The Next Step in Missions
By W. A. S.
It was a missionary General Conference. The gathering of delegates from the far-away fields, with their stirring words of progress, helped to make it so. But one of the chief features of our missionary conference was the response of the entire body of delegates, representing the churches in the home land of the message, as with one voice they bade the workers in the mission fields go forward in the name of the Lord. We well know this represents the spirit of the churches everywhere. Anxious hearts were waiting in the distant fields to know if the General Conference would call for retrenchment and delay, or sound the note of advance. Advance is the word, and the trumpet-call of the conference gives the order with no uncertain sound. Heads will be lifted up and hands strengthened in all our missions as the word comes to them. But now, in our coming midsummer offering, it is for us to actually set things forward. Our funds must follow with our message to advance. All hearts have been touched afresh by the reports from our missionaries at this conference. The memorial which they presented to the believers in America will appear for the first time in the program of readings for Sabbath, July 1. It is5a thrilling roll-call of the nations. We must prepare to answer it by such a midsummer offering for missions as we have never made before. The conference recommended workers to India, China, Japan, Africa, Europe, South America, and Australia. These must be hastened forward. Dr. Law Keem and his wife are already on the way to China. Elder D. C. Babcock is soon to be off to lift the standard on the almost deserted African Gold Coast. Others must be started on, and all the time the regular work in the fields must be kept going. Even where conferences supply salaries for new workers, there is the expense of transportation, and of getting started in the fields. And the Mission Board was already hard pressed. This offering comes most opportunely after such a conference. Our missions need just now a strong, united lift to help them through the year, and until the next annual offering comes in. We are each to set our hand and seal to the program of missionary advance by the offering on Sabbath, July 1. Sister White told us at the conference that we were to “belt the world” with our missionary effort. Let us make this next step in missions—the midsummer offering—a long step and a strong step, that shall set a quickening pace in our work the whole world round.