Virginia by J. W. HIRLINGER

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Apr 22, 1915

Virginia

By J. W. HIRLINGER

I CAME to this State about eight months ago. It was with considerable reluctance that I responded to the urgent call which came from Virginia, as it took me from Pennsylvania, a State in which I had labored for almost twenty years. But God has richly blessed in the work here, and thus far it has been my privilege to be associated with efforts in which seventy-five or more new believers have taken their stand for the Sabbath and kindred truths. During the past eight months more than one hundred and thirty persons have united with different churches throughout the conference, and more than seventy are observing the Sabbath and expect to become church members soon. Calls for meetings are coming to us from all parts of our field. In fact, they are so numerous that it is

quite impossible to answer all of them.

There is an excellent spirit of love and unity among the workers and churches. This harmony and general good will is of Heaven, and is truly yielding the peaceable fruits of righteousness in the salvation of souls. For these and other manifest tokens of God's grace and approval we are sincerely thankful. Marked evidences on every side show that we are living in the very day of the latter rain. It is a real satisfaction to know that we are working in the place where God would have us. We are just closing a series of meetings in Portsmouth. Twelve have taken their stand for the truth, and others have been reclaimed. Still others are about to decide regarding these important truths. All the members of the church are cooperating in the work, and distributing hundreds of thousands of pages of our literature.

Last year the Portsmouth church gave more than its quota on the Twenty-cent-a-week Fund. It also supplied the church with new pulpit furniture, and is paying off the indebtedness on the church building. This demonstrates what active missionary work will do for any church in helping to reach the goal in gifts to missions and in accomplishing other desired ends. But above everything else we rejoice in the salvation of souls, and ask you to pray that we may be even more diligent as we go about the King's business. J. W. HIRLINGER.