Wednesday, May 5

How To Pray Clear Through

Chapter One
How To Pray Clear Through
By: Will J. Harney

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you."
Matthew 7:7

"If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it."
John 14:14

"If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you."
John 15:7

"And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up, and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him."
James 5:15

"Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit."
James 5:17,18

"And this is the confidence that we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us. And if we know that he hear us whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him."
I John 5:14,15


For one to pray clear through, necessarily, first, there must be a burden, an object in view; something must have been pressed upon your mind by the Spirit that needs praying for, or about. Here is a child very sick. The doctors tell the parents that the child is most likely going to die. Some way the parents feel led out in prayer for the healing of the child's body. They read some promises, they wait upon God. They pray, and there comes upon them a spirit of prayer, a burden of prayer. There come upon them arguments, poetry, prose, promises, and they really get into soul travail. They fast, they cry to God, they agree, the fire falls, the witness comes. They pray clear through. The child gets well.

One morning while a good woman was washing her dishes, a burden of prayer seized her spirit for a missionary friend in India. She saw that her friend was in great danger, bodily danger, danger of being killed. She saw robbers on her track. She saw them pursuing her. She fled to her bedroom, fell upon her knees, and prayed right through to God, and her friend was gloriously delivered.

One may not get into the spirit of prayer the minute he goes to prayer, or the second he falls upon his knees. It may take quite a little while to get into the spirit of prayer, to get in touch with the forces of the skies. Sometimes when we get up to build a fire there is just a coal or a small chunk of fire. What do we do? We shave some fine kindling; place them upon the coals of fire; then blow lightly until a small blaze leaps up. Then put on some more kindling; then we put on the fuel, and soon there is a roaring fire, and the room is comfortably warm.

Often times when we've gone to prayer, we were dry, and the devil did his best to keep us dry, but we had gone to prayer, and meant to pray clear through before we quit. We had taken it by the job. We were not in a hurry. We had plenty of time for prayer. We would read the 21st Psalm, the 91st Psalm, the 14th chapter of Saint John, 13th chapter of 1st Corinthians, testify to His goodness, meditate, reflect, sing "Jesus Lover of My Soul," pray awhile, praise Him, and keep this up. Don't quit. Don't get up off your knees. Stay down until you hear from Heaven. Stay there until you get into a spirit of prayer. We get what we want, that is, we get what we pray for. If we want the spirit of prayer badly enough, and will go down in earnest, it will be ours to enjoy.

A young man who was convinced that a Methodist pastor should have a helpmeet, began to cast his eyes about, and at last they fell upon a handsome young lady, the sister of a great Congressman. She was well educated and a great musician. The preacher said, "She just suits me. She can carry on the musical side of the parish, and that is a great help." But he went to prayer. He fasted and prayed. He went daily before God over this all-important step, for much hinges upon this step. He knew that many a preacher's life had been injured, his ministry hurt, by choice of a wrong companion; hence this preacher waited upon God. Seemingly, he could not get into the spirit of prayer. Seemingly, he could not get the ear of God, and he could not get the mind of God. But he kept praying. One time he prayed clear through, and the Spirit said, "No, she's not the woman for you."

Thirteen years had come and gone, and this preacher had become a famous evangelist. Conducting a series of meetings in a large southern city, he saw an eminent lawyer one night at the altar, crying and pleading with God for pardon. He knelt by the lawyer's side; placing his arms about him, he said, "Sir, what is your trouble?" The lawyer looked up into his face, and said. "May I have a private interview with you tomorrow?" During the conference the lawyer said to the preacher, "I married Congressman So-and-So's sister. She was a beautiful woman, well educated, and a great musician, but she is making life a hell on earth to me." When this preacher got back into his room, he jumped all over the floor, clapping his hands, and praising God that he didn't get her for a wife. You see if the devil could have kept that preacher from praying clear through, perhaps he would have gotten that woman, and thousands of souls would not have been saved.

When a burden comes upon your soul, or the Spirit leads you out along any line in prayer, take time, plenty of time to get alone with God in prayer. Stay there. Don't get up. Don't be in a hurry. Don't get nervous. Don't look at your watch. Never stop until you get the mind of God. It is dangerous to your own soul; it is destructive to God's cause committed to you. It will cause you to lose the blessed spirit of prayer, when He leads you out, and you fail to follow; fail to stay upon your knees; fail to pray clear through. God would not burden your heart, God would not make you hungry, lead you out, causing you to wrestle, to agonize, to fast and pray, unless He meant to answer. It's proof of the fact when the burden continues, and the Spirit continues to lead you out, that there's an answer, and God wants you to pray clear through.

A good woman who was tied to her bed by a malady, prayed three years, once every day, for one hour, for a great revival to break out in her home church, in her home town. Sunday after Sunday she would ask her sister, who was taking care of her, when she came from church, whether anything had happened. Had anything new taken place? God kept burdening her. The spirit of prayer kept leading her out. She became more anxious. She would weep and cry, but every Sunday when her sister came in from church, she told her that the same old, dry folks prayed those long, dry prayers, and the choir sang so but few in the audience could understand anything they said, and the preacher discussed science, and there was nothing being done. The devil teased this honest heart. He said, "You prayed and cried and fasted for three years, and there isn't a single sign of a revival." But one Sunday morning the sister came in and went right to the bed of her sick sister, saying, "A new preacher preached this morning, and I tell you he was a warm member. He woke things up." That night the sister came home about 10:30, and said the altar was crowded, and there were between two hundred and fifty and five hundred souls blessedly saved in that meeting.

