Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1898-05-13
A HELPFUL CONFERENCE.
Such Was the Meeting of the Lansing
District Association of the
M. E. Church.

earth, working In us and for us.
Quite a number Delegates were
present at the opening session, but many
more arrived on the late Ann Arbor train
that evening and on nearly all the,trains
on both roads Tuesday.
The conference Tuesday morning was
opened with a practical talk TO the min
listers by Presiding Elder Puffer, after
which President John p. Ashley of
Albion college was formally introduced
TO the audience. The main part of the
program consisted of three papers 1.-The
Constraining Motive of the True Preach
err" by Rev. o. j. Golden; "Relation of
Pastoral Work TO Pulpit Success" by
Rev. A. A Stephens; "How TO Utilize
the Laity in Pastoral Work" by Rev
III. ID. Skinner.
These papers We're all spirited and full
of thought and evoked cons iderable dis
cussion. Mrs VIM. Taylor was to have
presented a paper on the subject, "The
Pastors Home and It's Influence" but
this was omitted on account of her
absence.
In the afternoon the devotional exer
cises, led by Rev A. 0. Carman, We're
followed by lengthy discussion Of
THE District Camp Meeting" The
very pleasant location and surroundings
of the camp on the shores of Long Lake
north of Ionia were brought out and
the benefits of attendance at the camp
meetings from year TO year We're dwelt
| upon. The meeting at the lOnia camp
this year will be next August from the
4th 20 the 18th.
DIR. T.. $ Pettyjohn followed with a
| paper on THE Health of the Preacher
| He SAID if he were 10 take text il would
! be, eat drink sleep, work and be merry"
! He asserted that more thought should
| be given 60 the care of the body and gave
statistics showing how few, compare
| lively, live TO "A ripe old age Then the
! speaker showed that owing TO the pecu-
! liar structure of the body, a variety of
! food and plenty of water is needed He
also emphasized the importance of TAX
ing plenty of sleep and exercise and the
beneficial results of maintaining cheer
full disposition.
The next on the program was a dis
cussion of what the Republic Owes TO
Methodism," by Rev. d. ID. Martin He
said III substance that Methodism makes
men both pious and patriotic. From
Methodist schools and homes have come
men who have held positions of the
! highest honor. Never were the affairs
VI the udllOll III DtllCT llt1luS IMAM WHEN
the chief executive was a Methodist
During the civil war the NJ. + denomi-
nation sent more soldiers and nurses to
the war and more prayers TO God than
any others 1t has founded schools for
the education of the freedmen and been
i'll the foremost ranks of the temperance
reform.
The paper TO have been given by Rev
F. l.. Thompson on Michigan Method.
ism-Its Strength and Mission" was
omitted, but Mrs Thompson presented
"a very fine essay on the Relation of the
Pastors Wife 10 the Work of the
Church, showing by her manner and
her words that she is an ideal pastor
wife.
A discussion on Books and Reading"
was led by President Ashley of Albion
in which he exhibited something of his
extensive knowledge of books and the
richness of his thought.
Tuesday evening President Ashley
gave an address, The subject of which he
said we might cali Getting Bigger" or
How Man Comes to His Best Self &"
God created the world, not from moth
ing, but out of the boundlesS resources
of his infinite will. God created
man and gave him an immortal
soul. The body is but residence
of the real self. The soul Is the trans
former OF the body and real beauty con
sists III the soul asserting itself.
Man has certain commercial value
as muscular machine. If so, is it not
poor business policy to destroy so many
every year with strong drink?
Too much is made of what the indi-
vidual receives from his ancestors. More
/ &c 70 l,n ipft 90 . ,a Oh, Ia,
20 heredity. Consider Lincoln, Burns,
Luther, John and Chas Wesley aud how
little they owed TO their parentage.
The little child is impressed for good or
evil by its treatment from the first.
Smiling and loving attention bestowed
upon il will arouse the best that is in
the child, while harsh words and scowls
are sure to have the opposite effect.
Life is the school and every experience
a teacher. As in the manufacture of
chinaware the coarser kinds of clay must
be lefined and mixed with each other
before they will do for making vases, so
i'll life the lower anc coarser elements
must be mixed together and tempered
in order TO make a fine grained char
acter.
To awaken the child TO the realization
that he belongs, not merely 10 the town
in which he was born, but to the state
and nation-to awaken within him the
realization that he trancends the limits
of time and space and is n son of God
this is the true work of the teacher, her
divine mission; this is cooperating with
God.
However, intellectual education is
only part The child must be adj
iusted to all moral laws by teaching HIM
gradually what is right and what is not.
This can best be done, not by don't, y
but by do" The child loves activity
and telling him TO do the right is far
better than forbidding him TO do the
wrong.
But this is not all man is also re-
ligious being. While goodness is nc
excuse for ignorance, intellectual power
can not make up for the"lack of relig-
ious training Everything is drawing
us toward God, outside of whom the
finite cannot exist. When the human
being has awakened to the tact that he
is son Of God, then you have a man
| and not before