Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1900-11-12

have seen and felt in answer to pray
er. Silent prayer, audible prayer ejac-
ulatory prayer, microscopy prayer, ex-
temporaneous prayer. liturgical pray
er, prayer in the morning to start the
day right, prayer in the evening to cor
rect the mistakes of the day, prayer at
the beginning of the year as we launch
out upon its uncertainties, and prayer
at the close of the year reviewing the
vicissitudes of the u months, prayer
for ourselves, prayer for others, not
formal and heartless prayer, which is
Of no more use than the prayer of the
heather of Timbuktu, who writes his
petition on a board and then washes it
off and catches the water in a cup, Civ
ing it to the sick to drink for recovery.
Many of the prayers offered in Chris
tan lands are as senSeleSS as these
artificial prayers of the pagans. What
is needed is not only heartfelt prayer,
but direct prayer, such as David men
tons, drawing his figure from archery,
with its bow and arrows. AS the notch
Of the arrow is put against the string
of the bow and then the archer takes
aim and in a fash the arrow strikes
the mark SO David resolves that his
prayers shall not be aimless. He aims
his prayer at the heavens, ''TO thee
will I direct my prayer" "Have you
said your prayers?" is a misleading
question. You may say your prayers a
thousand times without praying The
Bible speaks of Elias, ''who prayed in
his prayer" implying that one can
seem to pray when no prayer is Of
fered. Prayer is the soul on the wing.
1t is the private door into the Kings
palace. 1t is the barometer showing
what the spiritual weather will be. 1t
is stepping into the holy of holes. 1t
is telegraphy with the heavens. 1t is
the winding up Of the clock of the i'm
mortal soul. 1t is INSTRUMENTATION
between the finite and the infinite
prayer suggested by circumstances.
Breath of the Soul.
Prayer is what some one has called
''the slender nerve that moveth the
muscles of omnipotence." Prayer is
the healthful respiration Of the soul. 1t
is the whisper of helplessness into the
ear Of help. 1t is laying hold of al
mightiness, omniscience and omnipres-
ence at one and the same time. Prayer
enlists all divine and angelic reinforce
ment. Prayer is laying hold of a
pulley fastened to the heavenly throne.
Prayer is the first breath of q new
born soul, and it is heard in the last
gasp Of earthly Christian experiences.
Prayer! In an instant it mounts the
highest heavens. Neither seraph nor
n ah o ne n iohn
than the infants petition at her
mothers knee. What an opportunity is
prayer! Why not oftener use it pray
ing for ourselves and, like Job, praying
for others? What better work would
we do, what better lives would we live,
what better hopes would we entertain,
if we multiplied and intensified our
prayersi
Some one asked a soldier of Stone
wall Jackson the secret of the great
generals influence over his men. Does
your general abuse you, swear at you,
to make you marchY Swear re-
piled the soldier. mo! Ewell does the
swearing; Stonewall does the praying.
When Stonewall wants us to march,
he looks at us soberly, just as if he
were sorry for us, and says, Men, we
have got to make a long march, We
always know when there is going to be
q long march and right smart fighting
for Stonewall is powerful on prayer
just before q big fight" When Stone
wall Jackson was asked the meaning
of the passage instant in prayer" he
said: eff you will not mistake and
think | am setting myself up as an
example, which l am not, L will give an
illustration from my own habit. l have
SO fixed the habit of prayer in my mind
that l never raise a glass of water to
my lips without q moments asking Of
Gods blessing; l never seal a letter
without putting a word Of prayer I'M
der the seal; never take letter from
the post without a brief sending of my
thoughts heavenward; L never change
my classes in the section room without
a minutes petition for the cadets who
go out and those who come in"
HeIpfuIness of Prayer.
Now, IL God has during these re-
marks shown us the uses, the impor-
tance the blessedness of prayer, sup
pose we try to do what Job did when
he prayed for his eXasperators. Many
of us at the beginning Of this subject
felt that while we could pray for our
selves and pray for those who were
kind to us we never could reach the
high point of religious experience in
which we could pray for those who an
noy us and make us feel worse instead
of feeling better. That was Matter
horn, that was an Alp, to the top Of
which we feared we could never climb,
but we thank God that by his omnipo-
tent grace we have reached that height
at last. Let us pray! Oh, Christ, who
didst pray for thine assassins, we now