Pointer's

MINISTERIAL ENROLLMENTS

The American Association of Theological Schools reports a small increase in ministerial trainees in 1961 as compared with 1960. In the over­all decline during recent years in numbers of min­isterial candidates in North America and in other countries, any small increase tends to make us thankful.

The fact remains that larger percentages of col­lege students turn to the professions rather than to the ministry. What are the reasons? Not all of them can be easily identified, but these are some as re­vealed in polls and seminars among college stu­dents: (1) Faculty advisers often advise the bright student to go into the other professions; (2) Stu­dents see no challenge in ministerial work; (3) Ser­mons have become so ordinary and preachers so prosaic that young men are not inspired.

The third reason is sad, but it should not be beyond the church's power to rectify this situation somewhat. First, we can acknowledge the tragedy, as did Harry Emerson Fosdick long ago: "One wonders that the churches can be so timid and dull and negative, that our sermons can be so palled and inconsequential. One wonders why in the pulpit we have so many flutes and so few trumpets."—Christianity and Progress, p. 77.

Second, preachers can take themselves in hand, under God's blessing, and bestir themselves to preach as never before, beseeching God for a burden for souls and the ability to awaken the church by dynamic preaching.

Third, good preaching comes from redeemed and prayerful lives, from love of the people and work for them, from work in study. The man who is too busy to study is an uninspiring preacher. He will lead no young men into the ministry, and in time he will become a prosaic preacher and a misfit minister.

H. W. L.

CHALLENGE OF THE 60'S

  For about four hours a man orbited the earth three times and returned to the plaudits of an appreciative world. For mankind, the challenge of the 60's was a call to outer space. In accepting it, man committed himself to a relentless struggle with time and distance. But the real challenge of the 60's is not the lure of unconquerable space, but the conquest of unconquered souls. The new frontier is, in fact, the old; namely, the darkened hearts of sinful men.

This spiritual undertaking requires more of us than we have heretofore been willing to give in time, effort, and consecration. And, of course, all of the risks to health, reputation, and family are there. And there are the problems of location, procedure, and privilege which are natural to any meaningful effort. The challenge of the 60's is that we contact every creature with the message before the 70's. If the signs of the times mean anything, they indicate that the divine timetable has telescoped human effort. The challenge of the 60's is a call to every saved creature to reach every lost one with the gospel of grace. It is a challenge to succeed, and by God's grace, succeed we will!

E.E.C.

UTILIZING THE MINUTES

Now and then we get the feeling that our days are too crowded. We have too much to do, too many problems crossing our desk, too many people visiting us, too much church business, and too many speaking and teaching appointments. Yet we are aware that the Master has commanded us to "study to shew thyself approved unto God," "think on these things," and "pray without ceasing." But with our full program where can we get enough time to accomplish all these good things?

It is estimated that John Wesley preached an average of three sermons a day for fifty-four years. In his day he had to travel on horseback or in a carriage and yet he covered some 290,000 miles, or about 5,000 miles a year. The volume of his pub­lished works is amazing. Among them we find a four-volume commentary on the whole Bible, a dictionary of the English language, a five-volume work on natural philosophy, a four-volume work on church history, histories of England and Rome, grammars on the Hebrew, Latin, Greek, French, and English languages, three volumes on medicine, six volumes of church music, and seven volumes of sermons. He also edited a library of fifty volumes known as "The Christian Library." This man of God never wasted a spare moment.

Besides all this John Wesley knew what it was to have the care of the churches burdening his heart.

What a man! What a dedicated man! What a great man! Would we not be better men today if we took more careful notice of the little corners in our day and used every minute, and thus found more time for prayer, study, writing, and visiting? We can­not bring back all the wasted moments of our life but we can determine right now to utilize every minute in the future and fill it with something of value. May God strengthen us in our preparation to be stronger men, more skilled workmen, more lov­ing and faithful visitors, more earnest Bible students, and more powerful and inspiring preachers.

A. C. F.