Rejoicing rings through Heaven’s courts whenever a child of God returns to tell of mercy received. Your testimony stirs my soul, for what is this but another proof that the ear of the Lord is not heavy, that His arm is not shortened? You asked, and you received, that your joy might be full, and full it now is, as it ought to be. Let this ### stand as a trophy not to human wit, but to the God who hears the feeblest sigh of His children. The particular object of your prayer has been granted, and you have done well to return with thanksgiving, for praise is the rent we owe for mercies past, and the fairest blossom of prayer answered.
Yet let me press this further. The first prayer was for yourself, that God would have mercy and grant success. He heard that. But now, having tasted that the Lord is good, let your prayers stretch wider. You have had double cause for prayer given you, for you went to the throne needy and returned enriched. Now, let intercessory prayer become your sweetest employ. The prayer of Christ has not a single grain of self in it; let your gratitude overflow into pleading for others, that souls would be saved, the backslider restored, the sick comforted. This is the prayer God ever hears, the incense most fragrant before His throne. You have proved Him in the study; prove Him now in the closet for the perishing.
And be not content with this single victory. The answer came punctually, at the very tick of the clock of wisdom, neither before nor after. But there are greater blessings yet to be sought, lasting riches that no examination can measure. Seek the salvation of your friends, the outpouring of the Spirit upon our land, the revival of true religion. Let your prayer grow fervent, passing from the timid knock into the bold hammering of faith that will not be denied. You had an ### in your exam; let us together seek an A from Heaven upon our generation, an awakening that shall make the angels sing anew. Continue in prayer, and when you feel you have no liberty, pray until liberty comes. God asks agreement among His children; join your praises with our prayers, and let us yet see greater things than these.