Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1893-11-24
no perpendicular power reaching tho ear Of

no perpendicular power reaching the ear OF
God
Between the first and the last sentences OF
my text there was paroxysm Of earnestness
too mighty for words II will take half OF an
eternity TO tell OF all the answers oil earnest
and faithful prayer. In his last journal
David Livingstone. in Africa, records the
prayer so soon to be answered "19 March
my birthday My Jesus, my God, my life,
my oil, l again dedicate my whole self to
Thee. Accept me- and grant, o gracious
Father, that ere this year is gone may finish
my task. In Jesus name | ask II. Amen
When the dusky servant looked into Liv-
ngstone's tent and found him dead on his
knees. he saw that the prayer had been an
swered. But notwithstanding the earnest
ness OF the prayer Of Moses in the text, 1t
was a defeated prayer and was not an
swered. l think the two ''ifs' In the prayer
defeated it, and one "if' is enough to defeat
any prayer. whatever other good character
istics it may have. IF Thou wilt forgive
their sins-and IL not. blot me, pray Thee,
out of Thy book" God did neither As the
following verses show. He punished their
sins. but am sure did not blot out one let
ter OF the name OF Moses from the Book OF
Life.
There is only one kind OF prayer in which
YOU need 10 put the "if," and that Is the
prayer for temporal blessings. Pray for
riches, and they may engulf US; or for fame,
and it may bewitch us or for worldly sue
cess. and it may destroy US. Better say, III
it be best" "If can make proper use OF it,
"If Thou seest need it," wife praying for
the recovery Of her husband from illness,
stamped her foot and said with frightful
emphasis 81 will not have him die. God
shall not take him." Her prayer was an
swered but in a few years after the commit
nifty was shocked by the fact that he had in
moment OF anger slain her.
A mother, praying for a sons recover from
illness told the Lord he had no right to take
him. and the boy recovered. but plunged in
to all denominations and died renegade.
Better in all such prayers and all prayers
pertaining to our temporal welfare to put an
eff" saying, IF it be Thy WILL But in pray
ing for spiritual good and the salvation OF
our soul we need never insert an Oft Our
spiritual welfare is sure to be for the best,
and away with the Ifs.
Abraham's prayer for the rescue Of Sodom
was grand prayer In some respects, but
there were six offs" in it, or 'peradven-
lures, which mean the same thing. per
adventure there may be fifty righteous in the
city. peradyenture forty-hye, peradventure
forty. peradventure thirty, peradyenture
twenty peradyenture ten" Those six per-
adventures. those six ''ifs" killed the prayer.
and Sodom went down and went under.
Nearly all the prayers that were answered
had no Ifs" in them-the prayer OF Elijah
that changed dry weather TO wet weather,
the prayer that changed Hezekiah from a
sick man to n well man. the prayer that
halted sun and moon without shaking the
universe to pieces.
Oh rally your soul for a prayer with no
'ifs" In it, Say in substance: Lord, Thou
hast promised pardon. and l take it. Here
are nv wounds heal them. Here is my
blindness irradiate It. Here are my chains
OF bondage by the gospel hammer strike
them of. am fleeing tothe CItyof Refuge
and am sure this is the right way. Thanks
be to God, am free
Once, by the law. my hopes were slan'
But now In Christ, live again.
With the Mosaic earnestness OF my text
and without its Mosaic "ifs.' let US cry out
for God. Aye. II words fail us, let MS take
the suggestion of that printers dash oithe
text, and with q voorhees, silence impiore
pardon and comfort and life and heaven.
For this assembage all Of whom | shall
meet in the last judgment, I dare not offer
the prayer OF my text. and so | change 1t and
say, Lord God. forgive our sins and write
our names in the book OF Thy loving reuem
brance, from which they shall never be bot
ted out.