nineteen hundred and forty-six - Amazon Web Services

MRS. H. W. SCHWEINSBERG
FOREIGN MISSION BOARD 285
VICTORIES AND BLESSINGS
February and March have been the two most outstanding months in Baptist
missionary work in this city of Barranquilla. February is considered the hardest
month of the year to keep up a good attendance in the Sunday school, due to
the "carnival."
Carnival—called the season or festival of merrymaking and revelry before
Lent, observed especially in Catholic countries—is always considered a difficult
time for evangelical work. Thousands of people, young, old, married or unmarried,
and even children fall into all kinds of sin; drunkenness, immorality,
stealing, adultery and almost any other evil that one could think of.
This year the Baptist brethren here pledged themselves to work especially
hard during these weeks of temptation and hilarious living. Many of them
followed a program of Saturday visitation and various other means of presenting
a welcome to Sunday school at nine o'clock on Sunday morning. All during the
months of February and March this campaign has been carried on and, now
that all have seen the glorious results, they are encouraged to work even more.
The attendance in the Sunday schools began climbing in February. All of
us were praying that the first Sunday in March, being the first day of the
three days of Carnival, would not mean that our attendance would drop. In
some parts of the city, where it is even dangerous for little children to be on
the streets in the midst of such revelry and drunkenness, the attendance did
drop some, but in the Central Church the attendance was still larger than on
the previous Sundays. What a note of praise there was in the hearts of all
as we thanked God together that Sunday morning in song and Bible study!
In the Central Church, the attendance had gradually worked up to around
200 by the first of this year. The goal for 1946 is 300 in Sunday school,
which school by the way is just three-and-a-half years old. Already during
these months of special campaigning and praying the attendance last Sunday
(the fourth Sunday in March) reached 284.
The prize class in this Sunday school is the class of young people which
has grown beyond what our faith had anticipated. The last two Sundays there
have been sixty-four young people in that department to hear the lesson
taught by their very qualified and consecrated teacher, an Italian photographer.
This man has become a member of the church recently but has been a believer
for some time. He was a devout Catholic, but became interested in Seventh
Day Adventism. When he was invited to and attended Baptist services, and
later asked many questions of Pastor Schweinsberg, he became convinced of
the Baptist position, and after six months' studying in the baptismal classes was
accepted for baptism and became a member of the Central Church in Barranquilla.
The wife of this Italian Baptist photographer is a very fanatical
Catholic, but special prayer is being made on her behalf, and we hope to have
the joy of seeing this family united in the Lord and in His service.
The Baptist Sunday schools in Barranquilla now average around 700 each
Sunday. There are still many sections in this city where there is no witness
for the gospel; but as yet, nothing can be done because of lack of funds and
lack of workers. We covet the prayers of those who will pray with us that
God will raise up others to help in reaping the abundant harvest of souls here
in Colombia.
HAWAII FINDING THE PATH TO PEACE
Compiled by GLADYS Y. BLACKMAN
This is the way, walk ye in it.—Isaiah 30:21
The engines of war are officially silenced, but battles still go on in international
peace conferences and on the labor front. Only to the extent that
Christ dwells in the hearts of men can the world enter upon the pathway to
peace, and only when he returns will there be perfect peace Jesus said.
"I am the way," and we find him the way not only to salvation, but to peace,
happiness, the abundant life, and all that is good in heaven and earth. Let us
look into what Baptists ai-o doing to makP known his excellent name in Hawaii.