The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1921, Page 12

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12 The Lutheran Pioneer.

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is quiet and the children are reciting and singing
the beautiful Christmas story, when suddenly every
bench on the left side of the aisle goes down beneath
the load of humanity, and once more there is con-
fusion. ‘The people are all standing now, quiet
reigns once more, and the program is finished. Dear
reader,- were there similar interruptions at your
Christmas exercises? More anon. R. 0. L. L.

St. Louis and Springfield.

The beginning of a new year is an appropriate
time for retrospection. Much can be learned from
the past, and from the same much encouragement
can be derived for the future.— As we look back
upon the past year’s history of the above-named
stations we find much, very much, to be thankful
for. In fact, both of these stations last year enjoyed
one of the most successful periods in their entire
history. ‘There were many setbacks, it is true; but

“even disappointments are very often blessings in
disguise.

The past year was indeed a year of grace for us.
In which ways? We would point in the first place
to.those times when we were permitted to proclaim
the saving Gospel-message. ‘The audiences were
sometimes small, oftener, however, comparatively
large. All told, approximately a total of 6,000 wor-
shipers attended our services in both stations, in-
cluding the St. Louis City Infirmary, and had an
opportunity to hear the Truth. Here we would re-
peat the words of the Lord, Isaiah 55, 10. 11: “For
as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven,
and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth,
and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give
seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall
My Word be that goeth forth ont of My mouth; it
shall not return unto Me void, but it shall accomp-
lish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the
thing whereto I sent it.”

From what God’s Word accomplished in our
midst during the past year we can see how sure His
promise is, not forgetting to mention, however, that
we could rest on His assurance with unabated con-
fidence even though no visible results had been ob-
tained.. Taking both stations in the aggregate, a
total of 21 children were baptized, and 22 people,
16 of them adults, were received into communicant
membership. ‘The attendance at the Lord’s Table
was larger than in any previous year. In St. Louis
constitutional organization was effected in the con-

gregation. ‘Greater personal interest in the work of
the Lord was shown by more individual members,
and especially in Springfield an admirable mission-
spirit was evinced.

And the contributions? Now we come to an-
other delightful subject. Read and rejoice! A total
of $1,302.20 was received into the treasuries of these
two stations; Grace Congregation of St. Louis con-
tributing $685.25, and Holy ‘Trinity of Springfield,
$616.95. (‘These congregations number 37 and 47
communicant members, respectively.) Last year the
total was about half as large, and we considered it
good. In 1920 it happened twice in St. Louis that
over $100.00 was collected at a single service, both
collections having been previously assigned to our
newly-created Building Fund. This fund, which
was started only four months ago, has reached the
unexpected total of $252.00. In Springfield a total
of $114.12 was collected for mission purposes. ‘The
Bible Class alone, which numbers about 20 members,
many children among them, raised $50.00 for this
purpose. Here, too, we managed to start a Building
Fund, which now totals over $75.00. Let us assure
you that many sacrifices, wonderful sacrifices, were
made by individuals in the collection of the above
funds.

Why do we call your attention to all this?

Simply to show you that God’s Word is powerful.

Read again Isaiah 55, 10. 11. ‘To God all glory!
And you, dear mission-friends, you who contributed
to the Lord’s cause during the past year with your
gifts and prayers, — may God bless you abundantly!
Your interest in the propagation of the saving
Gospel-message has not been in vain. May God
keep your hearts warm for this work, and may He
warm many other hearts besides!

The past two months have been marked by
excellent Sunday-school attendances. It has been
quite a time since the attendance has fallen below
fifty. The high-water mark of 85 was reached on
November 21. Picture it to yourself, dear mission-
friend, and rejoice: over fifty colored children
gathered in our chapel every Sunday and Jearning
of the precious Savior!

We are very fortunate in having the services
of Student G. Kuhlmann in our Sunday-school.
Much of the success of the Sunday-school is due
to his earnestness and faithfulness. ‘The children
are closely attached to Mr. Kuhlmann, although
respecting him profoundly. May we enjoy his
services for many days! Hersert C. Crus.

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