Gall 7 a Pbau&i G. A. Griswood W E HAVE entered the Atomic Age; the sword of Damocles hangs over our heads. The world is sick; fear and distrust surround us; we hear of war and rumors of war, pestilence, famines, and earthquakes. The spirit of Laodicea settles over the churches; the shadow,of the great tribulation falls upon us, and the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. Christian duty and obligation remain the same—there are prayers to be of fered, souls to be won, the wayward to be restored, saints to be built up and good works to be maintained. God’s ear is open and His arm is not shortened. He is still mighty to save. Look now upon His mighty works of old and acknowledge His deliver ance. Hagar prayed, and the angel of the Lord appeared. Abraham prayed, and Lot was delivered. Jacob prayed, and Esau’s wrath subsided. Joseph prayed, and was exalted to be Prime Minister of Egypt. Moses cried to God—the Red Sea was divided. He cried again, and Amalek was dis comfited. He cried again, and Mir iam’s leprosy departed. Joshua prayed, and the walls of Jericho fell. He prayed again, and Achan’s sin was discovered. Manoah prayed, and Samson was born. Samson prayed, and 3,000 Philistines plunged to their death. Hannah prayed, and Samuel the prophet was born. David prayed, and Goliath of Gath dropped dead. He prayed again, and Ahith- ophel hanged himself. Solomon prayed, and the wisdom of God was given unto him. Asa prayed, and a great victory was gained. Hezekiah prayed, and Sennacher ib’s army was dispersed. He prayed again, and fifteen years were added to his life. Daniel prayed, and the lions’ mouths were stopped. He prayed again, and the prophecy of the seventy weeks was revealed. The three Hebrew children prayed, and were not scorched by the fire, Ne- hemiah prayed, and the king’s heart was softened. Ezra prayed, and the congregation of Israel wept and con fessed their sin. Elijah prayed, and the widow’s son was restored to life. Elisha prayed—Jordan was divided. Jonah prayed, and was delivered from the great fish. Christ’s disciples prayed — the storm ceased. Jesus prayed, and drank the bitter cup. Our Saviour prayed—the thief and the centurion were saved. Barti- maeus cried, and received his sight. The publican prayed, and went down to his house justified. The Lord prayed for Peter, and his faith did not fail. The early church prayed for Peter, and he was released AUGUST, 1947
9nia the PteAence o¡ the fCUuj, Dr. Will H. Houghton
from prison. Stephen prayed, and Saul of Tarsus was affected. Cor nelius prayed—Peter brought salva tion to his house. Paul and Silas prayed — prison doors were opened, and the Philip pian jailer was saved. Luther prayed, and the Reformation got un der way. John Knox prayed, and Scotland heard the truth. The Wes leys prayed, and England was re vived. John Bunyan prayed in Bed ford jail, and Pilgrim’s Progress was written. Livingstone prayed, and the “dark continent” was opened to the gospel. Hudson Taylor prayed, and China received the Word. Robert Murray McCheyne prayed, and wept over Dundee—and a revival broke out. Ridley and Latimer prayed as they burned at the stake—their light was never consumed. Wellington prayed —Napoleon was defeated. England prayed—the Spanish Armada sank beneath the waves. T. C. Horton and other's prayed—the Bible Institute of Los Angeles was established. Spur geon and others prayed—his voice was heard around the world. William Booth prayed—the Salva tion Army spread around the world. Christians in Chicago prayed — Moody and Sankey carried the gos pel to the people. Christians prayed, and Torrey and Alexander took God’s message around the world. C. I. Sco field and others prayed, and the Scofield Reference Bible was com pleted and has now reached the two million mark. General Allenby prayed—Jerusalem was freed from Turkish rule. General Montgomery prayed—the Germans retreated. General Dobbie prayed—the Island of Malta sur vived. General Washington prayed— our independence was won. Presi dent Lincoln prayed — the Union was preserved. General MacArthur prayed and returned to Bataan. Great Britain prayed — 300,000 men were delivered from Dunkerque. What wonders God has wrought in answer to believing prayer! Who can deny the power of prayer? See ing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, shall we remain careless about prayer? Time fails me to tell of the great host of God’s people “who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought right eousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of aliens. Women received their dead raised to life again; and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: and others had trial of cruel mock- ings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment. They
T HE entire Christian world was saddened at the news that on June 14, Dr. Will H. Houghton, Pres ident of the Moody Bible Institute of Chicago, Illinois, had died of a heart attack in Hollywood, Califor nia. His home-going is a great loss to the entire church of God. The Bible Institute of Los Angeles, as well as all other Bible schools, has lost a sincere friend and a wise counselor. Dr. Houghton was educated in Bos ton, and, after a brief career on the stage, he surrendered his life to Christ and went into the ministry. Dr. R. A. Torrey was instrumental in his conversion, and Dr. Houghton had the honor of preaching Dr. Tor- rey’s funeral sermon. In 1934, Dr. Houghton assumed the presidency of the Moody Bible Insti tute. He was also editor of Moody Monthly and author of a number of books and hymns. He was a great man, no matter from what point of view one considered him—as pastor, administrator, and soul-winner. Funeral services were held June 20 in Moody Memorial Church and burial was at New Bethlehem, Pa. “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.” were stoned, they were sawn asun der, were tempted, were slain with the sword; they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being des titute, afflicted, tormented; (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: God hav ing provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect” (Hebrews 11:33-40). Reprinted from The Power of Prayer Page Twenty-seven
Made with FlippingBook Online document