Telling Things and Using Illustrations
By W.A. Spicer
As one who is still studying to know how, may I'speak a word to the younger men about the art of telling a narrative story in making use of helpful illustrations? Surely while on our feet telling the story, we ought to be studying the effect. Every watchful speaker knows, when he has finished a narrative, whether he has told it in such a way as really to make it vivid in the minds of the hearers. I am not thinking so much of the rhetoric and the nicety of words. Sometimes the polished rhetoric keeps one from thinking of what is being said. But the ability to tell a story, or describe a scene or an event, is a gift that we may well covet and study to acquire.
There is, of course, a great difference of natural gift. Some of us cannot do this thing as others seem to do so easily. One missionary, writing in from the far fields, uses words as a painter uses a brush and color, so that rugged, terse phrases just make the scene live before our eyes; while another missionary, equally faithful in service, lacks the gift of telling the story or experience in such a way as to make it become a living picture. But we can all improve by study. Every time we sit down after having narrated this or that, we can ourselves detect where a turn or phrase was strong and where it was weak, and how better to say it next time.
An effective illustration ought to grow out of the sermon. It is not something to be lugged in and used mechanically. It must grow out of the living theme; and therefore I believe it is well for the workers to gather their own illustrations as they go. We cannot pick them up from other people. Years ago, in working out narratives of providential intervention, I think I looked through all the books of sermon illustration, in both English and German, that were published in America and Europe; and I was impressed with the fact that these books of illustration are practically useless for the preacher, and was convinced that he will fare far better in catching live items from newspapers or historical reading, and above all from the Bible.
When, as a young man, I went over to London, it was often my privilege to listen to Spurgeon, and it was marvelous how he wove all the characters and scenes of the Old and the New Testament into running comments in his gospel sermons. I hope that today many of our preachers read the Review with notebook in hand. In our own missionary story there are incidents continually reported which supply live material illustrative of almost every phase of the great themes of truth and Christian experience. Our own missionary record is a veritable new Book of Acts.
Washington, D. C.
Forestalling Apostasies
By A. J. MeiklejohnI never see a person dropped from my church roll without feeling that in some measure I have failed in my ministry to that person. I reflect that after considerable effort and expense, that person has been brought into the membership of the church; and now a change has come about which causes the church to feel in duty bound to dismiss him from the church. What has happened?
First, as to predominating causes: The most deplorable thing about our annual loss is the fact that much of it is due to actual apostasy. A certain amount of this loss is doubtless unavoidable, but it is generally recognized that a large per cent of our apostasies could be prevented, and that this could be brought about by the exercise of greater care on the part of ministers to see that new believers are fully qualified for church membership.
Aside from actual apostasy, there is a laxity in maintaining spiritual contact with the church members, which results in unwarrantable loss. A considerable number of those dropped from the church roll each year are designated, "Whereabouts Unknown." According to General Conference recommendation, a church is not at liberty to drop a person for this cause until he has been lost track of for two years. Some of our church boards are very negligent on this point, and often people have been "dropped" who have not even moved out of the community, but have become more or less irregular in attending the- church services. It has sometimes developed that after a time these irregularly attending members have developed new interest and activity in the church, and have been greatly surprised to find that they are no longer members of the church. If our people were given more thorough education as to the duties of church members in retaining their church membership, some of our losses would be avoided.
Second, as to preventive measures: It is my firm conviction that a large part of our annual apostasies could be forestalled if we, as ministers, would go to work on the problem. Let us give serious thought to the question, What can we as ministers do to forestall apostasies and to insure a matured Christian growth on the part of our membership?
We must first of all understand the seriousness of the problem by facing facts: (1) We are losing thousands of people each year. (2) It costs an enormous amount of money and energy to bring these people in, and their apostasy means a dead loss. (3) But greater than all else, is the fact that these people are not only lost to the church, but they are lost to the kingdom of God.
Let us acknowledge the truth of the statement that we as ministers are largely to blame for this situation. As far as it is within our power to forestall this apostasy, just that far we are to blame for it. When we dismiss a church member because of apostasy. are we ready to bow our head before the throne of grace, and say, "Father, I have done all I could to save this member of the fold"? Are we ready to meet God in the judgment concerning our efforts for this soul?
Let us recognize that to forestall apostasy and promote the development of Christian character, is just as important as to engage in what is generally termed "evangelistic" work. We ministers put forth enormous effort to bring people into the church; let us put forth as much effort to keep them in and help them to grow in the Christian life. This kind of work may not show up on our reports quite so well, but in the sight of heaven it is none the less important.
The efficiency of our evangelistic work is apparent in the number of people brought into the church every year, but the inefficiency of our pastoral work is revealed in the large number of apostasies, and also the large number who make no spiritual growth after they enter the church.
As I conceive it, we have no class of workers among us today who are more in need of helpful suggestions as to how to do their work in the best way, than our pastors, and especially those in charge of large churches. If our pastoral work could be brought up to the same degree of efficiency as other lines of work, we should not only make greater gains, and more permanent gains, but we should have more of the Spirit of Christ in our churches and in the individual life.
