Earlier text: CHARACTER-BUILDINGEDUCATION OF YOUNG MEN FOR THE MINISTRY
Too little attention has been given to the education of young men for the ministry. This was the primary object to be secured in the establishment of the college. In no case should this be ignored or87 regarded as a matter of secondary importance. For several years, however, but few have gone forth from that institution prepared to teach the truth to others. Some who came at great expense, with the ministry in view, have been encouraged by the teachers to take a thorough course of study, which would occupy a number of years, and in order to obtain means to carry out these plans, have entered the canvassing field, and given up all thought of preaching. This is entirely wrong. We have not many years in which to work, and teachers and principal should be imbued with the Spirit of God, and work in harmony with His revealed will, instead of carrying out their own plans. We are losing much every year because we do not heed what God has said upon these points. Our college is designed of God to meet the advancing wants for this time of peril and demoralization. The study of books only, cannot give students the discipline they need. A broader foundation must be laid. The college was not brought into existence to bear the stamp of any one man’s mind. Teachers and principal should work together as brethren. They should consult together, and also counsel with ministers and responsible men, and above all else, seek wisdom from above, that all their decisions in reference to the school may be such as will be approved of God. . . . A more comprehensive education is needed,—an education which will demand from teachers and principal such thought and effort as mere instruction in the sciences does not require. The character must receive proper discipline for its fullest and noblest development. The students should receive at college88 such training as will enable them to maintain a respectable, honest, virtuous standing in society, against the demoralizing influences which are corrupting the youth. It would be well could there be connected with our college, land for cultivation, and also workshops, under the charge of men competent to instruct the students in the various departments of physical labor. Much is lost by a neglect to unite physical with mental taxation. The leisure hours of the students are often occupied with frivolous pleasures, which weaken physical, mental, and moral powers. Under the debasing power of sensual indulgence, or the untimely excitement of courtship and marriage, many students fail to reach that height of mental development which they might otherwise have attained. . . . If morality and religion are to live in a school, it must be through a knowledge of God’s word. Some may urge that if religious teaching is to be made prominent, our school will become unpopular; that those who are not of our faith will not patronize the college. Very well, then let them go to other colleges, where they will find a system of education that suits their taste. Our school was established, not merely to teach the sciences, but for the purpose of giving instruction in the great principles of God’s word, and in the practical duties of every-day life. This is the education so much needed at the present time. If a worldly influence is to bear sway in our school, then sell it out to worldlings, and let them take the89 entire control; and those who have invested their means in that institution will establish another school, to be conducted, not upon the plan of popular schools nor according to the desires of principal and teachers, but upon the plan which God has specified. In the name of my Master I entreat all who stand in responsible positions in that school, to be men of God. When the Lord requires us to be distinct and peculiar, how can we crave popularity, or seek to imitate the customs and practices of the world? God has declared His purpose to have one college in the land where the Bible shall have its proper place in the education of the youth. Will we do our part to carry out that purpose? . . . Through the medium of the press, knowledge of every kind is placed within the reach of all; and yet how large a share of every community are depraved in morals and superficial in mental attainments. If the people would but become Bible readers, Bible students, we should see a different state of things. In an age like ours, in which iniquity abounds, and God’s character and His law are alike regarded with contempt, special care must be taken to teach the youth to study, to reverence and obey the divine will as revealed to man. The fear of the Lord is fading from the minds of our youth, because of their neglect of Bible study. Principal and teachers should have a living connection with God, and should stand firmly and fearlessly as witnesses for Him. Never from cowardice or worldly policy let the word of God be placed in the background. Students will be profited intellectually, as well as morally and spiritually, by its study. . . . THE TEACHER’S RESPONSIBILITY
