Year: 1878

horrible committeeman, though /


for one, believe in committees, from


the crown of my head to the sole o.


my foot-only, mark you, like .


committee of three, two Of them : ir


bed. Notning can be better thar


that; for all denominations, all Chris


tian men Of all denominations should


give most prominence to the work to


which our Master has called ms; and


while we hold our distinctive princi-


ples-as I hope we always shall, foI


man without backbone is not worth


anything-yet let US always hold


them in subservience to the great


work of saving souls. Therefore,


my Methodist brethren, if you car
touch that mans heart that I cannot


reach, fire away by all manner ol


means. If, On the other hand, 7 may


be able to reach o certain class that


you cannot, well, give me chance,


and do not find more fault with me


than you aye obliged. At the same


time, if you do / won't fret; neither


need you fret if I find fault with you,


if you are sincerely doing your Mas,


ter's work. What we want to do is


to bring these no-church people int


the church or God. We want thai


promise to be fulfilled-'I will make
them a people that were not a peo,


pie, will call her beloved that was
mot beloved; people that knew not
thee shall run unto thee" This ID
what we desire.


WHERE TO GET THE POWER.


Now, how are we to do it? When
ever man undertakes anything, il
he is wise man he says, "Where is
the power to come from?" There is
factory. there are all the wheels and
the machinery; but they are of no
use unless you can get power. We
are all taught that in us lies no pow
er for saving the souls of men. We
are all anxious to serve our Lord /;
but of course, we can do nothing for
him unless we have power. Where
is the power, then? Certainly it is
not in ourselves, the power hes in the
Holy Ghost. And what a mercy this
is, because he is Divine, and conse-
quently, whatever the enterprise may
be, he is equal to it. Now, the con-
version of the world and the turning
Of the myriads to Christ become no
longer an idle term if the Holy Ghost
himself is to help us in it. There
lies our power; but how are we to
get it? believe, in the first place,
that we must, if we are to see grea-
ter things than we have done, have
more real prayer. Oh! my brethren,
how are your -prayer-meetings? 1t
is stale subject, perhaps you will
say; but I do know some places
where the prayer-meetings are posi-
lively shocking, and still is that the
current speech, 81 shall not go out
this evening, it is only prayer
meeting" 1t Is In the meeting of
the church for earnest, iervent and
believing prayer, that the power of
God is communicated to the church
to make all its agencies strong and
if the prayer-meeting is neglected,
depend upon it, you have shorn
away the locks of your strength, and
when the Philistines are upon Sam
son he will not know how to meet the
foe. The longer I live the more sure
/ am of it that God must hear prayer.
This is immortal in all generations,
and / do not think there will be found
any exceptions to this rule, that the
power is in proportion to the prayer.
The prayer-meetings are not always
an index of our churches strength
for some ministers are so in Gods
company that they alone bring down
a great blessing. What might not
we have if we would get up to the top
of Carmel, with our head between
our knees, and cry unto the living
God. and determine that we will nev-
er leave the place of prayer until the
heavens pour forth the floods of rain
and the earth is deluged with divine
grace? 1t is to be had, all power is
given to the Master, and he is ready
to communicate it to his church.
Then, if we are to have the Divine
power, we must each one Of us have
it in himself. A church cannot do
work unless there is some Tigor in
the persons who are to work. Sup
posing go to a consumptive hospital
to find number Of workingmen to
make railway. 1 fetch them from
their beds; all painting for breath, /
get the poor creatures down to where
there is cutting to be done, and /
present them with pickaxes and
spades, and say, ts1'his Is your work. .
Why, dear me, they want somebody
to hold the pickaxes up for them !;
they can let thenl drop, and that is
about all they can do. 1t is a very
long while before the Great Northern
Railway will ever run through that
cutting. They are not the kind Of
men; wheel them home in their own
barrows and put them to bed. But
now, if you want this cutting done,


ret a hundred Yorkshiremen. I say