The Cooperation Called for in Our Young People's Work
By A. G. Daniells
THIS hour is to be devoted to a study of the interests and needs of the young people in our ranks. I have been requested to state the ways by which all the factors of influence in our cause may cooperate in an earnest endeavor to win our young people to Christ, bind them19to this movement, and educate and train them for efficient service. This question is one of very great importance,—one that involves the well-being of our young people, the joy and courage of their parents, and the progress of our cause. Through the spirit of prophecy we are told that the Lord "calls for whole armies of young men and young women who are large-hearted and large-minded, who have a deep love for Christ and the truth, to enter his service." During the past three months I have visited many of our colleges, academies, and State schools; and as I have talked with the teachers and students of these institutions, the value of our young people as a great denominational asset has been greatly enlarged in my mind, and the importance of working for them has received new emphasis. I feel that we ought to give the welfare of our young people serious consideration. We ought to take them into our thoughts, our plans, and our prayers as we never have before. Many, I am sorry to say, are slipping away from us. I can not believe that this should be our experience. It seems to me that a message that has laid hold of the hearts of the parents of these children as this message has done, and has led them to give up their business positions and financial prospects, and has separated them from their old social and church associations, ought to hold their children whom they have brought up in the truth. Why should not a message that can move people from their old moorings and bring them into this movement, hold their children who have never had any other associations than those of our message? I believe it can. But I am afraid that in our great efforts to reach those who do not know this message, we have not been working as we should for those who are already with us. Then let us turn our hearts to our young people, and do all we possibly can to bind them to this cause. When we do this, I believe we shall hold them. Every earnest effort we put forth in this direction brings most encouraging results. While a revival was being conducted in one of our colleges, the teacher of the normal department came to me and requested me to hold meetings with the children in her department. I found the children very restless, and in my first meeting I could scarcely hold their attention. The next day it was but little better, and the teacher was much disappointed. The third day I suggested to the children that we have a season of prayer at the beginning of the meeting, and I requested them to keep as still as they could, and to pray with me that the Lord would help them to be good. I had not prayed long until those children began to weep and sob. I scarcely knew what it meant. When we arose from prayer, they continued weeping. I asked them if they did not want to give their hearts to God, and immediately a lad got up and said that he wanted to be good, and then turned to the teacher and asked her to forgive him for having made her so much trouble. One after another did the same. Finally, the teacher stopped them, and said: "Children, I don't want you to confess to me and ask my forgiveness; I want to confess to you and ask you to forgive me for not having loved you more in the past. This morning I love you so much that I can not remember that you have ever done anything wrong. Last night I prayed all night that God would save you." Before that meeting closed, every child took a stand to be a Christian. The Lord wrought a marvelous change in their hearts. The secret of that wonderful work was revealed by the teacher when she said that she loved them, and prayed all night for them. I believe that this is the secret of holding all our young people to our cause. We must love them, and pray and work for them. As I have looked upon the bright, active, ambitious young people in our schools, and have realized that they are now passing through the most critical period of life, it has greatly impressed me with the importance of doing earnest work for them just now, when they need help to form true ideals and to make right decisions. I wish here to state briefly some of the things which it seems to me would be a help to our young people:— 1. A study of their needs and interests by those of more mature years and experience. Our young people are not themselves able to judge of their most important needs and highest interests. The men and women who have passed the period of youth, and have come to the more sober experiences of life, are best qualified to judge and to give good counsel. It was this consideration that led to the creation of the Young People's Department. One of the great objects of this department is to give very careful study to the interests and needs of our young people, from the time they begin to grasp the meaning of things until they are finally located in permanent service. In the reorganization of our work, we have made many changes, and have set on foot important movements, but no other has given me the satisfaction that the creation of this Young People's Department has. I can not look upon our young people without having my heart greatly stirred. When I see how easy it is to turn from the right road into the wrong one; when I see the many allurements of the world; when I hear the sad wail from fathers and mothers at our camp-meetings, because their children have wandered from the cause, and hear their earnest pleas for us to pray for their return, I feel that the Young People's Department is one of the most important features of our work. In view of this important work, I appeal to conference officers, ministers, and church elders to take hold of it in hearty, active, positive cooperation. It should not require pressure from without to lead us to do all in our power to make the work of this Young People's Department effective. A realization of the worth of these souls should cause us to put forth most earnest endeavors to carry into effect the plans of the department. 