Another said: “I raise chickens. One hen in my yard I’ve given to God. This money is from her eggs and chickens.”
Still another: “In my orange orchard there are some trees which I have dedicated to God. The money which comes of the sale of the fruit grown on these trees goes to the cause of Christ.” And she laid her donation on the table.
In a Christian home I saw on the mantelpiece a little box marked, “God’s bank.” Into this money was dropped at stated seasons in order that there might never be any want of consecrated money in the house. In a certain home sickness had cut off income. The missionary secretary sent to this home for money. In order that a donation might be sent in, the family agreed to leave the sugar off the table for a certain length of time. Thus a small amount was saved for the cause of Christ. Thank God, that truth on all lines is finding an echo in our souls! We are not only learning the value of money and enterprise, but we are also learning that “a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesses.”
Wedlock is becoming more sacred. More and more the people are growing into a responsiveness to the sacredness of the marriage relation. The husband has increased in knowledge regarding his duty to his wife; the wife sees better her relation to her husband; the parents more clearly perceive what is possible and proper with reference to their children; and, therefore, we can claim thousands of homes which are sources of refinement, of love, and of purest pleasure. Music is brought in, and in many homes the family choir contributes to the enjoyment of children and parents, whose hearts feast upon mutual, sweet affection. Not long ago the writer had the pleasure of receiving the hospitality of a family in which such a choir existed. Each member had his place somewhere on the staff; either he was in the tenor, or in the alto, or in the soprano, or in the bass. Mother, father and children delightfully partook of the feast of song. Their Scripture lesson was not a long, disjointed chapter, but a single thought, namely: “The wisdom that is from above.” Its qualities were considered—they were: (1) Pure; (2) peaceable; (3) gentle; (4) approachable; (5) merciful; (6) fruitful of good works; (7) impartial; and (8) honest. This lesson was in a scheme on the blackboard, kept in the home for such purposes, thus:
| Heavenly Wisdom, Its Qualities. | { 1. Purity. |
| { 2. Peaceableness. | |
| { 3. Gentleness. | |
| { 4. Approachableness. | |
| { 5. Mercy. | |
| { 6. Fruitfulness in good works. | |
| { 7. Impartiality. | |
| { 8. Honesty. |
This plan gave opportunity to discuss in a few words each designated quality. Each person large enough to take part was encouraged to do so. One part of the evening hour was spent in amusing literary games, like the following:
A word was suggested, and so many minutes were allowed to elapse, during which time each member of the family sought to make the greatest number of words out of the letters composing the word suggested. At the close of this allotted time, spelling was compared, and the difference as to the number of words made by each was noted. The exercise was pleasant, exciting and profitable. The writer mused: “This is so much better than gossip, unsociableness, sullen silence, and quarreling.” From the word abatement, for example, came the words: At, mat, bat, bet, tab, mate, am, an, ant, tent, beat, abate, Abe. At other times problems in mathematics furnished the wrestling point; then points in geography and history were entertained. “Name as many cities as you can containing so many thousand inhabitants, and tell where they are,” was proposed. Thus an hour or so of the early evening was profitably passed away in shunning evil and gathering knowledge for good.
We dare hope that every home will seek to improve on this line. Evil cannot be kept out of the home except in proportion as we fill it with what is good. And the quality of the home life must determine the quality of the social life, of the church life, and of the political life, as well as of the business life, of any people.
As a further illustration of the influences and plans operating among us—as a fitting conclusion—we present the following from Miss Knapp, one of the faithful missionaries of the Women’s Baptist Home Mission Society: