The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1892-06-29

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ands of Christians now in the Church
who go out amid great annoyances in
life-they are not perplexed; they are
all the time busy, while there are others
who do nothing and they are stung and
stung and stung and covered from head
to foot with the blotches of Incidence
and inactivity and spiritual death.
The first thing, then, you have to do,
o Christian young man, Christian young
woman, is to go to work in the service
of the Lord, if you want to be happy
Christian. When an army goes out,
there are always stragglers falling off
here and there, some because they arr
faint and sick, but great many Le-
cause they are afraid to fight and too
lazy to march After awhile the lazy
men on the road hear the looming of
the guns for hours, and they hear the
shout of victory, and man on horse
back comes up and says: "We have
won the day!' Then they hasten up.
How brave they are after the battle is
over. Poor at fighting but grand at
''huzza" So there are stragglers going
after the Lords host. There come days
of darkness and battle. Where are
they? We call the roll of the host.
They make no answer, but after awhile
there comes day of triumph in the
church, and they are all about. "Huz
"a! huzza! Didn't we give it to them?"
have another word of counsel to give
those who have Just entered Christian
life, and that is, be faithful in prayer.
You might rs well, business man, start
out in the morning without food and
expect to be strong all that day-you
might as well abstain from food all the
week and expect to be strong physi-
cially, as to be strong without prayer.
The only way to get any strength into
the soul is by prayer, and the only diff
erence between that Christian that is
worth everything and that who is
worth nothing is the fact that the last
does not pray and the other does.
And the only difference between this
Christian who is getting along very fast
in the holy life, and this who is getting
along tolerably is that the first prays
more than the last. You can graduate
a mans progress in religion by the
amount of prayer, not by the number
of hours, perhaps, but by the earnest
duplication that he puts up to God.
Show me a Christian man who neglects
this kind of duty and will show you one
who is inconsistent Show me man who
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not be exaggerated. Why, just give to
a man this power of prayer, and you
give him almost omnipotence.
This afternoon You will see two Sab
bath-school teachers. That one does
not gain the attention of her class This
one does. What is the difference be.
tween them, their intellects being
about equal? The first thought only OF
her own apparel. The other came from
great prostration before God in earnest
duplication, asking that Gods mercy
might come upon the school, and tina,
in the afternoon she might gain the at.
tention of those five or six immort ais
that would be around her. The one
teacher had no control over her class.
The other sits as with the strength OF
the Lord God Almighty.
A minister comes into the pulpit. He
has magnificent sermon, all the senti.
ments rounded according to the laws OF
rhetoric and fine sermonizing, and the
truth makes no impression on the hearts
of men. People go away and say
Every beautiful, wasn't it?" A plain
man comes into the pulpit. He has
been on his knees before God, asking
for an especial message that day, ant
the hearts of men open to the plair
truth, the broken sentences strike into
their consciences, and, though the PEG
pie may dispense at the close of the ser
vices seemingly without having re
ceived any impression, that night voices
will be lifted in some household: "Mer
and brethren, what shall we do to bt
saved?' Oh, this power of prayer
Pray Pray!
Another word of counsel | have Il
give-be faithful in Bible research.
great many good books are coming out
We can not read half of them At every
revolution of the printing press they
, are coming They cover our parlo
tables, and are in our sitting rooms anC
libraries. Glorious books they are. wv,
thank God every day for the work O
the Christian printing-press. But hav,
thought that perhaps the followers o
Christ sometimes allow this religious
| literature to take their attention from
Gods Word, and that there may not b,
as much Bible readiug as there ought t,
/. be-
| How is that with your own expert
5 ence? just calculate in your minds how
! much religious literature you have reat
r during the year, and then how large
portion of the Word of God you hav,
l read, and then contrast the two an,
| answer within your own soul whethe
3 you are giving more attention to tn
! books that were written by the hand o
: man or that written by the hand o
: God. Now, you go to the drug stor
e and you get the mineral waters, bu
e you have noticed that the waters ar
l not so fresh or sparkling or healthful a
D when you get upese very waters at Sara
. toga or Sharon-getting them RICH
where they bubble from the rock. An,
L | have noticed the same thing in regar
a to the truth of the Gospel; while Their
1 is a good deal of refreshment and healt'
1 of the Gospel of God sit comes throug
c good books, find it is better when
o come to the eternal rock of Gods Wor
=, and drink from that fountain that but
n bles Up fresh and pure to the life an
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