The Wonders of Prayer by Various

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"How countless must be the host of his ministering servants, seen or
unseen, since He can employ some hundreds of them, and send them to buy
of Daniel Loest to-day, or pay him that bill which thou owest. What a
wondrous God is ours, who in the government of this great universe, does
not overlook my mean affairs, nor forget His gracious promise, 'Call
upon me in the day of trouble, and I will deliver thee.'"

Tuesday was a repetition of Monday's splendid business, and brought in
the five hundred thalers which he needed the next morning to pay off the
mortgage of his friend's house, due that day.

Wednesday's sales gave him five hundred more thalers, which he was
obliged to have ready to pay on Thursday morning into the court of
trustees.

Thursday's sales brought him four hundred thalers, just the amount he
had given promise to pay the next day for goods delivered.

And Friday's sales gave him just three hundred thalers with which to
honor the widow's demand on Saturday, to pay funeral and contingent
expenses.

During these days of wonderful business and deliverances, after each
indebtedness was discharged, there still was not left cash in hand a sum
exceeding three to five dollars.

On Saturday morning, after he had sent the three hundred thalers to the
widow, he had left precisely two thalers and twenty silver groschen (six
shillings eight pence sterling), the smallest balance he had yet had;
and what seemed most alarming, the rush to the shop seemed to be
entirely over; for while during the five days past, he had had scarcely
time to draw his breath from hurry and bustle, he was now left in
undisturbed possession of his place. Not a single customer appeared. The
wants of the vicinity seemed to have come to an end, for not a child
even entered to fetch a pennyworth of thread, or a few ells of tape.
This utter cessation of trade was as unusual and out of the accustomed
shop business, as the extra rush had been.

At five o'clock on Saturday, was due the debt of three hundred thalers
to his scoffing and tantalizing money lender. Three o'clock came, and
still there was but six shillings eight pence in the till. Where was his
money to come from? But Loest sat still, and "_possessed his soul in
patience_" for he knew the Lord would choose the best time, and he
desired to be found waiting and watching for the Lord's coming. The
trial was severe. It seemed hopeless, and if it should happen that, the
creditor came and went away unsatisfied, his commercial character would
be injured, his credit shaken, and his reputation severely suffer. That
last hour ran slowly on. At a _quarter to four_, almost the last few
moments of painful suspense, a little old woman came in, and asking for
Mr. Loest, said to him half in a whisper, "I live here close by, quite
alone, in a cellar, and I have had a few thalers paid me, and now I want
to beg of you to be so good as to keep them for me. I have not slept
over night since I had them; it is a great charge for a lone woman like
me."

Loest was only too glad to accept the money, and offered interest, which
she declined. She hurried back, brought in her money, counted it out on
his table, and there _were just three hundred thalers_, six rouleaux of
fifty thalers each.

_She had scarcely left the house, with her receipt in her pocket, ere
the clerk of the creditor with his demand in his hand, rushed into
Loest's presence. He received his three hundred thalers, and both parted
speechless with amazement_.

Loest was lost in wonder at the marvelous way and exactness of time in
which the Lord delivered him, while the creditor was astonished thus to
find Loest's Mighty Friend had not failed him in his hour of need.

Thus in one short week, from a beginning of less than five thalers, God
had so exactly supplied his business needs that he had paid all his
obligations of two thousand six hundred thalers, saved him from failure,
saved his honor and good name, and now all was peace.

The history of Loest and other providences which helped him in his
business, are still further given more at length in a little book, "_The
Believing Tradesman_," from the records of the Religious Tract Society
of Berlin.

This sketch illustrates the necessity of looking to God daily for help,
and strength, and success, and deliverance in our business occupations
as well as the concerns of our soul, and must effectively prove that
those who use their business and the means from it to honor the good
works of the Lord on earth, will be blessed on earth with the favor of
the Lord. It teaches the sublime lesson that _money and prosperity are
gifts from the Lord_, and must be considered as such, acknowledged with
thankfulness, and used to please the Giver.

Whenever the Christian learns to love the gift more than the Giver, the
Lord takes it often away to remind him of his need of dependence upon
_Him_. But whenever the Christian loves the _Giver_ because of His
gifts, and spends his means again to please his Heavenly Father, he
becomes the Father's steward, and his lap is filled with bountiful
blessings, such as one finds by true experience, "_The Lord is my
Shepherd, I shall not want_."

SPURGEON'S PRAYER FOR MONEY.

