PRAYER AND POWER | AdventAI

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Mountain View, California · Apr 26, 1905

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 31, No. 17.

PRAYER AND POWER.

THE worldling may succeed in life by carefulness, by skill, by intelligence, and by force; but in the work of God no man can succeed without prayer. No human power can effect the changes and accomplish the work required in the service of God. There is a superhuman work to be done, and a superhuman energy is required for its accomplishment. To be prayerless is to be powerless. No matter what qualifications men may have for the work, unless they have the power of God they will never succeed in accomplishing the service of God.

Multitudes of men and ministers may trace their failure to their prayerlessness. They are eloquent, but they do not pray. They are enterprising, but they do not frequent the mercy-seat. They belong to secret societies and clans, but they do not know the secret of the Lord which is with them that fear Him. They may have education and all that learning can give them, but without prayer they will be like a sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal. They may be abundant in labor, fervid in speech, and zealous in good works, but all this will not avail unless they have the power and that presence which comes only in answer to prayer.

Let Christians learn the lesson, and as they desire to be useful and to do effective work for God, let them see to it that they watch and pray, that they continue instant in prayer, and thus draw from heaven that power and help without which they can do nothing, and without which all that they undertake to do will amount to nothing in the end.—The Christian.