The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1922-07-19

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tinue the quest by calling at the house
of your friend, but even when you
reach the door you do not possess the
gift. Then you knock and are ad-
mitted and receive the reward of per-
seyering prayer. You asked, sought,
knocked and obtained. In modern
terms you prayed through" This
does moi exclude ejaculatory prayer
such as that of Nehemiah who, in an
emergency, lifted his heart to God
with earnest desire. The two go to-
gether as will be clearly seen by a
comparison of Nehemiah 1:5-11 with
Nehemiah "a.
For faithful ~persevering prayer
there is a personal and pressing need.
A recent writer says: "There is an
awakening In knowledge and general
interest among the people but there Is
nj corresponding awakening to God
and His claims. The cry among the
| spiritual of all lands Is for rain. They
recognize the drought. There may be
a divergence of view as to the cause
or causes, but there is agreement as
to the fact of a great need. Many
churches are held together by custom
or responsibility. The stream of di-
vine life and joy is not coursing
through our congregations"
This need is not the supreme incen-
tive to persevering prayer; there is a
stronger incentive than this, namely,
that our Lord wants us to pray. This
fact constitutes a call to prayer. Con-
slider this until you feel its drawing
power. Jesus Christ, the Captain of
our salvation, locking over the field
of battle, seeing the spiritual forces
that oppose, and knowing, as He
alone can know, the value of inter
cession, bids Ms pray perseveringly.
ASK and We shall receive, seek and
We shall find, knock and it shall be
opened unto you" We may not have
a vivid sense of the worlds need. We
may not know the philosophy of
prayer or the process by which forces
are set in operation in answer to
prayer, but this much we may know
and believe-He wants us to pray.
Not in feeling, or moods, or DISPOSE
tons must we find the impulse to
pray, but in the counsel and call of
the great Commander who says: "Ask
and We shall receive, seek and We
shall find, knock and it shall be
opened unto you"
The chief ~hindrance to prayer Is
unbelief. OF us, as of Israel, it may
be said: 'They could not enter in be-
cause of distrust." The simplicity of
prayer confounds the w~Orldly-wise,
and as another has said: Because 1t
offers or seems to offer u way out of
difficulties which appears to be too
easy, we are apt to discount Its
operations and to regard it as mainly
a theoretical proposition. But let the
skeptic sheer and the worldly-wise
scott and the doubter doubt or deny
the power of prayer, the child OF
God must know on the authority of
His Lord that he is called to a life of
persevering prayer. Christ, who is the
Wisdom of God and the Power of
God has said: "Ask and We shall re-
ceive, seek and We shall find, knock
and it shall be opened unto YOU"
The late DIR. Andrew Murray once
wrote the following words concerning
prayer: 1.-THE honor to which God
calls us as intercessors is simply in.
conceivable. All Heaven is waiting
for the prayers of His church to bring
down the blessings that are stored up
there for us, and that God is longing
to bestow. If ministers and Chris
tians could but be brought to realize
that God has actually made the COM
ing of His kingdom and the pouring
down of blessing dependent on our
faithfulness in prayer, they surely
would begin to feel that prayer is, in
very deed, the highest expression of
power that we can exercise in bring
ing Christ's salvation to men,"
There is an eye that never sleeps
Beneath the wing of night;
There is an ear that never shuts,
When sink the beams of light.
There is an arm that never tires,
When human strength gives way;
There Is a love that never fails.
When earthly loves decay.
That eye is fixed on seraph throngs;
That ear is filed with angels songs;
That arm upholds the world on high; '
That love is throned beyond the sky.
But there's a power which men can WELD
WELD
When mortal aid Is vain.
That eye, that arm. hat love to roach,
That listening ear to gain; .
That power is rayer which scars on
high,