142 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Eek. 



not know that I can call it even a speck of 

 cloud. Some days I thought there was not 

 any cloud at all ; and at other times I felt 

 sure there was one clearly visible. Even if 

 I did not see it I felt that my faith was 

 surely being dimmed just a little. I did not 

 enjoy prayer all alone by myself as I usual- 

 ly do. In a few days more it would be gone, 

 and I smiled to think I had imagined tliat I 

 was slipping back. But pretty soon I felt 

 more sure than ever that this cloud was an 

 indication of danger. Perhaps some may 

 say, " Why, Bro. Root, that sounds a little 

 bit ridiculous from our spiritual teacher. 

 How could it happen that you, who have so 

 frequently and vehemently proclaimed 

 Christ Jesus as the Savior of the world, 

 should so far forget to practice your own 

 preaching as to omit to tane this matter to 

 the feet of Jesus V '' And this obliges me to 

 make another confession, still more humiliat- 

 ing. When the cloud was new and strange, 

 it oftentimes showed a sort of silver lining, 

 and it changed about in unexpected ways 

 so that I rather disliked to have it taken 

 away. Another thing, when I prayed about 

 it, it did not seem to make very much dif- 

 ference. A young friend who was rescued 

 from intemperance and intemperate habits 

 went and got drunk one night after he had 

 been to prayer -meeting. Yes, and in that 

 very prayer-meeting he prayed that Gcd 

 would keep him from his "besetting sin. 

 When I found him in jail he told me that, 

 although he had asked God to help him, he 

 didn't help him a bit I Almost every one 

 smiles on hearing this sad story. Why do 

 they smile ? Well, I suppose that every 

 one, almost, says in his heart, if not aloud, 

 " He did not pray honestly. It was the 

 prayer of a hypocrite. If he really meant it, 

 why did he go from the prayer-meeting to a 

 place where he could get intoxicating liq- 

 uors, or where he would find companions 

 who would furnish it ? "' 



Now, in view of the above, was it not use- 

 less for me to pray when I was quite cer- 

 tain that 1 should sin again, when tempta- 

 tion came? Poor Albeit said that he had 

 tried praying for God to help him. God 

 alone knows the heart, and he alone knows 

 whether Albert was really hungering and 

 thirsting after righteousness when he ut- 

 tered that prayer, or whether the hungering 

 and thirsting was in the main for the for- 

 bidden stimulant. 



Is it true, that, while we are conscious 

 of this iniquity in our hearts, we had better 

 stop prayiiierV Not so, my friend. By no 

 manner of means stop praying or stop taking 

 part in any religious services. Your old 

 friend Uncle Amos has had some experi- 

 ence in this line, and it was in the hope that 

 it might be helpful to you that he is penning 

 these lines to you to-day. My dear friend, 

 if a little speck of cloud (sin produces clouds 

 of many hues and kinds) has darkened your 

 spiritual sight as it did mine, do not, byany 

 manner of means, stay from prayer-meeting, 

 or think of neglecting daily worship. If 

 you can not pray, with your heart and soul 

 in it, as you have sometimes done, pray 

 with all the faith you can scrape up. Do 

 not, under any circumstances, let Satan per- 



suade you that it is inconsistent to take the 

 name of Christ Jesus on your lips. Most of 

 you know what a great work the Young 

 People's Society of Christian Endeavor has 

 done and is doing, over almost the face of 

 the whole earth. Most of you also know of 

 the " iron-clad pledge " that is a special fea- 

 ture of this society. This pledge is, to be 

 on hand and take part in some way or other 

 (besides singing), at every regular meeting, 

 unless absolutely prevented. There has 

 been a good deal of fault found with this 

 iron-clad pledge. A good many have be- 

 come offended, and have withdrawn ; but 

 those who take the pledge, and keep it, grov: 

 and shine. The very fact that they have 

 given a sacred promise to stand up "for the 

 Master, week by week, proves to be a great 

 wall of safety about them. The thought of 

 this iron-clad pledge keeps them from doing 

 a hundred thiugs they might do otherwise, 

 just as the thought that you and J, my 

 friend, by bowing our heads before the 

 great God of the universe, and asking a 

 blessing at the table, keeps us from doing 

 many things that we might otherwise do. 

 Well, I think that perhaps I had better con- 

 fess to you that this little speck of cloud that 

 I mentioned did make me feel once or twice 

 as if I should like to be excused, at least for 

 the time being, from family worship. I felt 

 that, if I took up the service, it must be 

 without very much heart in it. Wliy not go 

 off by myself, and pray over my cold and 

 fallen state? Well, I did not want to dO' 

 that. I had not become so very bad or so 

 very cold either ; for when the thought 

 came into my mind of omitting family wor- 

 ship just once, it frightened me. I do not 

 know how it may be with the rest of human- 

 ity ; but when A. I. Root voluntarily neg- 

 lects or skips by his daily petitions to God 

 the Father, he is lost. The bare thought of 

 it makes me shudder. It frightens me. All 

 the wealth the earth can give or furnish — 

 all the attraction that this world has to 

 offer, could not tempt me for one moment 

 to think of living a life without pjayer. 

 I have tried a life without prayer and with- 

 out obligation to God. Nearly twenty years 

 of the bpstpart of my life were ])assed in that 

 state. I never want to go back to it again. 

 Bad as I am and ha\'e been, cold and unfeel- 

 ing as I yet am at times, I never want to 

 live without the daily and hourly glimpse of' 

 the approving smiles of my Savior. I did 

 pray, or at least I prayed feebly, about this 

 thorn in the flesh, but it did not make very 

 much diffeienee. I began to fear that my 

 spiritual enjo>ment was getting to be some- 

 what of an old story. I presume it was Sa- 

 tan that began to suggest that this new 

 freak of mine had lasted quite a good many 

 years, and that it was nothing particularly 

 strange if I did begin to crave something 

 new. The time was coming for another 

 Home Paper. I have never written a Home 

 Paper >et without a heart in it. Before the 

 time comes, God gives me a message to car- 

 ry to those who love his holy name and his 

 holy word. A good many times I find, when 

 it comes time to write those Home Papers,, 

 there are several things to be fixed up or 

 disposed of, David said, you know, " Cre- 



