty wear in the day when all things 
 are revealed in their real light; how will it be found, 
 that man had withheld from them all he had to give, 
 i. e., his heart. There is no thank to him for not with- 
 holding the assent of his conscience, and the opinion of 
 his judgment; what he had to give is wanting; it was 
 the heart that Christ wanted, what good are those works 
 in which it is not found ? 
 
 Now, as we have already said, where the heart is 
 operated on by the Spirit, and all its natural evil over- 
 ruled, it has outgoings which are entirely beyond the 
 limits that fallen selfishness assigns. Love is inwrought 
 with it, the union of sentiment, the identity of interest 
 which love inspires, pervade it, in all belonging to God, 
 for it has received these from God ; the heart becomes 
 
316 HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 
 
 unbondaged from mere rules_, or perhaps to speak more 
 correctly, it rises above them, and it feels — not merely it 
 knows, but it feels — so much of the beauty of God's 
 commandments, that it delights to run in them ; it loves to 
 be hearty in them ; its interests, its affections are in them. 
 It is very possible that both writer and reader feel 
 ashamed, and ready to judge themselves when they look 
 at much past, or perhaps present service in this light. 
 How often have we done just as much as we felt ourselves 
 obliged to do, and no more ; how often have we done a 
 good deal, and yet had no heart for doing, or in doing 
 it? Much of our work has been a labour to us, and 
 some of God's commandments have been grievous to us, 
 for want of this heartiness which would have made all 
 joyous and pleasant; let us seek, dear reader to have 
 our hearts opened out to God — to have them enlarged to 
 take in great thoughts about Him, and His work — to 
 have them ennobled to make great plans and efforts for 
 Him — to have them capable of energy, even the energy of 
 love, in all they do for Him. It makes all the difference 
 whether we run, or walk, in the way of God's command- 
 ments. The word ^^walk," is used to denote the habitual 
 obedience of divine life ; but the word to " run," signifies 
 its energy : " I will run the way of Thy commandments, 
 when Thou shalt enlarge my heart." 
 
 Let us now see what Heartiness does. 
 
 Heartiness in action has a good effect on others. 
 Even in ordinary society we see how much effect one 
 gloomy, unwilling, or desponding nature can have on 
 others. Even without any active opposition, such an 
 one is able to damp the energies, or enjoyments, of those 
 
HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 317 
 
 around; and on the other hand^ we see how, one who is 
 hearty, and joyous, and goes about whatever is to be 
 done with a will, is able to infuse spirit into those, who 
 otherwise would have dragged heavily through their work. 
 The presence of a hearty Christian seems to infuse 
 oxygen into the very atmosphere around ; there is some- 
 thing effervescing, and sparkling in such an one, which 
 drives away surrounding heaviness and gloom ; and 
 often those, with whom such an one comes into contact, 
 find out for the first time, from what another is doing, 
 what they themselves can do. 
 
 Try, dear reader, to be a living"energy, and not a dead 
 weight in the spiritual world ; to be a sunbeam, and not a 
 murky cloud; to be an electric spark kindling fire in 
 others' hearts, and not a wet blanket putting out and 
 smothering the smoking flax. There are such things as 
 sympathy and influence in man's contact with his fellow 
 man ; what influence have we exercised ; what sympathy 
 have we drawn others into with ourselves ; what have we 
 been to them in the congregation of which we are mutual 
 members — in the family — in any enterprize in which they 
 and we were associated — in fact, in all the relationships 
 and events of life, in which we came in contact with 
 each other? We have, perhaps, often been hinderers 
 and impeders, and our want of heartiness has damped 
 the ardour of others. On the other hand, if we have 
 been really alive in the cause of the Lord, have we not 
 helped on others ; have not they commenced to act v/hen 
 they saw us in action ; have not they found out, that 
 they also could do good, and that it was pleasant to do 
 good, when they were led on to try, by the kindling effect 
 of our life in action for God ? 
 
 E E 2 
 
318 HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 
 
 This Heartiness in Action embraces a large circle. 
 The circle in which a man hearty for God moves, and 
 acts_, is one ever widening and increasing ; a man that 
 runs in the way of God^s commandments does not keep 
 running round and round, always within the same cir- 
 cumference, but in one that increases continually. It 
 may be that when the spiritual power was small, the 
 sphere of action was small also, but as the spiritual power 
 increases, so does the sphere also. This must be so; for 
 Heartiness in the divine life is incompressible, and it 
 must find a vent, it must find a sphere in which to act. 
 This is true even under the most untoward circumstances. 
 Take the case of a Christian, strong and vigorous in 
 spiritual life, but reduced so low in the body that he 
 cannot leave his bed ; his means are small, his contact 
 with his fellow creatures is limited; he surely has no 
 circle in which his heart can throb with living energies, 
 each pulsation being followed by some positive result; — 
 so we should think —but let us remember that the body 
 does not chain the mind, and that that sick man's 
 interests and prayers may pervade a circle v/hich 
 embraces every church of God, and every believer upon 
 earth ! "What wider sphere of action can any man 
 desire than this ? And this is open to the bed-ridden and 
 the maimed ; by prayer the lever can be moved which 
 moves the world, and the sick man can pray, and if he 
 be hearty in the action, he can move, and act, in a circle 
 too large for any bodily energy to pervade. It is true, 
 wc have taken an extreme case : but what, if one thus 
 circumstanced be proved to have exercised more real 
 spiritual power than many of us whose every faculty is 
 perfect, whose bodily energies are unimpaked ? 
 
HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 319 
 
 Let the reader search himself as to how large a circle 
 he is pervading — as to whether he be pervading any circle 
 at all. The merchant who is hearty in his desires for 
 wealthy and in his action in the mercantile world, 
 pervades a large circle ; he has to do with persons and 
 things almost at the ends of the earth; his energies 
 have driven him out into this great circumference of 
 action; and whither, dear reader, have your energies, 
 your heartiness, driven you forth ? Have you had living 
 impulses, which forbade you to be centred, to tarry in 
 self? 
 
 Remember that where the heart is strong in its action, 
 it drives the blood to the extremities. If the blood be 
 not well driven into the limbs, they are weak in action, 
 and unless it be driven to the extremities, the very parts 
 which have to act grow cold. Our most distant point 
 in action, our most remote means of operating therein, 
 should be under the influence of the strong vitality of 
 the heart. Ours is a centralized system, and the centre 
 is the heart ; and one reason why interest so often flags 
 in the outer verge of our circle, and why our action 
 there is weak, is, because we have not strength to drive 
 out our energies and sympathies beyond those inner 
 circles which are closest to our heart. For example, 
 here is a man who can act within the circle of his own 
 family, but he is not hearty enough to fill a circle which 
 would embrace in its action for God, neighbours and 
 friends; here is another who can not only act in his 
 own family, but also amongst neighbours and friends, but 
 he cannot go forth to those who are without, and who 
 are unconnected with him by any visible responsibility 
 or ties. Nothing but an enlargement of the heart by 
 
320 HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 
 
 the Holy Spirit will send him forth ; and make him to 
 understand the meaning of the apostle's words^ '^ Look 
 not every man on his own things, but every man also on 
 the things of others •/' and make him copy the example 
 of the One of whom it is written, " But Grod commendeth 
 His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners 
 Christ died for us/' 
 
 Let us also notice that this Heartiness honours our pro- 
 fession. We cannot but perceive how much the religion of 
 Christ suffers in the world from the want of Heartiness in 
 action shewn by its professors. One half the zeal shewn 
 by the heathen in their false religion, would soon startle 
 the world, if it were shewn in the disciples of Christ ; but 
 it is not shewn; and it is impossible to read of the 
 liberality of the heathen to their false gods, and their 
 self-sacrifices, and pains, without asking '^ Where amongst 
 any of the churches shall we find in the mass of their 
 members, a heartiness of action similar to this P""^ One 
 
 * The Hindoos when gathering in their harvest, before it is re- 
 moved from the threshing floor, take out the portion for their god. 
 However poor, or however small their crops may be, their god's 
 portion is given fii'st. 
 
 The Rev. J. J. Weitbrecht says, in his " Protestant Missions in 
 Bengal, illustrated," " My readers will be surprised to hear how 
 much wealthy natives* spend upon their idols. I once visited the 
 Rajah of Burdwan, and found him sitting in his treasury. Fifty 
 bags of money, containing 1000 rupees (£100) in each, were placed 
 before him. * AVhat,' said I, ' are you doing with all this money ?* 
 He replied, * it is for my gods.' ' How do you mean that ?' I re- 
 joined. * One part is sent to Benares, where I have two fine 
 temples on the river side, and many priests who pray for me ; 
 another part goes to Juggernaut ; and a third to Gay a.' And thus 
 one native is spending £25,000 annually from his princely income 
 upon idle Brahmins." 
 
HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 321 
 
 would think, that " rest/^ not ^' action/^ was the rule and 
 privilege of a Christianas life ; but it is neither the one nor 
 the other; his privilege is rest for his soul; his rule must 
 be action for the energies — rest in justification in Christ^ s 
 blood — action in sanctification of the Holy Ghost. The 
 religion of Christ sufiers more harm from the inaction of 
 its professors, than from the action of its enemies ; and be 
 it observed, it suffers not only from their inaction, from 
 their not doing anything, but also very often from the way 
 in which they do that to which they put their hand. The 
 half-heartedness of God^s people in action goes far towards 
 persuading the people of the world that their religion is 
 no better than a form ; they are keen observers, not only 
 of what we do, but of how we do it, and they will often 
 judge of Christ^ s religion, not by its abstract principles^ 
 but by the way in which we carry them out. 
 
 Let us take the one instance of Giving; " Giving'^ is 
 one form of action for God ; and what is the aspect which 
 in this particular many of the Lord^s people present to the 
 world ? Where is their heartiness in it ? Can they say 
 that their profession, or their position in the church of 
 God is honoured by the way in which they do it ? In 
 how many instances is this only the giving of form, and 
 not the giving of decided action. '^Honour the Lord 
 with thy substance, and with the first-fruits of all thine 
 increase,^ ^ is surely as much binding upon the Christian 
 as the Jew ; let us be assured, that a great sympathetic 
 nerve runs between the heart and the pocket ; a large 
 heart and a large hand befit each other. Why should 
 £1 Is. be the stereotyped form of expressing the state of 
 a Christian's heart? 
 
 There are some, however, who while reading this, may 
 
322 HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 
 
 sigh, and say, " Such a sum would be beyond my reach 
 to give/^ Let such remember that there are many who 
 are steeped in poverty, who yet are rich indeed in action, 
 according to their opportunity, and who are accepted 
 ^' according to what they have, and not according to what 
 they have not." How much do we learn from the case 
 of the poor widow, and her two mites ! we may be per- 
 mitted to digress for a moment to consider it. 
 
 Look at the position of this widow in life, and in the 
 temple ; neither in life, nor in the temple, was she any- 
 body in the world's estimation. She was so very poor, 
 that when she threw in the two mites, our Lord describes 
 her as having cast in ^^ all that she had, even all her 
 living." No doubt she fared hard in worldly sustenance j 
 her lodging was the meanest, her food the scantiest, her 
 raiment the coarsest, and she had all the accompaniments 
 of poverty, bitterness, and reproach, and neglect, and 
 want. And what she was in the outer world, that also, 
 as far as man was concerned, was she in the temple 
 of the Lord. We can imagine, how the servants of the 
 man clothed with purple and fine linen thrust her out 
 of the way ; how the Pharisee, with his broad fringed 
 garment, swept by her in all the pomp and circumstance 
 of religious state ; how the wives and daughters of the 
 rich gathered in their ample robes, lest they should be 
 soiled by contact with such beggarly attire; no one 
 thought it worth his while to notice her, unless it were 
 to despise; and yet she, and she alone, receives the 
 commendation of the Lord. 
 
 Now what is this widow, as she appears in this scene, 
 but a very type or picture of the general condition of 
 the true church of God ? That church is for the most 
 
HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 323 
 
 part liidden_, as regards the attainment in the world's eye 
 of any position, either in temporal or spiritual things. 
 There are but few of the Lord's true people who make 
 much figure in the world; and the general opinion 
 entertained of them is very mean and low. There is 
 nothing more common than to find men dwelling upon 
 the miserable poverty of the saints, and thinking them 
 absolutely poor. But poor as they doubtless are, they 
 are the possessors of title deeds of exceeding wealth. 
 This poor widow had no doubt engraven upon her heart 
 the choice promises of God, which made over heavenly 
 estates to such as made over their hearts to Him. And 
 I would that the children of the kingdom dwelt more 
 upon the actual possessions which are to be theirs ! 
 They are too dim and shadowy, too misty and undefined 
 in their hopes; they are to have what is substantial, 
 what is actual, and real, and in their depths of earthly 
 poverty they ought to think of this. A realization of 
 the substantial nature of this future property will make 
 them feel the value of the position which now they 
 hold, as children of God — the position, to which this pro- 
 perty is attached ; though all that appear on earth be the 
 two mites, in heaven there is a possession for each saint, 
 which the offer of even the universe itself could not buy. 
 In spiritual things also the condition of the saint is 
 hidden from the eyes of men. It appears that none save 
 Christ valued this poor widow's offering and piety at 
 their real worth, because Jesus alone could search her 
 heart and try her reins. To outward eye, the Scribes 
 and Pharisees were far more holy than she ; but to that 
 eye which seeth not as man seeth, she was immeasurably 
 above them all. We need not be surprised at this, and 
 
324 HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 
 
 tlie children of God will do well to remember^ that the 
 world will not always let them hold that position^ even 
 though it be in spiritual things, which they have a right 
 to claim. He, who in humble earnestness, belongs to 
 God, must make up his mind to be very often despised, 
 even by apparently religious people, and be content to 
 hold his rank in the estimation of Christ alone. No 
 doubt to many who are truly the children of God, this 
 seems very hard; if they have no reputation in the 
 world, the least they may have is some position in the 
 church ; but like the widow in the text, they are known 
 to but One, and that One is God, who approves their 
 deeds, and treasures up their names against His own 
 great day. 
 
 Let us contemplate this widow as under the observation 
 of God. We are told that in the crowd of worshippers, 
 there were rich men who offered much, but not one word 
 of commendation do we find vouchsafed to them. And 
 this was not because their good deeds were done without 
 having been seen by God ; far from it ; He noted the 
 amount of every gift, and in His own mind compared it 
 with the cu'cumstances under which He knew each one 
 to be placed; and forming His estimate upon these 
 grounds, the widow alone was praised. The gold and 
 silver of the rich had no attractions for God; His 
 admiration was riveted on the widow^s mites alone, for 
 they only came from a heart, which poured itself out 
 unreservedly to God. And let this teach us, how that 
 when we think we are unobserved, we are nevertheless 
 doing all under the immediate eye of God. Oh! we 
 forget too much, that we are the servants of One, who is 
 ever looking at us, and ever taking note of what we 
 
HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 325 
 
 think, and speak, and do. Content to be amongst the 
 crowd, we think ourselves then best off, when no special 
 notice is taken of us at all ; but it ought not to be thus ; 
 it should be the greatest sorrow and disappointment, if 
 God did not vouchsafe to fix a special look on us ; we 
 should be able to say " Look, Lord, and see if this be 
 done according to Thy will." In all our givings, how- 
 ever the amount be hidden from the eyes of man, we 
 should so perform these acts that we do not desire them 
 to be hidden from the eyes of God ; we should be able to 
 open our hand before the One, to whom we are about to 
 offer, and say, '' Look, Lord, this is for Thee — this is not 
 the mere cold offering of duty, but it is that of love ; 
 Thou knowest my circumstances, and knowing them, 
 with this I trust that Thou wilt be pleased." The reason 
 why we do so little, and that so badly, is, that we are 
 ever sinking our individuality in the crowd; ever for- 
 getting, that we stand each one as it were alone before 
 his God. So long as we go on thus, we shall never do 
 well ; and even though, if we be rich, we cast in much, 
 we shall never attain to the testimony which was the 
 portion of the widow. 
 
