Great Falls daily tribune., 1920-06-28

a refuge in him: when our enemies
threaten, he "hides us in the secret of
his presence from man. and keeps US
secretly in pavilion from the strife of
tongues How manC saints have found
comfort in the blessed words of the old
hymn. Rock Of Ages, cleft for me, let
me hide myself in Thee I do not
wonder that just the day before Hugh
Price Hughes died, he turned to his wife
and said: Kate, let them put these
words words on my tombstonelIhou. .
great Catholic saint, Bernard Of Clair
vaux who wrote, "Jesus, the very
thought of Thee with sweetness fills
my breast; but sweeter far Thy face to
see, and In Thy presence rest
IL Prayer as revealed to us in
scripture, is beautifully illustrated by
the shadow of great rock in a. weary
land. Prayer is commu1ion with God.
In prayer you meet somebody, and not
only do you meet the person but you
talk with him. Many of our prayers to-
day are monologues. Prayer is not a
monologue but dialogue; not soliloquy
but friendship. Someone has said that
In the first stroke Gods promise comes
down to us, in the second stroke our
thoughts go up to God, in the third
stroke Gods answer comes down to US,
and in the last stroke our gratitude goes
up to God. In prayer, as the poet says,
1--WE feel a presence that disturbs us
with the joy of elevated thoughts.
Have you trouble? Have you care?
Is the pilgrimage across the desert a
long and tedious one? Is there resting
on your heart some great interest or re-
sponsibility? Take it to the Lord in
prayer, and if you will trust Him, pray
er to your heart shall be like the shad-
ow of great rock in a weary land.
III. But, perhaps in another and yet
a different sense, we find that the words
that are given to us in scripture are
offered to us like the shadow of a great
again passages that have no special
or significance, and then some
day they will start out to you full of
meaning and seem just fitted to your
trial. OF how many words in the Bible
can it be said that they start up like
great rock in weary land to the way
worn traveller. Many time you have
read that familiar invitation. Come un-
to Me- all We that labor and are heavy
laden and l will give you rest but
there are times when that invitation is
There are times when you have felt that
you yourself are the weary laboring one
that Jesus bids come and it mas been
to you the shadow Of great rock.
Or perhaps you have been called upon
to face some great responsibility. to
hear some great burden, or take some
great duty and you have felt so lone
", so inadequate IF there were only
someone who understood the case to
whom you could go and commune. If
there were only some dear friend to
whom you could lay bare your heart,
and tell of your need and your weak
ness-and then, perhaps. you have gone
to Gods Word, and after that there has
come to you the blessed words, LET not
your heart be troubled; Lo, l am with
YOU always. even unto the end and the
sense of Jesus presence in his Word
has been to you like the shadow of a
great rock in a weary land.
| think also that it is true of many
Of the precious doctrines of the church,
and If there were time to illustrate, it
would be very easy to show that such
doctrines as Divine Providence, the
dea of God taking care Of you and
out your life, the idea that
trouble comes to us as dispensation
from our Fathers hand. and that whom
the Lord loveth he chasteneth-these
doctrines have been like the shadow OF
4 great rock in a weary land.
Christian hope. the doctrine of the I'M |
mortality of the soul. the doctrine that |
whispers to us rs we stand at the grave
)f those we love-he is not dead, hat |.
only sleeping. not lost but only gone I
lefore-is like the shadow of great I
,oek in weary land.
And lastly. we need to remember that |
.est. in the word of God is like rest in
nature The night is very blessed to +
he weary one. but the morning follows |
he night. and rest is giver that we may i
le strong TO labor. So the days of va
,ation are not lost They come in or
ler that after the rest. we may be the I
,etter fitted to take up the burdens of |
ife. Do you remember how often the I
Son of God went to the quiet home of +
Bethany and found rest and peace in the .
affection that they gave him? How at |
,ther times He went into the solitude
# the mountain that He might find rest
md refreshment for the arduous duties
# his ministry? We all need our rest.
These times of vacation are in order of
Divine Providence. In the busy active
ife Of the man of affairs. we see the
reed of rest. In the anxiety and cares
# the housewife we see the need of rest.
u the intense. confining work of the
laving had rest we are all stronger for
york during the days that are to follow.
Having had rest we shall come back full
f courage and full of strength to do
fod's work and to save men. May both