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Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · May 27, 1909

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 86, No. 21.

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Editorial

By L. R. Conradi

“THEN shall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.”
The First Week of the Conference
THE hundred delegates from the regions beyond is the most striking evidence of the rapid advancement of our work in all parts of the world. Their inspiring testimony of the ingathering of souls among the heathen, as well as in Roman and Greek Catholic countries and in Protestant lands, is a sure token of the mighty workings of God’s Holy Spirit in behalf of his truth. As our missionaries relate the wonderful providences of God, and tell us how he is going out before them and opening the way in spite of all apparent hindrances, the mental horizon of our people is enlarged, their faith in the final triumph of the message is strengthened, and their sympathies are enlisted as never before in behalf of the perishing millions who are yet unwarned. Louder than ever, we hear the Macedonian cry, “Come over . . . and help us,” and never did the demands upon us seem so exceedingly great as they are now. The more vividly the greatness of our task is presented to us, the more apparent is our human weakness, and the greater our desire for the power of the Holy Spirit. In weakness we are made strong. In seeking, we find. In asking, we receive.
The fields abroad, and the fields at home, have but one story to tell—all keynote recount the manifold blessings that God has bestowed upon them. But recounting the blessings received begets gratitude toward God, humbles human pride, removes all self-sufficiency, and fosters a craving for still greater blessings. And the nearer the people draw to God, the more they realize their great need of divine power; and the more they press together, the more fully do they experience the truthfulness of the words, “In union there is strength.” Perfect harmony marks the deliberations of this World’s Conference, where all the continents and the isles of the sea are represented. All sense that though they are of different nationalities and speak various languages, yet they belong to the one heavenly family, and have but one Father, one Redeemer, and one spiritual Guide into all truth. All seem to have but one great aim—the everlasting gospel of the kingdom to the world in this generation, not by human might or power or wisdom, but by the Spirit of the living God.
But the accomplishment of such a tremendous task demands perfect organization in all the world, and of all the instrumentalities employed to carry forward the work. As God’s wheels within the wheels are working in the most perfect harmony with the four living creatures, all guided by the same Spirit, so at this Conference every instrumentality used must come into perfect harmony with all the others. A world’s conference of the most practical nature is truly demanded. It should not only bring the richest blessings to every individual, but it should also assure the fullest co-operation of both men and women, and enlarge the sufficiency of all that are engaged in this great work, and hasten its speedy completion. Self must vanish, the human ear be wide open to hear the counsel of the divine Spirit, the eye ready to discern the providences of God going out before us, the heart full of divine love to respond to all the great calls, so that God’s will alone may be done.
The prayers of the true Israel in every clime at this time are being answered. The Lord of hosts is drawing near to his people. He showers down individual blessings upon them, and above all, he is conferring upon them the boon of blessings—the privilege of being collaborators with heaven in finishing the mystery of godliness. This is the great key-note of the Conference during the first week’s session. It is the happy omen of the ultimate and grand success of this thirty-seventh session of the Conference. L. R. CONRADI.