St. Tammany farmer., 1903-03-28

his eyes focused for the great things.
Gods eye searches out the little
things. What man overlooks, yea,
even disdainfully ignores, God shapes
and molds to wonderful success. The
block of marble which had been cast
aside as worthless by the mediocre
artist was picked up by Michael An
gelo when he came into possession Of
the studio and his skillful hands
wrought upon it, and from that de-
spised piece of marble the beautiful
Madonna stepped forth to bring him
fame and delight the heart Of the art
lover.
1t is the little, insignificant, un-
known thing, or circumstance, or con-
dition in the church or the life of the
Christian which contains the germ of
the revival blessing. Don't think for
a moment it is some outside condition
or some outside circumstance which
must be realized in your life before
the quickening fires of Gods revival
blessing can stir your heart. Look
around within the sphere of your
own existence, into your own heart,
and you will find the mustard
seed which if planted in the soil of
a surrendered and obedient heart and
watered with the tears of repentance
and intense longing after God, will
take root and grow into the great
tree of revival blessing spreading its
JOY and gladness to all about.
It has been said that revival is not
worked up but it is sent down. I con-
tend that it is both. The germ for the.
revival is to be found in every church.
1t must be diligently and humbly
sought out and developed. That's
working up the revival. God looking
on sees the possibilities in the little
germ, He rejoices in the humility,
the conservation and the diligence
manifested in the church in tending
that little germ, and then He blesses
it with mighty development and
growth. That's sending down the re-
vival. Mr.. Moody used repeatedly to
say, after his wonderful successes in
different cities and churches, that
it was not so much what he brought
as what had been sowed and grown
and tended before he came that ex-
planned the great revival blessing which
was realized. God sent Mr.. Moody
where the germ of revival blessing had
been given chance to take root and
grow. If churches to-day are to again
know and rejoice in great revival bless
ing, they must quit looking outside of
themselves for its realization. Great
speakers, great singing, great blow
ing of trumpets, great and forced eff
forts alone never yet made great re-
vival. The germ for the revival must
be found in the church itself, and
carefully and humbly and prayerfully
tended and nourished. The little
match with its faint and Pickering
fame may start blaze that will
sweep the town before it. And the
germ of revival blessing has within it
the mighty fire that will set church
and community all ablaze with holy
zeal and purpose.
It is the tithes of little things which
we must bring into the storehouse Of
God if we would fulfill Gods condi-
tions and prove His faithfulness in
pouring out upon us such blessing
as there shall not be room enough to
receive it. I have seen union revival
efforts in which there was a great stir
and effort, and some little reaping,
and then an eager and undignified
hurry on the part of the different
churches to capture as many of the
new converts as possible. That ID
always the way when man gets up a
revival. But when God has full
share in it we will see such an OUT
pouring of blessing that there shall
not be room enough to receive it.
Think of it! When all the tithes of
the little things are brought into the
storehouse, then look out! God never
fails in His promises, and the out
pouring of blessing is sure to come.
It was the little thing which prevent
ed my bell from ringing. The dust and
tarnish which was hardly visible to
the naked eye had to be rubbed off
the small brass spring before the
strong electric current generated in
the battery could make. itself felt.
The power was there to ring the bell
all the time, but so little thing
as dust and the thinnest yelling of tar
nish was sufficient to prevent the bell
from operating. If Christians and
churches would only realize the inn
portance of little things and begin
looking within for the dust and tar
nish they would discover the reason
for the delayed blessing. The dust
and tarnish of Indifference and neg
lecs is allowed to collect eight or nine
mon tbs in the year, and then there is
perpfexity and disappointment when
of the moment and when we think it
ought to come. God wants us to long
for it enough to search out the with
held tithes, and to bring them in. He
wants us to yearn so intensely for it
that we will keep the button of prayer
pushed in 1s months in the year while
we persistently and diligently con-
tinue the search for the point of diff
ficulty. When connections are all per-
fectly made, when the dust and tar
nish are all carefully removed, then
the windows, of Heaven will quickly
lift and the promised blessing pour
forth. 1t may come during summers
heat or winters cold, or in the BURST
ing springtime or the rose-tinted days
of autumn. 1t will not wait for the
times and seasons appointed by man,
but will come when all the tithes have
been brought into Gods presence and
laid at His. feet. Then it will come.
It will come!
Faithfulne ess.