Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1908-10-07
CHRISTIAN ENDEAvOR.
Prayer Meeting Topic For the Week
Beginning Oct. II, 1908.


Topic.-Commending our society.--III.
BY diligent committee work.-Ron. xii,
LII.
A distinctive phase of Christian En-
Geavor since its origin has been COM
mittee work. Thousands of societies
have commended themselves to God.
to their church and to the commusity
by their aggressive Christian WORK
What have the Christian Endeavor
committees not done? Prayer meet
ings have been held in homes. in hos
pitfalls, in jails and in prisons. Sailors
have been provided with thousands of
comfort bags" which have been in
deed a comfort to them. Churches
have been provided with flowers,
which later were distributed among
the sick or carried to hospitals. The
shut ms" have been visited. read 10
and prayed for, and. above all, many
souls have been led into the kingdom
of God. Home and foreign missions
have been substantially supported.
From the giving of flower to the sal
walton of Il soul there is scarcely no
Christian work that the Christian En-
deavor society has not engaged in and
in so doing has commended itself by
its good works. 1t has been known
by its fruits and this was one of the
principal elements in its worldwide
spread and usefulness.
But the day of committee work is
not over No society can exist long
without active committee work. If we
knew the inner history of many de-
funct societies, we would probably
learn that the beginning of the end
was the failure of the committees to
do their work. Let the prayer meeting
committee begin to neglect its work,
and the prayer meeting soon loses its
power and the society begins to die.
Let the social committee neglect its
duty, and the new members are soon
missed and the older ones show lack of
interest. Let the missionary commit
tee grow cold. and the society follows
its example and soon becomes selfish
and self interested alone. 1t is easy
to see the Importance of committee
work and the grave danger attending
its neglect. Moreover, this neglect is
noticeable in many societies. with the
result that such societies are losing in
stead of gaining ground.
Let US get back TO old principles. II
will help the best societies and reiri-
venate the declining ones, a ConSe-
crate yourselves to COD in service
Such a conservation will make you find
JOY in Gods service, and no other in
spiration will be so helpful. o. Let all
the members of q committee attend its
meetings and engage in its work. The
chairman is not the committee. only its
leader, and yet the work is often left tC
him alone? 81 Let the society demand
written reports of committee work. Ii
will not be so easy to neglect 1t il
written reports are the order. To
write we must do something. and
hence such reports are a spur to activ-
ity. "a Gods spirit has endowed us
with different gifts. Whether great or
small, we should do what we can do
best and not remain inactive because
the work Of another is not given to us.
Committees, be lat it, all at it and al
ways at it," and you will highly CON-
mend your society. Much depends
upon you. Will you do it?
BIBLE READINGS.
Judg. vii. 1923; Neh. iv, 10; Zech.
Nv, ITO; Prov. xxi. 81; lisa. XXI, 10;
Matt x, Is; John ii. Ill; tx, IA; Cor
XIV, So; Gal vi, ITO.