practically applied. Prayer is an expression of our belief in the being and the love of God.

The difficulty is in the fact that such specific prayers seem to offer an immediate test of this belief. And the plain evidence of such a test is that God does not always answer us. The child prays for a fair day, and it rains. Then, unless we have some reasonable explanation to make, the child infers either that the unseen being of whom we have told him does not exist, or that his parents do not know so much about God as he thought they did, or that God, if He does exist, does not care, or is not affected by our desires; and, in any case, that it is of no use to pray. Against these inferences, it is our business as religious teachers to instruct him.

The easiest illustration is the example of the younger children. They are continually expressing their desires; they are asking for things with almost every breath.

And this differs from what we call prayer only in that they make these requests of their parents instead of making them of God. All these wishes of the little children in the nursery are essentially prayers. All of these prayers are heard; they enter into the ears of elder persons who are able, in most cases, to grant them if they will. The elders are pleased to have the children make these prayers; they like to be asked for this and that; they are glad to be informed as to the needs and interests and wishes of their children. In the order of nature, they would do many of the things which they are asked to do without asking; nevertheless, the asking is a pleasure to their ears. It is an expression of a very blessed dependence and trust. Some of these requests are granted; and are granted because the requests are made. The parents do things which they might otherwise not do, because they are requested. But many requests are not granted. Children ask for

impossible things, and and for undesirable things. Sometimes they ask their parents to do at this moment that which may better be done at a later time. Sometimes they ask for that which while it would make them happy would conflict with the happiness of others, and with the wise plans and customs of the family. These prayers are not answered. The children are often grieved about it. They cry aloud. It seems to them that they are dealt with hardly. But that is because they do not understand. They cannot understand. The older children, looking on, appreciate the situation. An inference from the unanswered prayers of children that their parents did not exist, or did not care, or that prayer is of no use, is as absurd as a similar inference from the unanswered prayers which are made to God. When the children are old enough to ask questions about prayer, they should be instructed by this illustration. They are to pray, as their

younger brothers and sisters ask for things; but they are to expect to be answered only in accordance with the wise will of God. They are to be told beforehand that their prayers will not compel God, any more than the requests of small children compel their parents. God will grant them if He sees fit. If they are not granted, the meaning is that God did not see fit to do so. The hard sayings of the Bible about the prayer of faith removing mountains, and about the divine fulfillment of the prayers offered by the faithful who agree together to ask God, and all the strong promises which perplex the minds of children, are to be kept side. by side with our Lord's saying, "Not My will but Thine be done." Children are to be taught that that is the essential condition of all true prayer. The Bible repeatedly affirms the effectiveness of prayer, and denies that its only value is to induce in us a submissive mind, and experience confirms estimate. But even the collective

this

prayer of great companies of good people is not properly an endeavor to compel God. It submits the will of man to the divine consideration. We are to pray in all earnestness for all things which we desire, but the purpose of our most eager petitions must be to submit these matters, in all devout dependence and trust, like good children, to the judgment and decision of the infinite wisdom of our heavenly Father.