CHURCH SERVICES.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLV, Issue 123, 28 April 1925, Page 10

CHURCH SERVICES.

APPEAL TO YOUNG PEOPLE, The morning service at Cuba street and the evening service at St. Paul’s Broad Street Metnodist Churches on Sunday were conducted by Mr Cyril Burton, Dominion travelling organiser of the Methodist young men’s Bible class movement. At St. Paul’s last evening, the subject of the address was “Seeking the Kingdom of God.” The Kingdom of God, said tho speaker, was what the Church existed to establish. It was the church s duty to find at what period of life men and women were most likely to respond to tho call to devote their lives to that purpose. History had proved conclusively that the surest way to introduce permanently any new order was to secure the control of young life. From investigations made it was known that 90 per cent, of Christian decisions were made before the age" of 25. It was, therefore, of paramount importance that the Church should extend its influence to cover especially tho early years, with special emphasis on the “teen” years, where all groat decisions of life were made. The success of the Bible class movement with its ideal of the “four square” man, and its principle of self-government, was emphasised. Figures were given to prove thut> the Bible class movement was successfully bridging the gap between childhood and maturity. The Bible class movement to-day in the four Churches in which it was organised had an affiliated membership of approximately 20,000, of which the Methodist movement had 4500. The address closed with an appeal io yougn people, of whom a large number wore present, notably ho Y.M.B.C. who occupied several seats near the front of the Church, to use tueir lives and opportunities toward the realisation of the vision of the Kingdom of God.