 And if it be the shame and loss of many, that Christ 
 looks upon them as they perhaps cast in much, and 
 bestows no word of commendation upon their gift, is it 
 not the blessing and the gain of others, that His eye is 
 upon them, though they can give but very little; and 
 that little wins from him words of approval and of 
 praise ? He who is like this poor widow will delight in 
 the thought, that his Lord knows all; he will say, 
 "Thou knowest all things. Thou knowest that I love 
 Thee f " Thou knowest that this is the offering of love ;" 
 
326 HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 
 
 and the heart shall have its own sensations of joy, as it 
 feels that God has seen^ and that God has been well pleased. 
 Thus Jesus notes the earnestness of all earnest-minded 
 men, and shall we believe, that with that notice, the 
 whole matter ends ? Not so ! He passes an opinion 
 upon the conduct of such as have given evidence that 
 their hearts are His, and that opinion is recorded in the 
 books of life and death ; " She hath done what she 
 could," found an entrance not only into the gospels of 
 the Evangelists, but also into the judgment books of 
 heaven. Christ^ s observations are all chronicled against 
 the day of trial, when He, as the One to whom all judg- 
 ment is committed, shall reward every man " according 
 to his deeds." And let this encourage such of you, as 
 are earnestly endeavouring to do all you can for Him. 
 No effort is lost : if there be two mites in your hand God 
 knows it ; perhaps He says, " Why are there two mites 
 there ? dull formality required but one ; surely inasmuch 
 as there are two, this second comes from love." And in 
 the great day, when the true hearted people of the Lord 
 shall be set in glory on His right hand, how blessed will 
 it be, to find ourselves there, as men long since known 
 and observed by Him ; to feel with humble pleasure that 
 we are no strangers to Him, for that he often watched 
 our deeds of love ; to think that there are hard solid 
 facts which are valuable as proofs ; and after all do not 
 facts speak an hundred fold more than words? Deeds 
 of love are good for nothing in the way of procuring 
 salvation, but they are very precious as tokens that love 
 was true. Act then, on all occasions as though you 
 wished Jesus to look on. Remember whenever you 
 approach the treasury, that Jesus is in the temple, and 
 
HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 327 
 
 opposite you, as you make your offering to the Lord; so | 
 give, so do, as that you shall be able to say, " I am / 
 thankful that Jesus saw ! ^' 
 
 We are furnished in Holy Scripture with many 
 examples of " Heartiness in Action/^ Jesus is the 
 great example in whom we find all excellence, and He 
 was hearty indeed, in running the way of God^s com- 
 mandments ; His ear was opened. His heart was enlarged 
 for service. What were His words ? '^ I delight to do 
 Thy will O my God, yea Thy law is within my heart /^ ^ 
 '' Not my will but thine be done," f See how hearty 
 Jesus was in His journeyings, in His preachings, in all 
 words and errands of mercy; how earnest were His ex- 
 hortations, how ready were His deeds. He toiled from 
 morning to night ; and oftentimes He prayed from 
 night to morning ; and when His short life was ended, 
 so many were His wondrous deeds, that the Apostle 
 John winds up his gospel with saying, " And there are 
 also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if 
 they should be written every one, I suppose that even 
 the world itself could not contain the books that should 
 be written." J 
 
 Such was Jesus on earth ; and it is a blessed thought 
 for His people that such also is He now in the presence 
 of God. He carried all His excellencies with Him, 
 when He ascended up on high ; and amongst them His 
 ^^ Heartiness in Action," Yes ! it is with an earnest 
 heart that He makes intercession for His people, that He 
 loves them, that He interferes and acts for them ; in a 
 word, that He does everything for them ; He is full of 
 life on behalf of His people ; oftentimes when we are 
 * Psalm xl, 8, f Luke xxii, 42, | John xxi, 25. 
 
328 HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 
 
 only languid for ourselves^ He is hearty for ns^ and we 
 receive according to His earnestness^ and not according to 
 our own. This is a blessed truth, and as we realize it, 
 may it be given to us more unreservedly and devotedly to 
 give our heart to Him, whose service is so hearty for us ! 
 Or, let us take Paul, the great Apostle of the Gentiles : 
 he was hearty for his Lord ; he was ^^ in labours more 
 abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more fre- 
 quent, in deaths oft /^ of the Jews five times received 
 he forty stripes save one ; thrice was he beaten with rods, 
 once was he stoned; thrice he suffered shipwreck; a 
 night and a day he was in the deep ; he was in journey- 
 ings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in 
 perils by his own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, 
 in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils 
 in the sea, in perils among false brethren ; in weariness 
 and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, 
 in fastings often, in cold and nakedness ; in addition to 
 which there came upon him daily the care of all the 
 churches."^ He counted not his life dear unto himself 
 so that he might finish his course with joy, and the min- 
 istry which he had received of the Lord Jesus, f He 
 gloried in tribulations. J "What mean ye,^^ said he to 
 the disciples at Csesarea, " to weep and to break mine 
 heart ? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to 
 die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. ^^ § 
 Paul was a living example of the precepts which he gave, 
 " fervent in Spirit, serving the Lord.^^ || " And what- 
 soever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto 
 men."^ And let us remember that Paul was not 
 
 * 2 Cor. xi, 28. f Acts xx, 24. J Romans v, 3. 
 § Acts xxi, 13. il Romans xii, 11. % Col. iii, 23. 
 
HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 329 
 
 called to " Heartiness in Action ^^ one whit more than 
 we are ! The same Christ who appeared to him^ and 
 gave him life in the midst of his career of death, appears 
 to our souls, and gives us life also ; the same grace is 
 vouchsafed to both, if so be that we have received the 
 Lord at all. Instead then of thinking, that because Paul 
 was an Apostle, more was required from him, than there 
 is from us ; or that he was possessed of any extraordinary- 
 energies, which are above the ordinary lot of man, let ns 
 see in him a man with an enlarged heart, and in his life, 
 with all its labours, nothing more than what we ourselves 
 are called upon to exhibit in our own spheres — " Enlarge- 
 ment of heart in action/' Our sphere may not be that of 
 an Apostle, but our heart may be like his ; and we may 
 fill our sphere as acceptably as he filled his ; it is not at 
 spheres, but at hearts that God will look ; and however 
 small the circle in which we move, if only we be hearty 
 in it for the Lord, ours also may be the Apostle's words 
 in our departing hour ; '' I have fought a good fight, I 
 have finished my course, I have kept the faith ; hence- 
 forth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, 
 which the Lord the righteous judge, shall give me at that 
 day ; and not to me only, but unto all them also that 
 love His appearing." ^ 
 
 See how large-hearted the Macedonians were, ^^ their 
 deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality ; 
 for to their power (says the Apostle) I bear record, yea and 
 beyond their power, they were willing of themselves.'' t 
 Look at the Israelites, how they oiFered for their taber- 
 nacle ; " they came, every one whose heart stirred him 
 up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and 
 * 2 Tim. iv, 7, 8. f 2 Cor. viii, 2, 3. 
 
 F F 3 
 
330 HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 
 
 they brought the Lord's offering to the work of the 
 tabernacle of the congregation^ and for all His service, 
 and for the holy garments; and they came, both men 
 and women, as many as were willing-hearted, and brought 
 bracelets, and earrings, and rings, and tablets, all jewels 
 of gold, and every man that offered, offered an offering 
 of gold unto the Lord/^ ^ "With them it was not how 
 little but how much they could give. ^'^And they 
 brought yet unto him (Moses) free offerings every 
 morning .^'t -^t last " the wise men that wrought all the 
 work of the sanctuary, came every man from his work 
 which they made, and they spake unto Moses saying, 
 ^The people bring much more than enough for the 
 service of the work, which the Lord commanded to 
 make.' And Moses gave commandment, and they caused 
 it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, 'let 
 neither man nor woman make any more work for the 
 offering of the sanctuary.' So the people were restrained 
 from bringing. For the stuff they had, was sufficient for 
 all the work to make it, and too much." % David was 
 large-hearted, and would have built a house for God; 
 and when he was du-ected not to carry out his intention, 
 because he had shed blood, he shewed that he had 
 enlargement of heart toward God, by the preparation 
 which he made for the accomplishment of his design by 
 his son ; he prepared iron in abundance, and brass in 
 abundance without weight; also in his trouble he 
 prepared for the house of the Lord an hundred thousand 
 talents of gold, and a thousand thousand talents of 
 silver. § The heartiness of the king made him do what 
 
 • Exodus XXXV, 21, 22. f Exodus xxxvi, 3. J Verses 4—8. 
 § 1 Chronicles xxii. 
 
HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 331 
 
 he could, as lie could not do what he would. Let us look 
 on a little farther, and we find this heartiness again in 
 Nehemiah, and those who were joined with him in the 
 work of the Lord. Each man^s work is chronicled in 
 chapter iii. " So built we the wall :^^ (said he in 
 chapter iv.) ^^ And all the wall was joined together unto 
 the half thereof, for the people had a mind to work /" 
 How active, how energetic, they were, we see from 
 chapter iii, 12. " And next unto him repaired Shallum 
 the son of Halohesh, the ruler of the half part of 
 Jerusalem, he and his daughters'' Here was Heartiness 
 in action ; the heart constrained the hand, and rough as 
 the work was for women to engage in, it was willingly 
 undertaken. Of you, dear reader, may it be also said, 
 that you had "a mind to work.^^ As every man is to 
 give as he is disposed in his heart, not grudgingly or of 
 necessity, for God loveth a cheerful giver, so is every 
 man to work as he is disposed in his heart, for God 
 loveth a hearty worker. The work of each of the 
 restorers of Jerusalem is chronicled in Nehemiah ; there 
 is another book in which is chronicled the work of each 
 of us — om^ work — its motives — its intensity — not only 
 the fact that we worked, but also why, and how ! 
 
 The readiness of the daughters of Shallum is recorded, 
 so also is the backwardness of the nobles of the Tekoites ; 
 '' but their nobles put not their necks to the work of 
 their Lord.^^ No position excuses man from work for 
 the Lord in the sphere appointed to him ; a record of 
 shortcoming as well as of diligence is kept; many a 
 feeble woman will hereafter be honoured for her rough 
 work for God, when the nobles are reprobated, who put 
 not their necks to the work of their Lord. 
 
332 HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 
 
 Let us now turn to tlie very important and practical 
 enquiry, WTience does this Heartiness come ? Like every 
 other good and perfect gift, it comes from the Father of 
 lights, "with whom is no variableness nor shadow of 
 turning ;^^ it is wrought in us by the Holy Ghost. The 
 Lord^s people are "made willing in the day of His power/^* 
 " It is God that worketh in them, both to wiU and to do 
 of His good pleasure /^t The Spirit of God in man^s 
 sanctification comes in contact, not only with the heart 
 as warped, but with it as contracted also ; He finds in it 
 not only a bias towards what is evil, but an inaptitude 
 to what is good ; its only dealings with holy things will 
 be in the way of duty ; it knows nothing of the law of 
 love. The Spirit of God creates love, and in so doing 
 opens out the heart, and quickens its pulsations, and puts 
 its actions under a new and impulsive law; the heart 
 wiU do, under the impulsive law of love, what it could not 
 be induced to do by any other power. If you, then, feel 
 the backwardness of your natural heart; if you have 
 tried, and tried in vain, to warm it up to energy, and 
 power, and what we commonly call " heartiness,^^ in the 
 cause of God ; and if you have found yourself, however 
 active in duty, still wanting in heart, I beseech you to 
 apply to the Holy Spirit to supply your need. In vain 
 will you turn to any other source; in vain will you 
 devise methods or expedients of your own ; the living 
 principle will be wanting, and therewith Hfe itself. 
 Heartiness must be inwrought, or we shall never be able 
 to abound in the work of the Lord ; we may commence 
 enterprizes with zeal, fascinated by their novelty ; or we 
 may continue in them, for in various ways they may 
 • Psa. ex, 3. t Phil, ii, 13. 
 
HEARTINESS IN ACTION. 333 
 
 suit our natural taste; but heartiness, embracing all 
 service, and continuing in all service, must be the gift of 
 the Holy Ghost. 
 
 In working within us this spiritual power, the Spirit may 
 have to contend with our natural temperament; to over- 
 come sloth, timidity, indifference, and much of a similar 
 kind ; but if we yield ourselves to Him, He will not 
 allow us to be like the Laodicean church, " neither cold 
 nor hot," and fit only to be " spued out of the mouth." — 
 Rev. iii, 16. He will prevent our hiding our talent in a 
 napkin; He will make us the good ground bringing 
 forth fruit abundantly, an hundred and a thousand fold ; 
 and to us shall be spoken those most blessed words : 
 "Well done, good and faithful servant, enter thou into 
 the joy of thy Lord ! " The utmost heartiness in service 
 is compatible with the closest walk with God ; and we 
 need not fear our summons coming, when engaged in 
 action for Him. A lady once asked Mr. Wesley, 
 '' Supposing that you kneio you were to die at twelve 
 o'clock to-morrow night, how would you spend the in- 
 tervening time?" "How, madam,?" he replied, " why 
 just as I intend to spend it now. I should preach this 
 evening at Gloucester, and again at five to-morrow 
 morning ; after that I should ride to Tewkesbmy, preach 
 in the afternoon, and meet the societies in the evening. 
 I should then repair to friend Martin's house, who 
 expects to entertain me, converse and pray with the 
 family, as usual, retire to my room at ten o'clock, com- 
 mend myself to my heavenly Father, lie down to rest, 
 and wake up in glory." Blessed exchange ! the heartiness 
 of service on earth, for the heartiness of service in glory ! 
 
334 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 THE *'I WILL" OF DETERMIIs^ATION IjS" ACTION. 
 
 Psalm Ixxi, 16. " I icill go in the strength of the Lord God" 
 
 HEARTINESS will be sure to bring out the weakness 
 of the individual ; tlie enlarged heart will not only 
 propose, but will actually make us embark in enterprizes 
 for God, which will severely try the other parts of our 
 spiritual constitution. We may have the heart for such 
 and such a thing, whether it be a sacrifice or an action ; 
 but have we the faith, the energy, the perseverance, and 
 such other Christian graces as are necessary to carry us 
 through? Better for us to be hearty, though we be 
 weak, than to be strong, and indifferent withal. 
 
 When a man's heart is enlarged for action for God, to 
 run the way of His commandments, his heartiness will 
 be tried. There will come temptations to desist ; Satan 
 will endeavour to neutralize that heartiness by every 
 means in his power. He will represent to us our own 
 weakness, and the enemy's strength, just as he did to 
 David, by the mouth of Saul, when he was about to 
 attack the Philistine, " Thou art not able to go against 
 this Philistine to fight with him, for thou are but a 
 
DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 335 
 
 youth, and he a man of war from his youth/^^. Peter was 
 hearty in his desire to go to Christy but when the waves 
 were looked at^ they brought out the smallness of his 
 faith. He was hearty also when he said_, *^' though all 
 men shall be offended because of Thee^ yet will I never 
 be offended ; though I should die with Thee^ yet will I 
 not deny Thee.^^t In the first of these cases there was 
 no failure^ in the second there was; although^ in all 
 probability, the heartiness in Peter^s case was as much 
 as that in David^s_, if not more. Let us seek for grace 
 to have our powers equal to our heartiness for action, 
 then we shall be able to produce great results. And 
 further, let us never draw back because we discover 
 weakness in ourselves ; our duty is to go forward " in 
 the name of the Lord;'^ the remedy for our weakness is 
 to be found in the verse which is under consideration 
 now, ^' I will go in the strength of the Lord God.^^ 
 
 We find in Holy Scripture many examples of Deter- 
 mination IN ACTION. Moses was pre-eminently called to 
 action for God, and the position in which he was placed 
 required great determination ; he had to face a monarch 
 exasperated by repeated chastisements which had nearly 
 ruined his kingdom; he had, humanly speaking, every 
 reason to be willing to make a compromise, and draw 
 off his people from the land of Egypt; but he was 
 determined in the work of the Lord, and would hear of 
 nothing of the kind. " And Pharaoh called unto Moses, 
 and said, Go ye and serve the Lord, only let your flocks 
 and your herds be stayed, let your little ones also go 
 with you;^^ but Moses would not yield, even in the 
 matter of the meanest animal belonging to an Israelite^ 
 * 1 Sam. xvii, 33. f Matt, xxvi, 33, 35. 
 