There is a work to be done for every teacher in our college. Not one is free from selfishness. If the moral and religious character of the teachers were what it should be, a better influence would be exerted upon the students. The teachers do not seek individually to perform their own work with an eye single to the glory of God. Instead of looking to Jesus and copying His life and character, they look to self, and aim too much to meet a human standard. I wish I could impress upon every teacher a full sense of his responsibility for the influence which he exerts upon the young. Satan is untiring in his efforts to secure the service of our youth. With great care he is laying his snare for the inexperienced feet. The people of God should jealously guard against his devices. God is the embodiment of benevolence, mercy, and love. Those who are truly connected with Him cannot be at variance with one another. His Spirit ruling in the heart will create harmony, love, and unity. The opposite of this is seen among the children of Satan. It is his work to stir up envy, strife, and jealousy. In the name of my Master I ask the professed followers of Christ, What fruit do you bear? In the system of instruction used in the common schools, the most essential part of education is neglected,—the religion of the Bible. Education not only affects to a great degree the life of the student in this world, but its influence extends to eternity. How important, then, that the teachers be persons91 capable of exerting a right influence! They should be men and women of religious experience, daily receiving divine light to impart to their pupils. But the teacher should not be expected to do the parents’ work. There has been, with many parents, a fearful neglect of duty. Like Eli, they fail to exercise proper restraint; and then they send their undisciplined children to college, to receive the training which the parents should have given them at home. The teachers have a task which few appreciate. If they succeed in reforming these wayward youth, they receive but little credit. If the youth choose the society of the evil-disposed, and go on from bad to worse, then the teachers are censured and the school is denounced. In many cases the censure justly belongs to the parents. They had the first and most favorable opportunity to control and train their children, when the spirit was teachable, and the mind and heart were easily impressed. But through the slothfulness of the parents, the children are permitted to follow their own will, until they become hardened in an evil course. Let parents study less of the world, and more of Christ; let them put forth less effort to imitate the customs and fashions of the world, and devote more time and effort to moulding the minds and characters of their children according to the divine Model. Then they could send forth their sons and daughters fortified by pure morals and a noble purpose, to receive an education for positions of usefulness and trust. Teachers who are controlled by the love and fear of92 God, could lead such youth still onward and upward, training them to be a blessing to the world and an honor to their Creator. Connected with God, every instructor will exert an influence to lead his pupils to study God’s word and obey His law. He will direct their minds to the contemplation of eternal interests, opening before them vast fields for thought, grand and ennobling themes, which the most vigorous intellect may put forth all its powers to grasp, and yet feel that there is an infinity beyond. THE NEED OF COUNSELING TOGETHER
The evils of self-esteem and an unsanctified independence, which most impair our usefulness, and which will prove our ruin if not overcome, spring from selfishness. “Counsel together,” is the message which has been again and again repeated to me by the angel of God. By influencing one man’s judgment, Satan may endeavor to control matters to suit himself. He may succeed in misleading the minds of two persons; but when several consult together, there is more safety. Every plan will be more closely criticized, every advance move more carefully studied. Hence there will be less danger of precipitate, ill-advised moves, which would bring confusion and perplexity. In union there is strength; in division there is weakness and defeat. God is leading out a people, and preparing them for translation. Are we, who are acting a part in this work, standing as sentinels for God? Are we seeking to work unitedly? Are we willing to become93 servants of all? Are we following our great Exemplar? Fellow-laborers, we are each sowing seed in the fields of life. As is the seed, so will be the harvest. If we sow distrust, envy, jealousy, self-love, bitterness of thought and feeling, we shall reap bitterness to our own souls. If we manifest kindness, love, tender thought for the feelings of others, we shall receive the same in return. The teacher who is severe, critical, overbearing, heedless of others’ feelings, must expect the same spirit to be manifested toward himself. He who wishes to preserve his own dignity and self-respect, must be careful not to wound needlessly the self-respect of others. This rule should be sacredly observed toward the dullest, the youngest, the most blundering students. What God intends to do with these apparently uninteresting youth, you do not know. He has, in the past, accepted persons no more promising or attractive, to do a great work for Him. His Spirit, moving upon the heart, has aroused every faculty to vigorous action. The Lord saw in those rough, unhewn stones, precious material, that would stand the test of storm and heat and pressure. God sees not as man sees. He judges not from appearance, but He searches the heart and judges righteously. The teacher should ever conduct himself as a Christian gentleman. He should stand in the attitude of a friend and counselor to his pupils. If all our people — teachers, ministers, and lay members — would cultivate the spirit of Christian courtesy,94 they would far more readily find access to the hearts of the people; many more would be led to examine and receive the truth. When every teacher shall forget self, and feel a deep interest in the success and prosperity of his pupils, realizing that they are God’s property, and that he must render an account for his influence upon their minds and characters, then we shall have a school in which angels will love to linger. Jesus will look approvingly upon the work of the teachers, and will send His grace into the hearts of the students. . . . THE TRUE TEST OF PROSPERITY
