The San Saba news. [volume] (San Saba, Tex.) 1873-1966, 1889-03-08

came to Melancthon's bedside and prayed for
his recovery, and insisted, at the same time,
that he should take some warm soup, the
soup being just as important as the prayer
In the time OF the great plague that came 70
York, of England, the priests prayed all night
and all day for the removal OF the plague,
but did not think OF clearing out the dead
dogs and cats that lay in the cutters, causing
the sickness. We must use means as well
as supplications. If a man has evening
prayers, n asking for health, and then sits
down to full supper OF indlgestloles
at II o'clock at night, his prayer
is a mockery. A farmer has no right TO
prav for the safety Of his family when he
knows there is no cover on the cistern. Inc
Christian man, reckless about his healtn,
ought not to expect the same answer 10 ms
prayer as the Christian man expects VINO re,
tires regularly at ten o'clock at night, and
takes his morning bath with the appendix OF
a Turkish towel.
That God answers prayers offered IN the
right spirit. seconded by our own effort IS
the first and the last lesson OF this text ana
it is a lesson that this age needs TO learn II
all communication between earth and heaven
is cut off, let us know it. If all the Chris
tian prayers that are going up toward TOD
never reach Him, then. | say, let silence sInite
the lips of the afflicted world, and the nations
smother their groans and die quietly. God
does answer PRAYER. The text shows II
You say; 81 don't believe the Bible' think
that those things were merely coincidences,
which are often brought as answers TO
prayer Do you say thati Was 1t mere
happen so that Elijah prayed for rain Just
as the rain was gong to come anyhow! Dlo
Daniel pray in the wild beasts den just at the
time when all the lions happened to have
lockiaw! Did Jesus pray at the grave OF
Lazarus just at the time when Lazarus was
going to dress himself and come out anyhow
Did Jesus lose His place in His sermon, and
make mistake, when He said: Ashland IL
shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find;
knock, and it shall e op ned unto your
And, lest some were so stupid they could not
understand it, He goes on: For every one
that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh
findeth: and to him that knocketh it shall be !
opened"
To prove that God does hear prayer, 1 puff
on the witness stand Abraham, 1SaFc- Js-c5f IA
Ezekiel, jeremiah, Micah, John, Paul, Peter
and King Hezekiah. Tell me, We ANCIENT
battle fields, ye Oriental threshing floors, We
smaeks, is God deaf and dumb and blind
before all human petition! That God answers
prayer, l bring the ten millions facts of
Christendom to prove. There has never
paper enough come out Of the paper mills to
write the story. Has not many a mother |
prayed back her bad boy from the ends Of |
the earth-from Canton, from Madras, from |
Constantinople-until he knelt beside her in |
the old homestead Have there not been
desperadoes and renegades who have looked |
into the door OF prayer meeting to laugh !
and scof at it, who have been drawn by the |
power of prayer, until they ran to the altar |
crying out Tor mercyl Did not the black |
smith in Lyons, N Y, pray TO God until |
there came great awakening that shook 4
the community!
have had in my own experience, and |
have bad in the history OF my own family, |
the evidence that God answers prayer. Ny |
mother, with three Christian women, as
sembled week after week and prayed for |
their children; they kept up that prayer
meeting Of four persons year after year.
The world knew nothing of it God an
swered al those prayers, All the group 1
came in; the eleven sons and daughters Of 4
my mother came in, myself the last.
Sickness came to my ousehold-hopeless I
sickness, as it seemed to many. At o'clock
on Saturday afternoon the invalid was car
ried 10 the steamer for Savannah. At IL |
o'clock the next day, being Sunday, standing /
in this very place, a man Of God prayed for
the recovery of the sicl; one. AT that time,
II o'clock. she who had been Frustrated three
weeks with some help walked up on deck /
The occurrence was as near to being miracu-
lous as 1 can imagine. That she was hope
lessly sick, people who sat up with her night
after night, and are here, can testify. That
the prayer for her recovery was offered in |
this pulpit, thousands Of people could testify.
That at II o'clock on that Sunday morning
she walked up on deck, as by a miraculous
call the passengers on the San
Jacinto, commanded by Captain Atkins,
December 16, 70 testify. This is no second
hand story.
Prayer impotentl II 1 dared to think
there was no force in prayer, methinks God,
after all He has done for me and mine would
strike me dead. Prayer impotent! Why it
S the mightiest force in the universe. Light |
hing has no speed, the Alpine avalanche has
10 power, compared with it
And now, in conclusion, have to present
Tou some checks, blank checks, on the bank
If heaven, written in blood, and signed by
he hand wounded on the cross 1t is not
,afe for you to give blank check with YOU
lame to it You do not know what mig
1e written above But here is a blank che
which God says / can give you; it is signe
~ the hand writing of the Lord Jesus Christs
md you can fill it up with anything You want
o. ASK, and il shall be given to you;
eek, and We shall find.n I do not say that
7our prayer will be answered in Just the way
Tou expect, but do say it will be answered
n the best way OH will YOU trust Him!
This is the outcome of all this subject I
If l should ask the men and women in this
audience who have found God a prayer
God to rise up, you would nearly
all rise up. In time Of darkness and trouble,
Is in time of light and prosperity, He an
iwered you. l commend you to that God to
whom your patents dedicated you in in
-ancy They believed so much in prayer that
heir last word was a supphcation for you.
Having heard you in days Of prosperity, He
will not reject your last petition, when in
he darkened room, after they have wiped
he dew Of death from your brow, and the
whole group of loved ones have kissed you
yood-by, you have only strength enough left
o pray: Lord Jesus, receive my spiritI"