Charles Spurgeon relates this incident connected with his ministry:
"When the college, of which I am President, had been commenced, for a
year or so all my means stayed; my purse was dried up, and I had no
other means of carrying it on. In this very house, one Sunday evening, I
had paid away all I had for the support of my young men for the
ministry. There is a dear friend now sitting behind me who knows the
truth of what I am saying. I said to him, '_There is nothing left,
whatever_.' He said, 'You _have a good banker, sir_.' 'Yes,' I said,
'and I should like to draw upon him now, for I have nothing.' 'Well,'
said he, 'how do you know, have you prayed about it?' 'Yes, I have.'
'Well, then leave it with Him; have you opened your letters?' 'No, I do
not open my letters on Sundays.' 'Well,' said he, 'open them for once.'
I did so, and in the first one I opened there was a banker's letter to
this effect: 'Dear Sir, we beg to inform you that a lady, totally
unknown to us, has left with us two hundred pounds for you to use in the
education of young men.' Such a sum has never come since, and it never
came before; and I have no more idea than the dead in their graves how
it came then, nor from whom it came, but to me it seemed that it came
directly from God."

THE PRAYER OF LATIMER.

The prayers of the martyr, Latimer, were very remarkable for their
faith. There were three principal matters for which he prayed:

1. That God would give him grace to stand to his doctrine until death.

2. That God would of His mercy restore His gospel to England once again,
repeating and insisting on these words "once again," as though he had
seen God before him, and spoken to Him face to face.

3. That God would preserve Elizabeth; with many tears, desiring God to
make her a comfort to this comfortless realm of England. All these
requests were most fully and graciously answered.

A MOTHER'S PRAYERS ANSWERED.

A Christian evangelist, whose work has been most singularly blessed,
related this incident, how once in the days of his folly and sin, while
as yet his course of life ran counter to the fondest wishes and prayers
of his mother's heart, he one day asked her the strange question,
whether she really believed that he ever would be converted to God. And
her answer, inexpressibly touching and instructive, as being the answer
of _assured faith_, which could see as yet no signs of the coming of
what it so anxiously sought, was,

"Yes, I believe that you will one day be as eminent as a Christian, and
an instrument for good, as you have been eminent in sin, and an
instrument for evil."

In later years the evangelist looked back with admiration to the faith
of his mother, and thanked the Lord for His gracious answer to her
prayers.

HOW THE LORD RESCUED HIM.

A wonderful incident is told by Dr. S.I. Prime among his many facts
relating to prayer, as published in _The Observer_ and "_The Power of
Prayer_."

"A young man held a good position in a large publishing house in this
city. He was about thirty years old, a married man, and happy in all the
relations of life. The missionary of the church knew him through years
of comfort and prosperity. Years passed away, and there came a dark
place in his life. Intemperance, of the most depraved kind, made his
career most dreadful. He disappeared, and was not heard from for some
time. He separated himself from his family, and from all good.

"He was met in Boston one day by an old friend, after long years, who
noticed a marked difference in his appearance. He approached him,
grasped him by the hand and said:

"'I am a changed man. I one day got up in the morning, after a night of
wakefulness, and thinking over what a wretch I had become, and how
wretched I had made my poor wife and children, I resolved to go to the
barn, and there all alone, to pray that God would take away utterly
forever my accursed thirst for rum, and to pray till I felt answered
that my prayer was heard. I went down on my knees, and on them I stayed
until I had asked God many times to take away all my appetite for rum
and tobacco, and everything else which was displeasing to Him, and make
me a new creature in Christ Jesus--a holy, devoted Christian man, for
the sake of Him who died for sinners. I told God that I could not be
denied; I could not get up from my knees till I was forgiven and the
curse was forever removed. I was in earnest in my prayer.

"'I was on my knees two hours, short hours, as they seemed to me; two
blessed hours, for I arose from my knees assured that all of the
dreadful past was forgiven, and my sins blotted out forever. Oh! I tell
you, God hears prayer. God has made me a happy man. I left all my
appetite in the old barn. In that old barn, I was born again. Not one
twinge of the old appetite has ever been felt since then.'"

JESUS KEEPS ME FROM DRINKING.

A young man arose in the Fulton Street prayer-meeting one day, and
detailed his struggles and triumphs with his appetites. He was a perfect
drunkard, helpless, poor; his friends' best efforts to reclaim' him were
of no avail. The most solemn vows that he had ever taken, still were
unable to hold him up. At last he gave himself up for lost. There seemed
no hope for him, and in his despair he wandered away to the ocean shore.
He met a young man who showed him a good many favors, and to whom he
offered a drink from his flask of liquor.

"'No,' said he, 'I never drink intoxicating drink, and I ask the Lord
Jesus to help me never to touch it.'