If you lower the standard in order to secure popularity and an increase of numbers, and then make this increase a cause of rejoicing, you show great blindness. If numbers were an evidence of success, Satan might claim the pre-eminence; for, in this world, his followers are largely in the majority. It is the degree of moral power pervading the college, that is a test of its prosperity. It is the virtue, intelligence, and piety of the people composing our churches, not their numbers, that should be a source of joy and thankfulness. Without the influence of divine grace, education will prove no real advantage; the learner becomes proud, vain, and bigoted. But that education which is received under the ennobling, refining influence of the great Teacher, will elevate man in the scale of moral value with God. It will enable him to subdue pride and passion, and to walk humbly before God, as dependent upon Him for every capability, every opportunity, and every privilege. I speak to the workers in our college: You must not only profess to be Christians, but you must exemplify the character of Christ. Let the wisdom from above pervade all your instruction. In a world of moral darkness and corruption, let it be seen that the spirit by which you are moved to action is from above, not from beneath. While you rely wholly upon your own strength and wisdom, your best efforts will accomplish little. If you are prompted by love to God, His law being your foundation, your work will be enduring. While the hay, wood, and stubble are consumed, your work will stand the test. The youth placed under your care you must meet again around the great white throne. If you permit your uncultivated manners or uncontrolled tempers to bear sway, and thus fail to influence these youth for their eternal good, you must, at that day, meet the grave consequences of your work. By a knowledge of the divine law and obedience to its precepts, men may become the sons of God. By violation of that law, they become servants of Satan. On the one hand, they may rise to any height of moral excellence; or on the other hand, they may descend to any depth of iniquity and degradation. The workers in our college should manifest a zeal and earnestness proportionate to the value of the prize at stake,—the souls of their students, the approval of God, eternal life, and the joys of the redeemed. As co-laborers with Christ, with so favorable opportunities to impart the knowledge of God, our teachers should labor as if inspired from above. The hearts of the youth are not hardened, nor their ideas and opinions stereotyped, as are those of older persons.96 They may be won to Christ by your holy demeanor, your devotion, your Christlike walk. It would be much better to crowd them less in the study of the sciences, and give them more time for religious privileges. Here a grave mistake has been made. . . . GOD’S PURPOSE FOR THE COLLEGE
No limit can be set to our influence. One thoughtless act may prove the ruin of many souls. The course of every worker in our college is making impressions upon the minds of the young, and these are borne away to be reproduced in others. It should be the teacher’s aim to prepare every youth under his care to be a blessing to the world. This object should never be lost sight of. There are some who profess to be working for Christ, yet who occasionally go over to the side of Satan and do his work. Can the Saviour pronounce these good and faithful servants? Are they, as watchmen, giving the trumpet a certain sound? . . . Our Saviour bids us, “Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.” Mark 14:38. If we encounter difficulties, and in Christ’s strength overcome them; if we meet enemies, and in Christ’s strength put them to flight; if we accept responsibilities, and in Christ’s strength discharge them faithfully, we are gaining a precious experience. We learn, as we could not otherwise have learned, that our Saviour is a present help in every time of need. There is a great work to be done in our college, a work which demands the co-operation of every teacher; and it is displeasing to God for one to discourage another. But nearly all seem to forget that97 Satan is an accuser of the brethren, and they unite with the enemy in his work. While professed Christians are contending, Satan is laying his snares for the inexperienced feet of children and youth. Those who have had a religious experience should seek to shield the young from his devices. They should never forget that they themselves were once enchanted with the pleasures of sin. We need the mercy and forbearance of God every hour, and how unbecoming for us to be impatient with the errors of the inexperienced youth! So long as God bears with them, dare we, fellow-sinners, cast them off? We should ever look upon the youth as the purchase of the blood of Christ. As such they have demands upon our love, our patience, our sympathy. If we would follow Jesus, we cannot restrict our interest and affection to ourselves and our own families; we cannot give our time and attention to temporal matters, and forget the eternal interests of those around us. . . . “Love one another, as I have loved you” (John 15:12), is the command of Jesus. Look at His self-denial; behold the manner of love He has bestowed upon us; and then seek to imitate the