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A Busy World

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The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Dec 11, 1866

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 29, No. 1.

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A Busy World.

By R. F. COTTRELL

This is a busy world. The people are too busy in its affairs to attend to the interests of the future. All is bustle and hurry; railroad speed is too slow to suit the times. The pursuit of wealth is ardent. There is no lack of activity and zeal in this direction. Pleasures also are sought; and these only weigh anything against the pursuit of riches. The people being lovers of pleasures will sacrifice some of their time and wealth at the altar of pleasure. Hence the only successful appeal in behalf of religion or charity, must be addressed to the love of pleasures and the gratification of the appetites. If means are to be raised for some charitable purpose—to aid the poor or to build places of worship—a grand festival is the best means to reach the sympathies of the people. If means are to be raised to support the minister, a pleasure party—a feast and a ball—is the surest bait.
But the people have no time to devote to the service of God. No time to learn what God requires of them. No time to pray. No time to seek for salvation in the world to come. Sometimes an hour can be spent at the prayer-meeting on the way to the theater. But religious meetings must be short, or they cannot be endured. Time is too precious to spend much of it in the duties of religion. The sick and needy would be visited and cared for, but that there is no time for it. An hour or two on Sunday is all there is to spare.
Ask people to hear upon the all-important subjects of the word of God—on the thrilling theme of prophecy and the signs of the times, the present truth—and they have no time for it. No time to learn that the Lord is coming, no time to prepare for it. No time to study the Bible, or read the papers and publications which teach the doctrines of the Bible. Really they have more reading than they can attend to without any of these.
The farmer, the mechanic, the merchant, the teacher and the professional man, are all busy, extremely so. The professor of religion has no time to learn the solemn and fearful truths which God has designed for these very times. He can only attend meetings on Sunday; and then he would think it wrong to leave his own meeting to go to another. But the ministers! Oh, if we could only get access to them and teach them the present truth. Ah! they, like all the rest, have no time to learn the truth. They are busy fulfilling their appointments on the day they call the Sabbath. They have no time to hear. They are the instructors of the people; they have no time to be instructed.
What shall be done? “The day of the Lord will come,” whether men have time to prepare for it or not. It will not wait till each one has gained the whole world and got time to attend to a preparation for the world to come. Whether men are prepared for it or not, it will come. It will come as a thief in the night; because men have not had time to take warning. It will come as a snare. While the flock of birds are feasting upon the wheat which has been spread out to allure them, suddenly the snare is sprung upon them, and they cannot escape. So while the world are absorbed in their feasting and pleasures, the day of the Lord will come on them as a snare.
Oh, that they had time now to learn the truth and prepare for the day! But alas! alas! they are too busy. Too busy to take warning and secure eternal life. The cry of “peace and safety” is in their ears from week to week, and they have no time to learn that “sudden destruction” is about to come, and they and their seducers who cry, Peace, will not be able to escape. Oh, that they might be saved from that awful destruction!
Brethren, what shall we do? Let us gird up our loins for the work. Let us cry aloud and spare not. Let us lift up the voice like a trumpet, and cause some to hear. Let us ask the aid of the Holy Spirit—let us ask for the latter rain—to give success to our efforts. Let us not sleep as do others, but let us watch and be sober. And let us do all we can to arouse and save our fellow men. Vast concerns hang upon the present little moment of time. Men are to be saved or lost; and it depends upon the improvement of a very little time. May God help us to find time to save ourselves and others; and not let souls perish and lose our own souls, because we have no time to labor for their salvation. Time flies; and soon it will be true that we have no time in which to prepare for the great day of the Lord. Now is the time.
R. F. COTTRELL.