Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students - Ellen G. White

ack from wrong-doing; but just as in his home he
failed with his children, so he showed the same
defective administration in his management of
Israel. His weakness as a general was seen in his
desire to please the people, even at the sacrifice of
principle. He lost his power of command at the
very first permission that he gave which allowed
them to go contrary to God’s commands in the
least particular. And as a result the spirit of idolatry
came in, and the current set in motion could not be
stayed until stern and decisive measures had been
taken.
It took time and a vast amount of labor and
sorrow to wipe out the influence of the proceedings
at the Avondale school on that Wednesday
afternoon. But the experience was a lesson that
helped those in charge of the school to realize the
tendency of such amusements.
What an exhibition was this to be reported by
the students to their distant friends and
acquaintances! It was a witness that showed, not
what God has accomplished in the school, but what
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