Pattern. —“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. V, pp. 21-35; read in College Hall, December, 1881. If we ever know the truth, it will be because we practise it. We must have a living experience in the things of God before we are able to understand His word. This experimental knowledge is what strengthens the intellect, and builds us up into Christ our living Head. Those students who profess to love God and obey the truth should possess that degree of self-control and strength of religious principle that will enable them to remain unmoved amid temptations, and to stand up for Jesus in the college, at their boarding houses, or wherever they may be. Religion is not to be worn merely as a cloak in the house of God; religious principles should characterize the entire life. Those who are drinking at the fountain of life will not, like the worldling, manifest a longing desire for change and pleasure. In their deportment and character will be seen the rest and peace and happiness that they have found in Jesus by daily laying their perplexities and burdens at His feet. They will show that in the path of obedience and duty there is contentment and even joy. Such ones will exert an influence over their fellow-students which will tell upon the entire school. Those who compose this faithful army will refresh and strengthen the teachers by discouraging every species of unfaithfulness, of discord, and of neglect to comply with the rules and regulations. Their influence will be saving, and their works will not perish in the great day of God, but will follow them into the future world; and the influence of their life here will tell throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity. One earnest, conscientious, faithful young man in a school is an inestimable treasure. Angels of heaven look lovingly upon him, and in the ledger of heaven99 is recorded every work of righteousness, every temptation resisted, every evil overcome. He is laying up a good foundation against the time to come, that he may lay hold on eternal life. Upon Christian youth depend in a great measure the preservation and perpetuity of the institutions which God has devised as a means by which to advance His work. Never was there a period when results so important depended upon a generation of men. Then how important that the young should be qualified for this great work, that God may use them as His instruments! Their Maker has claims upon them which are paramount to all others. It is God who has given life, and every physical and mental endowment that the youth possess. He has bestowed upon them capabilities for wise improvement, that they may do a work which will be as enduring as eternity. In return for His great gifts, He claims a due cultivation and exercise of the intellectual and moral faculties. He did not give them these faculties merely for their amusement, or to be abused in working against His will and His providence, but to advance the knowledge of truth and holiness in the world. In return for His continued kindness and infinite mercies, He claims their goodness, their veneration, their love. He justly requires obedience to His laws, and to all wise regulations which will restrain and guard the youth from Satan’s devices, and lead them in paths of peace. The wild, reckless character of many of the youth in this age of the world is heart-sickening. If the youth could see that in complying with the laws and regulations of our institutions, they are only doing100 that which will improve their standing in society, elevate the character, ennoble the mind, and increase their happiness, they would not rebel against just rules and wholesome requirements, nor engage in creating suspicion and prejudice against these institutions. With energy and fidelity our youth should meet the demands upon them; and this will be a guarantee of success. Young men who have never made a success in the temporal duties of life will be equally unprepared to engage in the higher duties. A religious experience is gained only through conflict, through disappointment, through severe discipline of self, through earnest prayer. The steps to heaven must be taken one at a time; and every advance step gives strength for the next. While at school, students should not allow their minds to become confused by thoughts of courtship. They are there to gain a fitness to work for God, and this thought is ever to be uppermost. Let all students take as broad a view as possible of their obligations to God. Let them study earnestly how they can do practical work for the Master during their student life. Let them refuse to burden the souls of their teachers by showing a spirit of levity and a careless disregard of rules. Students can do much to make the school a success by working with their teachers to help other students, and by zealously endeavoring to lift themselves above cheap, low standards. Those who cooperate with Christ will become refined in speech and in temper. They will not be unruly and self-caring,101 studying their own selfish pleasure and gratification. They will bend all their efforts to work with Christ as messengers of His mercy and love. They are one with Him in spirit and in action. They seek to store the mind with the precious treasures of God’s word, that each may do his appointed work. In all our dealings with students, age and character must be taken into account. We cannot treat the young and the old just alike. There are circumstances under which men and women of sound experience and good standing may be granted some privileges not given to the younger students. The age, the conditions, and the turn of mind must be taken into consideration. We