Illinois by K. C. Russell

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Jan 9, 1913

Illinois

By K. C. Russell

CHICAGO.—Since the close of my tent effort the last of September, I have been devoting considerable time to the work of developing and establishing the company that embraced the truth as a result of the tent-meetings.

We already have a Sabbath-school organized, with an average attendance of from forty to fifty. We have also organized a tract and missionary society. A number of our members have begun the payment of tithe and offerings. We hope to organize a church here in the near future, consisting of twenty-five or more members.

For some weeks we have been contemplating conducting a series of evangelistic meetings near the center of the city on the West Side, to open Sunday evening, January 5. We have been successful in securing at a reasonable rental a beautiful stone church building, with a seating capacity of sixteen hundred. It has a pipe organ and other up-to-date equipment. The church stands at the corner of Ashland Boulevard and Monroe Street, only twenty minutes' walk from the business center of the city. It can be reached from any part of the city with a five-cent fare.

Sabbath, December 7, a union meeting consisting of a large number of the members of the Seventh-day Adventist churches in Chicago was held in this church. The object of this meeting was to seek the Lord together for a deeper consecration to his work, and to plan for a vigorous soul-winning campaign to be carried on during the winter months.

We have districted the section of the city in the vicinity of the church, and a goodly number of volunteers from the members of our various churches in the city are visiting the homes of the people with our magazines. One of the chief objects of this house-to-house canvass with the magazines is not only to sell the regular issues of our journals, but to seek out the interested persons so that when we are ready to begin our meetings we shall be reasonably sure of a good congregation.

We are urging our people in the city to make a special effort to induce their neighbors and friends who are interested in the truth to attend the contemplated series of meetings.

We earnestly request that those living throughout the country who have relatives or friends residing in the city of Chicago would write to them immediately, urging them to attend these meetings during the months of January and February, not failing, of course, to give them the location of the church.

We earnestly solicit the prayers of our people that the Lord may bless to the salvation of many souls this important evangelistic campaign. The writer will be assisted in these meetings by Dr. D. H. Kress and Elder M. H. Serns. There also will be others connected with the effort. K. C. RUSSELL.