The Spirit of Hurry by H

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California · Apr 21, 1909

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 36, No. 16.

The Spirit of Hurry

By H

THE constant study of the inventors of the day is to increase speed—speed of work, speed of travel, speed of living. Courses of study are made as short as possible, and much is crowded into them. Lines of travel are made as direct as can be, mountains are tunneled and valleys are spanned by trestles, and inventive art is taxed to the limit to increase the speed of engines. At the risk of health and life, men strive for the championship of speed in sports and commerce.

Wicked men are in the race for gold and pleasure. Unscrupulous in method and dishonest in dealing, they press on in the rush, unmindful of results. “Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed blood,” the “wise man” declared. The work of the enemy of souls prospers in the earth. His servants number legion; their very wickedness makes them loyal to him. As a result the harvest of their labors is appalling.

Another class of men must be in a hurry— the servants of God. Paul pleaded of his brethren, “Pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run and be glorified.” And so in spite of the evil in the world, the word of the Lord does run. The cheering tokens of the advancement of the kingdom may be heard from many lands, in many tongues; for we are in the days foretold by Daniel when “many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased”— knowledge of God’s word and of His saving truth.

All this hurry is for a purpose. Paul questioned the Corinthians, “Know ye not that they that run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize?” and then compared that with the heavenly race, in which all may win a prize, and admonished them, “Even so run; that ye may attain.” It must be continuous running. To the Galatian brethren, who did well for a time and then grew slack, Paul wrote: “Ye were running well; who hindered you that ye should not obey the truth?” The message applies to-day and to all; therefore, “let us run with patience the race that is set before us.”