336 DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 
 
 '^ Our cattle also shall go with us, there shall not au hoof 
 be left behind Z^"^' David, as we have akeady seen, was 
 called to decided action for God, and he did not flinch, 
 even though his brethren taunted him, and Saul would 
 have discouraged him, and Goliath did all he could to 
 affright him.f Elijah was pre-eminently called to 
 action for God, and although he knew that Ahab sought 
 his life, he sends a message to him by Obadiah, ^^ Behold 
 Elijah is here. As the Lord of hosts liveth, before 
 whom I stand, I will surely shew myself unto him 
 to-day ! '^ % His attitude on Carmel was one of deter- 
 mined action. "And Elijah said unto them, take the 
 prophets of Baal, let not one of them escape ; and they 
 took them; and Elijah brought them down to the 
 brook Kishon and slew them there .^' It was necessary 
 for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, to take up a 
 decided position, and they did so; they said, *' O 
 Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in 
 this matter ; if it be so, our God whom we serve is able 
 to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will 
 deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it 
 known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy 
 gods, nor worship the golden image which thou has set 
 up." § " When Daniel knew that the writing was signed, 
 he went into his house, and his window being open in 
 his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his 
 knees three times a day, and gave thanks before his God, 
 as he did aforetime." j| Nehemiah said, "Should such 
 a man as I flee ? and who is there that, being as I am, 
 would go into the temple to save his life ? I will not go 
 
 • Exodus X, 24, 26. f 1 Sam. xvii. J 1 Kings xviii. 
 § Daniel iii, 16—18. || Chap, vi, 10. 
 
DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 337 
 
 in/^^ When Peter and John were brouglit before the 
 High Priest and his kindred they shewed their Hearti- 
 ness in Action. " And they called them^ and commanded 
 them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. 
 But Peter and John answered and said unto them. 
 Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto 
 you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but 
 speak the things which we have seen and heard.^^f 
 When Paul appeared before Nero, at his first answer 
 no man stood with him, but all men forsook him; 
 notwithstanding the Lord stood with him, and he was 
 delivered out of the mouth of the lion.J But of all 
 the examples of holy "Determination in Action ^^ the 
 brightest is furnished by our blessed Lord Himself; His 
 life was determined action from beginning to end. We 
 read of Him, that " He steadfastly set His face to go to 
 Jerusalem," although He knew that there He was to 
 meet His death; all His life, from the day that He 
 entered upon His public ministry, was a progress to 
 Jerusalem ; it was a fulfilment of certain requirements 
 which lay between Him and the cross, so that the cross 
 could not be reached until they had been met. In 
 meeting all these, we can well believe that the Lord 
 Jesus had to exercise '' Determination in Action," that 
 He had to keep His human flesh steadily to the point, 
 from which as mere human flesh it would have doubtless 
 shrunk ; in Gethsemane He is determined ; even though 
 flesh and blood be weak ; He says, " ' not my will but 
 Thine be done,' and there appeared an angel unto Him 
 from heaven strengthening Him. " § 
 
 * Neh. vi, U. t Acts iv, 18—20. J 2 Tim. iv, 16, 17. 
 § Luke xxii, 42, 43. 
 
 G G 
 
338 DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 
 
 These then are a few of the Scripture examples of 
 Determination in Action; let me now direct the reader's 
 attention to some particulars connected with this deter- 
 mination to do, or to go ; "I will go in the strength of 
 the Lord God." 
 
 He who is determined to do, or to go, in the service 
 of Grod, will often have to be very determined with him- 
 self. He will find many opponents of his will in the 
 actings of his own flesh and blood ; he will find the law 
 of the flesh struggling against the law of the mind ; he 
 will have to put down Self before he can act. Self-ease, 
 self-interest, self-indulgence, together with a whole tribe 
 of arguments, and opinions belonging to the flesh, must 
 be dealt with, and that, with a stern and uncompromising 
 hand. Few, save such as have had actual experience of 
 this conflict, can have any idea of the force which a man 
 has to exercise upon himself; many, however, of the 
 children of God know this, and they shall hereafter re- 
 ceive glory for these very victories which they won over 
 themselves. No eye saw them, no ear listened to them, 
 they were not sustained by the sympathy of masses 
 engaged in a like conflict to their own, but God was 
 looking, hearing, feeling for them, and His book of 
 remembrance was open, and in it an account was entered 
 of all this determined strife. The harmony of our whole 
 being in thought and action for God, will form a part of 
 the blessedness of heaven, but we must expect the want 
 of harmony to form a part of the strife and warfare of 
 earth. 
 
 It might be asked, however, " In what sort of things 
 have God's people to put in force this determined ' I 
 wilP over themselves?" Sometimes in very important 
 
DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 339 
 
 ones, and sometimes in what would appear to common 
 observation to be merely trifles. We sometimes require 
 to be more determined with ourselves about trifles,, than 
 more apparently important things. A victory gained in 
 a conflict, where the point in question is a trifle, is often 
 a victory which helps to determine character , and is thus 
 of immense importance. We have many a time to put 
 great constraint upon ourselves to keep silence, and put 
 a bridle on our lips, when we are provoked to answer 
 again: we have to be determined with ourselves when 
 we want to show kindness to those, who for a long time 
 have been recipients of our acts of kindness, giving us 
 in return nothing but unkindness, and thanklessness, if 
 not opposition and hate; we have to be determined in 
 carrying out rules of Christian life — things to be done — 
 and things to be left undone — which are mixed up in the 
 whirl of our daily calls, employments, and duties; in 
 many such things we have, by the help and teaching of 
 the Spirit, to lay down as it were the law to ourselves, 
 and to see that it is carried out. 
 
 There are also many other striking points in which we 
 have to exercise determination over ourselves. We may 
 be called upon to take some part in the Lord^s work, 
 which can only be done at considerable sacrifice or cost ; 
 we may hear the Lord plainly saying to us, " Take up 
 that position, lift up that burden," and flesh and blood 
 decline; then comes the need for pressure; then we 
 must be determined with self, and by God^s blessing we 
 shall prevail. Many a man has had to exercise this 
 determination, before he could make up his mind to 
 bring down upon himself the enmity or ridicule of some 
 he respected, or loved ; before he could bring himself to 
 
340 DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 
 
 undertake somethings which could be done on]y at con- 
 siderable cost; it needed determination to carry him 
 through^ but he sought and received it from the Holy 
 Ghost. 
 
 Nor let us suppose that the bare fact of making a 
 determination wiU be sufficient to carry us through ; the 
 determination itself will be assailed. Let us be on our 
 guard in this particular ; the first attempt of Satan will 
 be to prevent our making up our mind; the next, to 
 prevent our good determination taking eflect. Hence 
 we must be on our guard against making excuses^, and 
 being ready continually to say that ' circumstances are 
 altered/ and that '^we have been compelled by circum- 
 stances/ and the like. In many cases_, we can master 
 circumstances_, alas ! in how many do we let them master 
 us I " In the matters of God/^ said Luther^ ^^ I assume 
 this title, ^ cedo nulli,' ' I yield to none -/ " happy should 
 we be, if, in all spiritual determination, a like motto 
 were ours. 
 
 Determination in Action is then the duty of the 
 Lord^s people ; blessed be God that in it they have not 
 to depend upon themselves, but are privileged to have a 
 Realization of external power. ^'^^I will go in the 
 strength of the Lord God/^ We may be determined, 
 and yet wholly fail, owing to a want of God^s presence 
 with us. Thus was it with the Israelites, as we read in 
 Numbers xiv ; they would go against their enemies in 
 spite of the commandment of the Lord, " They rose up 
 early in the morning, and gat them up into the top of the 
 mountain, saying, lo, we be here, and will go up into 
 the place which the Lord hath promised, for we have 
 sinned. And Moses said, wherefore now do ye transgress 
 
DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 341 
 
 the commandment of the Lord? but it shall not prosper. 
 Go not np, for the Lord is not among you, that ye be 
 not smitten before your enemies. For the Amalekites 
 and the Canaanites are there before you_, and ye shall 
 fall by the sword ; because ye are turned away from the 
 Lord, therefore the Lord will not be with you. But 
 they presumed to go up on to the hill top, nevertheless 
 the ark of the covenant of the Lord and Moses departed 
 not out of the camp. Then the Amalekites came down, 
 and the Canaanites, and discomfited them even unto 
 Hormah.^^ Here we have an example of Determination 
 in Action, in which man goes forth, relying on his own 
 strength ; and, as he thinks, on his own good intentions : 
 divine strength however was withheld, and miserable 
 failure is the consequence. 
 
 When we are about to come forth in determined 
 action, let us beware of the danger of ^ looking too much 
 at what our own resources are for accomplishing the end 
 in view.' We are to go in the strength of the Lord God, and 
 if we parade our own resources, and say, " I will go in the 
 strength of this or that," failure most assuredly lies 
 before us. There are temptations connected even with 
 our growth in grace; we never attain to any spiritual 
 acquisition, but that Satan is on the watch to ensnare us 
 in it, yes, and perhaps to ensnare us by it, saying to us, 
 " Now you have faith, venture on such and such a thing.'' 
 Woe be to us, if, depending upon our faith, we determine 
 to do anything of the kind; our faith, our spiritual 
 power, whatever it be, will no doubt come out well in 
 action when it has to work, but we must distinctly go **^ in 
 the strength of the Lord God,'' and in that only. 
 
 There is another danger, but it is of an opposite 
 
 G G 2 
 
342 DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 
 
 character ; ^ if, instead of keeping steadily before us the 
 strength of the Lord God^ we muster our own spiritual 
 resources^ then, seeing their insufficiency, we may be 
 deterred from determined action at all/ We might well 
 take up the words which David used of Saul's armour, 
 and say " I cannot go with these/^ Some, perhaps, will be 
 inclined to discover in this an excuse for refraining 
 from action for God altogether ; they might say, '^ I am 
 not equal to what is required of me ; I feel I have no 
 spiritual ability for occupying such and such a position ;" 
 but then, dear friend, "what about " the strength of the 
 Lord God ?" The Psalmist's " I will go," was a deter- 
 mination made with reference to His strength ; oh ! let 
 yours be the same, and there is little doubt that you shall 
 be upheld and strengthened in the might that cometh 
 from above. " I can do all things," said the Apostle, 
 ^^ through Christ which strengtheneth me." 
 
 Let us observe, further, that '^ realization of external 
 power will keep us close to such power ;" one of our great 
 dangers being to get independent of it, or to forget it. 
 " Eealization !" — but then it must be realization indeed ; 
 not merely a correct theory about divine power, but an 
 actual realization of it. All the theorizing in the world 
 could never make a man practically say, " I will go in 
 the strength of the Lord God." We never can separate 
 ourselves from divine strength, without coming under the 
 depressing influences of human weakness. 
 
 The realization of this external power — even the strength 
 of the Lord God — will have this further benefit; "We 
 shall be more contented and peaceful in the failure of 
 customary, expected, and it may be, humanly speaking, 
 useful, and all but necessary supplies.-" All these are 
 
DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 313 
 
 liable to failure ; there is not a human spring, but that 
 may run dry — not an earthly friend^ but that may prove 
 false — not a finely tempered weapon_, but that may snap — 
 not a single appliance, but that may prove out of order, 
 when we want it most for use. The ordinary course which 
 man pursues, under circumstances such as these, is to 
 retire from action, no matter how determined he may 
 have been, for he has no longer the means at hand, on 
 which he relied. In man's judgment there would be no 
 disgrace in this; circumstances have altered; and the 
 man has been controlled by, or been the victim of, cir- 
 cumstances. If we, however, be what we ought to 
 be, if we have made our determinations with reference 
 to the strength of the Lord God, the failure of all 
 these things need not ajGTect us violently ; the strength 
 of the Lord God is wholly unimpaired. '^ Although the 
 fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the 
 vines ; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields 
 shall yield no meat ; the flock shall be cut off from the 
 fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls ; yet I will 
 rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. 
 The Lord God is my strength, and He will make my 
 feet like hinds' feet, and He will make me to walk upon 
 mine high places.'' Habakkuk iii, 17, &c. Resources 
 will dry up like Elijah's brook ; but the Lord's hand is 
 not shortened that it cannot save ; and amid ever-varying^ 
 
 * In Gideon's case we have a notable instance of the altering of 
 circumstances ; his army of thirty-two thousand, is brought down 
 to 300, but the word of the Lord concerning them was, " By the 
 300 men that lapped will 1 save you, and deliver the Midianites 
 into thine hand. Arise, get thee down unto the host, for I have 
 delivered it into thy hand." Judges vii, 7, &c. 
 
344 DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 
 
 circuinstances_, amid defections^, disappointments, external 
 fightings_, and internal fears, the man of God, realizing 
 that his strength comes from a source external to 
 himself — from God — may carry out his determination 
 into action, until it he brought successfully to a close. 
 
 Let us now, for a few moments, glance at the conse- 
 quences of the realization of external and Divine power in 
 action. 
 
 That ivill be attemptedj under the influence of this 
 realization, which otherwise would never have been thought 
 of. The larger a man^s resources become, the more 
 important become his plans, and the wider becomes the 
 range of his thoughts, and aspirations, and aims. If 
 then a man have the strength of the Lord God in which 
 to go, whither may he not determine to go, what may he 
 not determine to do? No marvel if we be slow to 
 undertake, when we see nothing but our own strength; 
 an equal marvel is it that we are so unwilling to go for- 
 ward, when we may say, " I will go in the strength of 
 the Lord God.^^ 
 
 Another consequence will be, that appearances will 
 not retard action. " He that observeth the wind shall 
 not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not 
 reap." Eccl. xi, 4. Appearances are often dead against 
 the proposed action of the people of God ; it is God^s 
 intention that we should start upon our day's journey, 
 or set about our day's work with a cloudy Taorning, 
 but the sun will break out as the day advances. If 
 we see our way clear as to the duty of acting, let us 
 determine to advance in the strength of the Lord God, 
 and difficulties will gradually disappear. 
 
DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 3i5 
 
 There will also be humility in success. We are 
 naturally inclined to be proud of our success, and Satan 
 is ever on the watch to make us take the glory to our- 
 selves, as though by our own might and power we had 
 accom23lished whatever has been done ; the safest remedy 
 for thisj is just to bear in mind in whose name and 
 strength we originally set out ; that we said " I will go 
 in the strength of the Lord God/' 
 
 AVe shall thus ascribe all the praise where it is due. 
 We shall say, " He hath done marvellous things : His 
 right hand and His holy arm hath gotten Him the 
 victory/' Psalm xcviii_, 1. It is dangerous to rob 
 God of His honour; to withhold it from Him_, even 
 though we do not try to steal it for ourselves ; an eflPectual 
 preservative from this will be to remember what His 
 strength has done. ^' Be strong '' then_, dear reader, " in 
 the Lord, and in the power of His might ;''^ like the 
 apostle of old you also may say, " I can do all things 
 through Christ which strengtheneth me.'^f If you feel 
 yourself weak, do not on that account shrink from action, 
 but rather seek strength from above ; an answer shall be 
 given ; you shall hear some such words as these, " Fear 
 thou not ; for I am with thee : be not dismayed ; for I 
 am thy God : I will strengthen thee ; yea, I will help 
 thee ; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of My 
 righteousness. For I the Lord thy God will hold thy 
 right hand, saying unto thee, fear not ; I will help thee." J 
 If we feel daunted at the prospect that lies before us, 
 though our course of action be clear, let us cry as Asa 
 did, when he set the battle in array against Zerah, whose 
 host was a thousand i;housand, and three hundred 
 
 * Ephesians vi, 10. f Philippians iv, 13. J Isaiah xli, 10, 13. 
 
