Phineas F. Bresee - A Prince In Israel - Media Sabda Org

covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel"--was in the
present tense, viz., "we are come." I next learned that Paul, speaking by inspiration in the first
chapter of Ephesians, locates the saints of God in the heavenlies in Christ, in these sublime words:
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places, in Christ." I found many other Scriptures along the same line, and the
uplift of that glorious experience has been permanent in my spiritual life.
He prayed much, and was nearly always in the attitude of prayer. He lived habitually in
communion with God. Of his private devotions he spoke little, for he was singularly reticent in
regard to the things that were most sacred to him as an individual. Not long since, a stranger gave
his testimony in one of the Sunday afternoon meetings at the First Church in Los Angeles, and told
an incident of Dr. Bresee's life. He said: "I met him long before this work was started. Our first
acquaintance was at a campmeeting at Bennett, Nebraska. When he came on the grounds, the first
thing that he said, after greeting the brethren, was: 'Where can I get alone before the meeting" They
showed him the nicely furnished tent that they had prepared for him; but he said that he wanted to
be alone. They then referred him to the large tent where the men were to sleep, with nothing but
straw in it. He replied, 'That is all I want.' I had heard so much of Dr. Bresee that perhaps I should
not have followed him as I did, but I was s o anxious to know what he would say and do, that I was
guilty of eavesdropping. He went to the tent, parted the flaps, and fairly dove into the straw. For half
an hour he prayed as I had never heard any one pray before. The first thing that he said was: 'Lord,
keep Bresee out of sight.' He pleaded with God to pour out His Spirit upon us, and Oh, how the fire
did fall on that meeting!"
His Public Prayers
The following prayer was offered by Dr. Bresee at the First Church, in Los Angeles, on Sunday
morning, July 9, 1911, the writer taking it down in shorthand:
"Oh, God, our Heavenly Father, we worship and adore. Glory be to the Father; glory be to the
Son; glory be to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, glory be to
God.
"Oh, how we thank Thee, our Heavenly Father, that we are permitted to be in Thy house once
again. For many years some of us have been privileged to tread Thine earthly courts. We have
walked with the saints of God, who have slipped away from us, and gone sweeping through the gates
into the unseen holy; but, Lord, thou hast permitted us to tarry and press our way on and up for a
little longer, until our time shall come to ascend and be forever with the Lord. Thou hast been calling
other men and other women to join our ranks, and they have held up our hands; they have put their
arms of faith about us, and we have been brought along the way until this Sabbath morning, in this
month of July, 1911.
"Glory be to Thy Name! Thank God that we ever obeyed Thy call. Thank God that this gospel,
sent of God, ever became a living reality to us; that Jesus Christ came by where we were, spoke to
our hearts, called us to his bosom, took us in his arms, and said, 'Peace, be still.' Thank God that,
though our sins were like mountains, Jesus took them all away. Thank God that, though the billows