GUSTAVUS P. RODGERS by Gustavus P. Rodgers

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Washington, D. C. · Oct 1, 1914

GUSTAVUS P. RODGERS

By Gustavus P. Rodgers

Maryland

BALTIMORE.—By the time this report goes to press, we shall have taken down our tent in the city of Baltimore, closing the most successful summer's work ever held in the Chesapeake Conference. We are confident that the Lord can and will do a quick work in the earth. In the places where I have previously labored, I never saw such an interest as was manifested in this city. From the very first, the outlook was encouraging; and as far as we can tell, about twenty-five thousand persons visited the tent during the season. Wherever we went we found the people talking about the meetings. They came out to all the services, even on nights when it rained very hard.

The collections at the tent paid all expenses, including the expenses for the Bible worker, the tent master, and the organist. In fact, it was a self-supporting effort. We are taking the people into our new church, and we expect to keep up all winter a series of the best services we can arrange. Fifty-five have already united with the church as the direct result of the tent effort, forty-two of whom were baptized in our new pool in the church building, and we expect fifteen others will be baptized soon. Others will join the church this week. The members of our church rendered excellent service in seating the people, in the music, and in distributing tracts and advertising matter. Elder Seeney, of Wilmington, Del., preached every other night, and Elder Campbell, of Washington, was with us several times and rendered good help.

We find that our work has just begun; for we realize that the enemy will be more busy than ever now, and we feel that we need more of the Spirit of the Lord to direct us. We therefore ask the readers of this paper to pray for us, for we realize how small we are, and how utterly unable to finish the work without much of the Spirit of God. We set out to double our membership this year, and already seventy have cast their lot with the remnant church, which will more than double the membership. But we are not satisfied, and are confident that, with the great interest that still exists, we shall have one hundred new members. To the Lord we give all the praise for the success, and our prayer each day is that we may become better workers for the Lord. Pray for the work in this field, where there are thousands of souls yet to be reached.