Bring to the meeting seven articles, as illustrations of the seven fundamental works of modern missions. As each article is brought before the children, talk about the particular branch of mission work that it represents. Get the children to pray about it. Intersperse Bible verses and songs. Many appropriate songs and verses can be found.
The following are the seven objects that may be used: In the first place, modern missionaries have been among the most effective explorers of unknown portions of the land’s surface. A compass or an ax will make an appropriate object to indicate this work of exploration. Livingstone is the most conspicuous example of this sort of missionary.
After the country is made known to Christians, the next work of the missionary is to civilize the natives. A toy house, which may be made out of pasteboard if you have no toy house at hand, will represent to the children this branch of missionary activity. Tell them how wretchedly the savages live, destitute of even the common conveniences of life, and how much the missionaries must teach them about cleanliness, clothing, shelter, and food.
Civilization brings commerce in its train, and the opening up of trade with lands that have first been opened up by the missionaries, has proved enormously profitable to Christian countries. A toy ship will stand to the children for this result of missionary work.
Turning to what the missionaries do directly, let a medicine bottle stand for the work of medical missions. Remind the children that these heathen practice witchcraft and superstitious rites instead of the wise method of our physicians. If you have read the biography of such a missionary as James Gilmour, pioneer missionary to the Mongolians, you will have an abundance of facts for this part of your talk.
The missionary cannot go far without opening up schools and educating the people. Bring a spelling-book to stand for the school-house, and tell the children how not only common schools, but academies and colleges, for girls as well as boys, have followed in the wake of all missionary enterprise.
But of course the main work of the missionary is none of these things. It is to open up to the dark souls of the heathen the wonderful story of Jesus, that their souls may be cleansed from all the defilement and wretchedness of their sins. A cross, or, better, a copy of the Bible, will stand for this, the chief work of the missionaries.
And now, to sum up the whole, set before the children a lighted candle, symbolizing all of these different results of missionary work, the bringing in of the light of civilization and commerce, of education and health, and especially the Light of the world. Before you close the exercise, be sure to review by holding up each symbol, and asking the children to tell what it represents.