must be wisely considerate in all our work. But we must not lessen our firmness and vigilance in dealing with students of all ages, nor our strictness in forbidding the unprofitable and unwise association of young and immature students. In our schools in Battle Creek, Healdsburg, and Cooranbong, I have borne a straight testimony concerning these matters. There were those who thought the restraint too severe; but we told them plainly what could be and what could not be, showing them that our schools are established at great expense for a definite purpose, and that all which would hinder the accomplishment of this purpose must be put away. Again and again I stood before the students in the Avondale school with messages from the Lord regarding the deleterious influence of free and easy association between young men and young women. I told them that if they did not keep themselves to102 themselves, and endeavor to make the most of their time, the school would not benefit them, and those who were paying their expenses would be disappointed. I told them that if they were determined to have their own will and their own way, it would be better for them to return to their homes and to the guardianship of their parents. This they could do at any time, if they decided not to stand under the yoke of obedience; for we did not design to have a few leading spirits in wrong-doing demoralizing the other students. I told the principal and teachers that God had laid upon them the responsibility of watching for souls as they that must give account. I showed them that the wrong course pursued by some of the students would mislead other students, if it were continued, and for this God would hold the teachers responsible. Some students would attend school who had not been disciplined at home, and whose ideas of proper education and its value were perverted. If these were allowed to carry things in their way, the object for which the school was established would be defeated, and the sin would be charged against the guardians of the school, as if they had committed it themselves. God holds every one responsible for the influence that surrounds his soul, on his own account and on the account of others. He calls upon young men and women to be strictly temperate, and conscientious in the use of their faculties of mind and body. Their capabilities can be properly developed only by the most diligent use of their opportunities and the wise appropriation of their powers to the glory of God and the benefit of their fellow-men. To know what constitutes purity of mind, soul, and body, is an important part of education. Paul summed up the attainments possible for Timothy by saying, “Keep thyself pure.” 1 Tim. 5:22. Impurity of thought, word, or action will not be indulged by the child of God. Every encouragement and the richest blessings are held up before the overcomers of evil practices, but the most fearful penalties are laid upon those who profane the body and defile the soul. Teachers, blessed are the pure in heart—now; not, Blessed will be the pure in heart. “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.” Matt. 5:8. Yes, as did Moses, they shall endure the seeing of Him who is invisible. They have the assurance of the richest blessings, both in this life and in the life that is to come. Students, if you will watch and pray, and make earnest efforts in the right direction, you will be thoroughly imbued with the spirit of Christ. “Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.” Rom. 13:14. Be determined that you will make the school a success. If you will heed the instruction given in the word of God, you may go forth with a development of intellectual and moral power that will cause even angels to rejoice, and God will joy over you with singing. Under such discipline you will secure the fullest development of your faculties. Let not the buoyancy and the lust of youth through manifold temptations make your day of opportunity and privilege a failure. Day by day put on Christ; and in the brief season of your test and trial here104 below, maintain your dignity in the strength of God, as co-workers with the highest agencies of heaven. It is the privilege of the faithful teacher to reap day by day the visible results of his patient, persevering labor of love. It is his to watch the growth of the tender plants as they bud, and blossom, and bear the fruit of order, punctuality, faithfulness, thoroughness, and true nobility of character. It is his to see a love for truth and right growing and strengthening in these children and youth for whom he is held responsible. What can give him greater returns than to see his pupils developing characters that will make them noble and useful men and women, fitted to occupy positions of responsibility and trust,—men and women who in the future will wield a power to hold in check evil influences, and help in dispelling the moral darkness of the world? As the teacher awakens in the minds of his pupils a realization of the possibilities before them, as he causes them to grasp the truth that they may become useful, noble, trustworthy men and women, he sets in motion waves of influence that, even after he himself has gone to rest, will reach onward and ever onward, giving joy to the sorrowing, and inspiring hope in the discouraged. As he lights in their minds and hearts the lamp of earnest endeavor, he is rewarded by seeing its bright rays diverge in every direction, illuminating not only the lives of the few who daily sit before him for instruction, but through them the lives of many others. THE RIGHT EDUCATION
Test. Vol. 3, pp. 131-135. OUR COLLEGE
Test. Vol. 4, pp. 418-449.
Test. Vol. 5, pp. 11-15, 21-36, 59-61.
Test. Vol. 6, pp. 141-151. “They shall live with their children.”
In His wisdom the Lord has decreed that the family shall be the greatest of all educational agencies. It is in the home that the education of the child is to begin. Here is his first school. Here, with his parents as instructors, he is to learn the lessons that are to guide him throughout life,—lessons of respect, obedience, reverence, self-control. The educational influences of the home are a decided power for good or for evil. They are in many respects silent and gradual, but if exerted on the right side, they become a far-reaching power for truth and righteousness. If the child is not instructed aright here, Satan will educate him through agencies of his choosing. How important, then, is the school in the home! In the home school—the first grade—the very best talent should be utilized. Upon all parents there rests the obligation of giving physical, mental, and spiritual instruction. It should be the object of every parent to secure to his child a well-balanced, symmetrical character. This is a work of no small magnitude and importance,—a work requiring earnest thought and prayer no less than patient, persevering effort. A right foundation must be laid, a framework, strong and firm, erected, and then day by108 day the work of building, polishing, perfecting, must go forward. Children may be trained for the service of sin or for the service of righteousness. Solomon says, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Prov. 22:6. This language is positive. The training that Solomon enjoins is to direct, educate, develop. But in order for parents to do this work, they must themselves understand the “way” the child should go. It is impossible for parents to give their children proper training unless they first give themselves to God, learning of the great Teacher lessons of obedience to His will. Physical training, the development of the body, is far more easily given than spiritual training. The nursery, the playground, the workshop; the sowing of the seed, and the gathering of the harvest,—all these give physical training. Under ordinarily favorable circumstances a child naturally gains healthful vigor and a proper development of the bodily organs. Yet even in physical lines the child should be carefully trained. Soul culture, which gives purity and elevation to the thoughts and fragrance to word and act, requires more painstaking effort. It takes patience to keep every evil motive weeded from the garden of the heart. The spiritual training should in no case be neglected; for “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” Ps. 111:10. By some, education is placed next to religion, but true education is religion. The Bible should be the child’s first text-book. From this book, parents are to give wise instruction. The109 word of God is to be made the rule of the life. From it the children are to learn that God is their Father; and from the beautiful lessons of His word they are to gain a knowledge of His character. Through the inculcation of its principles, they are to learn to do justice and judgment. For some reason, many parents dislike to give their children religious instruction; and they leave them to pick up in Sabbath-school the knowledge which it is their privilege and duty to impart. Such parents fail to fulfil the responsibility laid upon them, to give their children an all-round education. God commands His people to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. What does this mean — the nurture and admonition of the Lord? It means to teach them to order the life by the requirements and lessons of the word; to help them to gain a clear understanding of the terms of entrance into the city of God. Not to all who would enter will the gates of that city be opened, but to those only who have studied to know God’s will, and have yielded their lives to His control. Parents, let the instruction you give your children be simple, and be sure that it is clearly understood. The lessons that you learn from the Word you are to present to their young minds so plainly that they cannot fail to understand. By simple lessons drawn from the word of God and their own experience, you may teach them how to conform their lives to the highest standard. Even in childhood and youth they may learn to live thoughtful, earnest lives, that will yield a rich harvest of good. In every Christian home God should be honored by the morning and evening sacrifices of prayer and praise. Children should be taught to respect and reverence the hour of prayer. It is the duty of Christian parents, morning and evening, by earnest prayer and persevering faith, to make a hedge about their children. In the church at home the children are to learn to pray and to trust in God. Teach them to repeat God’s law. Concerning the commandments the Israelites were instructed: “Thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” Deut. 6:7. Come in humility, with a heart full of tenderness, and with a sense of the temptations and dangers before yourselves and your children; by faith bind them to the altar, entreating for them the care of the Lord. Train the children to offer their simple words of prayer. Tell them that God delights to have them call upon Him. Will the Lord of heaven pass by such homes, and leave no blessing there?