At last, in moments of bitter repentance before God, he unbosomed himself to his pastor, and said, "_Long ago I promised to give the Lord one-tenth of all the profits I gained from my business, and while I did so, I was immensely prosperous and successful; never did any one have any such splendid success,--but I forgot my promise, stopped giving, thought that I did not need to spend so much, and I began to invest my means in real estate. When I stopped giving I stopped getting. Now all is gone. I lost my all because I did not keep my promise to the Lord_." This incident is a practical one, telling how utter is the impossibility of true success, without the aid of the Lord, and how absolutely necessary it is to our own peace and comfort of mind to religiously observe one's promises made to God. The Bible only too truly tells of the end of those who forget Him. "_But Jeshurun waxed fat, then he forsook God which made him; and when the Lord saw it, he abhorred them, and said, 'I will hide my face from them_.'" "_Ye can not prosper; because ye have forsaken the Lord_, He _hath also forsaken you." "There shall be desolation; because thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation, and hast not been mindful of the rock of thy strength_." * * * * * HOW THE LORD CONTROLS THE WINDS AND THE WAVES JOHN EASTER'S PRAYER. In his "Memorials of Methodism in Virginia," Dr. W.W. Bennet relates the following incidents in the life of John Easter, one of the pioneer ministers who labored there nearly one hundred years ago: He is represented as being the most powerful exhortatory preacher of his day. His faith was transcendent, his appeals irresistible, his prayers like talking with God face to face. Perhaps no man has ever been more signally honored of God as an instrument in the conversion of souls. On one of his circuits eighteen hundred members were added to the church in a single year.