Appointed Seasons

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Nov 28, 1907

Appointed Seasons

WHILE it is true that we should be in earnest in the service of the Lord at all times, yet it is in harmony with the divine arrangement that there should be appointed seasons for special waiting upon God. So it was in the olden time, and so it should be now.

It has long been the custom in this denomination to appoint a week of prayer—a time for asking great blessings from God and of making offerings in behalf of God's cause. It is a good custom. The benefits of such an occasion are needed each year, but especially as we draw nearer to the close of our work. The perils are thickening. The world is growing more irreligious. Some who were formerly our companions in labor are now in the ranks of the opposers, and their efforts are to destroy rather than to build up. We need special help from the Lord—the power and wisdom which come from him alone—in order that we may be able to meet the present situation and to gain victories for the truth. United prayer will bring the needed help.

There is the most pressing demand to extend the work in both old and new fields. There are openings on every hand, and the Macedonian calls come from many lands. Funds are urgently needed for sustaining workers already in the field, and for sending others who are willing to go. A liberal offering at this annual season of prayer will come at a time when it is greatly needed, and will at least temporarily relieve the financial pressure. While earthly banks are growing more and more uncertain, it is an excellent time to make large deposits in the bank of heaven—to invest in a movement which will bring returns by the hundredfold. We hope all will seriously consider the needs of the work, as shown by the reports of progress and multiplying demands, and plan to make a liberal donation at the appointed time. Pray and give. Ask for the choicest of heaven's blessings,—the forgiveness of sins and the gift of righteousness—and, as evidence of appreciation, give both thanks and free-will offerings.

Let this coming week of prayer be a blessed season of thanksgiving and praise, of asking and receiving, and of bringing to God of his own.