Why Our Tent Efforts Are Not More Successful
By K. C. Russell
THERE is one question we need well to consider: Why are our public efforts not more productive in winning souls? This is especially true of tent-meetings. How often we hear of the holding of a tent-meeting, at much sacrifice of both time and means, with scarcely any results. True, it is impossible to always determine the chief cause of an unsuccessful effort. There is one cause, however, that I wish to mention, which I believe has much to do in making our tent work unsuccessful, and that is in striking our tent and closing our meetings prematurely. This might not seem to be so serious a matter if a single meeting was to close before the effort was properly developed; but when hundreds of tent-meetings are discontinued with the interest possibly at its height, or when precious souls are in the valley of decision, it becomes a more serious matter. It seems to me that the time has come when every conference official and laborer should seriously study the disastrous results that are sure to follow in closing our tent efforts before the interest is sufficiently developed. Consider the aggregate amount of means expended in salaries, tent equipment, freight, railroad fare, and advertising, in the conducting of our many tent efforts every season throughout the world. These considerations are nothing, however, as compared to the value of human souls who have been aroused to the importance of the truth for these times, and then left to lapse back worse than they were before, as the result of cutting short the tent effort. All who have had experience in conducting evangelistic meetings in a tent, know that the most critical time to leave an interest is just after souls have decided to obey. It is then that the enemy of all truth seeks to enshroud them in discouragement. The most serious time to leave new converts is at such a time as that. It is desirable that our workers shall be in attendance at the annual camp-meeting, but I believe that our camp-meetings should be arranged at a time in the season which will not conflict with this the most important part of the work in which we are engaged. If, perchance, it cannot be arranged to conduct the camp-meeting without conflicting with the tent efforts, then one or more of the workers should stay with the effort, while the others attend the camp-meeting, and not jeopardize the interest they have labored so hard to develop. One might reason that they could close up their effort and attend camp-meeting even though they are in the midst of their interest, and then return after the camp-meeting is over and take up the work where they left it. But to revive an interest after allowing it to decline is a practical impossibility, for those who were interested will in many instances have lost their interest, and others will become prejudiced against the truth and will not care to listen further. Again: it should be remembered that when a company is left undeveloped by those who first taught them the truth, it is next to impossible for another person to perfect the work which has been begun, for they will discount what is taught them, because they did not receive it from the one who first brought them the truth. I am confident that when we come to appreciate the importance of the evangelistic work as we should, we shall more carefully consider the effect upon our tent work, when we arrange for our annual camp-meeting. Respecting the importance and value of evangelistic work, I wish herewith to quote from the recent report rendered by the president of the General Conference, found on pages 7, 8, of the General Conference Bulletin, May 15, 1913, as follows:— "The preaching of the gospel is the fundamental part of gospel work. It precedes all other phases of that work. It is that which, more than any other kind of effort, makes disciples, and adds to the church such as are being saved. All other features of gospel work are built upon this. All the administrative and institutional work of the church springs from the results of preaching the gospel. However good and important the administrative and educational work may be, it can never successfully take the place of purely evangelical work. That must go on, or the other departments, which spring from its results, will become of none effect in advancing the cause of Christ. "The pioneers of this movement laid great stress on the proclamation of the gospel as it was revealed to them in the threefold message of Revelation 14. This led them to the most earnest, prayerful study of the Word, and to a close and constant association with the people. Their preaching convinced hearers, and led many of them to accept the message. As they pressed forward with their work, and believers were added to their numbers, they began to feel the need of agencies which they could use to multiply their forces, efficiency, and results. This brought the printing-office, the school, the sanitarium, and organization, but all these were designed by the pioneers to be only tools in their hands to hasten the work. "It was no thought of those who launched these administrative and institutional features that they could take the place of the evangelical work that had been carried forward, but the tendency has ever been for these features to paralyze evangelical work. The formal, business, and mechanical duties needed in the carrying on of the organized work and institutions, can be performed without special spiritual attainments; whereas, successful evangelical work cannot be done without much study of the work, earnest prayer, and the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit. For these reasons the tendency is to swing toward the formal, mechanical, official part of the work, to the neglect of the more spiritual and purely evangelical phase. "Some of us cannot forget the earnest, pressing call that came to us through the spirit of prophecy at the last General Conference to turn to the cities in strong evangelical effort everywhere." Since we know that the evangelical phase of our work is that upon which all other lines of the third angel's message depend, shall we not conduct it in a manner that will demonstrate that we really believe it, and thus hasten the close of the work?