ISijO 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUKE. 



823 



0ni^ pepEg. 



Call unto me. and I will answer tlieo, and show 

 thee gTeat and mig'hty things, which thou knowest 

 not.— Jer. 33:2.: 



Thc'qnestion oftentinios comeslup, " Have'we 

 a right to expect that (iod will answer us when 

 we come to him in prayer, asking him to direct 

 us in regard to some matter on which we are 

 undecided?" We often feel at a. loss to know 

 just exacth' where duty calls ns, or. in other 

 words, we wish to know just what God would 

 have us do in regard to certain things. This 

 matter has been on my mind moi'e or less 

 through all my experience as a Christian; and 

 sometimes I have not only been puzzled but con- 

 siderably troubled because those who seem de- 

 voted aiid willing make sad mistakes. In look- 

 ing back through my own experience I have, 

 however, been led to decide that, where we go 

 to God in prayer about a thing, and then make 

 a mistake, the fatilt is ours, and not that of the 

 Judge of all the earth, nor is any thing amiss 

 ■with any of his promises in his holy word. We 

 are very anxiotis to do a thing. We pray over 

 it, and then watch for some indication that God 

 approves of this very tiling. We delude our- 

 selves in the belief that w(^ have i)rayed over 

 the matter in question, and that God said it 

 was right, whereas incHndtion swayed our bet- 

 ter judgment to such an extent that self said it 

 was right, and not the promptings of the Holy 

 Spirit. The trouble is, even while we prayed 

 we were not in a spirit of entire submission to 

 his holy will. We should be very careful in 

 such matters. The attitude of our heart should 

 be, "' Here, Lord, am I, ready to obey, and lis- 

 tening for that still small voice to direct me. I 

 am willing to sacrifice property, to bear toil and 

 pain, if I can only be sure that such a course is 

 exactly what thou wouldst have me to do." 

 After having done this \\e need to be very care- 

 ful that we are entirely submissive and un- 

 biased. We need to be sure that our inclination 

 does notat allenterintothe final decision. If we 

 do this, I am sure the promise in this little 

 verse of our text will be fultilled. and that we 

 shall seldom if ever have just cause to regret 

 taking the course we did. 



When the time came aroinid for the Interna- 

 tional Convention, it seemed almost folly for me 

 to thinlv of deserting my post. Our new factory 

 was just roofed. The doors and windows were 

 not in. Machinery was to be located, and im- 

 portant matters were to be decided, not only 

 day l)y tlay. but hour by hour. Things were to 

 be located that would i)e exce(>dingly hard to 

 move if a mistalve were made. Expensive men 

 were on tlie ground waiting to be directed. 

 How could I be gone five full days? I decided, 

 for a couple of weeks before the time appointed, 

 that it was not my duty to. go. A good many 

 would be thrown ottt of employment if I were 

 absent. In talking with my i)astor about it he 

 gave me an idea, that at lii-st I accept(>d as a 

 jest or a piece of pleasantry; but afterward I 

 decided there was an important truth in it that 

 I specially needed. His suggestion was some- 

 thing like' this: •■Why. l'>ro. Ifoot. you can solve 

 the problem this way: Let your men have a 

 vacation while you are gone; and if they can 

 not well afford it, just ke<'p their pay going all 

 the same." Wliile I am about so as to see most 

 of my hands every houi' oi' two. I can so direct 

 them that their work is done properly. If I am 

 absent, a good deal will necessarily be done in a 

 wasteful or unprofitable way. This is true of 

 any man who neglects his hel|). or who does 

 - not provid<' com])etent overseers. The friends 

 here at home are exceedingly ready and willing 



to do as I wish: but the trouble is. when I am 

 absent they do not hiKiir my wishes, and can 

 not well know all the plans "I have in mind. 

 Therefore, in order to go away I mttst make up 

 my mind to accejn. as a matter of course, more 

 or less iui|)rotilal)le work, and jjerhaps also 

 have more or less useless labor i)erformed. As 

 a rule, I think every nuin's lirst duty is to look 

 after his own afifairs. Why, even the Bible en- 

 joins that. In Proverbs we read. " Seest thou a 

 man diligent in l)usiness? he sliall stand before 

 kings, he sluill not stand before mean men." 



Three or four days before the time appointed, 

 I began to pray very earnestly on the subject, 

 asking God to tell me where duty lay; and I re- 

 member telling my wife that t felt sure my 

 prayers would he answered — that is, it would 

 be impressed on my mind \\ hether I ought to 

 go. For several days it seemed as if no light 

 were to be given in regard to the matter. I 

 could not see that the Holy Spirit dictated or 

 impressed my mind either way. If it would not 

 sound irreverent. I could have told the honest 

 truth by saying to my wife. " So far God has 

 said nothing to me about it.'' I should not like 

 to use such an expression, however, for fear 

 that many of my good friends wottld think me 

 cranky. In fact, I should fear that I would be 

 a little troubled about any of my friends if they 

 should reply in just that sort of language. 

 During the very wet fall that we have had, my 

 wife and children have often asked me anxiously 

 what the barometer said about the weathei'. A 

 great many times I have replied evasively, or 

 said nothing. But they often say, '" Why don't 

 you tell exactly what the barometer does say?" 

 1 reply. " For the simple truth that it does iuit 

 say any thintj (it all. It neithei- goes up nor 

 down, and I sui)pose we must conclude that the 

 weather is to remain — at least for the pi'esent — 

 just about as it is now." They have all learned 

 to have faith in the barometer, for a great 

 many times I have said to them, positively and 

 decidedly, "The sun is surely coming out; and 

 from the manner in which the mercury rises, 

 and the rapidity with whicli it goes up, you will 

 certainly see clear sky before noon, and I shall 

 be mucii disapiiointed if we do not see it come 

 out in a couple of hours." When I have time 

 to keep my eye on the barometer, so as to watch 

 it and give it a thump every hour or two, it is 

 very rare I make a mistake. Now, friends, you 

 have a good illustiation right before you. Can 

 we depend on the promiitings of the Holy Spirit 

 in the same way. or in a like way that we de- 

 pend on the movements of the column of 

 mercury? I think we can, and it gives me 

 pleasure to say this. I have been thinking over 

 it for several days, whether it were right and 

 proper for me to tell you this, and to state it 

 just as I have said it aliove; and I rejoice to 

 feel, right now while I am talking, that the 

 Holy Spirit says in my heart. " My child, you 

 are safe and right in saying just what you have 

 said. It pleases me to have you exhort your 

 readers to hare faitli in just this way." Short- 

 ly before it became time to nuike pi<'Parations 

 for my absence, I began to feel very plainly that 

 God called upon me to go. The Holy Sjiirit 

 seemed to direct that I should make arrange- 

 ments according to the l)est of my human 

 wisdom for work while I was absent, and then 

 to drop care and anxiety, and leave honu' with 

 an untroubled spirit, asking constantly t\)r di- 

 rection as to what I was to do. We hav<' an il- 

 lustration in the book of Acts. You will iv- 

 meinber that Cornelius was sent to ,Ioppa, to 

 lind Peter, who lo(lg(>(l with a tanner l)y the 

 side of the sea. This man was to tell Cornelius 

 what he ought to do. I have often thought of 

 this passage. Does the Holy Spirit ever send 

 us on like errands? I believe it does. Now, 