—Nay, verily. Ministering angels will guard the children who are thus dedicated to God. They hear the offering of praise and the prayer of faith, and they bear the petitions to Him who ministers in the sanctuary for His people, and offers His merits in their behalf. The children are to be taught that their capabilities were given them for the honor and glory of God.111 To this end they must learn the lesson of obedience; for only by lives of willing obedience can they render to God the service He requires. Before the child is old enough to reason, he may be taught to obey. By gentle, persistent effort, the habit should be established. Thus to a great degree may be prevented those later conflicts between will and authority that do so much to arouse in the minds of the youth alienation and bitterness toward parents and teachers, and too often resistance of all authority, human and divine. Let children be shown that true reverence is revealed by obedience. God has commanded nothing that is unessential, and there is no other way of manifesting reverence so pleasing to Him as by obedience to that which He has spoken. The mother is the queen of the home, and the children are her subjects. She is to rule her household wisely, in the dignity of her motherhood. Her influence in the home is to be paramount; her word, law. If she is a Christian, under God’s control, she will command the respect of her children. Tell your children exactly what you require of them. Then let them understand that your word must be obeyed. Thus you are training them to respect the commandments of God, which plainly declare, “Thou shalt,” and “Thou shalt not.” Few parents begin early enough to teach their children to obey. The child is usually allowed to get two or three years the start of its parents, who forbear to discipline it, thinking it too young to learn to obey. But all this time self is growing strong in the little being, and every day makes harder the parent’s task112 of gaining control. At a very early age children can comprehend what is plainly and simply told them, and by kind and judicious management can be taught to obey. Never should they be allowed to show their parents disrespect. Self-will should never be permitted to go unrebuked. The future well-being of the child requires kindly, loving, but firm discipline. There is a blind affection that gives the children the privilege of doing as they please. But to allow a child to follow his natural impulses is to allow him to deteriorate and to become proficient in evil. Wise parents will not say to their children, “Follow your own choice; go where you will, and do what you will;” but, “Listen to the instruction of the Lord.” Wise rules and regulations must be made and enforced, that the beauty of the home life may not be spoiled. It is impossible to depict the evil that results from leaving a child to its own will. Some who go astray because of neglect in childhood, will later, through the inculcation of practical lessons, come to their senses; but many are lost forever because in childhood and youth they received only a partial, one-sided culture. The child who is spoiled has a heavy burden to carry throughout his life. In trial, in disappointment, in temptation, he will follow his undisciplined, misdirected will. Children who have never learned to obey will have weak, impulsive characters. They seek to rule, but have not learned to submit. They are without moral strength to restrain their wayward tempers, to correct their wrong habits, or to subdue their uncontrolled wills. The blunders of untrained, undisciplined childhood become the inheritance of113 manhood and womanhood. The perverted intellect can scarcely discern between the true and the false. Parents who truly love Christ will bear witness to this in a love for their children that will not indulge, but will work wisely for their highest good. They will lend every sanctified energy and ability to the work of saving their children. Instead of treating them as playthings, they will regard them as the purchase of Christ, and will teach them that they are to become the children of God. Instead of allowing them to indulge evil temper and selfish desires, they will teach them lessons of self-restraint. And the children will be happier, far happier, under proper discipline than if left to do as their unrestrained impulses suggest. A child’s truest graces consist in modesty and obedience,—in attentive ears to hear the words of direction, in willing feet and hands to walk and work in the path of duty.