The Kingwood chronicle. [volume] (Kingwood, Va. [W. Va.]) 1861-1861, 1861-03-30
SUNDAY READING.
Faults in Social Prayer.

none fail to read it, and carefully consider the
reflections to which it gives rise
Much Of what frequently enters into the
exercise Of social prayer i not prayer at al,
and is therefore followed BY no definite results
If it should be said to you on your return
home from one Of these meetings which are
convened for prayer on in concert with
your companions have sought and obtained
an audience with the Great Spirit; you have
spent an hour III his presence; and now,
what is the history of that hour2 What was
4 the secret weight relief from which YOU have
been imploring2 What royal gift have You
been asking for How did YOU frame you1
petitions, what argument did you venture a.
use and how were they reccived2 Is then6
any hope for YOU and will God indeed he
Your cry 4" What brethren, would be YOU
reply to questions like these Would you.
not sometimes he compelled to confess thak
the men who had been appointed, on accoq
Of their experience to lead Your solemn "a j
haSsy, and speak N Your name, appeared t.
have no definite purpose III view whatever );
and that although their words had the sacred
color Of devoton they had in them but little
OF the petitionary clement Would you not
feel that, during i large portion Of the time,
while You seemed to bc uniting in prayer you
had only been listening to a soloquy, or a dis
quisltion that much Of what YOU heard was
rather 4 discourse on God than an appeal 10
Him: something which seemed to have been
meant tor the human car Is well as for the di-
ylne-an exercise as distinct from prayer as
the proclamation Of a herald who sends forth
the title ii Il KING. or the song Of a bard who
celebrates his deeds. il distinct from the cry
Of the mourner who imploreS his mercy?
" onld You not have reason to complain that
even the real prayers presented had no par
ticular relation to existing circumstances
that the SINE phrases were repeated in the
same order, aYI ii The same cadence as they
had ever been, that there was special char
aeter IN the PRAYER and that it would have
been just suited to one place rs to another,
and to one country rs to another? To say
that most q, orr prayer meetings might be
thus reported would be charge Mt once un-
loving and untrue, but the evil is sufficiently
real and extensive q operate rs Il hinderance
to the power Of social prayer.
We SHALL he CHANGED They laid
pierced hy the nails and spear, all bloody and
cold and dead ia the tomb but He was
changed anl how glorious Was He when lie
showed Himself to Saul of Tars,s, and to
John, His disciple on the isle OF patnos
They laid Stephens body all bruised and
maneled with stones, III the grave but lie
will be changed and will come from that
grave III hrightness and glory. They buried
john the Baptist with hi, head cut off by
the wicked, but he will come from that grave
with crown Of Lie On his head.
Some men went to China once and because
they were forbidden to carry the silk-wn
out Of the country, they hid some Of the lit
tie creatures eggs IN the tops Of their slaves
and - out Of these two dry slaves came all
tho six worms and al the six in Europe
since. What ! wonder 4 poor ag-picker
takes short stick in his hand, and goes into
the dirty cutters Of the streets Of the city.
and picks up little bit, Of rags aud paper
These ~ puts into hi dirty bag. But these
arc washed and made over, and come out the
pure white sheet paper. beautiful enough
for aqneen 70 write on it Who can doubt
that God can take these poor bodics, and of
them raise up new and better body? Out
Of the very darkness and the bonesy Of tho
grave, He can make something that will Be
brighter than the sun forever
These children now before me- so young
and n fair, must bc changed. They must be
changed BY time. q. II makes them older by
sickness, as it withers them, as the worm
wlthers the flower BY death, which will turn
them into corpSes and BY Christ, when He
comes t. waken all the dead q child! If
you love tha, Saviour. If you please Him, BY
stunning what He forbids, and doing what
He commands, if you live to please and honor
Him. you shall be changed and become like
the blessed Saviour glorious, immortal
and blessed forever DIR Todd.
TIE WRATH Of man shall praise Thee.
This wrath suspended Christ on Calycry
this wrath put Bunyan into Bedford jail
this wrath banishel the Apostle John on
lone isle in the Egian sea; this wrath shut
up Paul in prisan at Rome and from Cal
very, from Bedford, from Patmos, and from
Rome, has praise to God proceeded, whose
sound gocth out into al the earth, and win
reyerbcrate ia heayen to III eternity.
HATRED stirreth up strifes; but love ccy-
creth all sins.
Us.