346 DETERMINATION IN ACTION. 
 
 chariots ; he said, " Lord it is nothing with Thee to help, 
 whether with many, or with them that have no power ; 
 help us, O Lord our God ; for we rest on Thee, and in Thy 
 name we go against this multitude. O Lord, Thou art 
 our God ; let not man prevail against Thee.^^^ Thus let 
 us cry, and in due season we shall take up the Psalmist's 
 words and say, " In the day when I cried Thou answeredst 
 me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul.^'t 
 Be wise, be determined in the work of the Lord ; the 
 Psalmist has given you the formula in which your deter- 
 mination is to be expressed, '' I will go in the strength 
 of the Lord God.'' 
 
 * 2 Chroiiicles xiv, 11. f Psalm cxxxviii, 3. 
 
347 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 fraise. 
 
 Psalm vii, 17. "I will praise the Lord accorcliiig to His 
 righteousness, and will sing praise to the naine of the Lord Most 
 Ilighr 
 
 Psalm ix, 1. ^^ L will praise Thee, O Lord, tvith my whole 
 heart, I will shew forth all Thy marvellous ivo7'7is" 
 
 2. " L ivill he glad and rejoice in Thee, L will sing 
 
 praise to Thy name, O Thou Most High.^^ 
 
 Psalm xiii, 6. "/ will sing unto the Lord, because he hath 
 dealt bountifully with me." 
 
 Psalm xvi, 7. " I will bless the Lord, who hath given me 
 counsel, my reins also instruct me in the night seaso?is." 
 
 Psalm xxviii, 7 . " The Lord is my strength and my shield, 
 my heart trusted in Him, and L am helped, therefore my heart 
 greatly rejoiceth, and with my song ivill L praise Him." 
 
 Psalm XXX, 1. ''Twill extol Thee, O Lord, for Thou hast 
 lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me." 
 
 Psalm xxxiv, 1. " I ivill bless the Lord at all times. His praise 
 shall continually be in my mouth" 
 
 Psalm XXXV. 18. "/ will give Thee thanks in the great 
 congregation, L will praise Thee among much people." 
 \^ Psalm Ixxi, 14. " But L will hope continually, and will yet 
 praise Tliee more and more." 
 
 Psalm civ, 33. " I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live, 
 I will sing praise to my God while I have my being." 
 
 34. " My meditation of Him shall be sweet : I will 
 
 be glad in the Lord," 
 
348 PRAISE. 
 
 Psalm cviii, 1, " O God, my heart is fixed; I will sing and 
 give praise even with my glory ^ 
 
 Psalm cix, 30. " / will greatly jn'aise the Lord with my 
 mouth, yea, I zoill praise Him among the multitude.^^ 
 
 Psalm cxi, 1. " Praise ye the Lord, I will praise the Lord with 
 my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the 
 congregation" 
 
 Psalm cxviii, 19, " Open to me the gates of righteousness, I 
 will go into them, and I will praise the Lord." 
 
 21. " L will praise Thee, for Thouhast heard me, and 
 
 art become my salvation." 
 
 28. " Thou art my God, and L will praise Thee ; 
 
 Thou art my God, I will exalt Thee.'' 
 
 Psalm cxix, 7. ^^ I will ^^raise Thee with uprightness of heart, 
 when I shall have learned Thy righteous judgments." 
 
 Psalm cxxxviii, 1. '•^ I will praise Thee with my whole heart ; 
 before the gods will L sing praise unto Thee.'^ 
 
 2. ^^ I loill praise Thy name for Thy loving-kindness, 
 
 and for Thy truth, for Thou hast magnified Thy word above all 
 Thy name." 
 
 Psalm cxxxix, 14. " I ivill praise Thee, for L am fearfully 
 and wonderfully made, marvellous are Thy works, and that my 
 soul knoweth right well." 
 
 Psalm cxliv, 9. " / will sing a new song unto Thee, O God; 
 upon a psaltery and an instrument of ten strings mill I sing 
 praises wito Thee." 
 
 Psalm cxlv, 1. "7 will extol Thee, my God, O King ; and I 
 will bless Thy name for ever and ever." 
 
 Psalm cxlvi, 2. " While I live will I praise the Lord, I 
 will sing p>raises unto my God while I have any beings 
 
 THE Christianas life may be compared to the mountain 
 stream, whose rise is always small, and often 
 shrouded in remoteness, whose progress is varied, but 
 whose destination is ever to the open sea. 
 
 Here and there you find in such streams the deep and 
 shaded pool, where all is silent, and where, as we look 
 
PRAISE. 349 
 
 into it^ a dreamy sense of mystery comes over the soul. 
 And on a little further, all is changed; in swift and 
 naiTow current the water seems hurrying in earnest to 
 some distant goal, and though there is so much motion 
 there is no sound ; all is motion, but all is silence too. 
 On yet a little further, and the same waters have changed 
 their character, and they ripple with murmuring music 
 over the smooth pebbles which break them into tiny 
 waves, and make them dance like sunbeams in the 
 brilliant light of the summer day. But that which, 
 perhaps beyond all other features of the stream, attracts 
 our attention most, is the bright cascade. Full of 
 exhilaration and life, the stream bounds over the precipice 
 of stone, and every drop becomes a diamond, and the 
 sunshine crowns it with a rainbow, spanning the wreathing 
 mist with its many-colored arch ; and we almost feel our 
 own hearts leap with the leaping waters, as they sparkle 
 and effervesce, and boil, and weave veils of watery 
 vapour, and form rings of seething foam, and then haste 
 away, laden with bubbles all tinted with the brightest 
 hues, as though they had real youth and life, and were 
 off to some wedding feast. 
 
 Such is the mountain stream ; such I might also add, 
 often is the child of God. His life is varied indeed ; he 
 has seasons of deep, and silent, and mysterious experi- 
 ences ; he has times of rapid, silent, earnest action ; he 
 has days of softly murmuring happiness ; why should he 
 not also have times of praise — ^joyous, joyous times — 
 effervescing times, when all the heart rushes forth to 
 God, in brightness, and energy, and joy ? Daily praise 
 should ascend from each of us to God, as the perfume of 
 the daily sacrifice ascended in olden times ; there must 
 
 H H 
 
350 PRAISE. 
 
 not be fewer sacrifices under tlie new dispensation than 
 there were under the old ; we are priests to offer unto 
 God the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. (Hebrews 
 xiii, 15.) Alas ! the dull and monotonous canal^ with 
 its muddy banks^ is more like many a Christian than 
 this dazzling^ leaping^ living mountain stream ! Praising 
 Christians are very few in number^ and very faint in 
 their work ; they bear scarce any proportion to praying 
 1 Christians ; we shall not be far astray if we say that 
 ,' God hears a hundred prayers for every song of praise. 
 How shall w^e account for this ? One reason of this 
 sad shortcoming is to be found in the natural ingratitude 
 of the human heart. The heart of poor fallen man is 
 ungrateful by nature ; and that ingratitude is especially 
 shewn towards God ; it is harder for man to acknowledge 
 a favour from God than from his fellow man. We act 
 as though we had a right to expect from God_, and unless 
 grace come in and sanctify our souls, bringing with it 
 gratitude as well as other good things_, we shall not give 
 God such praise as he desires to hear; praise which 
 comes from the heart and the hearths feelings, and is not 
 a mere acknowledgment of mercy received, as cold and 
 business like a thing as a common stamped receipt. 
 
 We can find in the giddy and non-apprehensive charac- 
 tcr of the fallen heart a further cause of shortcoming in 
 praise. How much giddiness remains in even thoughtful 
 people of God ! Tiiey suffer themselves to be whirled 
 along from one thing to another, without pausing to 
 think of how much they owe to God in all these cii'cum- 
 stanccs and events. There is thought in ail the music 
 of the grand masters of olden time ; the strain may be 
 simple, but it is thoughtful ; for want of thought we fail 
 
PRAISE. 351 
 
 in praise. The non- apprehensive character of the human 
 heart is a further sore impediment to praise. Events are 
 continually occurring in which God's gracious and 
 merciful dealings with us are to he seen, but we do not 
 see them, because we are weak in apprehensive power, 
 aud the consequence is we do not praise. No wonder if 
 we do not praise, when we do not see what we have to 
 praise for. It may be that many of these things will 
 come to light hereafter ; that in eternity we shall read 
 the history of our past lives, with all God^s mercy both 
 in giving and withholding, in ordering and restraining ; 
 and then being gifted with apprehensive power of the 
 keenest nature, we shall be able to praise with full deep 
 meaning in our songs. 
 
 Let us consider farther — the deadness of the atmosphere 
 in which the human heart has to live and to beat. It is 
 very hard for the body to feel elasticity and exhilaration 
 in a dull and heavy atmosphere ; when oxygen is scarce 
 the spirits soon begin to flag. We know by experience 
 the effects of atmosphere; there are dull heavy days 
 when we are fit for scarce anything, when our arms 
 droop by our sides and we drag our feet along, and when 
 it would be intolerable exertion to sing; such an 
 atmosphere as this is very often round about the soul, 
 its weight oppresses the heart. It is hard to praise 
 when we ^' dwell in Mesach and sojourn in the tents of 
 Kedar;" "how shall we sing the Lord's song in a 
 strange land?" Our own family influence may be 
 depressing, the aspect of religious and congregational 
 affairs may be gloomy, the people we are thrown into 
 company with may be uncongenial, and thus, without 
 any immediate sorrow closing our lips, we may find that 
 
352 PRAISE. 
 
 they are closed, and that we cannot open them in praise, 
 Por this there is one remedy, and but one. As the 
 diver when deep beneath the waves draws his supplies 
 from above, so must we ; we must seek for something 
 purer and better than that which we have to breathe 
 around. We may get this pm-er air in two ways ; the 
 Lord may enable us to climb to some height where we 
 shall be above the rolling fogs or cold and clammy 
 mists, or He may leave us amongst these and yet supply 
 us immediately from Himself, just as those who are 
 floating upon the water supply the diver who is beneath. 
 Man can be thus supplied, God can breathe into him. 
 He can command a connecting medium between His 
 oppressed servant and the atmosphere of heaven, and 
 through that medium the exhilarating atmosphere of 
 what is pure and holy may be breathed. When we 
 complain of what is around us, let us remember that 
 although we cannot alter our surrounding atmosphere, 
 still the fault that we have no better is with ourselves ; 
 we gasp, we languish, we are depressed yet all the while 
 it is possible to be so happy as to sing a song of praise. 
 
 Now all this entails loss. Man was made to be a 
 praising being, and he cannot come short without there 
 being loss. There is always loss when God^s design is 
 not carried out. Man was originally designed more for 
 praise than for prayer, it is since his faU that he has 
 become the reverse, more a being of prayer than praise. 
 It is difficult to imagine what Adam could have wanted 
 to pray for in Paradise ; he had everything that could 
 conduce to his good, or that he could imagine to conduce 
 to his good j if he had no want, if he felt none, what 
 was there to call forth prayer ? But there was a great 
 
PRAISE. 353 
 
 deal to call forth praise; every tree aud herb^ every 
 animal and insect was wonderful ; the flowers with their 
 perfumes, the fruits with their varied flavours,, the very 
 enjoyment of existence both in body and soul, all called 
 forth the song of praise ; we can conceive of no other 
 worship in Paradise before the fall, except this of praise. 
 
 But God^s design is not to be for ever marred by the 
 Devil ; His people are made for His praise ; praise is His 
 revenue, and He will not remit it because man has 
 fallen. Prayer has come in, but prayer does not dispense 
 with praise ; prayer should travail in birth to bring forth 
 praise. 
 
 Well then, since God still requires praise from man, 
 and since He has given him abundant materials for praise 
 in " his creation and preservation, and all the blessings 
 of this life, but above all in His inestimable love in the 
 redemption of the world, by our Lord Jesus Christ, in 
 the means of grace and in the hope of glory,^^ we may 
 well expect to find loss, unless His requirement be 
 carried out ; and the loss in this case will be very similar 
 to that which is entailed in the matter of Ministry and 
 Testimony. God^s honour is robbed, the aspect in 
 which His people present Him and His service to the 
 world is one of gloom ; He is misrepresented in the eyes 
 of those who are on the watch for everything that can 
 detract from His claims for service ; they say, " look at 
 that long-visaged creature, with his head bent down, 
 and his eyes lustreless, and his breath all spent in sighs, 
 there is what religion does for a man, come along with 
 us, you see religion cannot do much towards making a 
 man happy .^^ Besides which, God is robbed directly ; 
 He hears the praises of the angel and the archangel ; all 
 
 H H 3 
 
854 PRAISE. 
 
 around His tlirone are possessed with a praising spirit ; 
 the souls of those in blessedness are full of praise and 
 joy ; on earth alone there is silence, or it may be here 
 and there the scanty notes of isolated song. On earth ! 
 and who are to be found on earth ? Men who are daily 
 and hourly helped by Him ; men who have been saved 
 from perdition by Him ; men who were purchased at the 
 price of the bloodshedding of His own Son ; men who 
 have outstretched before them a glorious eternity ; surely 
 from such God might well claim the song of praise. 
 
 The world also suffers. We are bound to impress the 
 world, so far as we can, so far as our influence and 
 example reach ; and what impression do we leave in this 
 matter of praise ? Can we say that we have given any 
 company in which we have been, or any individual with 
 whom we have associated, the idea that it is a pleasant 
 thing to serve the Lord? Have we been whining and 
 complaining Christians, or tart and twisted Christians, or 
 stiff, starched Christians, or mourning and melancholy 
 Christians, any, every kind of Christian, except a 
 praising one ? We have met with Christians of all the 
 above mentioned kinds; we believe they were real 
 Christians, but some of them, as has been well remarked, 
 it would be quite time enough to know when we meet in 
 heaven. Well, what have we been? What, dear reader, 
 have you been ? Has your union with Christ ever lit up 
 a brilliant light in your eyes, or made a sweet smile play 
 around your mouth; such a light as no artist ever 
 painted, such a smile as no sculptor ever chiselled. And 
 did men say to themselves ^' That is a happy man ;" and 
 did they feel that your smile and your cheerfulness 
 recommended religion, and did they begin to think that 
 
PRAISE. 355 
 
 religion opened the door to enjoyment^ and not to misery 
 and woe ? These are important questions, and it will be 
 well for us to think what our influence upon our fellow 
 men really has been. A Christian may often do more 
 with one smile than with fift}^ frowns ; more with one 
 song of praise, than with a thousand denunciations of 
 woe. How can the world believe that religion makes 
 men happy, unless it sees that it does so ? We cannot 
 expect the world to walk by faith ; it walks by sight ; it 
 judges by the seeing of the eye, and by the hearing of 
 the ear ; and that being the case, let us give it a smile to 
 see, and a song to hear. 
 
 And now let us turn to ourselves. We lose grievously 
 by not having a praising spirit. We have not that 
 elasticity and spring which, as was shewn in the chapter 
 on "Heartiness in Action," would make us bound 
 forward on our heavenward journey, and set cheerftdly 
 about our spiritual work. The sailors give a cheery cry 
 as they weigh the anchor ; the ploughman whistles in 
 the morning as he drives his team ; the milkmaid sings 
 her rustic song as she sets about her early task ; when 
 soldiers are leaving the town in which they have been 
 quartered, and their spirits are supposed to be likely to 
 be affected at leaving friends behind, they do not march 
 out to the tune of the " Dead March in Saul," but to 
 the quick notes of some lively air. A praising spirit 
 would do for us, all that their songs and music do for 
 them; and if only we could determine to praise the 
 Lord, we should surmount many a difficulty, which our 
 low spirits never would have been equal to, and we 
 should do double the work which can be done if the 
 heart be languid in its beatings, if we be crushed and 
 
356 PRAISE. 
 
 trodden down in soul. As the evil spirit in Saul yielded 
 in olden time to tlie influence of the harp of the son of 
 Jesse, so would the spirit of melancholy often take flight 
 fi'om us, if only we would take up the song of praise. 
 
