What can be said, and what can be done, to awaken conviction in the hearts of all connected with this important institution? How can they be led to see and feel the danger of making wrong moves unless they daily have a living experience in the things of God? The physicians are in a position, where, should they exert an influence in accordance with their faith, they would have a molding power upon all connected with the institution. This is one of the best missionary fields in the world; and all in responsible positions should become acquainted with God, and ever be receiving light from Heaven. . . .
There are some who are not what the Lord would have them to be. They are abrupt and harsh, and need the softening, subduing influence of the Spirit of God. It is never convenient to take up the cross and follow in the path of self-denial; and yet this must be done. God wants all to have His grace and His Spirit to make fragrant their life. Some are too independent, too self-sufficient, and do not counsel with others as they should. . . .
There must be, with all who have any influence in the sanitarium, a conforming to God’s will, a humiliation of self, an opening of the heart to the precious influence of the Spirit of Christ. The gold tried in the fire represents love and faith. Many are nearly destitute of love. Self-sufficiency blinds their eyes to their great need. There is a positive necessity for a daily conversion to God, a new, deep, and daily experience in the religious life.
There should be awakened in the hearts of the physicians especially, a most earnest desire to have that wisdom which God alone can impart; for as soon as they become self-confident, they are left to themselves, to433follow the impulses of the unsanctified heart. When I see what these physicians may become, in connection with Christ, and what they will fail to become if they do not daily connect with Him, I am filled with apprehension that they will be content with reaching a worldly standard, and have no ardent longings, no hungering and thirsting, for the beauty of holiness, the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.
The peace of Christ—the peace of Christ—money can not buy it; brilliant talent can not command it; intellect can not secure it: it is the gift of God. The religion of Christ—how shall I make all understand their great loss if they fail to carry its holy principles into the daily life? The meekness and lowliness of Christ is the Christian’s power. It is indeed more precious than all things which genius can create, or wealth can buy. Of all things that are sought, cherished, and cultivated, there is nothing so valuable in the sight of God as a pure heart, a disposition imbued with thankfulness and peace.
If the divine harmony of truth and love exists in the heart, it will shine forth in words and actions. The most careful cultivation of the outward proprieties and courtesies of life has not sufficient power to shut out all fretfulness, harsh judgment, and unbecoming speech. The spirit of genuine benevolence must dwell in the heart. Love imparts to its possessor grace, propriety, and comeliness of deportment. Love illuminates the countenance and subdues the voice; it refines and elevates the entire man. It brings him into harmony with God; for it is a heavenly attribute.
Many are in danger of thinking that in the cares of labor, in writing and practicing as physicians, or performing the duties of the various departments, they434are excusable if they lay down prayer, neglect the Sabbath, and neglect religious service. Sacred things are thus brought down to meet their convenience, while duties, denials, and crosses are left untouched. Neither physicians nor helpers should attempt to perform their work without taking time to pray. God would be the helper of all who profess to love Him, if they would come to Him in faith, and, with a sense of their own weakness, crave His power. When they separate from God, their wisdom will be found to be foolishness. When they are small in their own eyes, and lean heavily upon their God, then He will be the arm of their power, and success will attend their efforts; but when they allow the mind to be diverted from God, then Satan comes in and controls the thoughts and perverts the judgment. . . .
Brethren, I entreat you to move with an eye single to the glory of God. Let His power be your dependence, His grace your strength. By study of the Scriptures and earnest prayer seek to obtain clear conceptions of your duty, and then faithfully perform it. It is essential that you cultivate faithfulness in little things, and in so doing, you will acquire habits of integrity in greater responsibilities. The little incidents of everyday life often pass without our notice; but it is these things that shape the character. Every event of life is great for good or for evil. The mind needs to be trained by daily tests, that it may acquire power to stand in any difficult position. In the days of trial and of peril you will need to be fortified to stand firmly for the right, independent of every opposing influence.
ADVANCE IN KNOWLEDGE
God is willing to do much for you, if you will only feel your need of Him. Jesus loves you. Ever seek to435walk in the light of God’s wisdom; and through all the changing scenes of life, do not rest unless you know that your will is in harmony with the will of your Creator. Through faith in Him you may obtain strength to resist every temptation of Satan, and thus increase in moral power with every test from God.
You may become men of responsibility and influence, if, by the power of your will, united with divine strength, you earnestly engage in the work. Exercise the mental powers, and in no case neglect the physical. Let not intellectual slothfulness close up your path to greater knowledge. Learn to reflect as well as to study, that your minds may expand, strengthen, and develop. Never think that you have learned enough, and that you may now relax your efforts. The cultivated mind is the measure of the man. Your education should continue during your lifetime; every day you should be learning, and putting to practical use the knowledge gained.
