St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1876-04-14
The Moody Convention in New York

Between three and four thousand
ministers and laymea. representing
nineteen states. gathered in convention
at the Hippodromc, and were talked to
and with 10y Mr.. Moody. The session
when the topics We're "EvangeliStIc ser
vice>-how to conduct them. and ..IIow
To conduct prayer meetings" were of
great interest. At this meeting anv
were allowed to ask questions. Mr.
Moody answering. We copy portion
of these. On the first topic" Evan
geliStic services"-Mr. Moody said:
How can these services be conducted
t" make them profitable ? Well. |
shOnld say you have to conduct them to
interest the people. If they go to sleep.
they certainly want to be reused up :
and if one method don't wake them up.
Try another. But | think we ought to
use our common Scnse. if Won " i'll allow
me the word. We talk ii good deal
about it: but | think il is about the
least sense We have. especially in the
Lord : work. If one method don't sue
cccd. let us try another. This preach
mg t" empty seats don't pay. If the
people won't come to hear us. let us 90
where they are. We want to preach
TO int" some ueighhorhood and get
some persons to invite you into their
house, and get them into the kitchen
and preach there: but make il Il point
To interest the people. and as soon as
they get Interested they will follow YOU
and ill the churches.
Now. have come To this conclusion ::
that if we are going t" have successful
Gospel meetings We have got to have a
little more life III them. Life is found
III singing new hymns. for instance.
know some churches that have been
singing about Il dozen hymns for the
last twenty wears such hymns lis Rock
of Ages. There is Il fountain filled
with blood etc. The hymns are al
WAYS good but we want :. variety. We
want new hymns. us well as the old
ones. find 1t wakes up Il congregation
very much to bring in now and then Il
new hymn. And if YOU cannot wake
them up with preaching let lis sing it
into them. believe the time is coming
when We will make IL good deal more
of just singing the Gospel. Then. when
Il man is converted. let lis have him in
these meetings giving his testimony
Some people are afraid of that. | be-
lieVe the secret of John WesleN'S sue
cess WIS that he sent every man to
work as soon as he was converted. OF
course. You have to guard that point
Some say they become spiritually proud.
No doubt of that. But if they don't 90
To work they become spiritually lazy,
and | don't know what's the difference.
Now. the first impulse of the young
cOOvert is to go and publish what Christ
has done for him. Sometimes Il Young
convert will wake up Il whole commun-
ity and Il whole town, just merely tell
ing what the Lord has done for him
And it is good to bring in these wit
nesSes and let them speak. Then an
other thing. In a good many towns
where we have union meetings We
change ministers every night and IL
good many special religious meetings
have been organized and proved perfect
failures. am getting letters all the
time telling about special meetings
how the people turned out we'll. but
there were no results. And. on inquiry.
found they had Methodist minister
one night, ii Baptist minister another.
an Episcopal minister another. Il Con
gregati"nal minister another, in order
To Keep all denominations in and the
result was they preached everybody ont
of doors. You could see right on the
face of it that that would be the result.
One man gets the people all interested,
and just at the point where he needs to
continue his own ministrations another
steps III and he goes out. And so there
Is no getting hold of the people.
Then these meetings ought to be
made short. find great many are
killed because they are too long. The
minister speaks five minutes, and a
minister's five minutes is always ten,
and his ten minutes is always twenty
laughter and the result is. you preach
everybody into the spirit and out of it
before the meeting is over. When the
people leave, they are glad to go home
ana ought to go home. Now, you send
the people away hungry, and they will
come back again.
z. Would you start meeting when
there Is no special interest i'll the
churches