 The spirit of merriment is, above all others, the most 
 infectious. It spreads from one to another in company; 
 if it once commence, it generally rapidly increases in an 
 individual; and thus should it be in the holy joy and 
 exhilaration of the heart, it should spread over the soul. 
 '^ Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me 
 bless His holy name.^' Thus sang the Psalmist. Thus 
 should we sing too. We should with him issue this, 
 which is one of the grandest invocations which can be 
 uttered, and which is addressed to one of the noblest 
 audiences that can be convoked. The Psalmist peals & 
 summons through all the courts and chambers of his 
 being, and calls forth every capacity of his nature, that 
 one and all, they might join in a vast chorus, of which 
 the name of God should be the theme, and the glory of 
 God the end. It seems as though he gathered into some 
 one vast inner chamber his powers of thought, and 
 memory, and hope, and fear, and love, and that he gave 
 charge to his soul to be the leader of this choir, yea, to 
 be the very soul to it, breathing life and sense into its 
 melody, to give the key note to its chants, and to rule 
 its song. Yes ! as David did, so let us do also. Each 
 man has within his own bosom the materials for a choir, 
 as tuneful as any which ever stood in surpliced array 
 beneath the cathedraFs fretted roof; a choir with fuU, 
 deep, rich voices, whose anthems can swell, whose 
 choruses can peal upwards — upward, upward, far above 
 the din and turmoil of the earth, until they float into 
 
PRAISE. 357 
 
 the presence of God Himself, and mingle, it may be, 
 with the myriad voices of those whose praises are ever 
 heard around the throne. 
 
 Let us turn now to some of the particulars for which 
 the Psalmist declared that he would praise God. We 
 shall confine ourselves to such as we find mentioned in 
 the verses at the heading of this chapter, and to the 
 points immediately connected with them. The first 
 which we are to notice is that found in Psalm cxxxix, 14. 
 '' I will praise Thee, for I am fearfully and wonderfully 
 made.^' 
 
 We think but little of our personal creation, and it 
 may be that we have but very seldom really praised God 
 for His wonderful dealings towards us in our physical 
 frames. The Psalmist saw enough in his own body to 
 excite his praise ; so might we in ours, and that without 
 going very deep into the anatomical mysteries of muscles, 
 and bones, and nerves. 
 
 The daily powers of enjoyment which we possess in our 
 bodies should excite our praise. It seems, no doubt, a 
 small and common operation enough, to eat one's 
 breakfast, dinner, or supper, and we generally thank 
 God, by means of a grace, for the provision ; but does it 
 ever strike us, how much we have to be thankful for, in 
 the bare fact, that we are able to digest that food ? The 
 horrors of indigestion are many, and take a multitude of 
 forms. We are told by physicians that uneasy sensations 
 of all kinds, heart-burn, lassitude, weariness, headache, 
 sickness, broken sleep, loss of appetite, horrid dreams, 
 irritable temper, are some of its accompaniments ; and if 
 we were to trace them any further, we should see them 
 
358 PRAISE. 
 
 assuming tlie dimensions of evil of a most formidable 
 kind. Many a man's life has been made a burden to 
 liim_, from the simple fact^ that his digestive powers were 
 bad. Well ! if you, dear friend can eat common food_, to 
 make no mention of dainties, do you ever think how 
 much you have to be thankful for, and how much you 
 ought to praise God for ? See what has to take place, 
 before that common process of digestion can be satisfac- 
 torily and comfortably accomplished. Before your food 
 descends into the stomach it must have prepared, and 
 in readiness to receive it, a sufficiency of that important 
 fluid known as gastric juice. When the food is dissolved 
 by this gastric juice, and changed into the greyish or 
 whitish pulp called chyme, your food, thus dissolved, 
 is slowly conveyed, by a curious motion of the stomach, 
 to its right and lower extremity, which is called the 
 pylorus ; i.e., the door, or outergate of the stomach, or, 
 as some call it, the door keeper. That pylorus or door 
 keeper, is in itself a wonderful study; it seems to 
 exercise a sort of choice ; for if anything present itself 
 there, which is not proper to be conveyed into the 
 system, or not well adapted for making blood, it does not 
 for some time suffer it to pass. After this the chyme 
 has to be mixed with the bitter fluid called bile, which 
 comes through a small pipe from the liver, and also with 
 another liquor resembling saliva, proceeding from what 
 is popularly called the '^ sweetbread." The chyle is now 
 conveyed along in a number of minute vessels, which all 
 meet in a common trunk or receptacle, upon the first or 
 upper vertebra of the loins. From this receptacle one 
 or more pipes carry it upwards, on the right side of the 
 spine, towards the top of the left shoulder, where. 
 
PRAISE. 359 
 
 meeting the great vein whicli brings back the blood from 
 the left arm J it empties its contents. Then the chyle 
 mixes with the blood, which immediately descending 
 into the heart, passes through the lungs to undergo a 
 peculiar and important process, which we cannot enter 
 on here."^ When we take all this into account, and bear 
 in mind how fearfully and wonderfully we are made, and 
 how many evils are averted from us in this one matter, 
 surely we shall see that we have cause for praising God. 
 
 Then take the air we breathe. Perhaps it seems a 
 small thing to some of our readers that they have air to 
 breathe, and it is an equally small thing that they are 
 able to breathe it ; but let them look at the man afflicted 
 with asthma, gasping, fighting for a breath, to whom it 
 would be almost heaven upon earth to breathe freely 
 even the air laden with what we should call the most 
 nauseous smell, and such a sight would do them good; 
 they would then see that well might some of their breath 
 be spent in praising God, seeing to Him they owe every 
 breath they draw. 
 
 Look also at the almost continual immunity from pain 
 which many of our readers enjoy. By far the largest 
 number have little more than an occasional ache, just 
 enough, if they used it aright, to shew them how great 
 their mercy is, in daily exemption from suffering. Sup- 
 pose when you have a toothache, it were to become 
 permanent; suppose when your head were racked with 
 this pain, you also had what a holy man who suffered 
 excruciatingly, called, " the toothache in his back ! '' in a 
 word, suppose you were a continual sufferer, instead of 
 
 • See a very interesting and intelligible little book called 
 " The House I live in." 
 
360 PRAISE. 
 
 being as you are, and were reduced to saying as one of 
 old did, "thank God for four and twenty hours with- 
 out pain/' then you would know how much you had to 
 shew a praising spirit for, when you were simply free from 
 pain. The body of man should be like a well- tuned 
 harp, every muscle and nerve should be like an har- 
 monious string, and from them all, the thankful soul 
 should draw God^s just tribute of thanksgiving and of 
 praise; and be it so, that there are some strings which 
 He has touched with a chastening hand, even from them 
 in a minor key may be heard a sound of song; praise 
 that pain is no worse, praise even from them; praise 
 that support is given for bearing it; praise that a time 
 is coming when there shall be pain no more, neither 
 sorrow, nor crying, for " God shall wipe away all tears 
 from their eyes." 
 
 Our daily powers of enjoyment in common things, to 
 say nothing of countless extraordinary favors, should 
 stir our hearts, when we consider how fearfully and 
 wonderfully we are made. Think, dear reader, of this; 
 and remember that God can teach men to praise, not 
 only by pleasure, but by pain; this latter is often the 
 discipline of the rod, a messenger just sent to remind us 
 of mercies for which we forget to praise. 
 
 If we pass from our personal creation to our daily 
 powers of enjoyment ^ how much have we here also to stir 
 our praise? Let us look at the sky over our heads, 
 what a lovely prospect have we even there ! Had God 
 chosen. He miglit have made the sky of a dull and leaden 
 hue ; if the atmosphere were duly supplied with oxygen, 
 we could live under a leaden sky, as well as under one of 
 the most gorgeous tints ; there is no absolute necessity 
 
PRAISE. 361 
 
 for the beauty^ and oftentimes the splendour which meets 
 our eye when we look up. At one hour we see the sky 
 a deep liquid blue^ without a cloud or spot; then we 
 have presented to us pillared masses of resplendent 
 cloud, reminding us of the great white throne which 
 shall be set ; and then the scene changes again, and the 
 pillared cloud is removed, and smaller clouds, all 
 glittering in the sunshine, with swift yet stately motion, 
 traverse that field of blue, and we think of the armies of 
 heaven which follow Jesus on white horses. Oh ! that 
 sky is a grand and noble object of contemplation, and if 
 only God teach us by His own handiwork, our hearts 
 may be elevated indeed by looking at its glories. There 
 go the pall-like clouds with their golden fringes, and 
 their silver linings, telling us that there is wealth at- 
 tached even to our darkest sorrows ; there lie scattered 
 all over the heavens the dappled masses of silver and 
 gold, as though the Lord of glory had Himself passed 
 by that way, and it had been strewn for His feet by 
 adoring angels^ hands; yonder the heavens are over- 
 spread with a burnished sheet, as though the sun would 
 remind us as he set, of what shall be the portion of the 
 Lord^s people after their lifers sun setting, even the city 
 of gold. Times there are when the jasper, the sapphire, 
 the chalcedony, the emerald, the sardonyx, the sardius, 
 the chrysolite, the beryl, the topaz, the chrysoprasus, the 
 jacynth, and the amethyst, seem ail flung in wild 
 confusion abroad upon that sky ; or when, amid its ever 
 changing hues, they seem to melt into, or give place to 
 one another ; and if we look at this sky as it is, and as it 
 might have been, is there not cause for praise, even as 
 we look up? But it is impossible to sum up man^s 
 
 I I 
 
362 PRAISE, 
 
 daily powers of enjoyment; let the reader just lay down 
 this book for a few moments^ and bethink him of what 
 has fallen to his lot, and he will see that he is acting an 
 ungrateful part^ if he will not praise. 
 
 Nor must we forget God^s gracious provision for His 
 people^ in suffering. There are many of God^s suffering 
 ones on earth. They are laid on beds of sickness ; they 
 have hours of solitude ; their food is like bitter herbs ; 
 their drink like vinegar ; their clothing is^ it may be, the 
 bandages of their sores, and each breath they draw is 
 sorrow ; but if they be God^s suffering ones, then, despite 
 all this, they have cause to praise. We have met the 
 suffering ones of the Kingdom up in attics, almost above 
 the hum of the crowded street ; down in cellars, almost 
 beneath the vibrations of the loaded waggons ; we have 
 seen them in the morning, and they were suffering, and 
 at noon, and they were suffering, and at eventide, and 
 they were suffering : but we have also seen them happy 
 and praising, in the morning, and at noon, and at even- 
 tide again. And how was this? They were not left of 
 God, because they had not received one kind of blessing ; 
 no ! He had given to them largely, only in another way ; 
 they had the sick man's blessings — blessed foretastes of 
 what was laid up for them at their journey's end ; high 
 thoughts of how they were glorifying God in suffering; 
 special communings with Jesus, and comforts from the 
 Holy Ghost. And good cause for praise have many 
 suffering ones, when they think of how much and how 
 tridy they can glorify God in simple endurance. God 
 can be as much glorified in endurance as in action ; there 
 is often more action in endurance than meets the common 
 eye. We would say to the dear afflicted children of God, 
 
PRAISE. 363 
 
 " you occupy a real and an important position in the 
 army of God, and you are taking an effective part in the 
 great operations which are being carried on/^ The 
 rifleman in his sombre suit, is hidden away from sight in 
 the waving corn, or behind a tree or stone, but he is 
 taking part in the engagement, as much as the artillery- 
 man who stands to his gun, or the dragoon whose 
 polished helmet, and glittering sword, are seen flashing 
 in the charge ; and the garrison who defend an important 
 fortress, and keep watch and ward for long days and 
 nights, and at the utmost but resist assault with success, 
 are as truly engaged in the great conflict, as those who 
 fight and are seen in the more open field ; so the suffering 
 ones of God, hidden away from sight, engaged in bearing 
 pain without a murmur, in exercising patience as for 
 Jesus, and in the presence of evil spirits, are just as much 
 engaged in the great conflict between good and evil, as 
 the minister who is occupied in more public ministrations, 
 and whose name, as a devoted man of action, may be 
 well known throughout the church of God. Encourage 
 the suffering ones of the Lord with this thought ; say to 
 them, ^' every day you are fighting in the presence of evil 
 spirits; every day you may win fresh glory to your 
 celestial crown; every day you also are on the great 
 battle field, and shall have part in the distribution of the 
 spoil." Such a view of illness as this, will cheer some 
 desponding friend ; he will no longer say, " I am left 
 alone ; " he will have a fresh motive in suffering patiently ; 
 he will feel all the interest of an active position ; he too, he 
 will feel, is a soldier on active service ; and even amid the 
 groanings of the flesh, will be heard the praisings of the 
 
364 PRAISE. 
 
 spirit. There is deep reality in the notes of sick-bed 
 praise. 
 
 Let us now turn to the Psalmist's praise for God^s 
 " bountiful dealing" " I will sing unto the Lord, because 
 He hath dealt bountifully with me.'^ Psalm xiii, 6. 
 
 The position in which we find this verse is worthy of 
 remark. We find it coming in at the end of a Psalm, 
 almost every word of which is about danger and sorrow. 
 Many trials are spoken of and recognised, but they are 
 not allowed to hide out the bountiful dealing of God. 
 Now it often happens that we fail to recognise God's 
 bountiful dealing, when we have had some recent trial. 
 We allow the trial, with its thoughts and sorrows to 
 swallow us up, and to hide the bounty of God's dealings 
 towards us. We are tempted to act by God, just as man 
 in a petulant temper, often acts by his fellow-man ; we 
 forget in a present refusal, all former gifts — in what we 
 think a present slight, all former favom^s. We are like 
 the Israelites, who as soon as they came into some 
 temporary difficulty or distress, were forgetful of all that 
 God had done for them, in bringing them forth from the 
 land of Egypt. This is a point in which we must be on 
 our guard ; Satan will be sure to fix our minds upon this 
 recent trouble ; he will in efiect say, " What ! with this 
 before you, wliile you are actually smarting from it, can 
 you talk of the bounty of God?" Even so; with this 
 actually before us, actually pressing upon us, ours must 
 be the spirit which says, " The Lord gave, and the Lord 
 hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord.'' 
 
 We must be on our guard also against a readiness to 
 detract from God^s dealings with us. This spirit of 
 
PRAISE. 365 
 
 detraction is only too common, and it has a most baleful 
 effect upon the spirit of Praise. It hides out the 
 greatness of God in action ; it mixes up His dealings 
 with circumstances; and we, ever looking at the seen 
 rather than the unseen, dwell upon the persons and 
 circumstances brought into play, and not upon God, who 
 put them into motion, to produce the desired result. 
 For example, I need a sum of money — say a thousand 
 pounds — to carry out some design for God ; I seek it from 
 the Lord ; I do not seek it from man, but simply and 
 du'ectly from God ; surely, if it be sent, the praise should 
 be given to Him alone. In answer to prayer the needed 
 sum begins to drop in ; now in pence, now in pounds, 
 now in larger sums ; Satan however is at hand to detract ; 
 he says, " yes, it is true this money is coming, but then 
 it is by natural means ; God is not to be so immediately 
 praised and thanked as you think ; that pound came from 
 a person who knew you, and who never would have 
 given anything but for that ; and that cheque came from 
 a man who never would have given it but that he is 
 personally connected with the place;" and thus Satan 
 goes on trying to account for every farthing, and by 
 producing human agencies endeavours to rob God of 
 the praise which is His due. We may be able to account 
 for almost every farthing ; but if the money had been 
 sought from God, and not from man at all, the very fact 
 of its having come, should draw forth our praise, for the 
 right hand of the Lord has brought mighty things to 
 pass. So, if we have a dear friend, for whom we have 
 prayed, restored to health, Satan whispers, " It was 
 
 Dr. who cured him, what a clever man !" Or 
 
 '^ it was such and such a medicine ; recommend it to all 
 
 I I 2 
 
366 PRAISE. 
 
 your friends ! " and thus the means are made to detract 
 from the One by whom the means were given, and by 
 whom the use of the means was taught. If we are to 
 have a praising spirit, we must be on our guard against 
 these detractions of Satan's, or very soon we shall find 
 ourselves giving to the creature that which belongs to 
 the Creator; instead of the praise of God we shall be 
 engaged with the praise of man. We must fix our eye 
 steadily upon Him ; we must say, " This comes, O Lord, 
 from Thee ; to Thee, and Thee only, be the praise." 
 
