Fishing for compliments is beneath any man of common sense, but it does cheer the pastor’s heart to be told, “Your sermon last Sunday brought me a great blessing; it helped me all the week.”  Or better still, “Your sermon brought me to decide for Christ.”  In a careful and delicate way, I drew out our people in regard to their spiritual condition, and if I found that any member of the family was anxious about his or her soul, I managed to have a private and unreserved conversation with that person.  It is well for every minister to be careful how he guards the confidence reposed in him.  The family physician and the family pastor often have to know some things they do not like to know, but they never should allow any one else to know them.

This intimate, personal intercourse with my flock enabled me more than once to bring the undecided to a decision for Christ.  In dealing with such cases, whether in the home or in the inquiry-room, I aimed to discover just what hindrance was in the path of each awakened soul.  It is a great point also for such a one to discover what it is that keeps him or her from surrendering to Christ.  If it be some habit or some evil practice, that must be given up; if some heart sin, that we must yield, even if it be like plucking out an eye or lopping off a right hand.  It was my aim, and ever has been, to convince every awakened person that unless he or she was willing to give the heart to Jesus and to do His will there was no hope for them.  We must shut every soul up to Christ.

I requested my people to inform me promptly of every case of serious sickness, and I could never be too prompt in responding to such a call.  However busy I might be in preparing sermons or any commendable occupation everything else was laid aside.  For a pastor should be as quick to respond to a call of sickness as an ambulance is to reach the scene of disaster.  I sometimes found that a parishioner had been suddenly attacked with dangerous illness and even my entrance in the sick room might agitate the patient.  At such times I found it necessary to use all the tact and delicacy and discretion at my command.  I would never needlessly endanger a sick person by efforts to guide or console an immortal spirit.  I aimed to make my words few, calm and tender, and make every syllable to point toward Jesus Christ.  Whoever the sufferer may be, saint or sinner, his failing vision should be directed to “no man save Jesus only” It is not commonly the office of the pastor to tell the patient that his or her disease is assuredly fatal, but if we know that death is near, in the name of the Master, let us be faithful as well as tender.