October 1927
T h e
K i n g ' s
B u s i n e s s
643
Old Time Revivals Not a Thing of the Past R EV-. BRITTON ROSS, field evangelist of the Bible Insti tute of Los Angeles, assisted by Mr. and Mrs. Leo Pol- man, evangelistic song leader and pianist, recently held a three- weeks union revival meeting at Lomita, California, as reported in T h e K ing ' s B usiness . It was a revival that will not be forgotten, judging from reports still coming to us. From the very beginning, the Lord overruled Satan’s subtle attacks* The enemy tried- to. entice the young people away from the meetings with a High School dance. Again he used the principal of the High School, a Cath olic, who staged a big affair for the young people, in the form of a pugilistic night. Trying to appeal to the business men, Satan used the motion picture man to start a big fuss in the name of business. This proved a miserable failure, for it only ad vertised the meetings all the more. The next night found the great tent filled almost to capacity: There was a young people s choir of over fifty, while the picture show drew an attendance of eighteen. The Lord had the victory throughout. A leading society young lady was converted. The banker and many other prom inent leaders of the town accepted the Saviour. About 125 ac cepted Jesus Christ as a personal Saviour, and scores rededicated their lives. Reports since the meetings show that the work was only begun. The picture show has gone out of business. The Com munity Presbyterian Church reports that prayer meetings are five times larger in attendance, now than at any time in the his tory of their church, and over half of those attending are young people of high school and college ages. Pray for these men, and that the Lord will open many more doors for just such revivals. Those interested in obtaining these men for evangelistic services should correspond with Albert E. Kelly, Extension Department of the Bible Institute. —o— Mr. Pike Tries Out the Gospel On Indians T HE average tourist who spends a day among the Hopi Indians, watching their snake dances, will say, “They are beyond help.” And it is true that many who have been educated in the Government Indian schools go back among their people and live in the ways of their forefathers. But in spite of the failure of education, and it has always failed apart from the Gospel of Christ, the Indian can be reached and completely de livered from the heathenism of his ancestors.. The majority of the Hopis live on the rocky mesas, in little stone huts just as they did three hundred years ago, when Coronado, the Spanish explorer, followed up the Colorado river, and crossed the plains through what is now the Hopi reservation. This large territory of fifty by seventy-five miles was set apart some years ago by our government to be a perma nent home for the Hopis and the'Navajos. Our government on the whole has been kind and wise in their dealings with these Indians. In many ways they have been generous, furnishing the children with shoes and heavy garments for the winter season. Also, government schools have been built and main tained for the education of these children. The government requires that every boy and girl should go to school. All this is praiseworthy, but it has not brought the Indian in fifty years
out of his idolatrous practices, nor lifted him out of the unsan itary ways of living. During the last twenty-five years the Gospel of God’s grace has been given to them. This is doing what education and philanthrophy never could do. It is making the former “snake- dancer” a man of character—industrious, dependable, Christian. Rev. W. H. Pike, secretary of the Evening School Depart ment, had the pleasure of spending nearly a week with them recently. He visited several villages and saw with his own eyes the fruit of Gospel preaching among them. While passing through these villages with an Indian mis sionary, one of our own Bible Institute graduates, Mr. Pike had the privilege of stopping in their streets and singing. His daughter played on the ukelele and sang several Gospel songs. The people and children gathered about. The missionary asked Mr. Pike to speak, and he interpreted. The Gospel message was given as it would be given to any American audience. One could read on the faces the impression the Gospel was making upon them. Some believed. The Gospel is still {fthe power of God unto salvation to every one that beliéveth” and the Hopis are no exception. Several years ago one of the Presbyterian missionaries led a Hopi girl to receive Christ as her Saviour. She lived the Christian life in her home. In due time she entered the gov ernment school. Here she continued to live her Christian life. After graduating from Sherman Institute, she came to the Bible Institute of Los Angeles and graduated in 1922. Through her consistent Christian living her father and mother became Chris tians. She also had the privilege of seeing her three brothers and two sisters and an old uncle come out for Christ. This Christian Indian girl wanted to demonstrate to her neighbors how a Christian home looked, so she prayed and planned to build a modern house. She was given a position teaching in the government school. She was the first Indian woman to be granted such a position among the Hopis. She saved money enough to buy the lumber and material for the house, and two of her brothers, who had been trained in government schools, and knew something of carpenter work, built the house. The house in due time was completed and furnished. It is the only modern structure in that town. One of Mr. Pike’s great sur prises on his trip was to sit down to a first-class chicken dinner in this modern home seventy-five- miles away from a railroad station. They sang grace at the table and offered prayer. All sat around the table and ate from china dishes* with silver knives and forks. What a contrast to the Indian custom of sitting on the floor around one dish, every one eating out of the same dish. This Indian girl had bought a piano. She was able to play hymns at sight. Her brother had a violin. All stood around the piano and sang praises to God for all that had been wrought in this Hopi home. Do Christian missions pay? Answer it yourself. Mr. Fred Johnson and Mr. B. P. Adams, who are former students of the Bible Institute, are working among this tribe from which they came. They áre doing a splendid work. They are better able to reach the Hopis, because they are native born and once lived in all the heathenism of their ancestors. Any gifts for these brethren will be gladly forwarded by Mr. Pike if mailed to the Secretary of the Evening School of the Bible Institute, Los Angeles, California.
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