"I looked at him with surprise, and inquired, 'Are you a Christian?'

"'Yes, I trust I am,' he answered.

"'_And does Jesus keep you from drinking intoxicating liquor?'_

"'_He does, and I never wish to touch it_.'

"That short answer set me to thinking. In it was revealed a new power. I
went home that night and said to myself, as I went, '_How do I know but
Christ would keep one from drinking if I would ask him_?'

"When I got to my room, I thought over my whole case, and then I knelt
down and told Jesus what a poor, miserable wretch I was; how I had
struggled against my appetite, and had always been overcome by it. I
told Him if he would take the appetite away I would give myself up to
Him to be his forever, and I would forever love and serve Him. I told
Him that I felt assured that He could help me, and that He would.

"Now I stand here, and I tell you all most solemnly, _that Jesus took me
at my word_. He did take away my appetite then and there, so that, from
that sacred moment of casting myself on his help, I have not tasted a
drop of liquor, nor _desired_ to taste it. _The old appetite is gone_.

"The last two weeks have been rich experience of Divine goodness and
grace."

MR. MOODY'S FAITH, IN PRAYER. A REMARKABLE ANSWER.

Mr. Moody, on his return from England, while conducting a prayer-meeting
in Northfield, Mass., gave this illustration of the power of prayer to
subdue the most unlikely cases of sin and unbelief:

"There is not a heart so hard that God cannot touch it. While in
Edinburgh, a man was pointed out to me by a friend who said, 'Moody,
that man is chairman of the Edinburgh infidel club.' So I went and sat
down beside him, and said, 'Well, my friend, I am glad to see you at
this meeting. Are you not concerned about your welfare?' He said that he
did not believe in a hereafter. I said, 'Well, you just get down on your
knees and let me pray for you.'

"'_I don't believe in prayer_.'

"I tried unsuccessfully to get the man down on his knees, and finally
knelt down beside him and prayed for him. Well, he made a good deal of
sport over it, and I met him again many times in Edinburgh after that. A
year ago last month, while in the north of Scotland, I met the man
again. Placing my hand on his shoulder, I asked, '_Hasn't God answered
the prayer_?'

"He replied, 'There is no God. I am just the same as I always have been.
If you believe in a God, and in answer to prayer, do as I told you. Try
your hand on me.'

"'Well,' I said, 'God's time will come; there are a great many praying
for you; and I have faith to believe you are going to be blessed.'

"Six months ago I was in Liverpool; and there I got a letter from the
leading barrister of Edinburgh, telling me that my friend, the infidel,
had come to Christ, and that of his club of thirty men _seventeen_ had
followed his example.

"How it happened he could not say, but whereas he was once blind, now he
could see. God has answered the prayer. '_I didn't know how it was to be
answered_,' said Mr. Moody, '_but I believed it would be and it was
done. What we want to do is to come boldly to God_.'"

THE WONDERS OF A SINGLE PRAYER.

The Rev. Dr. Edwin F. Hatfield, of New York City, well known and eminent
among the clergymen of the Presbyterian church, is personally acquainted
with the following instance of a remarkable case in answer to prayer.
From the mother of the daughter he obtained this statement, which has
been published by Dr. Patton, of Chicago, in his volume, "On Prayer."

"My daughter was for fourteen months afflicted with hip disease. It was
brought on by a fall, and a consequent dislocation, when she was eight
years of age.

"Her right side was paralyzed, and she had an abscess. I placed her in a
hospital, under the care of good nurses, and the very best medical
advice.

"Everything possible was done for her, but all to no avail; she grew
worse instead of better, and the doctors directed me, as there was no
hope for her, to take her home to die.

"But I did not cease to hope. I did as the doctors directed, but
continued to pray the prayer of faith for her recovery for two weeks.
One morning, at the end of this period, we were conversing together
about the wonderful cures wrought by the Savior, when on earth, and
particularly that of the man at the pool of Bethesda.

"In the midst of our conversation, my daughter rose to obtain a drink of
water, when she exclaimed, '_Mother, I can walk.'_ 'Thanks be to God!'
said I, 'Come, and let me see you!'

"Her crutches, the only means by which she could move about, before,
were now useless. Upon examination, I found that the abscess had
entirely disappeared, and that the paralyzed limb was restored whole,
like the other.

"She was again dangerously ill, five months afterward. I prayed for her
recovery one night, before retiring, and the next morning she arose,
perfectly cured."

She is now twenty-one years of age, and during all this intervening time
has been free from any trouble of this kind. To-day she is as well as
any one, working and running about without the slightest trouble."