You are rising in true dignity and moral worth as you practice virtue, and cherish uprightness in heart and life. Let not your character be affected by a taint of the leprosy of selfishness. A noble soul, united with a cultivated intellect, will make you men whom God will use in positions of sacred trust.
It should be the first work of all connected with this institution to be right before God themselves, and then to stand in the strength of Christ, unaffected by the wrong influences to which they will be exposed. If they make the broad principles of the word of God the foundation of the character, they may stand wherever the Lord in His providence may call them, surrounded by any deleterious influence, and yet not be swayed from the path of right.
CHEERFULNESS
In sanitariums and hospitals, where nurses are constantly associated with large numbers of sick people, it requires a decided effort to be always pleasant and cheerful, and to show thoughtful consideration in every word and act. In these institutions it is of the utmost importance that the nurses strive to do their work wisely and well. They need ever to remember that in the discharge of their daily duties, they are serving the Lord Christ.
A READY MIND
The sick need to have wise words spoken to them. Nurses should study the Bible daily, that they may be able to speak words that will enlighten and help the suffering. Angels of God are in the rooms where these suffering ones are being ministered to, and the atmosphere surrounding the soul of the one giving treatment should be pure and fragrant. Physicians and nurses are to cherish the principles of Christ. In their lives His virtues are to be seen. Then, by what they do and say, they will draw the sick to the Saviour.
The Christian nurse, while administering treatment for the restoration of health, will pleasantly and successfully draw the mind of the patient to Christ, the healer of the soul as well as of the body. The thoughts presented, here a little and there a little, will have their influence. The older nurses should lose no favorable opportunity of calling the attention of the sick to Christ. They should be ever ready to blend spiritual healing with physical healing.
In the kindest and tenderest manner nurses are to teach that he who would be healed must cease to transgress the law of God.437He must cease to choose a life of sin. God can not bless the one who continues to bring upon himself disease and suffering by a willful violation of the laws of heaven. But Christ, through the Holy Spirit, comes as a healing power to those who cease to do evil and learn to do well.
Efficiency Depends upon Vigor
The efficiency of the nurse depends, to a great degree, upon physical vigor. The better the health, the better will she be able to endure the strain of attendance upon the sick, and the more successfully can she perform her duties. Those who care for the sick should give special attention to diet, cleanliness, fresh air, and exercise. Like carefulness on the part of the family will enable them also to endure the extra burdens brought upon them, and will help to prevent them from contracting disease. . . .
Nurses, and all who have to do with the sick-room, should be cheerful, calm, and self-possessed. All hurry, excitement, or confusion, should be avoided. Doors should be opened and shut with care, and the whole household be kept quiet. In cases of fever, special care is needed when the crisis comes and the fever is passing away. Then constant watching is often necessary. Ignorance, forgetfulness, and recklessness have caused the death of many who might have lived had they received proper care from judicious, thoughtful nurses. —“Ministry of Healing,” pp. 219-222.
INTEGRITY AMONG WORKERS
The helpers at the sanitarium should not feel at liberty to appropriate to their own use articles of food provided for the patients. The temptation is especially strong to indulge in things allowed to newcomers, who must be induced gradually to correct pernicious habits. Some of the workers, like the children of Israel, allow perverted appetite and old habits of indulgence to clamor for victory. They long, as did ancient Israel, for the leeks and onions of Egypt. All connected with this institution should strictly adhere to the laws of life and health, and thus give no countenance, by their example, to the wrong habits of others, which have made it necessary for them to come to the sanitarium for relief.
Employees have no right to help themselves to crackers, nuts, raisins, dates, sugar, oranges or fruit of any kind; for, in the first place, in eating these things between meals, as is generally done, they are injuring the digestive organs. No food should pass the lips between the regular meals. Again, those who partake of these things are taking that which is not theirs. Temptation is continually before them to taste the food which they are handling; and here is an excellent opportunity for them to gain control of the appetite. But food seems to be very abundant, and they forget that it all represents so much money value. One and another thoughtlessly indulge the habit of tasting and helping themselves, until they fancy that there is no real sin in the practice.
All should beware of cherishing this view of the matter, for conscience is thus losing its sensitiveness. One may reason, "The little I have taken does not amount439to much;” but the question comes home, Did the smallness of the amount lessen the sin of the act? Again, the little which one person takes may not amount to much, but when five act on the same plan, five littles are taken. Then ten, twenty, or even more, may presume in the same way, until every day the workers may, to their own injury, appropriate many littles that they have no right to touch. Many littles make much in the end. But the greatest loss is sustained by the ones who digress; for they are violating the principles of right, and learning to look upon transgression in small matters as no transgression at all. They forget the words of Christ, “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much; and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.” Luke 16:10.
