Bisbee daily review. [volume] (Bisbee, Ariz.) 1901-1971, 1913-03-04
MINISTERS WERE SO
TOLD YESTERDAY
Closing Appeared Propitious
as Evangelist Worker--Ser-
mons Not Delivered


Ministers of the city yesterday ,e-
ported that they had heard through
out the day from members OF their
CONGREGATIONS that they had much
missed the usual Sunday services,
abandoned uuder orders of the health
department AMI Furthermore that
they heard Of more people who want
ed TO 90 to church on Sunday ami
could not than they had ever before
come ia contact with in the district.
In face il looked as II prohibitory
health orders might do a tremendous
eFangelistic work. For the benefit Of
those who missed Sunday services
the Review prints the following pull
pit utterances that woul5 have been
delivered had the ministers had the
opportunity.
The following includes the main
20 nts Ct a sermon prepared by Rev.
H. G. Decker Of the Methodist
church:
Following is a sermon prepared
for delivery by Rev. Fry on Sunday
at the Presbyterian church;
God Not to be Restricted TO Spe-
cial Times, Places. Persons. Kings
20;23 "And the servants of the king
of syria said unto him, Their God
is God of the hills: therefore they
We're stronger than We: but let us
fight against them in the plain. and
surely we shall be stronger than
they" Read Psalm 139 and John 4
The Syrians are at war with the
lsraelites. They have met with de-
feat in previous conflict. Like good
soldiers they have tried to under
stand the secret of their defeat.
Among the offered explanations is
this the God of the Tsraelites is a
God of the hills, and as we have met
them in the lis. in their own strong.
holds, we have met with defeIt. Let
us avoid the hills where they have
the protection and help OF their Cod
and engage them in the valley. There
We shall defeat them. because they
will be where their God cannot help
them. Faulty as their reasoning
seems 70 Us they believed they had
good grounds for it, They observed
that the places Of worship o. the is
raelites were on the high places: that
the israelites chose to fight in the
hills; that these people sang about
the mountains as a source Of help.
But while we may understand their
reOsaning we should avoid their con-
clusion And as they suffered a ter
rible defeat in the valleys we should
be warned against an exclusion Of
God that will bring defeat and loss 20
us. For God = not to be restricted
TO special places the hills. For in
stance; nor TO special times-tnreat-
ening disaster for instance; nor to
special people-prophets and priests,
for instance. lie is a God Of the hills
but also OF the valleys. Have we
learned that so that our lives is af-
fected by it,
It is natural and easy to associate
Him with special things. The hill
top experiences are the exceptional
ones; they are the great and decisive
moments of life. II is easy to be-
lieye that God is not far from them.
II has been said that the hilltop is
a moral as well as 2 physical eleya
ton" Up there God seems 10 be
afoOt. And so the high places have
been made the abode of the gods
Jesus found that idea existing as
shown in his conversation with thel
woman of Samsria in John 4:20-24
Il is a half truth, and Ike many such
may lead TO faulty living. God is to
be found in the hills. in the great OK.
periances Of life We need Him
there We can be sure He Is found
if we turn to Him. 1t is not His viii
that we should meet the supreme
moments alone and in our own
strength As he helped the Israelites
in the hills so too can He help Us.
This means We can have his help IN
crisis Of life.
Il is not so easy TO associate God
with the ordinary things of i;fe. ri
is not easy. but it Is necessary for