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Our Young People's Work

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Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Apr 23, 1914

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 91, No. 17.

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Our Young People's Work

By I. H. Evans

I BELIEVE we have made only a start in this young people's work. We have not reached the goal; but the start is a splendid one, and we do not want to let it slip away from us. We must grapple with this young people's work and make it a success.
One difficulty met with is the frequent changes made in the General, union, and local offices. This has been a great hindrance to the progress of this work. Still, the Young People's Department has done a splendid work. It is carrying heavy responsibilities, and I am interested in it because of the fact that it is trying to save our young people from going to the world and destruction. I believe with all my heart that it is an agency blessed of God to bring young people to a realization of the needs of the work; and by suggestions and by plans that are made, it is keeping them from drifting into the world and giving up the truth.
It is painful to think of the large number of young people who are continually drifting out of our churches and out into the world. The Young People's Department has collected statistics, and out of more than 13,000 young people in this denomination between the ages of ten and twenty-five years, only about 6,000 are Adventists and church members, and over 7,000 are not in the church nor baptized, nor make any profession of religion.
The Young People's Department has set itself the task of bringing into the church this year 1,500 of our young people. That does not seem like a great number, but it would be practically one fifth of the entire number from the ages of ten to twenty-five that are not now church members. If the Young People's Department should during this year accomplish its set object, it would be a splendid work. It would comfort many a father's and many a mother's heart to have something done for their children. The Young People's Department, with its officers and secretaries, is taking hold in a definite way and putting forth every effort to bring the truth before these young people, and to bring to bear upon them every possible influence to win them to Christ.
I believe this department needs the warmest sympathy and the most hearty cooperation of the union, the local, and the General Conference officers. I am sure it will have the influence of the officers of the North American Division Conference to the limit of their ability. We are anxious to save our young people from the world. When we do that, we help in many things. We fill up our schools, for one thing. Just as soon as this Young People's Department gets hold of a young man, it begins to agitate reading and study; and at least sixty per cent of the boys and girls who have read some of the books in the Missionary Volunteer Reading Course and taken some of the other work, want to go on and get an education. There are a good many of our young people in our colleges and academies as a result of the work of this department.
The year 1913 was far more successful in increasing our church membership than the year 1912; but take 1912 as a basis, and we find that it cost this denomination practically from $900 to $1,000 for every person added to the church membership. If we save 1,500 of our young people this year, figuring entirely from a financial standpoint, we actually save our tithe in this country.
You will argue, some of you, that it costs money to run this department. This is true. It does take money to run this department. I suppose it would take from $50,000 to $75,000 if every conference would put a man into the field and keep him at work, but we are not doing that. In many of our conferences the educational secretary and the young people's secretary is the same person. It is recommended that when a conference has 1,500 or more Sabbath keepers, it shall have a young people's secretary, and allow him his time to work in that department. Those conferences below that number shall have the Educational and Young People's Departments combined. Now, brethren, if we can save 1,500 of our children with an investment of $40,000, which is about the present cost of running this department, I believe it will be an investment that will pay us better than any other.