 There are certain seasons when the dealings of God 
 are apj^arently unbountijul, and we must be on our 
 guard, lest, at such seasons, Satan deprive us of a 
 praising spirit. We are often not permitted to have our 
 own way ; we are not given what we Avish for, perhaps 
 what we think we want. When this is the case, we are 
 very apt to think that God is not bountiful in His deal- 
 ings towards us ; and however much we may be resigned, 
 we can hardly attain to a spu'it of praise ; but what is the 
 issue of this? We are kept from some evil — stopped 
 upon a road at the end of which is a precipice ; or G od is 
 preparing to deal far more bountifully with us than we 
 should have done with ourselves. The issue of all God^s 
 dealings with His people must be bountiful and good ; 
 happy is that man who has faith enough to praise while 
 the issue is being worked out. We may rest assured 
 that God never yet dealt with any of His people with a 
 close and niggard hand. 
 
 Let the believing reader look, however, at what the 
 Lord has done for his soul, and there indeed, he will 
 find evidences of bounteous dealing. Well might he 
 think of '^the riches of God's grace," and say, " Return 
 
PRAISE. 367 
 
 unto tliy rest, O my soiil_, for the Lord hath dealt 
 bountifully with thee." Never let any man who knows 
 the salvation of the Lord detract from His character as 
 a bounteous dealer, because of some present afflictive 
 dispensations, or because he is permitted to be exercised 
 in any spiritual trials ; let him look at the rich dealings 
 of God with his soul ; let him see hell escaped, heaven 
 prepared, giory purchased, an abundant entrance opened 
 to everlasting life ; then let him see at what a price all 
 this has been procured, and let him look at what he 
 himself is, even at the best; and let the story of God^s 
 bounteous dealing ever be in his mouth. Oh, that 
 the Lord^s people could ever dwell in full realization of 
 how bountifully they have been dealt with, then, instead 
 of fretting over every little thing, their mouth would be 
 filled with God^s praise and honour all the day long. 
 If you, dear reader, know the Lord, stir up your heart 
 to rejoicing because of this bounteous dealing; do not let 
 your dull laggard heart alone; say, "^Come, v/ake if^, 
 bethink thee of thy mercies, ^ make a joyful noise unto 
 the Lord,^ the Lord must be praised, and thou must 
 praise Him." Perhaps the heart is heavy and sleepy, 
 but we must wake it up out of sleep ; we must blow up 
 the slumbering embers upon the altar, and wave the 
 incense censers, until the perfumed smoke cm'ls upward 
 to the skies ; the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving 
 must be ofiered, and bounteous dealing must be the 
 story of its accompanying song. O my soul, " give unto 
 the Lord the glory due unto His name." " Bless the 
 Lord, O my soul, and forget not ail His benefits." 
 '' Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, 
 bless His holv name." 
 
368 PRAISE. 
 
 Giving of Help is another of the mercies which stirs 
 the Psalmist's praise. ''The Lord is my strength and 
 my shield^ my heart trusted in Him_, and I am helped^ 
 therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth^ and with my song 
 will I praise Him." 
 
 The reception of help issued in joy of heart; and 
 joy of heart issued in praise. Now we also_, like the 
 Psalmistj have received help ; as with him so also with 
 us, we have had joy of heart when we were helped; but 
 has our joy like his, issued in praise? There is scarce 
 any one who does not know what it is to have felt an 
 exhilaration of spirits, when some threatened calamity 
 is passed; or when something has been endured which 
 had been greatly feared; when a door of help has 
 been opened; when the weight which pressed has been 
 removed. As soon as all had come right, and the night- 
 mare which bestrode our heart had taken its departm^e, 
 we could sing for joy; everything seemed delightful; we 
 felt in good humour with every one ; we had a gentle 
 intoxication and effervescence of spirit ; in that efferves- 
 cence we seemed to get rid of a great deal of acid, which, 
 perhaps, for some time, had made us rather sharp and 
 tart. Now, we must not go out of our way to look for 
 great events ; those of which we are now speaking are to 
 be found strewn tolerably thickly all over the face of 
 our daily life. Men of business have received payment 
 of bills, which were very shaky concerns, and yet upon 
 which their own credit had involuntarily been staked; 
 they have found those who could help them in a pinch, 
 ready to do so, when they went to them with fear and 
 trembling, not knowing but that they would decline to 
 give the needed aid; women have been delivered from 
 
PRAISE. 369 
 
 the pain and peril of cliildbirtli ; "^ cliildi'en have been 
 brought through illnesses and so forth ; and has the joy 
 of heart, and the sense of relief, obtained on these 
 various occasion s_, and such as these, led the heart to 
 praise? If God be not traced in everything, of course 
 it has not ; but if He be, how comes it to pass that we 
 allow our joy to evaporate in mere exhilaration of heart? 
 There are many who are no better than the Amalekites, 
 of whom we read in 1 Samuel xxx, who ^^were spread 
 abroad upon all the earth, eating, and drinking, and 
 dancing;" the joy of the world is carnal; it never issues 
 in the praise of God. 
 
 May the people of God, who read these pages, be on 
 their guard against omitting praise when they are helped; 
 they cannot fall into this error without greatly displeasing 
 Him. Ingratitude is odious in God^s sight ; and this is 
 ingratitude of no trifling degree. Let our joy take the 
 
 * We cannot pass this subject by, without expressing deep 
 regret at the mere ceremony which " The Thanksgiving of Women 
 after Child-birth, commonly called, the Churching of Women," 
 too often becomes. Some cannot go out to a ball, or to the 
 theatre, &c., until they have been churched! and we have often 
 been pained by the evident want of feeling displayed. The words 
 in the Psalm read upon the occasion, are supposed to be those 
 (certainlj^'not of the officiating minister, but) of the woman who 
 has recently received the mercy, but they often end in mere 
 sound, and nothing else. " What reward shall I give unto the 
 Lord, for all the benefits that He hath done unto me ? I will 
 receive the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord." 
 Alas ! this so called thanksgiving is too often nothing but solemn 
 mockery; the clerk says, "Amen," and perhaps the woman says, 
 "Amen," and there the matter ends; in what way such persons 
 " take the cup of salvation," as we cannot perceive ourselves, so 
 we must leave them to determine with God. 
 
370 PRAISE. 
 
 distinct form of praise; praise to God — acknowledgment 
 that it is from Him we have received the blessing, and 
 that to Him the praise is due. A favour is doubly sweet 
 when it comes from one we love ; if we feel God to be 
 our Father, and if we love Him as such, will it not be 
 doubly sweet to us to receive the blessing from Him? 
 ^^ General praise'^ will never do; we must offer "^ specific 
 praise/^ for specific blessings ; an act of praise for each 
 act of mercy, each help, each blessing as it comes. 
 When we have been helped, or received a blessing, it is 
 well to stand up before God in the privacy of our own 
 room, and look up into the sky, and try, as it were, to 
 pierce to His very Throne, and offer up a special thanks- 
 giving, naming that very blessing just received, by its 
 common name ; for example, (to refer to a matter already 
 touched upon) if money be needed, it is well to pray for 
 it with our hands open, and in the attitude of a person 
 putting out the hand to receive; that is very helpful, 
 especially if we look at our hands as then empty ; then 
 when the Lord sends what vv^e need, either for His cause 
 or for ourselves, it is well to take it, and to put it into 
 the palm of om' hands, and kneel down or stand up be- 
 fore the Lord; and after stirring up our minds by looking 
 at it there, and thinking how it came there, to praise 
 Him, and say, ^' I thank Thee, Lord, that Thou hast sent 
 this into my hand." There is something very distinct 
 and well-defined in such an act as this ; and there is a 
 reality which we believe to be acceptable to God. When 
 a preacher has sought for help in his day's ministry, or in 
 preaching a sermon, it is well, when he comes home, to 
 go into his study, and then and there thank God for that 
 help ; and far indeed was that good woman from being a 
 
PRAISE. 371 
 
 weak minded or silly person, wlio_, when slie had dressed 
 and laid upon the table a dinner for a large party, sur- 
 veyed it all, and as she did so, thanked God, who had 
 enabled her to do her cooking well. 
 
 The loving -kindness of the Lord was another subject of 
 the Psalmist's praise. He says, " I will praise Thy name 
 for Thy loving-kindness, and for Thy truth.'-' (Psalm 
 cxxxviii, 2.) There are two beautiful thoughts brought 
 out here; one is, ^^ God's condescension in thought;'' 
 the other, " His tenderness in action." These are both 
 included in "loving-kindness." And both of these are 
 shewn by God to His own people. He humbleth Him- 
 self to behold the things of the children of men; He 
 condescends to men of low estate; of the blessed Jesus 
 it is said, that " though He was rich, yet for your sakes 
 He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be 
 rich." (2 Cor. viii, 9.) Who can tell the depths to 
 which God condescends in loving thought? We are 
 told that the very hairs of our head are all numbered ; 
 and if the hairs of our head, then surely all else beside. 
 God, as the Heavenly Father, takes an interest in every 
 thing about His people; He takes this interest in 
 matters which they think beneath His notice, or of 
 which they, from their ignorance, do not know the 
 importance. The mother may drav/ whole stores of 
 comfort from a realization of the condescending thought- 
 fulness of God. He will be interested about her babe; 
 if she commit it to Him, He who made the universe 
 Avill, with His infinite mind, think upon her cradle and 
 the helpless creature that is rocked to sleep therein. 
 The sick man may draw whole stores of comfort from 
 the same som'ce, for he can believe that the One by 
 
372 PRAISE. 
 
 whom the body was fearfully and wonderfully made, will 
 think over the sufferings of that body, and alleviate them, 
 or give strength for the endurance of them if they 
 must be borne — condescension of thought marks all the 
 dealings of God with his people. 
 
 And hard following upon it comes tenderness in action. 
 Now this '^ tenderness in action ^^ is a great part of the 
 loving -kindness of God; it is meet that a thoughtful 
 mind and tender hand should go together in the perfec- 
 tion of love. God is not only energetic, but tender also 
 in action ; He is the God of the dew-drops, as well as 
 the God of the thunder showers ; the God of the tender 
 grass bladC; as much as of the mountain oak. We read 
 of great machines, which are able to crush iron bars, 
 and yet they can touch so gently as not to break the 
 shell of the smallest o^^^-, as it is with them, so is it 
 with the hand of the Most High; He can crush a 
 world, and yet bind up a wound. And great need have 
 we of tenderness in our low estate ; a little thing would 
 crush us : we have such bruised and feeble souls, that 
 unless we had One who would deal tenderly with us, we 
 must soon be destroyed. There are many soul diseases, 
 to which a tender hand alone can minister; just as there 
 are many states of body which need tender and patient 
 nursing, and which cannot otherwise be successfully 
 dealt with, even by any amount of skill. This tender- 
 ness we see continually in action in woman^s ministrations 
 in ordinary life. Her voice has notes more sweet and 
 soft than can be distilled from any instrument of music ; 
 her hand has a touch more delicate and fine than even the 
 breath of any summer's breeze; it is to her man carries 
 the stories of his sorrows : it is she that has to pillow his 
 
PRAISE. 373 
 
 aching, heavy head ; well as he thinks he can do without 
 her, in the more exciting scenes of life, he finds that h^ 
 is not independent when the time comes for suffering 
 and grief. And what makes woman equal to sustaining 
 the heavy burden thus cast upon her ? How comes the 
 ivy to be able to sustain the oak, around which it used 
 to cling, ornamenting it, while it owned its lordship and 
 strength ? She does all in the power of the tenderness 
 of her nature ; rugged and uncouth would life indeed be 
 if such tenderness were withdrawn. But pass away to 
 di\ine things — from woman, to Him that was born of 
 woman — and what do we find, but tenderness of action 
 in Him ? That tenderness, which in any of mankind is 
 but as a spark from the fire, is perfect in His bosom ; 
 its fulness is there ; and it is continually being shewn to 
 them. The good Samaritan not only binds up the 
 wound, and pours in oil and wine, but sets the wounded 
 man upon his own beast, and says "take care of him.'' 
 We have often felt this tenderness of action on God's 
 part; we have been gently restored when we went 
 astray ; we never received a heavy chastisement when a 
 light one would do ; we never had a chastisement pro- 
 longed one moment beyond the needed time. Has not 
 Christ given us a balm in many times of sorrow ? Has 
 He not spoken to us with a gentle voice, when one of 
 thunder would not have been too loud for our deserts ; 
 and have we not here good cause for praise ? Expect 
 loving-kindnesses from the Lord, enjoy them, but oh ! do 
 not allow them to pass by unnoticed, because of their 
 delicacy; their very tenderness, their very delicacy is 
 their beauty. O, my soul, be all grossness of vision 
 
 K K 
 
374 PRAISE. 
 
 removed, and thine be the Psalmist's words, '' I will 
 praise Thy name for Thy loving-kindness/^ 
 
 We would not altogether pass over the Truth of God 
 as a subject of praise, although to go deep into it would 
 be altogether beyond the limits of the present volume. 
 We would only draw the reader's attention to ^^the 
 coming out of God's intrinsic character/' as brought 
 before us here. He is a truthful God; He has been, 
 from time immemorial, tried and proved by His people 
 as such; and that truth should be one subject of their 
 praise. But let us remember God's intrinsic character ; 
 let us praise Him for honouring and answering the 
 dependence which we have placed upon His word ; let us 
 not lose sight of His character, in the gracious acts which 
 have proceeded from it. We rested upon God's truth; 
 truth has not disappointed us, and for it we should 
 praise. The redeemed in glory praise God for His 
 truth ; they have attained the land of blessedness, 
 simply because they reposed upon that truth ; a shadow 
 of variableness in God might have ruined them all ; but 
 with Him there is no variableness nor shadow of turning, 
 and they are saved. What have we to depend upon, but 
 simply the truth of God? We have nothing to lean 
 upon, but His simple word. " He that believeth shall 
 be saved," is our only secui-ity for eternal life, but that 
 is enough. " God is not a man that He should lie, nor 
 the son of man that He should repent ;" and it is the 
 truth of God that is to carry the believer safe to heaven . 
 As we rest, then, upon this truth ; as we feel it equal to 
 all our need ; as we see the gigantic interests at stake — 
 and yet not at stake — for they are safe ; well may the 
 
PRAISE. 375 
 
 Psalmist's words be ours, " I will praise Thy name for 
 Thy loving-kindness and Thy truth." 
 
 Escape from the tinumphing of the ungodly, stirred 
 also the spirit of praise. ^' I will extol Thee, O God, for 
 Thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to 
 triumph over me." Psalm xxx, 1 . 
 
 If ever there was a man who had reason to thank God 
 in this respect it was David. He was hunted like a 
 partridge upon the mountains ; those of his own household 
 lifted up the heel against him; and there were some 
 seasons when it seemed almost impossible that he could 
 escape even with his life. David was in this a type of 
 Christ; the enemy was continually upon the watch for him ; 
 fraud and violence combined to take away His life ; but 
 the enemies of Jesus had no triumph over Him ; they 
 never attacked Him without a defeat, and when at last 
 He died, He laid down His life. An apparent triumph 
 was gained over David when he fled from his palace, 
 a fugitive from the violence of his own child; and an 
 apparent triumph was gained over the Saviour, when He 
 hung upon the cross, but David was restored, and Jesus 
 was raised from the dead, and the triumphing of the 
 wicked was but short. The truth is, Satan defeats him- 
 self ; his energies are not destroyed by God, but they are 
 neutralized ; God does not always prevent his working, 
 but He does make his efforts turn against himself and on 
 behalf of those of whom it is said, "All things shall 
 work together for good." Romans viii, 28. 
 
