Cheraw gazette and Pee Dee farmer. [volume] (Cheraw S.C.) 1838-1839, 1839-10-25
pRAYEE MEETINGS.

published III Boston.
The direct reasons for meetings among
priva,e Christians, for social prayer ana
exhortalion, are various. 49,,
They are necessary for the growth Of the
Church IN real spirituality and religious &C.
,ivity. We do not deny the possibility oi
a private Christians living in spiritual and
active state. without such meetings; ou'
we do doubt, seriously, The pra"tlcao'''ty
of keeping the Church, as Church. 'n
such STATE, without such meetings. o.
ten happens that parishes are desl,a'e OF
minister for months together. Onaccus'
toned 10 NEE, for prayer and mutual en-
.courageneni, what becomes OF Inc commu'
nicants :? They are like Goals of fire scat.
tered about on cold, dark hearth; they
90 out, and die. And even when they have
a minister, if they are discouraged from
ever meeting by themselves, they never
will meet, we venture to say, except UNDER
stiff and formal relations so that, as gen.
eral thing, ,aey viii never be like Goals OF
fire gathered together, till, in their contact,
they warm, and glow, and finally burst IN.
10 a fame. They will always live IN cold
distance from each other, and in iIstiess in.
difference TO the vital interests OF religion III
the Church.
The meetings of which we speak, tor
social prayer and mutual edifcatlon, are ex-
cellent schools for the seriously mquirlng'
who wish some time and place, 10 which
they. can resort for sympathy. guidance,
and strength in their ncw-sprung hopes OF
life, aud in their newborn purposes OF CIV.
ing themselves away TO the Saviour. For
want of such n time and place, among Chris
tians themselves. We have lille doubt that
many hearts are continually becoming chilled
at The very beginning oftheir anxle'cs and SO.
lc,udes, and sinking back again into cold
discouragement,o or into satisfied wordliness;
and tina, thus much OF the labours of m'n-
T.. lister are lost, which might otherwise have
brought forth rich, ripe fruit uno eternal
life. Mulutudcs are afraid to go and open
their heart, 10 their minister, who would
rejoice in an opportunity, without any open
ayowal Of their feelings al first, TO throw
themselves among serious and lively Chris
,ians, and thus 10 gain courage. strength,
and decision for the step, which is to place
them before The world. Us irrevocab'y the
followers of the Crucii"d. For want Of
such an opportunity, they suppress their
feelings, till suppression drives them away,
:, or the world weaves new tolls for their
hearts. and they become again more than
ever insensible to the truth.
The same meetings arc Likewise excellent
schools for developing and bringing to light
just that kind of talent, and just that stamp
of piety, which the Church needs 10 gather.
ing around herself an able, faithful, and
weli-skilied ministry. They are schools in
which the evidences Of true Christian ex-
perience are thoroughly taught, deeply felt,
and clearly seen and where strong, and
fairly pro- portioned, aud decided specimens
Christian character are trained just such
characters, as are needed for standard bear
ers, for guides, for spiritual comforters and
cuiighteners, over the people of God. O,
how different from those, who so often
offer themselves for the ministry, they know
not why; with but the dimmest perceptions
Of the Spirits work of renewing the heart
or IN utter darkness as to the nature of that
work and who p,ess on in their prepera-
tons for becoming nothing but"blInd lead
ers Of the blind" till both fall into the ditch.
We do not say that there arc no other
iimesahd .ptaces than those, Of which we
speak, for securing the ends, Of which we
have spoken: for there are !; but we do say
that associations Of private Christians tor
prayer and mutual edi6cation are peculiarly
favourable to these ends, and deserve a
place amony the established means an agen.
cies Of the Church, tor promoting her spir.
tuai growth and activity. The Limitation
of these meetings, by the Clergy, who en-,
courage them to the simple objects ofprayer
and conversation, with The speaking to one
another in psalms and hymns and spiritual
songs"--thus excluding from them aii aP-
proach to the duties Of the ministry in the
preaching of the word, is all tha, is necessa-
iy to preserve them from the objections SO
often urged against them, and TO keep them
pure sources of health and lifeto the Church
and the cause of Christ. Religion, the re-
ligion of Jesus, is peculiarly social; I; the
Church needs opportunities for the pract'.
cal manifestation Of This, not only in the
stately assembly of the Sabbath and the
Sanctuary, where fashion and form so free
lymix with faith and purity, bu, also in
those more familiar and unembarrassed
meetings, where none but tried Christians,
and those who are willing TO become such,
draw together to cheerand strengthen each
other, and to give their sacred sympathies
full exercise and free expression. Nithou;
such opportunities, religion languishes for
want of her warmth and her dew, as tender
.,,Lo. JonsiyoJ of tho ,,,,, onJ