Bible Truths Illustrated by J. C. Ferdinand Pittman

"
—
BIBLE TRUTHS ILLUSTRATED
834. At the Centennial Convention of churches of Christ, at
Pittsburgh, U. S. A., 1909, Mr. Trotter said: "Don't spend fifty
thousand dollars on a church steeple, and stick the primers
down the coal-hole." Dr. Crossfield affirmed that "if we spend
most time with adults, we begin to build the pyramids at the
apex rather than the base."
835. There is a variety of reasons for the non-attendance
of the adolescent boy, one of the chief of which is the lack of
men teachers. From the data to hand, it is proved that where
there are the largest number of male teachers, there are the
largest number of adolescent boys. . . . Too often the boys of
ten and sixteen are classed together, and the sixteen-year-old
boy quits at the first opportunity. Why should such boys be
condemned? We need energy-expending righteousness. Too
often our conception of a boy's religion is subjective rather
than objective. It is something to be, rather than something
to do. Some older boys get the idea that religion is something
you do not do, and that perfect sinlessness comes
as near perfect inaction as anything can be. Edgar M.
Robinson.
836. "In a church they organised a boys' club. -The ladies,
got a beautiful carpet. It was somewhat spoiled by the boys.
The ladies insisted that the club should be stopped. One of
them raised her protest to the preacher. He said: 'An inch of
boy is worth a million yards of carpet.'
837. The author of a fictional work tells how an attempt was
made to rescue a young girl from degrading surroundings, in
the slums of London. For a little while, the attempt appeared
successful, but as time went on, the attractions of the old life
proved too strong. The girl finally returned to her former
associates with these words: "It's too late now; why didn't
ye ketch me when I was a kid?"
838. The great educationalist of the United States, Horace
Mann, on one occasion undertook the opening of a large school
in Massachusetts. A very costly building had been erected, and
he said : "If only one child is saved through putting up
20 305