 Satan no doubt often strikes the people of God, but 
 the arrow that he shoots recoils upon himself, and 
 inflicts upon him and his cause, the injury he thought to 
 inflict on them. The persecution of the early Christians 
 
376 PRAISE. 
 
 scattered them tlirougliotit tlie worId_, and spread the 
 gospel throughout the nations; and now the \erj talk 
 which there often is against the truth, but serves to make 
 some enquire, and to spread its influence more and more. 
 It is true the enemy may rejoice for a season — the beast 
 that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit may make war 
 against the witnesses, and overcome them, and kill them ; 
 the peoples, and nations, and kindreds, and tongues, may 
 rejoice over them, [and make merry, for three days and 
 a half; but their triumphing is only short, for '^ after three 
 days and a half, the spirit of life from God enters into 
 them, and they stand upon their feet, and great fear falls 
 upon them which see them.^' We must distinguish 
 between temporary and final triumph. The first is 
 allowed to the enemy, the second is not ; the foe is per- 
 mitted very often to rejoice for a while, but the final 
 triumph is never left with him. Let us remember this 
 in our own conflicts with the Evil One, in many of which 
 we seem to be worsted : on such occasions we lose all 
 heart ; we believe that there is truth in all that boasting 
 with which he presses us so hard ; we think that he will 
 follow up his victory, until we be utterly destroyed ; but 
 all this is only for a season ; let us cast ourselves on God, 
 let us say, " Consider and hear me, O Lord my God ; 
 lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death ; lest 
 mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him, and those 
 that trouble me rejoice when I am moved -/^ and we shall 
 have cause with the Psalmist to say, " I will extol Thee, 
 O God, for Thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made 
 my foes to rejoice over me." "With the exception of the 
 blessed Lord Jesus Christ Himself, there never lived one 
 over whom the Devil had not temporary triumphs ; that 
 
PRAISE. 377 
 
 they were only temporary is due to preserving grace. 
 Let us consider the histories of olden time, and we shall 
 see that they all witness this. The triumph over Joseph, 
 over David, over Daniel, over Shadrach, Meshach, and 
 Abednego, over Mordecai, and all such, was but short ; 
 it was a triumph, but only for a while ; so is it with us, 
 it shall not last. And let this encourage any of us who 
 are greatly depressed under some present defeat, which 
 involves a corresponding triumphing of the Evil One. He 
 now meditates further proceedings against us ; his design 
 is to press us ; to go on from one victory to another over 
 us, but God can lift us up. We have cast ourselves 
 down, but He can lift us up. He (if we cast ourselves 
 upon Him) will make the case His own, He will enter 
 into conflict with our foe ; He will lift us up so that we 
 also shall be as it were set upon our legs again to flght, 
 and we shall win back the ground, the loss of which gave 
 the enemy occasion to blaspheme. The Psalmist declared 
 that God prepared a table for him in the presence of his 
 enemies ; and what He did for him. He will do for us ; 
 only let us not forget to praise; the Psalmist said, 
 " Thou hast lifted me up. Thou hast not made my foes 
 to rejoice ;" we must say the same — we must extol God, 
 attributing the victory to Him, for by Him it has been 
 won. Not to recognise Him in action, not distinctly to 
 give the praise to Him, will be to put the enemy in the 
 way of rejoicing over us by a further fall. 
 
 There remains one point more which we would es- 
 pecially notice, and i.e., praise for hearing prayer. "I 
 will praise Thee, for Thou hast heard me.'^ (Psalm 
 cxviii, 21.) In this point, almost above all others, God 
 is frequently robbed of His praise. Men pray; they 
 
 K K 2 
 
378 PRAISE. 
 
 receive an answer to their prayers ; and then forget to 
 praise. This happens especially in small things; we 
 should ever remember that whatever is worth praying 
 for, is worth praising for also. The fact is, we do not 
 recognise God in these small things as much as we 
 should; if we do praise, it is for the receipt of the 
 blessing, with which we are pleased, leaving ont of 
 account the One from whom the blessing has come. 
 This is not acceptable to God; we must see Him in the 
 blessing, if we wonld really praise. The Psalmist says, 
 "I will praise Thee, for Thon hast heard me;^' he 
 praised not only because he had received, but also 
 because he had been heard — because the living God, as a 
 hearing God, was manifested in His mercies. And 
 when we know that God has heard us, let us not delay 
 our praise ; if we put off our thanksgiving until perhaps 
 only the evening, we may forget to praise at all ; and if 
 we do praise, it will in all probability be with only half 
 the warmth which would have animated our song at first. 
 God loves a quick return for His blessings ; one sentence 
 of heartfelt thanksgiving is worth all the formalism of a 
 more laboured service. There is a freshness about im- 
 mediate praise which is like the fragrance of the early 
 morning, which is like the bloom upon the fruit; its 
 being spontaneous adds ineffably to its price. 
 
 Trace, then, dear reader, a connection between your 
 God and your blessing. Recognise His hearing ear as 
 well as His bounteous hand, and be your^s the Psalmisf s 
 words, '' I will praise Thee, for Thou hast heard me.'' 
 
379 
 
 CHAPTEK XX. 
 THE DIFFERENT ATTEIBXJTES OF PRAISE. 
 
 Psalm ix, 1, 2. "J will praise Thee, O Lord, with my ivhok 
 heartr " I will he glad and rejoice in Thee^^ 
 
 Psalm xxxiv, 1. '•'■I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise 
 shall continually he in my mouth" 
 
 Psalm Ixxi, 14. ^^ But I will hope continually, and will yet 
 praise Thee more ajid more^ 
 
 Psalm cxix, 7. " I will praise Thee with uprightness of heart, 
 when I shall have learned Thy righteous judgments." 
 
 Psalm cxliv, 9. ^^ L will sing a new song unto Thee, O God." 
 
 Psalm cviii, 1. "0 God, my heart isjixed, L will sing and give 
 praise, even ivith my glory." 
 
 IT will be weU to consider for a short time some of 
 the attributes of real praise^ so that we may not 
 only praise^ but praise aright. If we be rightly instructed,, 
 we shall aim not merely at the possession of any Clmstian 
 grace, but at perfection in it. 
 
 The subject then upon which we are now to dwell is^ 
 The Attributes of Praise. 
 
 And first let us mention Heartiness in praise. There 
 is something pre-eminently miserable in faint unliving 
 praise. Amongst men a half-hearted praise is considered 
 almost akin to blame, and we may rest assured that no 
 great price can be put upon such praise in heaven. 
 
 Lip-service — the mere duty of praise, is of little worth ; 
 praise is of that nature that unless it be accompanied by 
 
380 THE ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 
 
 feeling it must be dead and flat^ and cease almost to be 
 ftself ; the feeling may not always be the same, it may be 
 gratitude, or admiration, but still it is feeling, and as 
 such gives life to praise. 
 
 Let us bring this matter home to ourselves, and we 
 shall understand it better by our own feelings than by 
 any arguments or words. Let us suppose that our 
 children felt it a duty to come and praise us every 
 morning, that they came near either singly or collectively, 
 and with drooping eye, and unimpassioned face, and hands 
 hanging listlessly by their sides, they began to recite or 
 sing in a monotonous tone their obligations to us for 
 letting them sleep beneath our roof and eat our food ; or 
 suppose we had just given one of these children some- 
 thing it had long desired, or saved it from some accident, 
 and that it came before us, and in the same dull attitude 
 began to repeat some particular form which it had 
 evidently got by heart, should not we feel utterly disgusted 
 at such a would-be exhibition of gratitude as this? 
 And yet this is the kind of praise which we too often 
 offer to God. Such is not the praise of which the 
 Psalmist speaks here, when he says, " I will praise Thee, 
 O Lord, with my whole heart ;^' he had meaning, he had 
 feeling in his song; and better would it be for us to 
 hum a psalm tune with a feeling of springing of heart 
 to the Lord, than to offer up a Te Deum or Jubilate 
 under a cathedral's roof, unless om* souls pass upward 
 with it to the throne of God. 
 
 Impressed then with a belief of the nothingness of this 
 mere '' duty praise,'' let us seek distinctly to have our 
 hearts stirred up to thankfulness, and to heartiness in 
 praise. We may do much for ourselves in this matter 
 by the help of the Spirit, for a good deal of our 
 
THE ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 381 
 
 formalism in praise comes from not thinkings from our 
 not entering individually into it. Let us think and 
 reason witli ourselves somewhat in this way — 
 
 "Why should / receive this mercy which God has 
 now bestowed ? Are there not hundreds of others whose 
 need is as great as mine^ and they have not received as 
 much ? My pain has ceased while theirs continues day 
 after day ; my comforts are many whilst theirs are but 
 few ; I have not deserved this relief in any way ; I have 
 received it as a gift ; then stir thyself, my heart_, to praise. 
 
 Moreover^ let us think^ what might have been our 
 state if we had not received such and such a blessing. 
 Had not God mercifully arrested a cough it might have 
 turned to consumption; had He not sent us such and 
 such pecuniary help at such a time^ we might have been 
 beggared and bankrupt before now; had we not been 
 sent to such a place^ or been kept back from going to some 
 other place, might we not have met with ruin or death ? 
 
 Thoughts such as these would have another good 
 effect_, viz._, that of keeping us in a thankful spirit, and 
 from a grumbling and repining one, when things do not 
 fall out exactly as we should wish. How do we know , 
 what great mercies are hidden in these apparent crosses ? 
 If I am hindered from going to a place, how do I know 
 but that if I had taken the journey, I might have slipped 
 getting in or out of the train, and have broken my leg, 
 if not my head ? how do I know but that if I had gone 
 at that particular time to that particular place, I might 
 have trodden perhaps upon an orange peel in the street, 
 and have had a fall which might have confined me to my 
 bed for weeks ? If I see nothing good coming out of 
 what happens, I believe in the warding off of something 
 bad ; and let a circumstance appear never so provoking. 
 
382 THE ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 
 
 we may still find plenty of cause for cheerful praise, for, 
 if we be God's children, it must be working together with 
 other things for our good. But in order that such 
 thoughts as these may induce us to praise heartily, they 
 must be something more than mere speculations ; we may 
 speculate as much as we please as to the particular good 
 to be had or the evil to be averted, but we must have a 
 deep belief that good is given and evil is averted ; the 
 depth of our belief will give heartiness to our praise. An 
 unthinking spmt is always an unthankful one. But the 
 grand influence is that of the Holy Spirit : when He 
 stirs within our hearts, warming and vivifying us, we feel 
 rise within us the spirit of praise. Just as the birds 
 which have been silent dm'ing the winter, sing when they 
 feel the influence of the spring, and as they break forth 
 when the morning dawns and the shadows of the night 
 have hastened away, so the soul which coidd neither sing 
 nor praise for perhaps many a long hour of coldness and 
 darkness is stirred on the incoming of the Holy Ghost. 
 The Spirit of God is a Spirit of praise ; no doubt He is a 
 convicting Spirit, and One who can make thunders roll 
 and lightnings flash throughout the heart, but He is 
 also a Spirit of genial influences, presiding over and 
 evoking the harmonies of the soul ; yes, even more than 
 this, creating them, as the Spirit of praise. That praise 
 must be hearty indeed, which has its origin from God, it 
 must be acceptable as it returns to God again ; may we 
 have it more and more; may we seek it more and more; 
 we must have God Himself to help us, if we would 
 praise Him aright. 
 
 The Psalmist speaks further of the Continuance of his 
 Praise, "I will bless the Lord at all times; (or in 
 every season) His praise shall continually be in my 
 
THE ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 383 
 
 mouth." " I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live, 
 I will sing praise to my God while I have my being." 
 "I will extol Thee, O God, my King, and I will bless 
 Thy name for ever and ever." 
 
 There are some who can praise only at certain seasons, 
 i. e.j when they have received some mercy; it is true 
 what might be called a small mercy will make them 
 praise, but they must always have a finger upon their 
 hearths spring, or they have no heart for praise. Each 
 fresh mercy winds them up like a musical box, and they 
 play their tune, and have done with it; when another 
 mercy comes, they will be set off again for one tune, but 
 for no more ; they want a living motive power, and on 
 that account there are such long gaps in their sounds of 
 praise. And there are others, whose song cannot be 
 called forth, except for some very great mercy; they 
 must be startled into praise ; they must almost escape from 
 the jaws of death or ruin, before they can see how much 
 they are indebted to God. The intervals between the 
 praises of such persons are long indeed ; what might be 
 called their minor mercies go for naught, and they pro- 
 voke God to teach them the real greatness of these 
 "minor mercies," by the removal of them. Others 
 there are, who can never praise when an affliction is upon 
 them ; any sad dispensation is enough to quench their 
 spirits, to break their harp strings, and to make them 
 hang the harps themselves upon the willows ; they can- 
 not put deep meaning into those words, " The Lord gave, 
 and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the 
 LordP There is shortcoming, however, here, which the 
 child of God must endeavour to avoid ; when we are in 
 affliction, God is unchanged in His relationship to us, 
 and we are unchanged in cur relationship to Him ; and 
 
38^ THE ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 
 
 praise is in point of fact as mucli His due in the time of 
 sorrow as of joy. No doubt it is hard to practice this ; 
 this is a point of attainment to which many a true be- 
 KeTcr has not reached,, but grace can easily raise him to 
 praise even in all his pains. Thus was it with a poor old 
 widow, who ejaculated thankfully, ^^How favoured I 
 am ! '' under circumstances in which we, perhaps, should 
 have thought ourselves accursed. 
 
 '' She was a poor widow in the decline of life, and sup- 
 ported herself with the most rigid economy by knitting. 
 
 ^^I saw her in the intense cold of last winter. The 
 house was one upon which time had made such sad 
 ravages, that one room only could now be inhabited : 
 and in that she dared not have a fire when the wind 
 blew hard, because the chimney had become unsafe. 
 
 " ' How favoured I am,' she said, ' for when it has 
 been the coldest, the wind didnH blow much ; or there 
 was so much snow on the house I could have a fire 
 without danger. / cannot be thankful enough ! And 
 then,' she continued, ^ Joseph has been at home nights 
 almost all the winter, and he could get my wood and 
 water, when there was so much snow I could not get out.' 
 
 '' ^But do you not feel very lonely while Joseph is away?' 
 
 "'Oh, no; I get along very well through the day;' 
 her Bible lay upon the table by which she was sewing, 
 •^aud when I can see the neighbours' lights in the 
 evening, it is company for me. I have thought a good 
 deal about sick people this winter; and then I think 
 how favoured I am, that I can go to bed and sleep all 
 night in health.' 
 
 '^ I saw her again to-day. Rheumatism had disabled 
 one foot, and she sat still sewing, with the swollen, 
 painful limb raised upon a cushion. ' How favoured I 
 
THE ATTRIBUTES OP PRAISE. 385 
 
 am ! ' she still exclaimed : ^ when my poor Lydia was 
 alive, I lost the use of both my feet for a time, and she 
 took care of me ; but now I can get about by moving 
 my foot upon a chair, and I make out to do my work 
 and get Joseph's meals ready nicely. I canH help 
 thinking, What if it had been my hands? How 
 favoured I am ! '" 
 
 Amid all the vjirying experiences of life, there ought 
 to be no break in the continuity of our praise; the 
 verse of the well known hymn should be indeed our 
 rule: 
 
 " Through all the changing scenes of life, 
 
 In trouble and in joy, 
 The praises of my God shall still 
 
 My heart and tongue employ." 
 
