The French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1896-1912, 1907-08-15


OF spiritual power which, ma
der. God, might be yours IL you would.
Everywhere and continualIyth the Spirit
ever at the door of the sinners heart. |
He is forever pouring out the mex
haustible waters Of spiritual life
the parched souls of men. But
neither God nor His Spirit can fill
an inverted cup. The showers Of
blessing car not food a closed heart.
Then, too, the Holy Spirit is a con-
trolling energy in the life of the man
who is susceptible to His influence. |
Christ tells us that His Spirit shall
lead us into all truth; that He shall
be our Guide, our Teacher and our |
Helper. The catalog of the-activitfes |
OF the Spirit IN the life of man is
strengthening and sustaining. BY
Him weSare leo into the entirety of /
divine self-revelation and Of eternal
truth. Under the guidance of the
Spirit Of the living God we may
progress frpmsstrnth to truth as the
wonders Of Gods universe are re-
vealed to us and the application of
everlasting Verities brought home to-
our hearts. May mo man finch to
follow the Spirit w~ithersoever He
may direct. AS Dante went through
hell and heaven and the intermediate
regions of the world beyond, and told
in allegory and song the wonders that
he witnessed and the sights he saw,
so may we, with the Spirit as our
guide, be given grace to look truth
squarely in the face and portray it
faithfully to the world. And if we
as Dante, or beyond him Christ, shall
be bounded by those who fear the
light of truth we shall yet be certain
that the truth, the truth alone, is
worth mems fealty and shall make
them free.
The Spirit as the Comforter ap-
peals to the heart of every Christian.
Who of us does not joy in the fact
that above us and within us is this
comforting Spirit of the Lord our
God? The human heart cries out
for comfort when distress and dam
ger and destruction come upon it.
When our hearts are bowed in an
guish and our souls r crushed with
grief, when every human tie Is sew
cred and no mortal hand may avail
to dispel our utter darkness, then the
spirit of the loving God strengthens,
| sustains, sanctihes the soul. Save
me, o God, for the waters are come
into my SOUL" we CRY out with the
Psalmist. In the judah wilderness
of the world our souls thirst for Him,
our flesh longs for Him as in a dry
and thirsty land, where no water is.
Then the Spirit comes, and with His
entrance the live springs of refresh
ment minister to our souls deep
need. The Spirit as the Comforter is
God in His presence ministering to
the humanest of mortal needs. No
man can live happily without Him.
No man can weather the trials of
t~rfbulation and the temptations of
prosperity without Him. Lending
the sorrowing light hearts He keeps
the successful level headed.
The sense of the constant presence
of the Spirit of God in the individual
and world life is the certain indica-
ton of a true religious experience.
No man who lives near to God is
without it. 1t is elemental in Chris
tian experience. And this conscious
ness of Gods abiding and guiding is
the mainstay of the soul. Without it
progress is impossible in the truest
sense. With it we may fight with
~fearlessness, with hope unquench-
able, against principalities and pow
ers, against the wickedness of high
places and the sins of mighty len.
For the abiding Spirit of the living
GOQ Is the cOnCrO1l1QS energy IN the
life of humanity. Bad men may de-
feat Him temporarily; evil POLICIES
may Illustrate His purposes and hurl
themselves against His plans; but the
Spirit of. God is unconquerable. He
is the~controlling, the overruling en-
ergy in the world. In this Spirit we
should find our strength. From Him
we should derive. the comfort of our
souls.
Let not your heart be troubled.
Come what may, be the storms of life
what they will, God will not leave us
comfortless. He will not leave. us
orphans. He is with us. He will
abide with every soul who bids Him
enter. He will constantly refresh us
all. He will give us courage and be
our strength. He will suffuse us.
He will comfort US. And He does.