Denver, Colo.
An Experiment in Faith and Prayer
By L.H. King
The face of this old world changes daily before the advancing messengers of the everlasting gospel. A new language area conquered by the printing press on an average of every twenty-two days, and one hundred thirty-seven thousand accessions to the faith in a little more than a decade, tell a story of achievement which challenges the admiration of contemporary religionists. But such progress and success are always accompanied by relatively increased responsibilities, and consequent dangers lest the foundations of spiritual life become weakened and the structure of material prosperity topple into ruins.
We have reached an hour, beyond all previous hours, prophetic of denominational history,— an hour which calls for unity of action, the harnessing of every economic resource, and unbroken connection with the Source of power. To every man God has assigned his work. It is not emotional spasms of service by each and every man which is acceptable to God. The call of God is direct, and duty is clear and plain. The church must be united in heart, fully co-operative in service, and by aggressive, concerted action advance to every nation under heaven. This is God's plan, and for making this plan effective we have been given divine principles of organization, which apply to the individual, the church, the conference, the union, the division, and the general administrative body as a whole. Perhaps there is no more perfect example of divine principles of organization than those operating in our denomination, and which have yielded results of such marvelous magnitude.
While today the perfection of our organization is widely recognized, yet we find ourselves facing a problem of gigantic proportions which demands solution. I refer to the problem of maintaining the heavy financial goals imperative for continued expansion abroad without detrimental curtailment of soul-winning endeavor at the home base. Earnest and ardent endeavor is incessantly demanded to meet the needs of the rapid advance of the messengers in mission fields, and to this end the leaders of all the units in the organization are courageously bending every energy. Yet on all sides is heard the echo of anxious inquiry from the harvest field, " Need it be that our present program to provide funds for the increasing needs of missions shall reduce to the minimum soul-winning endeavor in the homeland? "
Inasmuch as the gospel commission presupposes simultaneous witnessing the world around, there can be no legitimate doubt that this commission provides the adjustment necessary for an equalization of evangelism in all the world. The success of a movement which is destined for complete and speedy finish, cannot be limited by lack of such adjustment, and the times demand that the secret of this adjustment be discovered and applied to our need. In order to accomplish this there must be earnest prayer and strong faith. We must not guess at things; we must not limit God. There are inexhaustible resources available, when we become willing to be led by God in His own way, and when we come into such a personal relationship to Him that we shall know beyond the shadow of a doubt just what His way is.
At the Spring Council of 1929, as conscientious leaders grappled with the question of how to bring about the percentage of increase in funds to meet the necessary requirements of the yearly budget for mission fields, it was apparent that the problem of foreign missions must be solved at the homeland base. The opening doors in the mission fields are legion; the army of young men and women coming forth from our churches and institutions swells the mighty cry, " We are ready to go! " It is the Spirit of God which is opening the doors; it is the Spirit of God which is calling our youth. Will we permit the same Spirit to have full control in our lives, as leaders and church members, so that the tide of spiritual life at the home base may become so mighty as to support fully the weight of the gigantic structure in the regions beyond? In other words, will the men and women who remain at home give themselves to the task of world redemption in the same spirit of deep devotion and sacrificial giving as inspires our mighty mission advance? Adjustment of the financial problem which is involved in the gospel commission can come only by an infusion of spiritual life that will produce the 'willingness on the part of God's people to meet the specifications of the gospel needs for this time. From the pen of Inspiration we have the assurance that God's people shall be willing in the day of His power, that the rod of strength shall extend out of Zion, and the Lord shall rule in the midst of the heathen. Ps. 110:2, 3, 6.
" Yes," states a fellow worker, " we all know that everything depends upon spirituality. But what I wish to know is how actually to enter into that spirituality and produce the desired results." So many of our leaders stand at this turning point in life and service, and having stood just there myself until, by the grace of God, I saw the light spring through the darkness and beckon me to follow, I am persuaded to pass on, hopefully though hesitatingly, a brief recital of personal experience.
As a minister in the field, I had been deeply concerned regarding the modus operandi of the various campaigns and financial goals devolving upon the churches. This anxiety extended especially over a period of six years. During this time the usual methods were employed, and under the blessing of God, it was a gratification to see the per capita mission offerings in the churches over which I had charge, advance from 62 cents to 90 cents. The time devoted to this phase of labor, however, seemed altogether out of legitimate proportion to that devoted to evangelism, and this was a great burden on my heart. Just at the point -where this mental strain and continual dissatisfaction threatened temporary retirement from the ministry, the Lord graciously revealed to me the open secret for the adjustment of spiritual affairs, and gave me freedom and peace such as I had not known before.