THE TAVERN KEEPER OVERCOME.

Rev. Charles G. Finney relates, in his "Spirit of Prayer," of an
acquaintance of his whose faith and importunity in prayer and the answer
were very remarkable:

"In a town in the northern part of the State of New York, where there
was a revival, there was a certain individual, who was a most violent
and outrageous opposer. He kept a tavern, and used to delight in
swearing at a desperate rate, whenever there were Christians within
hearing, on purpose to hurt their feelings. He was so bad, that one man
said he believed he should have to sell his place or give it away, and
move out of town, for he could not live near a man that swore so.

"This good man of faith and prayer that I have spoken of, was passing
through the town and heard the case, and was very much grieved and
distressed for the individual. He took him on his praying list. The case
weighed on his mind when he was asleep, and when he was awake. He kept
thinking about him, and praying for him, for days; and the first we knew
of it, this ungodly man came into a meeting, and got up and confessed
his sins, and poured out his soul. His barroom immediately became the
place where they held prayer-meetings."

VICTORIES OVER BAD HABITS, TOBACCO, OPIUM, ETC.

The Rev. W.H. Boole, a city missionary in New York City, has been
witness in his ministries, of many cases of complete deliverance from
bad habits, and appetites, solely by believing prayer. Many are
contained in a little tract written by him, "The Wonder of Grace." He
gives a few of these incidents:

"One is an officer in a church in New York, who had used tobacco for
forty years, making during that time many efforts to abandon the
practice, but always failing because of the resultant inward growing.
But he was brought to an act of specific faith in Jesus, to save him
from the appetite, and now, after several years, he testifies, 'From
that hour all desire left me, and I have ever since hated, what I once
so fondly loved.'"

"Another is of a prominent church member in Brooklyn, N.Y., who had used
tobacco for thirty years, and could not endure to be without a cigar in
his mouth, and sometimes even rose and smoked in the night; after many
failures to overcome the habit, one night when alone, he cast himself on
his Savior for just this victory; and from that hour was delivered from
the desire as well as from the outward act, and now wonders that he ever
loved the filthy practice."

"A certain old lady, who lived near Westbrook, Conn., aged seventy, was
a confirmed opium eater, and used daily, an amount sufficient to kill
twenty persons. She was led to see that the habit was a _sin_; and as
such, she abandoned it, with specific application to Christ to save her
from it. She was heard, and lived for two years afterward, free from any
desire for that drug."

"A similar case was that of a carpenter, in Brooklyn, N.Y., who, from
taking morphine to allay the pain of a fractured leg, fell into its
habitual use, till he almost lived upon it for several years after his
recovery. He once swallowed, in the presence of several physicians, a
dose which it was calculated would destroy the lives of two hundred
ordinary men. Not long since, he was made to look at this as a sin, and
tried to break off the habit, abstaining, with an alarming reaction,
till five physicians declared that death would ensue, if he did not
resume it. This he did for a year; but then on a certain Sunday evening,
broke off again, casting himself by faith on Christ, from which moment
the desire left him, and has never returned, and he has experienced no
reaction or other ill effect, but has greatly improved in health."

MRS. WHITNEY'S CURE IN ANSWER TO PRAYER.

Mrs. C.S. Whitney of Hartford, Conn., a lady well known for her
Christian work among the poor, thus gives in a letter to Dr. Patton, her
personal testimony of the efficacy of prayer:

"Three years ago, I was healed of a bodily disease. I had been troubled
from my birth with canker, and at times suffered greatly. I had
consulted some of the best physicians in the land, and had been treated
by the most skillful. My case was said to be incurable. When I learned
to trust Christ for everything, I applied to Him for healing. My husband
joined with me in this prayer for three weeks; but all the time I was
growing worse. I then prayed for entire submission. About the first of
October, 1872, my stomach, throat and mouth were so cankered, I could
scarcely eat anything. One day, I took up the little book entitled,
'Dorothea Trudel;' and while reading, I seemed to hear a voice saying
unto me, _'All things are possible unto him that believeth.' 'According
to thy faith be it unto thee.'_ I claimed the faith, and immediately
asked God to heal me, and in His own way. While yet on my knees, it
seemed very clear to me that I should go to Boston, and ask Doctor
Cullis to pray with me. I obeyed that leading, and made preparations to
go the day following. Just as I was ready to start for the depot, I
realized that I was cured. An entire change was wrought in my system,
and my soul was filled with joy and gratitude."

PRESIDENT FINNEY'S PRAYER FOR RAIN.