2. Wise plans and practical movements to meet their needs. We must not only have a keen realization of the needs of the young people, but, like men seeking to rescue those who are in danger of perishing in some great disaster, we must do something of a practical character to meet their needs. It is not enough to stand on the seashore and feel sorry for people who are going down; we must throw out the life-line; we must launch the life-boat; we must do something to rescue them. It is not enough for us to talk about the needs of our young people. We must put forth heroic efforts to help them. I fear we are not awake to the importance of this matter. The denomination has endeavored to launch enterprises, which it has felt are necessary to save our young people and hold them to the cause. Literature has been provided. Courses of reading have been outlined. Plans have been formed to reach every young person in our ranks, but these must have the cooperation of the ministers of this denomination in order to be effective. There must be cooperation on the part of all our organizations and institutions,—schools, sanitariums, and publishing houses,—and of the parents as well. 3. Practical instruction on how to work for the young. It requires great wisdom to work effectively for young people. Neither old nor young can do this work without careful study. Many must be taught how to work; they can not accomplish much without instruction and training. We are endeavoring to give this help through the Young People's Department. 4. Unceasing efforts in their behalf. From some source there must continually be exerted a strong influence for unceasing effort in behalf of the young. I am sure that if all our ministers and conference officers would give their hearty support to these plans, urging our people to take them to heart, keeping them before our churches and especially the parents of our young people, we should see wonderful results. I believe that the great majority of our young people can be led to consecrate their lives to the Lord's work. 5. Placing before them true ideals of life and service. Here, then, is needed especially the cooperation of the ministry. Young people do not know what to choose for themselves. They need wise, careful direction in shaping their ideals. The great majority of them make wrong decisions simply because they are not instructed regarding the right course to pursue. Our Young People's Department was organized to place before the thirty thousand young people in our denomination right ideals, right incentives, right purposes; and it greatly needs the cooperation of all our ministers and parents. It is worth everything to a boy to have a man in whom he has confidence place before him right ideals. Who can do that work as well as the minister to whom the young look for good counsel? 6. Wise and firm direction to their energies. It is not repression of their activities that young people need, but direction. A good supply of energy which manifests itself in constant activity is a precious gift from God. It is needed for the accomplishment of things, and should be fostered and trained. But how many attempt to repress the activities of the young instead of making earnest efforts to direct them wisely. The young people's department is making every effort to both stimulate and direct the energies of our young men and women, and we earnestly desire the cooperation of all our workers. 7. Training, while young, in the Master's service. If we would lead our young people to love to work for Christ, we should teach them how to work while they are young. There is no better way of binding our youth to the cause of God than to get them to work for others.20Earnest endeavors to save others have a reflex action. Our young people who are working earnestly to lead others to Christ are not wandering away from the fold. Twenty years ago I baptized a company of children in the Adelaide church, in South Australia. Before leaving them I organized a young people's band for the purpose of training these youth to work for the Lord. I think there were ten or twelve in the band. They were all young — from ten to fifteen years of age. We organized for work, and gave every one something to do. I was surprised to see how cheerfully and actively all took hold of the work. Every time I visited this church, I would meet the band and hear their reports, and give them all the encouragement and instruction I could. It is a great satisfaction to me now after twenty years have passed, to know that nearly every charter member of that band is in this message, and most of them are active workers, giving their lives to the advancement of this cause. Nothing we can do for our children and youth will bring such large and cheering results as faithful endeavor to train them in service while they are young. 8. Influencing them to enter school and lay a good foundation for their life-work. It is gratifying to know that there are more than twenty thousand of our children and young people receiving a Christian education in our denominational schools, yet there are thousands not in our schools who might be induced to enter them if they were counseled by our ministers and workers to do so. This should not be done in a merely professional way. It is not always necessary to call a meeting for the purpose of talking on the subject of education, to impress upon our young people the need of attending our schools. The strongest influence we can exert over them is to talk with them personally and privately. One great object of our Young People's Department is to create a desire on the part of our young people to secure an education for successful work in the cause of God. The cooperation of our ministers and parents in this work is greatly needed, and will place thousands of our young people in our schools who are now letting the years go by without securing the education they so much need. 9. Locating them in permanent service. We must not stop when we have induced our young people to enter our schools. We must not cease our efforts on the day of their graduation. It is then that they must decide what they are to do in the future, and we must help them to make right decisions. Ministers should take an interest in locating these young people in permanent work for God. Conference committees should make every possible effort to open the way for them. It is safe to say that hundreds of our young people who have left our schools, have turned to some commercial enterprise because there seemed to be no place for them in the Lord's work. These considerations make a strong appeal to the union and local conference organizations to cooperate with the General Conference in its endeavors to help our young people; they appeal to ministers and church officers to join the local, union, and General conferences in this great work; they appeal to the managing boards of our schools, sanitariums, and publishing houses for hearty cooperation; and they appeal to us all to put forth new endeavors in behalf of the young people of this denomination.