Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1901-05-26

Leadership in League Work" was
read at the Friday session of the Ep
worth League Convention by it's auth
or. Miss Mary P. Snow:
Some people do not seem to have |
learned the value of leadership; for
the number of people in this world |
who think things will run themselves |
is aetonishingly large. If we glance |
back over the pages of history we will |
see that every great movement has |
haa it's leaders. The Revolution with
out George Washington, or the Civil |
Wan without q Lincoln and U. S. !
Grant would have been ignominous
failures. AS it has been in our nation
al history, so has it been in our church
history. The Reformation could not
be otherwise than a success with such
man as Martin Luther to lead; and
Methodism honors with gratitude her
Wesleys and her Whitefield. Not only
in the great epochs OF the worlds his
tory but in the smaller undertakings
as we'll we find the same needs and the
same conditions of success. Where
ever we have organization we must
have leadership and the better the
leader the greater the success of the
organization. The Epworrh League is
no exception to the rule. But the
question presents itself: What are the
necessary qualifications of successful
leadership in Epworth League Work."
First of all is a genuine conservation
to Christ and realization Of the inn
portance of tie work to be done The
spirit that will truly say and mean
"I'll 40 what you want me to do. dear
Lord a conservation that will not
and doing II if we feel like it and if
we do not feel like it leaving it undone.
| have in mind a League Chapter
whose leaders will probably wake up
to the fact before long that their Chap
ter is on the inactive list and they will
wonder why. A great many members
of the Chapter are bright, active boys
and girls who only need some one to
direct them. Few of them are Chris
tians, but they are enthusiastic, ready
to sing, ready at a devotional meet
ing to find and read Bible ref
erence bearing on the topic, ready
to make social success.
ready to help with literary
entertainment, ready to do all sorts
of Mercy and Help work, in short just
the sort of boys and girls to make in
telligent active Christians in a little
while but the leaders do not look after
them. At the sound of the church
.ell they are in their places, but very
often the leaders are not there. They
have forgotten or have been too busy
to make arrangements for the meet
| ing, they have supposed that things
would run themselves, and the mem
bers go home disappointed and in a
short time will cease to attend the SER
vice. AS it is with the devotional de-
| p6rment, so it is with all the other
departments. They neglect to be en-
thusiastic about the social work, about
the literary work and all the rest. But
some one will say: the leaders ought
not to be expected to do everything.
Certainly not, A general does moi
fire every gun and construct every de
fense himself but he directs those il
his command and knows that every
man is doing his duty.
This brings us to a second quail
fication of leader and that is thu
ability to set others to work
1t is wrong for the leaders tt
sakes. The young people who do no
enjoy the League are those who arr
sitting down and merely looking on
the leaders should try to find some
thing for each member to do. In tn
army every man is COMPELLED t,
obey while in the Epworth Leagu
= there is no compulsory obedienc
so the leader must have TACT
: Some people have the ability L
lead but are total failures be
cause they lack this one element i
their character To see what ought to b
done, and to see HOW it ought to b
done is one thing and to get others t
do it is quite another. The tactfu
5 leader does not say Il want you to d
I this, and to do it this way" but h
, rather says, will it not be wise to d
this, and do you not think it can b
S done in this way best?" A knowledg
/ of the needs of the work is anothe
e qualification. A leader who does NJ
study what ought to be done and tn
= best method OF doing it cannot succee
Il any more than a teacher without a
+ education and with no knowledge
S the theory and practice of teaching h
S profession can expect TO do good wor
! to,