The Relation Between God's Purpose for the Young and the Literature We Give Them
By Mrs. H. W. Pierce
MANY assurances of God's love and care for the young are given in the Holy Scriptures. The most precious promises to the people of God include their children; and when we search the Testimonies given for God's people just before the coming of Christ, we find line upon line and precept upon precept, here a little and there a little, concerning his thoughts and plans for the young, and the great responsibilities he has laid upon us all in their preparation for the great work,—the carrying of the gospel as comprehended in the third angel's message to all the nations of the earth. One just engaged in this work requires a well-balanced, all-round education from the cradle to the close of the work, or to the grave if he falls asleep before the work is completed. The promise found in the prophecy of Malachi has been wonderfully fulfilled among Seventh-day Adventists during the last quarter of a century. He says, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.” Mal. 4:5, 6. In some of the early camp-meetings no Sabbath-school was held on the ground, but perchance some sister, whose heart was drawn out to help the children, gathered some of them around her and taught them. No youth's meetings or children's meetings were held as a part of the program at our gatherings. By comparison we see a change little short of miraculous. Schools and academies are multiplied throughout our denomination, being established in many of the far-away foreign mission fields, as well as in our own land. Periodicals and books are provided in abundance, suitable and instructive for the help of the young, in both intellectual and spiritual things. Conventions are held, the whole denomination being actuated by the one great thought, We must prepare our young people for service, because through them God will accomplish the greatest work ever committed to mortals—the closing work of the gospel of Christ. No one can read our denominational books without gaining breadth of thought and depth of knowledge; and, if the reader's heart is open to the convictions of the Holy Spirit, a deep-seated desire to do unselfish, loving service for God and humanity is begotten within him. It is true that with the enlargement of the work it is well to become acquainted with the manners and customs of the people of other lands before we visit them. And the experiences of those noble missionaries of the last century who left all to carry the first knowledge of Christ to heathen lands, are very helpful to those who are preparing for a similar work in this message, the keynote of which is, “The coming of Christ in this generation.” But while the biographies of Williams, Carey, Judson, Robert Moffat, Paton, and a host of others are profitable, yet if the reading of these books crowds out the study of the more valuable books, “Patriarchs and Prophets,” “Great Controversy,” “Desire of Ages,”—books written by inspiration of the Holy Spirit,—a loss is sustained, and a mistake is made that is not soon rectified in the preparation of the young for the work of God. The pernicious and trashy reading with which the world is flooded should find no place in the homes of Seventh-day Adventists, and the reason why it is not found in our homes should not be that “papa or mama” would burn it up, but rather, that father and mother have provided a better grade of reading, and parents and children have read it together around the fireside until the children have been educated to choose the good books provided by our own people. Then we may hope they will never care for the light and trashy books and papers that crowd the news table and reading-rooms, and are distributed on the trains all over the country. They will be able to discriminate between the earthly and frivolous and that which bears the signature of heaven, the former, unsatisfying, the latter, true food for the mind and the soul. In like manner also should the taste for physical food be educated in the home so that our children will choose the simple hygienic food that God has told us is for our good, instead of the flesh-meats and other stimulating foods used by the world generally. That our denominational literature is appreciated and highly prized by the best people not of our faith is no longer a doubtful question, as our canvassers testify week by week. Surely we should not come behind in our own estimate of that which we recommend so highly to others. “Patriarchs and Prophets” is rich in Bible history, and shows how wonderfully the compassion and mercy of God was manifested and his justice vindicated in the sight of the whole universe. “Great Controversy” is both truthful and eloquent in the history of those noble Reformers of the sixteenth century; and it also tells us of the judgments of God that are already coming upon the world, and describes the closing scenes of earth's history, and the deliverance of the faithful when they shall be transferred to the heavenly world. “Desire of Ages,” next to the New Testament itself, is replete with the rich teachings and worthy example of the Saviour of men. “The Story of Daniel the Prophet,” “The Seer of Patmos,” “Coming King,” and a score of other books, including nature books, may also be mentioned, all of them being written in a way to interest as well as instruct the reader. We are a busy people, and the time is short. We are necessarily a hard-working people, and much literature, good in itself, must go by unopened for lack of time. Otherwise the best and most important, even that which contains the signature of heaven, will be crowded out. First of all, may God grant that our youth may open their hearts to the influence of the Holy Spirit that it may create in them a taste for the heavenly manna. And this not only in the choice of literature, but of associates, of dress, in fact, of everything that goes to make up life and character. God loves the young, and will do a mighty work through all those who will submit their wills and their whole lives to him for service. We are told that our children will become what we make them, and surely the literature we give them is a very important factor in the formation of their characters.