 If we cannot ever praise when affliction is upon us, it 
 is as much as to say, "now that I have not the good 
 things of God, I have not God Himself; I only knew 
 Him in His good things, and now that they are away, 
 I cannot recognise Him any more.'^ He who would 
 continue in praise, must see God in Himself; he must 
 see that though things change. He changeth not ; that, 
 although they perish. He endures ; though they wax old 
 as a garment, He is the same ; God is to be praised, not 
 only for what He gives, and what He does, but also for 
 what He is; and never, probably, can purer or more 
 disinterested and genuine praise arise on this account, 
 than in the time of our sorrow and pain. We have 
 seen some afflicted ones thus praising, and that, with no 
 small measure of joy in hours of severe distress; the 
 lips were often compressed with excruciating agony, but 
 they opened to praise the Lord ; a sigh, a groan, would 
 come forth to ease poor burdened human nature, but 
 
 L L 
 
386 THE ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 
 
 that was the voice of the suffering flesh,, and not of the 
 sanctified spirit^ which was ever ready with its thanks- 
 givings even though the parched and quivering lips were 
 scarce equal to the task."^ Oh ! how are many of us 
 rebuked by such sights and sounds as these ; oh ! how 
 shocking does our ingratitude appear^ when we recall to 
 mind the wasted form, the sunken eye, the parched and 
 burning lip of the poor invalid, unable to turn in bed, 
 unable to sleep, unable to eat, unable to breathe without 
 pain, and yet able to praise. Surely such praise must be 
 of exceeding price in the sight of God, it must be like 
 the music of a difficult piece played with a master^s 
 hand ; it must be counted fit for the ear of the Monarch, 
 fit for the court of heaven; and so it is. May we learn 
 from the sorrows of others, if we will not from our own 
 joys, and praise the name of the Lord. 
 
 Let u« not forget, that the Psalmist declared, that he 
 would praise more and more. "But I will hope con- 
 tinually, and will yet praise Thee more and more." 
 Psalm Ixxi, 14. Heartiness in praise is good, and so is 
 continuance therein, but we should not be content with 
 these, we should aim at an increase of 'praise also. 
 
 Let us remember that an unthankful spirit is a very 
 growing one ; like all evil weeds it grows apace; unthank- 
 fulness for little mercies soon spreads to unthankfulness 
 for greater ones, and then to unthankfulness for the 
 greatest of all. We ought to have an increasing spirit 
 of praise owing to the law of life. That law, as we 
 have already observed, is progression, and wherever life 
 is strong, praise will be loud. We can easily account 
 
 * The author has heard continual praises from a tongue half 
 eaten away with cancer — what use, beloved reader, are you 
 making of your tongue ? 
 
THE ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 387 
 
 for this. The child as he progresses in life, and develops 
 in his faculties, increases amongst other things in per- 
 ceptive power ; this increase awakens admiration, wonder, 
 thought; he perceives the uses of things, their beauty, 
 their construction, their bearing upon himself, and so 
 forth, and his other faculties are brought into play by 
 this increase of perceptive power. The child of God 
 was never destined to stand still; he was given life, 
 with the intention of there being after growth, and that 
 in praise as well as anything else. How then, it might 
 be asked, do we find ourselves getting on with reference 
 to growth in praise ? Do we feel our perceptive power 
 increasing; do we find ourselves able to trace God's 
 hand more and more ; can we see the bearing of certain 
 dispensations upon our good; can we see that there 
 is blessing wrapped up in ordinary, common place 
 experiences ; can we perceive more and more how much 
 cause we have for praise ? If we be thus increasing in 
 perceptive power, surely the accumulation of our mercies 
 ought to affect us ; we should every year we live praise 
 more and more ! The more we praise for mercies past, 
 the more shall we have cause given to us to praise, by 
 mercies yet to come. God will honour a spirit of praise, 
 even as He honours every grace which His Spirit gives. 
 
 All that now remains is that we should briefly notice 
 
 The different kinds of praise, of which the Psalmist 
 speaks. These are Singing to the nams of the Lord, 
 Manifesting, Blessing, Extolling, Thanksgiving, Exaltingo 
 
 Just as the stem which is full of sap throws out many 
 branches, so the believer who is full of a spirit of praise 
 will give vent to it in many different forms. Let us 
 consider some of these. There is 
 
 Manifestation. " I will shew forth all Thy marvellous 
 
388 THE ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 
 
 works/^ Psalm ix^ 1. God is greatly praised wlien 
 His people exercise a manifesting spirit — when they speak 
 of the good things which He has done for them — when 
 they give Him the glory due unto His name. In this, 
 however, they are often deficient; they do not indeed 
 try to take credit to themselves, but they do not give the 
 praise to God ; they are silent, and by their silence the 
 Most High is robbed of His praise. It is no wonder 
 that the people of the world know so little about the 
 Lord, when He is so little brought before them by His 
 own people. We ought not to be continually receiving 
 good things from God, without ever speaking of them ; 
 for example, if a child has been gi'ievously ill, and we 
 are congratulated on his recovery, and we know and feel 
 that we owe that recovery to the Lord Himself, we 
 should not allow our friends to go away without our 
 distinctly recognising before them, and to them, the 
 gracious working of God ; without " shewing forth His 
 marvellous work.^^ How often do we allow the physician, 
 and the medicine, and the change of air, and all such 
 means to be spoken of, and we are silent about the One 
 from whom they derive their efficacy ; we do not shew 
 forth God's marvellous works. Who can tell what a 
 blessed effect this recognising praise would have upon 
 many of our relatives and friends ? When they heard us 
 continually bringing before them the good things which 
 God has done for us ; when they heard success in any 
 enterprise, escape from any danger, and so forth, ever 
 traced to the one Almighty hand, they would perhaps 
 begin to think ; and by our reiterated praise, and mani- 
 festation, they might be led to believe; and so, our 
 blessings would be put out to interest for God, and 
 doubtless would increase and multiply to ourselves. 
 
THE ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 389 
 
 When we liave received any special good thing from 
 the Lord, it is well, according as we have opportunities, 
 to teU others of it. When the woman who had lost one 
 of her ten pieces of silver, found the missing portion of 
 her money, she gathered her neighbours and her friends 
 together, saying, " Rejoice with me for I have found the 
 piece which I had lost/^ We may do the same ; we may 
 teU friends and relations that we have received such and 
 such a blessing, and that we trace it directly to the hand 
 of God. Why have we not already done this ? Is there 
 a lurking unbelief as to whether it really came from 
 God ; or are we ashamed to own it before those who are 
 perhaps accustomed to laugh at such things? Who 
 knows so much of the marvellous works of God as His 
 own people ; if they be silent, how can we expect the 
 world to see what He has done ? Let us not be ashamed 
 to glorify God, by telling what we know and feel He has 
 done ; let us watch our opportunity to bring out distinctly 
 the fact of His acting ; let us feel delighted at having an 
 opportunity from our own experience, of telling what 
 must turn to His praise; and them that honour God, 
 God will honour in turn ; if we be willing to talk of 
 His deeds. He will give us enough to talk about. 
 
 '^ Extolling'^ is another form which the believer's praise 
 will take. " I will extol Thee, O Lord, for Thou hast 
 lifted me up," &c. Psalm xxx, 1. ''1 will extol Thee, 
 my God, O King." Psalm cxlv, 1. To extol is to set 
 pre-eminently on high; to exalt above all others; it is 
 the expression of the greatest possible admiration ; it is 
 letting others know our high opinion of a person, and 
 endeavouring to win them over to it. The man who has 
 such a high opinion of another as to induce him to extol 
 
 L L 2 
 
390 THE ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 
 
 }iim_, will not be likely to rest without bringing fortb 
 into prominent observation tbe object of his praise., 
 
 This surely suggests an enquiry to each of us ; have 
 we this extolling spirit ? do we feel an earnest desire that 
 God should be magnified,, yea, rather do we feel an 
 earnest desire to magnify Him ourselves ; not only that 
 His name should be set on high, but that it should be 
 set on high by us. That God's name will be exalted and 
 extolled, we may be sure, for He will not lose His 
 glory ; but this may be done, without being done by us. 
 " Extolling'^ is something more than the faint praise 
 which is given to God, even by many of His own dear 
 people ; it is pressing upon men His excellencies ; it is 
 attracting their attention by unusual praise. Let us not 
 be afraid of doing this ; let us make men think j by what 
 we have to say of God ; let them say, " there is a reality 
 in all this ; these men must have had some experiences 
 out of which they speak and sing.'' Our earnestness, 
 our energy, would doubtless impress many with the 
 reality of our religion; it may be they will ask about 
 the dealings of the One we extol; and while they are 
 investigating His claims to our praise, feel constrained 
 to praise themselves. 
 
 This " extolling the Lord" will accomplish one of the 
 great ends of praise, viz., His exaltation. "Thou art my 
 God," says the Psalmist, Psalm cxviii, 28, " and I will 
 praise Thee ; Thou art my God, I will exalt Thee." It 
 is true that God both can and will exalt Himself, but it 
 is at once the duty and the privilege of His people to 
 exalt Him. His name should be upborne and magnified 
 by them; the glory of that name is now as it were 
 committed to them; what use are we making of the 
 opportunity and the privilege ? 
 
THE ATTRIBUTES OF PRAISE. 391 
 
 Hencefortlij may we be more animated with the spirit 
 of praise; hencefortli may we shew the world more of 
 the joy of the believer's life, and of the blessedness of the 
 One the believer serves ; we shall impress by telling what 
 the Lord hath done, when we may entirely fail by de- 
 claring what the Lord can do; the world will pay 
 more attention to us when we are praising God for a 
 small mercy, than when we are praying to Him for a 
 great one. There is an operative power in praise ; let 
 us not lose the reward which we might have gained by 
 rightly using the power of praise. It may be that they 
 who have here done work the best for God, shall have 
 appointed to them the most glorious work hereafter; 
 that they who have praised the most amid the scoffers of 
 this world, shall be heard the loudest and the sweetest 
 in the choirs of the redeemed. There is perhaps a reward 
 in kind, as well as in degree. 
 
 Let the time past be sufhcient for our silence, and for 
 neglect of praise. Let us now invoke the Spirit to stir 
 within us the sounds of holy song ; let us string anew 
 the harps which have been hung upon the willows ; let 
 us listen attentively, and God Himself will give us the 
 key note for our song ; let us but be willing to praise, 
 and God will teach us how to praise, yea, by fresh 
 mercies He will quicken us in praise. " My heart is 
 fixed, O God, my heart is fixed, I will sing and give 
 praise. Awake up my glory ; awake psaltery and harp, 
 I myself will awake right early. I will praise Thee, O 
 Lord, among the people, I will sing unto Thee among 
 the nations. For Thy mercy is great unto the heavens, 
 and Thy truth unto the clouds. Be Thou exalted, O 
 God, above the heavens, let Thy glory be above all the 
 earth.^' Psalm Ivii, 7, &c. 
 
3^2 
 
 CHAPTER XXI, 
 
 ij\t Hilling Spirit, miir i\t ®eali gk\. 
 
 Matthew xxvi, 41. " The spirit indeed is willing, hut thejlesh 
 
 is weak" 
 
 SUCH were tlie words of our blessed Lord_, as He 
 contemplated the slumbering forms of His weak 
 disciples. They have in them much that is humiliating, 
 they have in them something that is comforting also. 
 Jesus recognises the willing spirit, albeit it is hidden in 
 the weakness of the flesh. And as the Saviour did of 
 old, so does He now, so will He do by the reader, who 
 desires to make the Psalmist^ s ^' I wills ^^ his own. 
 
 Let the reader, then, of these " I wills ^^ be encouraged 
 to pronounce in the Psalmist's words his fixed determi- 
 nations both as to endurance and action. Deeply 
 conscious of the weakness of the flesh, let us invoke the 
 help of the Holy Ghost, and He will energize it for all it 
 has to bear or do. Be it our part to bear and do, leaving 
 all results with God. 
 
 This willing spirit shall be acknowledged by God in 
 
THE WILLING SPIRIT^ ETC. 393 
 
 perfect independence of all outward results ; whether the 
 willing spirit make a trial, yea, many trials, a^d fails; or 
 whether no opportunity of making a trial be given to it 
 at all. Were it not thus, the labour of the man of God 
 would be unsatisfactory indeed; for the results are very 
 often not commensurate with his efforts much less with 
 his will. The question of results need not be entered 
 into at all. Had the man a willing spirit, and if an 
 opportunity were afforded to him did he embrace it ? If 
 so, although every plan of usefulness failed; although 
 from a long life of ministry he never saved a soul ; from 
 a long life of teaching he never made one understand 
 unto eternal life ; from a long life of truest charity he 
 never reclaimed a single wanderer, or left one continuing 
 impression for good upon his ungodly neighbours; the 
 willingness of his spirit shall be recognised in the courts 
 of heaven, and not a tittle of the blessing shall be lost. 
 And is not this full of sweetness for such as have very 
 willing spii'its, but have comparatively few opportunities 
 of acting openly on behalf of Christ. At times, such 
 reproach themselves, and feel irritable, that while others 
 are privileged to do so much, they have scarce an 
 opportunity of doing anything at all. They say, " these 
 few shillings are all that I can give ; these few hours are 
 aU that I can oflPer; my self-denial has been strict to 
 accomplish even this; but alas ! what is it before God ? " 
 Rest assured that God will take aU your circumstances 
 into account; and as He once gave a wondrous blessing 
 to her who had done what she could, so will He give a 
 wondrous blessing to you. There are some to whom 
 this statement will be of value; their hearts are their 
 witnesses that they are willing in spirit; their deeds, 
 
394 THE WILLING SPIRIT^ 
 
 though small in themselves give a concurrent testimony^ 
 because under the circumstances they are great. You 
 are not excluded from the greatness of the reward ; the 
 willing spirit shall never want the glorious crown. 
 
 We need no wide- spread sphere on earth, in which to 
 shew the willing spirit, and win its high reward. 
 
 The willing spirit is seen in sickness, bereavement, and 
 poverty, in prayers, and strivings, and watchings of soul, 
 in perseverance in our difficulties, self-denial in our 
 characters, and victory over our sins. And many of 
 God^s people shew that in all these particulars they have 
 the willing spirit ; imperfect, they all doubtless are, but 
 they are willing; Christ^s words most fitly describe their 
 state. That man who lies all day long afflicted on his 
 bed, who recognises a Saviour's loving hand in every 
 pang, and wishes to bear for His sake, and mourns 
 when a throe of acutest agony has wrung from him an 
 impatient word, or stolen from him an impatient look — 
 that man has a willing spirit. 
 
 That man who has suffered bereavement, upon whose 
 heart wild waves have dashed, and wild winds blown, who 
 has suffered, who is suffering, and who, fearful of himself, 
 clings close to Christ, and says, " O Jesus, Thy will be 
 done, I am not strong enough to make my praise heard 
 above this storm, but Thy will be done ; " that man 
 though his heart cling to fond memories, and his sorrow 
 cut the very marrow of his soul, has a willing spirit ; 
 and against him there shall not be brought any weakness 
 of the flesh. 
 
 That man who in poverty is compelled to bear, because 
 it has pleased God to ordain; who is not fretful and 
 impatient; who calms the risings of his soul with the 
 
AND THE WEAK FLESH. 395 
 
 knowledge of the simple fact that the One that loves him 
 has ordered this; such a man has a willing spirit^ and 
 may such a spirit be vouchsafed to us. 
 
 Oh may the Holy Ghost Himself strengthen your 
 courage^ deepen your endurance, and increase your self- 
 denial. Oh ! may He so pervade all your powers of 
 action, that they may become willing powerful instru- 
 ments to work out the commands of a willing and a 
 powerful spirit — and who can tell what a glorious picture, 
 poor and weak as we are, we shall present to the world, 
 if only the Holy Ghost will give us strength ? Perhaps 
 we shall be able to deny all for Him, to bear all for Him, 
 to do much for Him ; our " Prayer," our " Trust," our 
 '*^ Action," our " Ministry," our *' Praise," will be full of 
 life from heaven, and the picture presented to the world 
 will be Jesus rejoicing over our energy and devotion : 
 instead of Jesus standing over our forms prostrated 
 and in slumber — testifying in sorrow, that " the spirit 
 indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." 
 
 THE END. 
 
 NORWICH : PRINTED BY J. FLETCHER. 
 
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