p. 85 | Untitled article by R. F. ANDREWS; H. C. BLANCHARD

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Third-day, January 21, 1868

LABORS IN ILLINOIS AND WISCONSIN.

By R. F. ANDREWS; H. C. BLANCHARD

According to appointment, we met with the church at Princeville, Ill., Nov. 15, and continued laboring with them till Dec. 3. Held twenty-four meetings. The church was encouraged and strengthened. Two made a start to go with them to Mount Zion. Dec. 1, we broke open the ice, and one willing soul was buried with her Lord by baptism. Oh! that she may be faithful till her Lord comes.

The church here are trying to let their light shine. They have a commodious church building, 28x40, which they have paid for.

Dec. 3, we left Princeville for Gridley, Ill. Staid over night at Eureka, with some young brethren and sisters from Princeville, that are staying there going to school. Had the privilege of speaking to the people in the Christian meeting-house. Hope that some good has been done by our stopping in the place.

Dec. 4, arrived at Gridley. Held eight meetings with the brethren here. One young man made a start to serve the Lord. God grant that he may endure to the end, that he may be saved.

Dec. 12, commenced meetings with the church at Clyde, Ill., and continued our labor with them till the 25th. Held eighteen meetings, which we think were some benefit to the brethren and sisters. There was some interest manifested by the young to go with God's people to Mount Zion. Two made a start.

Dec. 26, commenced meetings with the church at Elkhorn Grove, Ill., and continued our labor till Jan. 1, 1868, during which time we held ten meetings. Dec. 31, we broke open the ice and buried five willing souls with their Lord by baptism. God grant that they may walk in newness of life. There are others that will come out on the Lord's side if they yield to their convictions.

Jan. 1, went to Beckton, Ill. Held one meeting with the brethren there, while on our way to Little Prairie, Wis. Found the brethren glad to see us, and all holding on to the truth; yet there was not that life and zeal among them that we would like to see.

While holding the above meetings, and visiting around among our brethren, we have become more convinced than ever, that, as a people, we must arise, and make a greater effort to draw nigh to God. Our efforts in the past, dear brethren, have been too weak. While the servants of God are in our midst, and a special effort is being made for us, we seem to arouse a little from our slumber, but only to settle back in formality and indifference, when again we are left to ourselves. This carelessness and indifference will prove our ruin. Oh! that we could realize that we are in the midst of the perils of the last days, and that our greatest danger consists in being in a cold, formal, inactive, and indifferent condition. Says the faithful and true Witness, “Because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.” Rev. iii, 16. While in such a state, the enemy can and does take great advantage of us. A little fault in a brother is magnified an hundred fold, until our feelings are alienated from him, and instead of our possessing the kind and forgiving spirit of our Saviour, we have bitter envyings in our hearts, and can readily surmise evil. Our love is extinguished, the graces of the Spirit leak out of our hearts, and in their stead we have a fretful, fault-finding, impatient, and exacting spirit. The enemy now rules and controls us; and no matter what we do, or how much we injure the precious cause of truth while in this state, we can readily roll the blame over upon others, and say that our course is in consequence of the action of others. Oh! that God may help us to see ourselves as we are, and as he sees us.

Dear brethren, we must cultivate more love in our hearts for one another. Jesus says, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” Do we exemplify in our lives this characteristic of the disciples of the Lord Jesus. Let us remember that the dragon is wroth with the remnant, and that in order to stand up against his attacks, we must be united in the bonds of brotherly love. Solomon says, “Where there is union there is strength;” and a lack of this love and union makes us weak, and we easily become the captives of the adversary. Dear brethren, come, let us arise in the name of the Lord, and go forward. Instead of laboring to get the mote out of our brother's eye, let us try to get the beam out of our own eye. Let us examine ourselves, and prove our own selves, and see whether we be in the faith or not. We cannot be in the faith while we are watching each other for evil, and neglect to cultivate the spirit of love and affection for each other in our hearts, and while we suffer ourselves to become stupid and careless in the cause of the Lord. Oh! let us humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God, and confess our faults, and cry mightily to God to revive his work in our hearts, and to stir us up to a doubling of our diligence in his service. If there is anything calculated to give the servants of God joy and consolation in this life, more than another, it is to see the cause of the Lord prosper, and to see the brethren and sisters whole-hearted in the work. But oh! how painful, and discouraging, after they have been labored with, and see their condition, and are revived in a measure, to see them settle back in coldness and indifference again. The lukewarm are to be spued out of the mouth of Jesus. O God, help us, as ministers and people, to realize it.

R. F. ANDREWS, H. C. BLANCHARD.