THE GARLAND.

Otago Witness, Issue 3352, 12 June 1918, Page 53

THE GARLAND.

FOR THE QUIET HOUR. No. 249.

By Duncan Wright, Dunedin.

"0 TASTE AND SEE." We have no wish to forget the words of good cheer by Charles Wesley : O that the world might taste and eeo The riches of Hia grace! The arms of lovo that compass me Would all mankind embrace .A clergyman who lived in a community where scepticism and inriuelity had led many gave a number oi addresses on the eviuences of Christianity, .both friends and opponents attenued. On the closing night oi the lectures a prominent inuuei was present. At the close of the meeting, which was very impressive, the speaker said, in a very tender spirit : "more may be, and doubtless are, some here to-nignt who do not believe as I do, and who do not accept the truth of the Bible, if so, 1 invite him or them to the platiorm to ask any questions which may occur to him." On the instant the infidel referred to came forward and said : "I do not accept or believe your doctrines: —I cannot." ''But," said the speaker, "you have for years denounced that which you have never tested. Are you willing that I, who have tried Christianity and feel its power and force, shall be your teacher, and will you submit to my directions? i'ou say that you are honest in your belief, and in an honest spirit you will meet me." "1 do thus meet you, and I will allow you to be my teacher." "Then," said the preacher, "kneel down by my side and repeat the simple words 'Cod be merciful to me a sinner.' " "But," was the reply, "I do not believe in your teachings." "Well you &ay you are honest, and are willing to test the question; if so you will heed my directions." The audience in hushed wonder and expectation heard the infidel, as he sullenly kneeled to utter the words desired with almost sarcastic defiance. "Again repeat these words," said his teacher, in tones of utmost gentleness; and again, still defiant T yet more subdued, the infidel repeated, "God be merciful to me a sinner !"

Once again came the request to repeat the sentence, and in the hearing of the audience, held by the power of God's spirit, that petition was offered in a tone of almost tenderness, certainly far different from the bravado with which it was first repeated. A fourth time the request came: "Repeat it again," and with his strong frame quivering with emotion the poor man poured out his soul in the prayer of the publican. At the fifth- repetition the man there and then, before the large assembly, offered up from his soul the prayer which, when thus offered, meets with God's pardoning mercy. Is not this incident entirely in the line of Faber's well known verses? Souls erf men, why will ye scatter, Liko a crowd of frightened sheep? Foolish hearts, why will ye wander From a love so true and deep? vOr this verse : There's a wideness in God's mercy Like the wideness of the sea; There's a kindness l in His justice Which is more than liberty. Or this : There is no place where earth's sorrows Are more felt than rip in heaven; There is no place where earths failings Have such kindly judgment given. Or this : Fox the love of God is broader Than the measures of man's mind; And the heart of the Eternal Is most wonderfully kind. If our love were but moro simple, .Wo should take Him at His word, And our lives would be all sunshine In the sweetness of our Lord. And so in Psalm xxxiv you have v God\s own sweet invitation : O taste and see that God is good: Who trusts in Him is blessed. Fear God His saints; none that Him fear Shall be with want oppressed. CROMWELL in 1646 wrote to his beloved daughter, Bridget IretQn : ""Your friends at Ely are well; your sister Claypole is, I trust in mercy, exercised with some perplexed thoughts. She sees her own vanity and carnal mind; bewailing it, she seeks after (as I hope also) waht will satisfy. And thus to be a seeker is to be of the best sect next to a finder; and such a one shall every faithful, humble seeker be at the end. Sappy seeker! Happy finder ! Who ever tasted that the Lord is good and gracious without some sense of self, of vanity, and badness ? Who ever tasted that graciousness of His, and could go in less desire—less than pressing after full enjoyment?" And so we venture to say : "Thrice happy the man or -woman who, like a true penitent, cries not in tho words of the p'enetential Psalm No. 51." Do Thou with hyssop sprinkle me, I shall be cleansed so; Yea, wash Thou me, aud then I shall Bo whiter than the snow. A psalm which delighted Luther and was sung by George Wishart and his friends at the Laird of Ormiston's in East Lothian on the night when he was taken prisoner, to be afterwards burned at St. Andrew's : Have mercy on me, God of Might, Of mercy, Lord, and King; For Thy mercy is 6et full right Above all earthly thing; Therefore I cry both day and night, And with my heart shall sing. In 18 — Hugh Miller visited Olney, the

