The Blackfoot optimist. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1907-1918, 1913-09-18
CONTINUED from First Page)

pOrtlOnate increase IN the support d
missions. While our membership. has
increased 81 per cent, our mission
airy contributions show a gain of 21t
per cent. 1t has seemed necessary tt
put special emphasis upon the de
velOpment Of our state mission worl
during this period, and as a result
there has been larger increase in
offerings for state missions than il
the offerings for the general societies
But the establishmentandd development
of our local churches, resulting prin
cipally from the aggressive work Of
our State Convention, has greatly
swelled the income from Idaho fol
the general societies, and we think 9
very fair proportion has been main
tanned between the various mission
airy objects. The increase fer state
missions was 1872 per cent, for foreign
missions 1873 per cent, and home mis-
sions 10 per cent. The per capita Civ
! ing for missions has increased from
s1.3S to 1921. This includes only
regular offerings from the churches,
and does not take account of individ.
ual and special contributions. The
increase in the volume of state mis-.
sion work Is indicated by the fact
that the number of workers commits.
! stoned last year was 1873 per cent
more than five years ago, and the
weeks of labor reported, 157 per
cent more. 1t would certainly seem
fair to arrive at the general growth
by taking the average increases in
the fourteen aspects of work given
above. If this is done, then the &C.
tual average growth of our denomi-
nation has been 125 per cent.
The progress of the past has been
gratifying, and we give thanks unto
the Lord because He has done great
things for us. But, at the same time,
we are well nigh depressed because Of
our lack of sufficient resources to &C
complish all that we ought to in ths
light Of the wonderful opportunities
open on every hand. Lack OF suffi
cient money to support the work, i:
the only hindrance to entering many
new communities and organizing many
new churches. A large number Of
church edifices should be built a,
once, and there is crying need TO"
parsOnages on numerous fields. 1t
would require many now workers t,
accomplish these additional results.
But they could be found if the
money was available to support them.
Let me summarize the immediate work
which ought to be done; There are
ten fields to which some attention has
been given, where permanent agrees
sive work should be undertaken.
Church organizations could be consti-
tuted at nearly every one of these
points. have a list of fourteen
places where meeting houses should
are at present, promoting the building
Of IL parsonages. We should en-
plOy at once the following additional
workers: One state evangelist, one
cOlpOrter, one woman missionary, one
district missionary, and at least five
missionary pastors for new fields. In
order to follow this programme it is
imperative that we have for the next
year an additional $1,000 for mis-
sionary work and $4,000 for church
edifice work.
We have outlined the immediate
work which should be undertaken and
our programme for expansion for
year in advance, but to those who
are familiar with the situation out
here, it is evident that the future
of Idaho demands that If our Baptist
work shall even hold it's own, we
must look ahead and plan for a term
Of years in advance. There can be no
question but that the next ten years
will witness a far larger growth and
greater developments in Idaho, than
the last decade has seen. The pro-
gress of this state is only in the
days of its infancy. Within two or
three years, we shall be doubling the
fruit products of the state, which is
one of our principal industries. Irri'
CATION is what has made Idaho, it is
what is going to make 1t ever so
much bigger than it now is, and the
greatest irrigation projects are yet to
be constructed. 1t is being discovered
more and more, that a very small
farm unit will support family, and
our now sparsely settled agricultural
lands are going to be densely settled.
A conservative estimate of the work
and growth for the next ten years
would easily set before us the follow
ing detectives: Our present AZ church
es should be increased to 100, our
present membership of 1866 to 10000,
OUT ~ CAOANA OuAAOAu60 10
multiplied to 80, and our Is parson-
ages to IS. We have no endowment,
hut in ten years time We should
have at least $4,000 endowment. The
Idaho Convention has already COM
mitted itself to the policy Of bringing
up its missionary giving to the stand
ard of the Laymen's Movement, $500
per member per annum, and we pro-
pose to stay on the job until we
succeed. We feel very confident that
the figures for 1913 will show a SUBJ
stantial gain in the per capita CIV
Ing over the 1921 reported here II
this objective is reached and main
tanned. and the estimatedgain in men,
bership is also realized, then the
81, 900 given in 1912 will be increased
so that in 1922, Idaho Baptists will
give for missions $4,000.