THE CAMP-MEETING AT WRIGHT.
The first camp-meeting of Seventh-day Adventists was held at Wright, Mich., Sept. 1-7, 1868. The notice was necessarily limited, for which reason, the representation from other States was not large. Yet the interest taken in the meeting, and the numbers present, exceeded the anticipations of all. There were nineteen tents from churches in Michigan, one from Olcott, N. Y., and one each from Oakland and Johnstown, Wis., making in all twenty-two tents on the ground, besides the Ohio and Michigan large meeting tents, each 60 feet in diameter. These, arranged in a circle around the preachers' stand and the seats for the people, in the edge of the beautiful grove, made it a most pleasant and inviting spot. Of the preaching brethren there were present, Elds. James White, J. N. Andrews, Jos. Bates, J. H. Waggoner, I. D. Van Horn, R. J. Lawrence, R. F. Andrews, C. O. Taylor, N. Fuller, and John Matteson. It is estimated that there were as many as a thousand Sabbath-keepers most of the time on the ground. The meeting opened with a season of prayer at the stand, Tuesday, Sept. 1, at 11, A. M. Brethren were so busy this day erecting tents, and preparing for their sojourn during the meeting, that no further services were held till 5, P. M., when Sr. White spoke in reference to the wants of the churches, and the objects for which we had assembled in the tented grove. These were plainly set forth, and served to put the brethren upon the right train of thought at the very commencement. Those who before had not seen the need of such a gathering, if any such there were, must have seen it, when its objects were thus clearly set forth. We cannot, of course, in one brief report, give even a synopsis of the themes presented during a seven days' meeting, devoted wholly to religious exercises. Sixteen discourses in all were given, six by Bro. White, five by Sr. White, four by Bro. Andrews, and one by Bro. Fuller; and we doubt if a series of more stirring, earnest, vehement and pointed discourses were ever consecutively given. They were all aglow with the fire of present truth. The Spirit of the Lord is evidently calling the minds of his servants to the special duties and dangers of the church at the present time. Prominent among the truths presented was the startling fact that the return of the Bridegroom from the wedding, is his coming out from the most holy place, whither he went in to the marriage in 1844. In what a solemn position does this place the church—waiting, not for the appearance of the Lord in the clouds of heaven, which is not to come unheralded, but for the time when his work in the most holy shall close, and the day of probation shall end. And this coming is to take place—at what hour we know not; this coming is to be sudden; at this coming we are to be ready to open unto him immediately. Let no one delude himself with the idea that he may still invite the treacherous spirit of slumber, and that something will transpire to arouse him, ere this decisive hour shall pass upon the church. Nor enough has been done to arouse him already. We have been long made familiar with the fact that our Lord has gone in to the wedding, from which, after a work of brief but indefinite duration, he is to return; and we have been commanded to watch. The doom of sleeping, and the reward of watchfulness, have been plainly declared; and the injunction has been oft repeated, Watch! watch! If, then, we fail to watch, we are careless, slothful, disobedient; and if we are found in this condition, when the decisive moment in our cases shall silently and unannounced arrive, all is lost! “There is a time, we know not when,
A point we know not where,
Which seals the destinies of men
For glory or despair.” And the hour of fearful drowsiness that just precedes the breaking of the day is upon us. The hour in which, of all that constitute the watches of the night, we are most liable to be found sleeping, is here. Watchers know how they feel as they approach the breaking of the day. In a like condition now stand the people of God. The last watch is reached; and the powers of darkness are making their last desperate effort to bewilder, stupify, and ruin those who are seeking for everlasting life. Every energy of the being should now be aroused to the work of watching unto prayer. “Chase slumber from thine eyes,
Chase doubtings from thy breast.” The preaching told powerfully upon the people. This was manifest in the social meetings of which there were held two, and sometimes three, each day. It soon became very apparent that the meeting was a most timely and important one. Its appointment was owing to the fact that it had become absolutely necessary that something should be done to arouse the church; but how great that necessity was, we presume no one fully comprehended till it was developed by the meeting. The power of the world had come upon the church to an alarming extent. But a willingness to see their backslidings, and a spirit of repentance and confession, came into the meeting. Wrongs were freely acknowledged. There has been cause enough for the lack of spiritual life among us. Some confessed to having encroached upon the Sabbath, some that they had omitted, partially or wholly, family worship, and all, more or less, that they had been engrossed in the spirit of the world with its attendant evils. Parents confessed to children, children to parents, and companions to each other. The Lord immediately owned this effort of his people to put away their wrongs and get near to him. His Spirit rested graciously upon us, and