The question is sometimes asked, Why are there so many vacant pews in our churches? And the blame is laid on the hard-working minister. Well, his shoulders are broad and accustomed to carrying burdens. All the sorrows and annoyances of the people become a part of his daily load. But stop. Let us put the answer to this question where it belongs, not on the minister, but nine-tenths of the time on the congregation. “Be not forgetful to entertain strangers,” are the words of the Bible, and we cannot go to a better book for advice. “Be courteous,” are also two words found there.
A young man, not a church-goer, once said to me, “I wandered into Dr. L.’s church the other morning, and I was shown into one of the very best pews. Later the family came, and they gave me every attention. When the service was over, the gentleman who sat at the head of the pew allowed his family to pass out, and waited for me. Then offering his hand, said he was very glad I had been put in his pew, and he hoped I would come to church again very soon, every Sunday if I would, and then he added, ‘Young man, don’t ask an usher for a seat, come right in here with me any time.’
“Now,” continued this young gentleman, “that’s what I call business. I enjoyed the service that morning, was not made to feel as if I was an offscourer, but as if I was welcome. I’ll go again soon; that’s the right kind of a church. The singing was beautiful, and I’m fond of music; the sermon, too, touched the right place, but I think what had more to do with it than anything else, was that courteous family and the hearty hand-shake afterwards.”
We, neither of us, can weigh the influence we have on our neighbor. Perhaps it is better for our own peace we cannot. But we must remember a smile may save a soul. “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, ye have done it unto me.”
A BRAVE BOY.
“How shall our class raise one hundred dollars for the benefit of the church-debt fund?” was a question recently put to eight young girls by their Sunday-school teacher.
“Have a fair in the early fall; we will work for it all summer,” was the first answer.
“No; that might interfere with the ladies’ fair, which comes during December. It is to be a mammoth one this year, and we must not anticipate the event nor risk retarding its prosperity, but rather do our part to push it forward.”