THE FAST IN BATTLE CREEK.
A FAST and yet a feast. Such was Sabbath May 11, to the church here—not a feast of that which is designed to supply physical wants, but a feast of important truth for this time, a feast of heartfelt and cheering testimonies, a feast for the moral and spiritual nature. In the forenoon Bro. Cornell spoke on the duty, nature, and design, of fasting; a timely discourse, and filled with instruction appropriate to the occasion. A multitude of encouraging instances were presented, in which God has wrought for his people, when they have humbled themselves by fasting and prayer. God has not changed; and if we now maintain a fast such as he can accept, he will have respect unto our efforts and draw near and help. But we must remember that the day in which we publicly refrain from food, and engage in earnest prayer for heavenly aid, is not the whole of a fast. That is but the public record of our vows, the giving of a solemn pledge, that we will diligently search our hearts and lives for those wrongs which have made a fast and humiliation necessary, and indulge in them no more. All our future life must therefore be devoted to the fulfillment of this pledge. To refrain from food a day, and even to spend that day in the most intense and earnest prayer and supplication, with no intention, at the same time, of putting away wrongs, forsaking sins, and rising to a higher plane of spiritual life, is but solemn mockery. A lack of this element is the reason why so few prayers are answered, and so few outward fasts bring the wished-for result. It is yet possible to have a fast acceptable to the Lord. May that of last Sabbath prove to be such. At the close of the forenoon service it was our privilege to repair to a consecrated spot on the banks of the Kalamazoo river, and enjoy another pleasant and peaceful baptismal scene. Bro. Van Horn administered the ordinance to three candidates, who thus publicly professed their faith in the resurrection of Christ, and their determination to walk themselves, henceforth, in newness of life. The afternoon was devoted to a prayer and conference meeting. Freely, the brethren spoke of past experience, and the lessons to be derived therefrom, their failures and how they could be remedied, and their present determinations, and hopes for the precious cause of truth. The testimonies were heartfelt and encouraging. It was good to be there; but it will be better still to carry out the instruction given. This day the church here took leave of their present house of worship, which has been occupied for about nine years past, the new building now being ready for use. This led to many solemn reflections and some reminiscences of our past history. The mind was carried back to the first meeting of S. D. Adventists ever held in this place. The room of a private house, and that a small one, was used for the purpose. And when all the friends of the cause in this and adjoining towns were assembled, the room was about half full. The work began to grow here, and a house of worship was deemed necessary. A small one was erected which was then looked upon as a great step. That house now forms the wing of a dwelling house, close by our present meeting place, and yet at the time of the removal of the Office of publication to this place, in the autumn of 1855, when a meeting was held in it of delegates and brethren from all parts, called a General Conference, and then considered a large meeting, that house was but little more than half full. A larger house was soon demanded, and the present one was built. The first general meeting held in it did not fill it, and by some it was thought larger than would ever be needed. But it is now insufficient for our ordinary Sabbath meetings, to say nothing of larger meetings, and Conferences. The number present on the occasion of which we now write, was larger than at the first Conference held in the house. We have thus been led to the erection of the new house, with accommodations, when closely seated, for about seven hundred persons. This constantly increasing demand for larger accommodations, shows that there has been an element of progress and advancement in the work, notwithstanding our lukewarmness and spiritual lack. And if the Lord could work for us, as he has in the past, while our condition has been such, what may we not expect when we get into the spiritual condition we should be in? To this condition we must attain; and it is one of the most encouraging features of the present state of the cause, that all hearts seem to be unanimously reaching out for it. We felt that it was appropriate that our last season of worship in that house should be on an occasion of fasting and prayer. At the close of the meeting, almost the entire congregation entered into a covenant, by standing upon their feet, while Bro. Loughborough read from 2 Chron. xv, to “seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart, and with all their soul;” and we left the house with feelings of thankfulness to God, for all the gracious seasons we have enjoyed within its hallowed walls. As we enter our new house of worship, we do it with high resolves and strong determinations to commence a new record in the service of the Lord, to seek a higher standard, and to have, with our better accommodations, a deeper and more effective spirit of worship in our hearts. The times demand this; the cause of truth demands it; our own good demands it. May the brethren pray for us; and may the Lord help us.