The following incident of the prayer of President Finney for rain, and
its immediate answer, is furnished by Professor Cowles, the intimate
friend of President Finney:

"Somewhat more than twenty years ago, the village of Oberlin and its
adjacent country along the lake shore, suffered severely through the hot
season from a total failure of rain, for nearly three months. Clouds
that seemed to promise rain were repelled from the heated dry atmosphere
over the land, and attracted by the more moist atmosphere over the lake,
to pour out their waters there. On one such occasion, the clouds had
gathered dark, low, and heavy over the lakes, and lay there with no
particular indication of rising. President Finney walked out with his
eye on these clouds. I give the sequel in his own words, as they fell
from his lips, less than three months since:

"'In this walk I met Ralph, who turned sharply upon me. 'Mr. Finney, I
should like to know what you mean in preaching that God is always wise
and always good, when you see him pouring out that great rain upon the
lake, where it can do no good, and leaving us to suffer so terribly for
the want of that wasted water?'

"'His words cut me to the heart; I turned, and ran home to my closet,
fell on my knees, and told the Lord what Ralph had been saying about
Him; and besought Him, for the honor of His great name, to confound this
caviler, and show forth the glory of His power and the greatness of His
love. I pleaded with Him that He had encouraged His people to pray for
rain, and that now the time seemed to have come for Him to show His
power in this thing, and His faithfulness as a hearer of prayer.

"'Before I rose from my knees, there was a sound of a rushing, mighty
wind. I looked out, and lo! the heavens were black; that cloud was
rolling up, and soon the rain fell in torrents, two full hours.'

"The writer, (Professor Cowles,) himself remembers how that cloud lay
over the lake; how it drove him, also, to his closet; and that soon and
signally the prayers of that hour came back to us in mighty rain."

LUTHER'S MIGHTY PRAYER AND PROPHECY.

At one time in the life of Luther, there was a critical moment in the
affairs of the Reformation. Bitter persecution prevailed with
extraordinary power, and threatened every one. They were the dark days
when faith could only cling. There were but few friends to the
reformers, and these were of little strength. Their enemies were every
where strong, proud, arrogant. But Luther relied on his God, and at this
moment, with his favorite hymn in his heart, "_A strong fortress is our
God,_" he went to the Lord in prayer, and prayed that omnipotence would
come to the help of their weakness. Long he wrestled alone with God in
his closet, till like Jacob he prevailed. Then he went into the room,
where his family had assembled, with joyous heart and shining face, and
raising both hands, and lifting his eyes heavenward, exclaimed, "_We
have overcome, we have overcome_."

This was astonishing, as there was not the slightest of news which had
yet been heard to give them hope of relief. But immediately after that,
the welcome tidings came that _the Emperor, Charles V., had issued his
Proclamation of "Religious Toleration in Germany_." In Luther's prayer
was fulfilled the remarkable promise of Proverbs, 21: I. "_The king's
heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water; he turneth it
whithersoever he will_."

JOHN KNOX AND HIS PROPHETICAL PRAYER.

"John Knox was famous for his earnest prayers. Queen Mary said that she
feared his prayers more than she did all the armies of Europe. One
night, in the days of his bitterest persecution, while he and his
friends were praying together, Knox spoke out, and declared _that
deliverance has come_. He could not tell how. _Immediately the_ news
came that _Queen Mary was dead_."

MELANCTHON'S LIFE SAVED FROM DEATH IN ANSWER TO LUTHER'S PRAYER.

The most powerful tribute to the efficacy of prayer, was the answer to
Luther's prayer which the Lord sent. A messenger was sent to Luther that
Melancthon was dying. He found him presenting the usual premonitory
symptoms of death. Melancthon roused, looked in the face of Luther, and
said, "O Luther, is this you? Why don't you let me depart in peace."
"_We can't spare you yet, Philip_," was the reply, and turning around,
he threw himself upon his knees, and wrestled with God for his recovery
for upwards of an hour. He went from his knees to the bed, and took his
friend by the hand; again he said, "Dear Luther, why don't you let me
depart in peace?" "No, no, Philip; we can not spare you yet," was the
reply. He then ordered some soup, and when pressed to take it,
Melancthon declined, again saying, "Dear Luther, why will you not let me
go home and be at rest." "We can not spare you yet, Philip," was the
reply. He then added, "Philip, take this soup, or I will excommunicate
you." He took the soup, regained his wonted health, and labored for
years afterwards in the cause of the Reformation; and when Luther
returned home he said to his wife with joy, "God gave me my brother
Melancthon back in direct answer to prayer."

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