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Attend Our Annual Meetings

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Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Jun 27, 1907

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 84, No. 26.

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Attend Our Annual Meetings

By William Covert

WILLIAM COVERT
IN ancient times the Lord planned many meetings of a general character for his people. Three of these were national in extent, and it therefore required considerable effort on the part of those who attended to comply with the arrangements. The people were assured that obedience would be gain to all who followed the plan. And so it was that those who kept in touch with the appointed services found themselves in the stream of constant blessings.
Those who attended the gatherings were privileged to mingle with the men whom God had chosen and qualified to teach the ways of righteousness. They heard gracious lessons given by tried and worthy men. They obtained the information they needed to carry to their homes that those who could not attend might also be taught the same lessons. With them the regular routine of business was broken up, and they were thereby caused to give proper thought to their soul's need.
It is very detrimental to our eternal interests to keep the mind at high tension on business and worldly cares while spiritual matters are neglected. One design of these general gatherings was to sustain a proper balance between the common affairs of life and the necessary religious instruction. The person who neglected the religious gatherings, and gave all his time to worldly affairs, lost his hold upon the kingdom of God, and shut himself away from the eternal inheritance.
Our camp-meetings now are designed to be more to the Lord's people than the ancient gatherings were intended to be to his people who lived in the days long gone by. If God's people then needed to get away from their regular business cares to seek the Lord, and to learn about the needs of the cause of truth in the earth, it is much more important now that the people whom God has made the guardians of the truth give due attention to that which is entrusted to them. The Lord forbids that we become settled on our lees. One thing charged against Moab was that he had taken things easy from his youth, that he had not been emptied from vessel to vessel, but had allowed the lees, or settlings, to remain in his cup. Jer. 48:11, 12. His character was like the wine that had not been separated from its impurities.
It is dangerous for a person to absent himself time after time from our camp- meetings and other general gatherings. Worldly cares increase as he neglects to attend the gatherings of God's people. He does not hear the message of Jesus' soon coming set before the Lord's people by his tried servants, and he grows cold in the cause and indifferent to its needs.
The Lord says we should not neglect the assembling of ourselves together as the manner of some is. As we near the coming of the Lord, it becomes all the more necessary for God's people to come together for counsel and exhortation.
It will be necessary this year more than ever to consider the world's great wide harvest-fields. Laborers will be needed for these fields. Means will be called for to sustain the men and women who will be sent to these whitened fields. Those who do not attend the camp-meetings this year will miss the very lessons that the Lord desires to give them. Even though they should read about these things as the reports appear in our papers, they will fail to get the impression that they would get were they to attend these gatherings and hear the burning words from the lips of those fresh from these fields. Therefore the counsel to each one is, Attend the camp-meeting in your field or conference. Set your heart to help the Lord's work. Go to the meeting, both to get good and to do good. Appear on the ground early, and remain to the conclusion.
Chicago, Ill.