the hearts of many were melted down in contrition and tears before him. This was the case in many of the meetings. It was good to be there. On Friday, at 5 P. M., an invitation was given for those who had no hope, but who wished to start in the service of God, to come forward into the altar in front of the stand. One after another came forward with deep feeling and tears, till they numbered over sixty. Those who felt themselves backslidden, and wished to start anew in the service of God, were also invited, when room had to be made for about three hundred, who came pressing in as though their salvation depended upon their making a move then. These embraced persons in all positions in the church, elders, as well as private members. The degree of feeling manifested was wonderful. It was the testimony of those who have been continually in the work since the first message, that they had seen nothing like this since 1844. Nor was this confined to one occasion. Several scenes of this kind were witnessed during the meeting. To see fathers bringing along their children, brethren, their friends, and those who had been alienated in feeling, coming along together, joined in hand, and mingling together their tears of forgiveness and brotherly kindness, was truly an affecting sight. Never has it been our lot to witness so much of this good work; as at this meeting. On first-day, a severe rain storm prevented many from coming in from the surrounding country, who would, probably, otherwise have been present. As it was, full two thousand people were on the ground. Meetings were held in the large tents, both of which were full. While a social meeting was held in the Ohio tent by believers, Bro. Andrews spoke in the Michigan tent to those who might wish to hear on the subject of prophecy. He briefly rehearsed our position on the four kingdoms, the coming of Christ, the resurrection, and the Judgment. The best of attention was given by the audience and a good impression was made. In the afternoon, Sr. White spoke in the same tent, on the elevating tendency of Christianity, vividly portraying what Christ has done, to raise man from his fallen and degraded condition, and fit him for the society of the holy inhabitants of Heaven. Tracts were freely distributed through the crowd. Before the meeting closed, the enemy, ever busy to forestall any effort for good, had caused a report to go abroad confounding us with the time-setting Adventists, against whom the public are so justly prejudiced. This report was promptly corrected in both the public meetings. Between the afternoon and evening meetings, social meetings were held by many of the tent companies, in their respective tents. These were seasons of unparalleled interest, richly repaying, even if there had been nothing else, all the efforts made to attend the meeting. The weather becoming favorable, Bro. White spoke in the evening, from the stand, with freedom, on the law and the gospel. Monday was occupied in social meetings, and labor for the inquiring. Brethren were eager to bring in their testimonies; and the meeting in the evening had to be closed in the face of many testimonies which would have been brought in had there been time. With the singing of the hymn on p. 240, the regular, religious exercises of the occasion, closed. The best of order reigned throughout, and no disturbance was experienced from any quarter. We have thus tried to present a plain and simple statement of the main features of the meeting for the benefit of those not present. We trust that many others will speak in reference to the occasion. Its experiences, blessings, joys, and effects, were sufficient to afford themes for more than one pen. It was the largest, the most important, and by far the best, meeting, ever held by S. D. Adventists. Many came to the place as a last resort, feeling that if they got no help there, they must give up in despair. But help came; and they went home strengthened, encouraged, and determined to make a business of serving the Lord, at their homes, as they had made it their business during this meeting. But all seemed to realize that the battle was to come. There upon the camp ground with so strong a tide toward a complete surrender and consecration of all to God, it was easy to form resolutions, and make determinations; the struggle will be to carry them out when the immediate influence of the meeting is gone, and the brethren find themselves once more busy with their daily avocations. Time will test us all in this respect. We believe that some go home to pay their vows, watch, and be ready for their Lord's return from the wedding; and some will doubtless fall into deeper sleep, and be taken in the snare. But whatever the result may be, certainly those upon whom the burden of the meeting rested, bore a faithful testimony, and cleared their skirts from the blood of all who heard. A resolution of thanks was unanimously tendered to the church in Wright for their kindness and hospitality. Many of them, especially the camp-meeting committee, were deprived of a great portion of the meetings. The Lord reward them for their labors of love, that others might not be deprived of the blessings and enjoyment of the occasion. Early on the morning of the 8th, we left, with a feeling of reluctance, the consecrated spot which had for a week been vocal with prayer and songs of praise, where all had been blessed, and many had given their hearts to God. We hope each day to pitch our tent a full day's march nearer home, and at last to have a place in the “camp of the saints, the beloved city.”