home of Cowper the poet. It was at that time a babel of notoriously wicked men. He saw two prize fighters—one of whom was known as Bendigo—standing near a gin shop. . . . ' The scene changes. Thirty years have passed and Bendigo is now about 60 years ol age, and is in gaol for the 27th time. One Sabbath day he hears the story of David and Goliath. Bendigo understood it all. He forgot, for the moment, where he was, and at the close called out: "Bravo! I'm glad the little 'un won." He kept thinking of it in his cell. Next Sabbath the sermon was on Shadrach, Meshach. and Abednego. His knowledge of God's Boole was so slender that he imagined the last name to be Bendigo ; and he reasoned thus : "If one Bendigo may be saved, why not another?" The next Sabbath was "The Twelve Fishermen"; and the next the story of the 700 left-handed men as recorded in Judges xx, 16. He was greatly interested, especially as he was left-handed. As soon as he left gaol his old companions were waiting for him, but he emphatically declared he would never again enter a public house. He went to a mission hall meeting, and that very night, on his way home, he knelt in the snow and yielded himself to the Saviour. As a boxer he gained, in his day of fighting, many a prize; but he declared openly : "When I came to the Cross of Christ I was quite beat at the first round." To a reporter of the Daily Telegraph he said : "If God could save old Bendy, He can save anybody." OH, TASTE AND SEE. A TRULY MANLY UTTERANCE. Once, only onge, I saw and heard a great Methodist preacher, the Rev. Hugh Price Hughes. He told the following story : A great meeting in Exeter Hall, London. In every way it was remarkable. The vast auditorium was crowded with working men and their wives—railway porters, engine drivers, stokers, and so forth. It was the annual meeting of the Railway Christian Men's Association. The great building was crammed to the ceiling with some of the finest me% and sturdiest representatives of the English working clasees. A man who, from his general appearance and size, had the looks of an engine-driver, came to the front and amidst great cheerins: and boundless enthusiasm, spoke as follows : "Mr Chairman, there are some people who in the present say to us 'Legislate! Legislate! Legislate!' So say we working men. There are others who say : 'Educate! Educate! Educate!' "So say we working men, and we are thankful for what has been done for us and the working classes. But while we are ready to say 'Legislate ! Legislate! Legislate!' and 'Educate! Educate! Educate!' we say above everything else, 'Regenerate ! Regenerate ! Regenerate !'' That sentiment was profound philosophy, and was cheered to the echo. Would to God the real working man of to-day could and would see things in this light, and come forward in crowds and rally romd the Christian woi'kers in all the churches! Hurrah! for the men who work! Whatever may be their trade. Hurrah! for the rnen who wield ths pen., And "Ihcise who use the spade! "Who earn their daily bread By the sweat of an honest brow! Hurrah! for the men who dig and delve, And those who reap and plough! Hurrah! for the men who work. And the trade that suits them bsst! Hurrah! for the six days' labour And the one of blessed rest! Hurrah! for {he open heart! Hurrah! for the noble aim! Hurrah! for the quiet home! Hurrah! for an honest name! " Oh! Taste and See." A SAILOR'S YARN. After 45 years of the sea he came home and took to farming. He had a praying wife. "Moody came to Burlington, and she coaxed me to go and hear him. I had been round the world, and heard preaching from England to China. For years at sea as a master I was always a churchgoer, but only a 'head' believer all the time. Moody wakened me up. His plain talk decided me, and I 'tacked ship' there and then; hove all the accursed stuff that defileth overboard, which I had used for 48 years, even tobacco, headed off shore, clear of rocks and shoals, for blue waters, homeward bound. "I shall never forget that sermon about Naaman, the leper. Just my case; all the nice worldly surroundings, but still the thought would come : 'you must leave it ail pretty soon, and you a leper.' It didn't take any coaxing to get me there next time. Ours is a happy family now. I don't have to go out behind the barn when I get home from town for fear my wife would smell my breath, and I write no letters nor talk with anybody unless I tell them about the Pilot I have on board. Well, what result? Instead of sucking an old pipe and sruzzlinp; down drink T read the Bible. When the plough strikes a stone, instead of swearing as I to do, I take out my Testament and read a verse or two. Now I keep three times the stock in good order and in warm stables, as I found out all about ensilage, smooth - ino; harrows, com planters, etc. This is what the new Pilot has done for me. Of course, prosperity and happiness are in and about our home now. 'Praise the Lord.' " And Faher's words have been helpful to mvriads of timid seeking souls the world over. If our love were but more simple, W<S should take Him at Hia word. And our lives would be all sunshine In the sweetness of our Lord.