The Journals of Martha E. McMillan

meet the enemy and when cut down in battle a new call is issued for new recruits to fill the vacant (?) and what is true of the army of the nation is also true of the white ribbon army. Often silent workers either in single file or in bands, they go out to the great battle our Ohio state President said the (?) convention the state convention and the national convention and the worlds convention depended upon the faithfulness of the workers in the local unions. Now as have already said the white ribbon army is made up mostly of mothers whose hands are full at home. What can these women do if anything to forward the work or to help in the great battle for God and for right. I answer that there are a great many department in which they can work. 1. They can set their focus as a flint against the often sins and wrongs of their own town or community. 2. They can do evangelistic work through the flower mission. For flowers can enter doors that are bolted and barred where the patient is too low for any but the physician or trained nurse to enter. The flowers are ministers and the Scripture text silent teachers and messengers of God. The mother can look into the school room and see what is taught there. I believe when we understand all the departments of our work as we showed we will find plenty of their department adapted to our everyday life. But we are to talk today more especially on the mother’s work. It is generally understood that a mother’s work must begin at home. Madam Willard said it was only as a mother did her full duty in her own home that she is capable of doing anything of great value elsewhere. A mother must first reform herself. She must first be right with God before she will be able to set her own home or family right. But there are many sides to a mother’s work. I will speak a moment on the spiritual side and will begin by asking what is the most important thing to teach a child? The greatest thing a child can be taught in the world is to fear the Lord. To teach this well implies most everything else. It means to see God in everything. It means to teach the (seein?) of sin. It means to teach a child who God is, what heaven is. It means to teach what hell is, how dreadful it is to be lost, to go down to the dark region of darkness. It means to teach a child from its very infancy who Jesus is, who loves the little children and said forbid them not to come unto me. This implies they are susceptible of love. Then his promise they that seek me early shall find me. Let it be remembered to be successful we must begin early. Teach a child to pray as soon as it can lisp its mother’s name. Teach it to love and reverence the Bible. Teach them little texts. Teach them obedience. Be faithful and earnest with your children while you are with them for no one knows till the summons come how short the time is. I think it was John Newton’s mother who died when he was four years old but she had planted the seeds of righteousness in his heart that bloomed in beauty and a (quality?) life long after she had been sleeping her last long sleep. So the admonition even is be faithful, begin early. I think one cause of failure is mothers are often so hurried with their work and responsibilities that they fail to do as well as they know and before they are aware the children have grown and left the home nest forever and gone out into the great world to solve life’s hard problem for themselves. If mothers would expect to have joy and 160