Salem, N. C. For a long time the idea was considered highly impractical. There had been employee counseling of a secular nature for many years. In fact, every one of the 600 foremen and supervisors had been trained to give advice on personal problems. The ques tion that concerned the executives was this: Could religion give something to our employees that psychology was not already giving them? Finally, the experiment was conducted and during the last two years several wonderful things have been accom plished. The morale of the company’s regular employees has improved to such an extent that old-timers say they can actually “feel” the difference when they walk through the factory. Labor turn over has dropped from 7.61 to 5.22 in two years. The accident rate has de clined approximately 40 per cent and absenteeism is much lower than it used to be. Labor-management frictions have decreased and tensions between white and colored workers have diminished almost to the vanishing point. While perhaps all these changes have not come through the mere employment of a company preacher, still in the opinion of the executives, company “ religion” has played a very important part. Without a doubt there is a tremendous potentiality for business improvement along this line. Certainly the presence of Christ in every-day affairs needs to be stressed consistently. Too long have people associated Christ and His worship with cathedrals, churches or “ saw-dust trails.” In the mind of far too many people God is a companion only for Sunday, depending upon the weather! What needs to be emphasized is that Christianity is a seven-day-a-week, t w e n t y-f o u r-hour-a-day proposition. Christ is at home in business, in educa tion, in social life as much as He is in churches. The answer that God has to give concerns not only so-called spiritual needs but concerns the every-day-down- to-earth matter-of-fact problems with which everyone is confronted. To take Him into one’s every-day life is the wisest, more practical and the most ef ficient thing that anyone can ever do. It is utterly ridiculous to endeavor to separate God’s influence from men’s everyday problems. God fills the earth, He fully understands about business, large and small. Reverence for Him is the very beginning of education and social life can never be what it ought to be without His fellowship. The segrega tion of religion and attempted separa tion of God from daily life is the main cause of the world’s woe. Invite God into every avenue of your being and by far the largest majority of problems will be solved automatically. The prayers of industrial parsons will not answer humanity’s needs but it is a step in the right direction. If this should be followed up to the extent that Christ Jesus were to become a daily companion in everything done in life, some real progress would be made. T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
their talents are average talents. On the other hand, the problems of govern ment are so great in their widespread effect that the decision is oftentimes far beyond the power of mere human ability to make. Who is there of mortal man who has innate ability within himself rightly to govern millions or even thou sands of people? We speak of the wisdom of Solomon, but let it be remembered that Solomon became synonomous for wise government only through the fact that God bestowed upon him extraor dinary wisdom. All during this election year and, as a matter of fact, every year our govern ment would greatly benefit were Chris tians to consistently and persistently pray down upon our party conventions, our electorate and the elected officers the special wisdom which God will most certainly give to those who humbly de sire it. There seems to be little doubt but that good government is the result of intercessory prayer. God will most surely answer the believing petition of His children in vouchsafing to elected officers that special wisdom which is so desperately needed. So in the final analy sis the responsibility for good govern ment lies directly at the door of people who know how to pray. Here is a good year in which to demonstrate the reality and effectiveness of definite prayer. Industrial Parsons I N one of the lead articles of the American Magazine an account is given of an increasing trend on the part of large corporations to include a minis ter among their personnel. This move ment does not stem particularly from any pious sentiment on the part of boards of directors; it is based on the hard fact that industry is more efficient and consequently profits are larger when employees have access for their prob lems to a man of God and through him to the Book of God. A notable experiment has been con ducted in a large company in Winston-
Election Year T HE air is starting to fill with elec tion news. Candidates are declaring themselves, platforms are being dis cussed and formulated and for the next ten months or so the most general topic of conversation will center around elec tion. This is the good, right and proper American way. However, those who name the name of Christ and are acquainted with the Word of God have a much deeper re sponsibility devolving upon them than merely to discuss politics. The Scrip tures, in at least two separate instances, directly advise that such governmental matters ought to be a subject of real intercession. We are told to pray for all men, but especially for kings and all that are in authority. The promise con tingent upon such intercession is that the result will be a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty (I Tim. 2 : 1 , 2 ). In another passage of far-reaching implication (Rom. 13:1-7) the attention of the children of God is directed to an astounding fact. The powers that be are ordained of God, and since they are, the child of God is to be subject to them. He is to render such obedience and benevolence as befits a government or dained of God. Therefore, it is fitting and proper that the government under which the Christian lives should have a share in his prayer life. There is no way of obtaining reliable statistics as to how many praying peo ple include governments and government leaders in their prayers, but it has been observed by some that the public prayers made in many churches very largely omit this important matter. If public prayer is any indication of private prayer it is quite safe to say that the bulk of ascending prayer contains no mention whatsoever of petition for the needs of governmental leaders. And the need is so great for one should remember that those elected to high office are quite ordinary people, their wisdom is average wisdom and Page Four
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