The first step by which the Lord led me, was to make me know that prayer is the key to the perplexing situation. " If ye have faith, and doubt not, . . . all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." Matt. 21;21, 22. This is a limitless promise. Then I read, " Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto My Father. And whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask anything in My name, I will do it." John 14:12-14. No words could be clearer, no promise greater or grander. To these texts were added John 15:7, 8, 16; 16:23, 24, and the combined references made a subject for review each day. It will be noted on reading, that each text gives the emphatic assurance, "Whatsoever ye shall ask," " I will do."
I was definitely Ied to place the experiment in faith before two churches, one with a membership of 240, and the other with a membership of forty-seven. Having set the matter before them in a careful and prayerful manner, more than the usual time was given at each succeeding service for prayer, making emphatic that true prayer is devotion and desire of such genuineness and fervor as to result in action.
In the larger church, this experiment of faith was tangibly based on the effort to raise the weekly mission-offerings from $50 to $60. It had been difficult to reach the $50 mark, and there was a long list of failures week by week, extending over a period of a year and a half. But when we started leaning in full faith on the promises of God, the Holy Spirit did the work which it had been impossible for us to do. On that first • Sabbath when I presented the matter to the church, there were fifty persons who pledged $1 each week. From that day to the present time the Sabbath school has averaged a weekly offering of $70, in addition to the fifty $1 pledges: At times the Sabbath school offering has reached $80, and once the amount was $105. On the occasion of one Thirteenth Sabbath Offering, we received $250 at the church service, and $300 in the Sabbath school. For more than a year, the monthly receipts for missions have ranged from $350 to $700, making an average of $500. Such an experience as this has served to deepen my resolve to make the prayer life primal. But this is not all. The Big Week returns in this church, during the years of 1927 and 1928, increased from $500 to $1,042 in 1927, and $1,179 in 1928.
Perhaps the most signal proof of the value of the prayer program is seen in the blessings attending the Harvest In-gathering campaign. As a result of seeking guidance from God concerning this work, definite impressions were received which led to eliminating the week-by-week report at the church service, which consumes much time and is often wearisome to both members and visitors. In substitution for this plan, we decided to announce one reporting day, at which time the goal, amounting to more than $4,000, was expected to be cared for. This was indeed a drastic departure from former usage, but we felt impressed that we should depend entirely upon prayer, and strip the campaign of all human incentives. There were no ribbon rewards, no certificates of service, nor was there any device displayed. All these things had been used in previous years, with a fair measure of success, but the urgent need of devoting more time to prayer and evangelism, stimulated faith to depend upon God's promise to answer prayer and enable each to do his part as a matter of responsibility to God.
Before putting this new plan into effect, it was fully presented to the church board. I had asked the Lord to indicate if the plan was of divine approval, and had left the matter with Him in this way: Provided every member of the church board unreservedly favored the plan, and manifested faith by voluntarily assuming responsibility for $15 each, I would take this as a sign from heaven to proceed. The plan received unanimous indorsement, and personal pledges from the board members amounted to nearly $400. (Right here it is interesting to note that the final report showed that these board members brought in $1,200.) We set a definite date six weeks in the future as Harvest Ingathering Reporting Day, and then presented the matter before God, and earnestly asked that His blessing would rest upon the effort and enable us to accomplish our aim.
On the following Sabbath the program was outlined to the church, and was eagerly accepted. In every meeting following that date, prayer was offered for the success of the Ingathering. Soon all the members, from the children to the aged, were thinking in terms of souls, and the light of accomplishment flashed in their eyes. Each member seemed to realize that the main business of the church was not simply to exist, but to win souls for the kingdom. The church board was called together at frequent intervals to pray; the pastor and the Bible workers met together for the same purpose.
The great day arrived! There was a full attendance. The church board members were grouped on the rostrum, and were first to make report. The name of each church member had been placed on a beaver-board easel, standing near by, and as each name was called, the member rose and made report. A quiet, eager interest held all. A total of $2,551 was reported in cash receipts, and the balance of the church goal was provided for then and there, and was soon in the treasury. In the church having a membership of forty-seven, the same methods produced even more marked results.
There was a full 100 per cent participation in the Harvest Ingathering work, and the amount received made a per capita quota of $20. The Harvest In-gathering Reporting Day in this church was a wonderful time of rejoicing and praise to God.
In conclusion, it may be of interest to know that at the present time the large church maintains a per capita standard of 89 cents a week, and the small church of $1.07 a week. That God's blessing is attending the members and prospering them in a financial way, is evidenced by the increase in tithe during the twelve-month period.
In one church the tithe increased nearly $2,000, and in the other church there was an increase of over $200. Giving and Prosperity are twin brothers.
This method of handling the financial phase of church work has enabled the evangelist to begin public meetings without any delay on account of campaigns, and the spirit of prayer which has actuated the church members in their personal endeavor has extended to the evangelistic meetings, accompanied by earnest endeavor.
The prayer of faith will solve every problem connected with our great and thoroughly organized work, both at home and abroad. Let us constantly seek and follow implicitly the guidance of our Master.
Buffalo, N. Y.
