Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1908-11-21

do you want God TO reveal things to
you? Then get away from the world
and get UP closer to him. That is the
reason so many OF you never heard the
voice of. Jesus. Je5us.won't talk to you
when you NJ e4standinga at some. bar,
drinking beer and champagne. He
won't talkato you when you are sitting
on the bleachers at a Sunday baseball
game. HeFwon't talk to#you when you
are lying soout your neighbor. Come
UP close to him. Hear what he has to
say to you. " ~ at + vi w
sit We here Watch and pray
Did he ask that. crowd to pray? No.
! Why not? They wouldn't have prayed
if he had. / venture that | can ask
every preacher in this town to stand
on this. platfrom and would say,
| Please. ask some OF your members to
/ Lead in PRAYER They would have
i some members whom they would no
more ask to lead you in prayer than
| they would go to the butcher shop
and ask the butcher to cut Off his
right arm Why? They know you
wouldn't pray SO they wouldn't ask
you You never see those members
| il prayer meeting comes the Same
night as a card party, there will be far
more at tho card party than at the
prayer meeting, and yet you wonder
that God IS doing as well as he is
with the crowd he has to work with.
! Personal History.
Watch and pray" Just pardon a
little illustration from my own life.
will you? I was bred and born, not in
Old Kentucky but in Old Iowa. am
a rube of rubesI am a hayseed of the
hayseedS and the malodors of the barn
are on me, and it beats Pfnaud and
CATION, evidently q farmer. displayed
Colgate, too (Here one Of the congre.
his accord with the evangelist by
shouting in a strong voice, audible in
every corner of the big tabernacle,
'Amen!D l have creased my hair with
goose grease, blacked my boots with
stove blackening. | have wiped my
face and nose with a gunny sack
towel. | have drunk coffee out of my
saucer and I have eaten with my
knife have said "done it." when
should have said did it, and
nave saw when should have
SEEN" and | expect 10 get to glory
just the saJne.1 have crept and
crawled out of the sewers Of poverty;
| am a graduate from the university
OF poverty and hard knocks and have
taken postgraduate course.
My father went to the war foul
months before was born, in Company
E, Twenty;hird Iowa. | have battleC
and fought and struggled since | was
six years Old. | know all about the
dark and seamy side of life, and il
ever man fought hard, have Tough
: hard for everything have evel
gained. The wolf scratched at III:
cabin door and finally mother said
Boys, am going to send you to the
Soldiers Orphans Home" At Ames
Iowa, we had to wait for the train ant
we went to,,a little hotel and the.
came about l. O'clock and said, "Ge
+, ready for The train" I looked init
mothers face. her eyes We're red, he
! hair was lisheveled. I said. what
the matter, mother?" All the time .Et
and l slept mother had been praying
I We went 10 the train she put on
arm about me and the other about E.
1 and sobbed as if her heart woul
break. People walked by and looked a
g Ius, but they didn't saw
r word. WHY? They didn't kno1
i and if thew did thew wouldn'
/ have cared. Mother knew: sh
1 knew thal for five wears sh
0 wouldn't see her boys. We got into tn
. train and said Good i've mother
I as the train pulled out We reache
+ Council BjutSs. II was cold and w
:. turned orr Eftle thin coats aroun
G our necks and shivered We saw q h,
s tel and we went up and asked th
llady for sSomething to cat She sait
= "What':s YOUR nance. NV name
= Willie SUNDAY and this is nv brothe
n Ed '"Whera are Won eoinp?" Go;hr t
$ the Soldiers Orphans Home at Gle,
4 wood She wincd her tears and sail
g INV husband was q soldier and h
J. never came back II, wouldn't tur
0 any one away. and wouldn't tur
~ you boys boys away. She threw her arm
Il gays; us orr hrea llfasf ana dinner no. r.
is Thiare WASN'T anv +rain goina orr I