The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1919-01-14
Laying Plans For Big Emergency
Fund-lmportant Session Wednes-
day to Discuss Part In st5,ooo,-
600 Educational Campaign

says.
The laymen's meeting of the Flori.
ia State Baptists' Association opened
with preliminary meeting last night
at the First Presbyterian church, the
First Baptist church being given up
to a meeting Of the women of the
conference. There was an excellent
attendance for the opening night and
everybody manifested much interest
In the proceedings. George Scofeld
OF Inverness presided. Mr.. Scofield
stated the purpose of the meeting
ana OF the conference which is to
plan the work IL the Baptist Church
for the coming year, and also spoke
OF the Emergency Band" which Is
pledged to give money toward fund
FOR any financial emergency which
may arise, This was more fully COW
lered by later speaker. The confer
ence will close Monday night.
Not all of the delegates to the con-
vention and to the convention of the
Baptist Women's Missionary Union,
which also is to hold its annual ses.
sions here, had arrived last night
Many will get in this morning in time
to attend the first business sessions
of the two bodies. The main conven-
ton will hold its sessions in the Tam
pa Bay casino, while the women's
meetings will be held in the First
Baptist Church. Frank Bentley will
preside over the main convention, as
president and Mrs. w. G. Wamboldt,
president Of the women's uniin, will
preside over their deliberations.
Wednesday night will be education |
night, at which time the Baptist Of
! Florida will be urged to line up their
brothers of other states-in a mighty
campaign to raise $15,OOO,0OO within
five years for the Baptist colleges of
the South.
Other Southern States with greater
wealth and population are giving from
one to two millions each and Florida
has been allotted $350,0OO as her
quota. On Wednesday this subject
will be discussed by the Baptist lead
ers and it is expected that Florida
will answer the call of her sister
states and fall in line with the slogan
Christian education for free Ameri-
ca"
The first speaker of the evening,
DR.. J. T. Henderson, of Knoxville,
Tenn, geieral secretary of the Lay
mems Missionary movement, said, in
part:
opportune Time for Word
1--WE are now passing through the
most eventful period Of the worlds
history. Thirty nations have been
engaged in a titanic struggle; mil
lions of lives and billions Of dollars
have been sacrificed and we trust that
autocracy has received its death blow
and the rule of right will be en-.
throned forever
1.-THE world has been shaken from
center to circumference; modes of
thought and methods have undergone
changes and believe 1t is great
time fir men and churches to take &C.
count of themselves
1--WE are dull II we do not read In
these things some most important
lessons. We have had great and eff.
cient men at the head of things and
we have been shown an organization
SO perfect that it reached the most
Indifferent Of the people, and the lib
erty loan campaign has penetrated to
the utmost recesses Of the mountains,
and the Red Cross also.
God has made supreme effort
through the ravages of war to bring
us to our knees and 1t is emphasized
by the fact that God heard the call
IL the elect few who came to Him and
asked that the God of battle gives us
the victory.
"The great mass of the people of
America had become obsessed with
the pursuit of pleasure and the lust
if gold, but there were few who
needed the call and went to Him '
amid the roar of battle.
81 rejoice that there was an elect
company who did not bend the knee
to Baal but who went to Him and
prayed for victory and President Will
son trusted in the sword of the Lord
as we'll as in the sword of Gideon
and issued a proclamation that the
people should come before God in
prayer, and soon after that the Hind
enburg line was broken.
"Pershing said; Trust in prayer.
Foch prayed; Haig, on that blue Sun
day, when it looked as if the arms of
the allies we're doomed to sure defeat,