Conviction firmly believe that the work will never be finished in the hearts of our people or in the world at large until the burden of personal soul, winning is rolled upon our laymen.
I do not believe that any one specified plan for such soul-winning work should be stressed above another. The time, the place, and the person should largely be the determining factors.
The People Are Willing. I have been very much pleased and encouraged in my pastoral work, to find that our people are strongly desirous of launching ,out in such endeavors.
Where the Fault Lies.-- The trouble with most of us preachers and leaders is that we do not spend time enough in showing them how. We get so wrapped up in our own soul-winning efforts, and the importance of them, that we forget or neglect to multiply our own efforts through our lay members. I have found that when many people are given half a chance, through the interest of the preachers and Bible workers in training them, they produce surprising results in souls won to Christ.
The spark of Enthusiasm Should Be Ignited.-- My experience as a pastor interested in this line of training for our laymen is that there are rich stores of latent talent in all our churches which lie dormant until the spark of enthusiasm which a Spirit-filled pastor can supply, is applied to the point of ignition. This has been amply demonstrated in the experience of the many men and women who have received their training through our workers in the Temple Church, where we have for some time worked on the plan of educating our laymen for active service in presenting the truth to others by personal labor along the foll-lowing specific lines:
I . Literature Work.-- Literature in the hands of our lay members should serve as the gateway to personal contact. But we must not allow the use of literature to rob us of the personal contact which is so essential and effective. Christ's most effective ministry while here among men was through His personal interest and His sympathetic touch.
2. Bible Work.- Some of the members of the Temple Church have gone out among their friends and acquaintances, and have held Bible readings in their homes, and have brought people to the goint of baptism, through none other than their own efforts under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
3. Street Preaching.- Others, especially our young men, have been encouraged and trained in the art of street preaching, and are on the street corners every week, telling passers-by, to the best of their ability, the wonderful truth for this hour. Not only do they bring in souls to be added to the church membership, but they also receive visions of what God can do through them in the ministry of the word. God has called some of these young laymen, who had never thought of the ministry as lifework, and they are now preparing for such service,
4. Tent Efforts.-- One colored brother has for the past three tent seasons supplied his own tent outfit, and has held a ten weeks' series of meetings outside his secular working hours. He has been instrumental in raising up an organized church of faithful Seventh-day Adventists. He is now demonstrating real talent in this line, and will doubtless, sooner or later, give himself fully to the work of the ministry.
Let us keep our eyes on the laity. Their talents are valuable in the sight of the Lord. God is undoubtedly stirring many hearts for the finishing of His glorious work.