Get on two or three good promises. Press down hard on them. Anchor to them. Things will break up. Things will break loose. Things will break over. God hears you, and His thoughts toward you are good. He will answer. Dare to trust Him anywhere. God always hears and answers prayer.

Monday, May 3

Praying Clear Through by Will Harney

Works published in 1922 and earlier are in the public domain. "Praying Clear Through" by William J. Harney was last copyrighted in 1916. That means that the book is officially owned by you.

Copyrights are essentially the exclusive right to make a copy. Society grants a temporary monopoly to an author for copying and selling a text. Then, after it expires, it becomes owned by the public at large. Why? Because without public ownership texts will slowly die without the ability to be shared. And the knowledge in them has better use to a society than to just let them disappear.

I personally found "Praying Clear Through" years ago and found reading it to be a blessing to my life. I can't tell you to go get a copy ( you can't ... yet ) so I figured I would share it with you this way. So I'll be "republishing" it here a chapter per post. I'll edit for clarity at times. When Pastor Harney uses third person for his voice I'll change it to first person. And I hope to fix any editing errors as well. That should be all that my contribution is to this text.

So let's start.




Praying Clear Through


William J. Harney
Preacher -- Evangelist of Wilmore, Kentucky


Edited by Mark Arrasmith




DESCRIPTION

A book on a subject essential to all who would get into a state of grace, and grow therein; also for those who study to show themselves approved unto God, workmen that need not to be ashamed. "O Thou, by whom we come to God, The Life, the Truth, the Way; The path of prayer Thyself hast trod; Lord, teach us how to pray."


PRINTING

1915 God's Revivalist Press Cincinnati, Ohio
Printed Book Copyright 1916 God's Revivalist Office


DEDICATION

To My Precious Wife, Whose Devotion To Principle, Loyalty To Light, And Courage,And Faith In Duty, Have Been My Constant Inspiration; Whose Kind, Gentle Womanhood And Thoughtful Motherhood Have Blessed And Hallowed Our Sunny Home,This Book Is Lovingly Dedicated By The Author.


AN EARNEST PRAYER

Our Father, assist us as we open this book, to get out of each and every chapter, that Thou hast in each thought, for each and every reader. May we read slowly, cautiously, digesting all we read. Forbid we should be surface readers, but grant us Thy good Spirit to help us to use our picks, drills and sledges, getting down into every thought and out of every thought that which will help us most. Too many read just to be reading. Too few really get into the thoughts. Lead us and may we follow. Help us to study, to be real students. Bless each reader and grant us Thy continued presence. Bless this book. Thou knowest the hours in real soul travail, the tears and heart agony it cost the author.


PREFACE

It has been the author's firm conviction that the crying need of this age is a praying Christianity. When the weakest saint falls upon his knees the devil trembles. If the weakest can cause him to fear, what about a Daniel? A Paul? One's experience is as rich and his faith and as strong as his prayer life. In all my ministry, I have never failed when I could get the church on her knees. Christians all over the country having read my articles, and heard my sermons and lectures on this vital subject, have begged for this book. I know that the prayer life is the Christian's force, the Christian's power-house, and the more we pray the stronger will we be against evil and for the right.

I have not written this book for the learned man, nevertheless he can find food for his soul, but for those who want, and need, help in their prayer life. I have written this book while upon the field of battle and in the thickest of the fight, where God answered by fire every heart-cry of His children.

Let me urge each and every reader to begin today a constant waiting upon God; an unrelenting, deep, quiet prayer life. We must get quiet to get the ear of God. I know, by twenty-five years' experience, that God will hear, and that God does answer prayer. I wish for every reader a burden for prayer, a hunger for prayer. We must pray. We must never quit just because we do not get the answer at once. When God leads out in prayer, follow earnestly, He is leading, there is something ahead. Take notice, look, listen, get ready. The cloud is rising. There is soon to be a going in the mulberry-trees. Do not read one chapter and quit the book, but give each and every chapter a faithful reading.

The Saint who has done most for God and his fellows has been the one who has prayed most, for it is through this channel that we get the working grace. We will do more, and that the easier, by living upon our faces longer. It is very destructive to rush into the white harvest-fields with a prayerless life. It spells defeat to God. The man who is winning most souls for God is he who lingers much and long in the closet of prayer.

Yours in much prayer, Will J. Harney


INTRODUCTION

"Take time to pray!
When fears and foes distress you,
And tiresome toils oppress you,
Then the Master waits to bless you,
If you'll take time to pray.

"Take time to pray!
Come what there may To stand in the way:
Look often to Jesus And take time to pray."

"I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting."
I Timothy 2:8

"The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."
James 5:16

"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."
Hebrews 4:16

"When thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly."
Matthew 6:6

The author could not have chosen a more important subject on which to write. Indeed, if every Holiness book contained one or more chapters on prayer; or rather, if the opening and closing chapters of every book were on this great theme, it would not be amiss, for today there is a universal confession among Christians of "neglect of the secret closet." Jesus said, "Men ought always to pray and not faint," and is not this neglect the cause of so many falling away from the Truth, so many not going on unto perfection?

The author caught the vision and has seen the reality of that vision through the secret of Prevailing Prayer. The book is only a record of how God answers him who calls; how God gives victory to the man who will hear from Heaven.

We send it forth trusting the Holy Spirit to use it to enlighten the children of God on the attacks of the enemy on the "secret chamber;" to arouse them to the glorious possibilities of prevailing prayer; to help them learn the secret of "Praying Clear Through." Amen!

Read it; study it; obey its injunctions; and for God's glory, circulate it.

Meredith G. Standley