_THE STORY OF THE PAST_
DEUTERONOMY xxxi. 7-13.
And no ears are more receptive to spiritual story than the ears of a
little child. It is not needful to open the gate of interest; it is wide
ajar already. And imagination also is there, ready to busy itself about
the story. And so, too, is the spirit of homage and adoration. The
children are ready for the King! "Suffer little children to come unto Me,
for of such is the Kingdom of Heaven."
And, therefore, we have need of wise tellers of the story, who know the
story themselves. And in these delicate regions I must ever remember how
much my spirit shares in the story I tell. My spirit is a friend or a foe
to my power. My words may be well chosen, but they may all be light as
empty shells, devoid of all vitality. My words have just the power of
their spiritual contents. "You cannot fight the French with 200,000 red
uniforms," said Carlyle; "there must be men inside them." And we cannot
engage in the evangelization with mere uniforms of words. There must be
spirit inside them, even the spirit of pure and consecrated lives.