BOWLING GREEN, OHIO by Dudley Marvin Canright

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jan 16, 1879

BOWLING GREEN, OHIO.

By Dudley Marvin Canright

After an absence of seven weeks, I returned to Bowling Green Jan. 2, where I have spent one week. I am very much encouraged by the condition in which I now find things here. With one exception, all who made a start at our previous meetings are doing well. Prayer meetings, the Sabbath-school, and all the meetings, have been much more largely attended and have greater interest than before. The Sabbath-school has adopted the penny contribution upon the Sabbath, and hence already has on hand funds for various purposes. The school will now be supplied with maps, blank books, bell, and other conveniences.

The tract society has done good work. A large number of reports were brought in, showing much accomplished the last quarter; and with only one or two exceptions each report showed a donation of from five cents to one dollar. This is as it should be. Over three hundred dollars S. B. has been paid in during the last quarter, which is considerably more than was received during the whole of the previous year. The brethren and sisters here are all adopting the tithing system. It is doing them good, and bringing into the treasury far more than we previously had.

In this church we have the Conference treasurer, the State T. and M. secretary and treasurer, the district secretary, church clerk, church librarian, S. B. treasurer, Sabbath-school secretary, and some other officers. I have spent a large share of my time in trying to straighten out their records, and get them started in good shape. All are now provided with blank books properly arranged, and I feel pleased to know that the books are in pretty good shape. Not a word nor a figure has been made in any of these books which I have not gone over personally several times. With this instruction, I hope the records will be better kept than they have been before. Best of all, the brethren seem to be in good courage and are in harmony with one another.

We had an excellent meeting on the fast-day. About seventy-five responded to their names with cheering testimonies. Then we celebrated the ordinances. Four were disfellowshipped. These are cases of long standing, which we have not been able to help. If there is not a reformation on the part of several others by the time of the next quarterly meeting, they will also be disfellowshipped. We meant to have a clean record and a working church, and by the help of the Lord and the co-operation of all the brethren it will be done.

D. M. Canright.