When an effort is made to correct these practices, it is generally received as an evidence of stinginess on the part of the managers; and some will make no change, but go on hardening the conscience, until it becomes seared as with a hot iron. They rise up against any restriction, and act and talk defiantly, as though their rights had been invaded. But God looks upon all these things as theft, and so the record is carried up to heaven.
All fraud and deceit is forbidden in the word of God. Direct theft and outright falsehood are not sins into which persons of respectability are in danger of falling. It is transgression in the little things that first leads the soul away from God. By their one sin in partaking of the forbidden fruit, Adam and Eve opened the floodgates of woe upon the world. Some may regard that transgression as a very little thing; but we see that its consequences were anything but small. The angels in heaven have a wider and more440elevated sphere of action than we; but right with them and right with us are one and the same thing.
The managers of the sanitarium are not actuated by a mean, penurious spirit in reproving the wrongs that have been mentioned, and requiring what is due to such an institution. It is no stepping down from proper dignity to guard the interests of the sanitarium in these matters. Officers who are faithful themselves, naturally look for faithfulness in others. Strict integrity should govern the dealings of the managers, and should be enforced upon all who labor under their direction.
Men of principle need not the restriction of locks and keys; they do not need to be watched and guarded. They will deal truly and honorably at all times,—alone, with no eye upon them, as well as in public. They will not bring a stain upon their souls for any amount of gain or selfish advantage. They scorn a mean act. Although no one else might know it, they would know it themselves, and this would destroy their self-respect. Those who are not conscientious and faithful in little things would not be reformed, were there laws and restrictions and penalties upon the point. . . .
Those who do not overcome in little things will have no moral power to withstand greater temptations. All who seek to make honesty the ruling principle in the daily business of life, will need to be on their guard that they “covet no man’s silver, or gold, or apparel.” While they are content with convenient food and clothing, it will be found an easy matter to keep the heart and hands from the defilement of covetousness and dishonesty. . . .
Those who are employed at our sanitarium have in many respects the best advantages for the formation441of correct habits. None will be placed beyond the reach of temptation; for in every character there are weak points that are in danger when assailed. . . . All should feel the necessity of keeping the moral nature braced by constant watchfulness. Like faithful sentinels, they should guard the citadel of the soul, never feeling that they may relax their vigilance for a moment. In earnest prayer and living faith is their only safety.
Those who begin to be careless of their steps, will find that before they are aware of it, their feet are entangled in a web from which it is impossible for them to extricate themselves. It should be a fixed principle with all to be truthful and honest. Whether they are rich or poor, whether they have friends or are left alone, come what will, they should resolve in the strength of God that no influence shall lead them to commit the least wrong act. One and all should realize that upon them, individually, depends in a measure the prosperity of the sanitarium.
Steadfastness
The mind must be trained through daily tests to habits of fidelity, to a sense of the claims of right and duty above inclination and pleasure. Minds thus trained do not waver between right and wrong, as the reed trembles in the wind; but as soon as matters come before them, they discern at once that principle is involved, and they instinctively choose the right without long debating the matter. They are loyal because they have trained themselves to habits of faithfulness and truth.—“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. 3, p. 22.
A Sad Picture
As the condition of the sanitarium was presented before me in vision, an angel of God seemed to conduct me from room to room in the different departments. The conversation I was made to hear in the rooms of the helpers was not of a character to elevate and strengthen mind or morals. The frivolous talk, the foolish jesting, the meaningless laugh, fell painfully upon the ear. . . .
I was astonished as I saw the jealousy indulged, and listened to the words of envy, the reckless talk, which made angels of God ashamed. Words and actions and motives were recorded. And how little did these light, superficial heads and hard hearts realize that an angel of God stood at the door, writing down the manner in which these precious moments were employed. God will bring to light every word and every action. He is in every place. These messengers, although unseen, are visitors in the bedchamber. The hidden works of darkness will be brought to light. The thoughts, the intents and purposes of the heart, will stand revealed. All things are naked and open to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.
I was conducted to a few rooms from which came the voice of prayer. How welcome was the sound! A bright light shone upon the face of my guide as his hand traced every word of the petition. “The eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and His ears are open unto their prayers.” 1 Peter 3:12.
DISAGREEABLE CRITICISM
From still other rooms came the most disagreeable sallies of low wit, and vain talk. Some were making sport of individuals, and even imitating the words443uttered in meeting; sacred things were made the subject of jest. Young men and young women were severely criticized; courtship and marriage were dwelt upon in a low, disgusting manner. There was scarcely a serious word spoken; the conversation was of a character to debase the mind and taint the morals; and all retired without committing themselves to God.
Waves of Influence
You may never know the result of your influence from day to day, but be sure that it is exerted for good or evil. Many who have a kind heart and good impulses, permit their attention to be absorbed in worldly business or pleasure, while the souls that look to them for guidance drift on to hopeless wreck. Such persons may have a high profession and may stand well in the opinion of men, even as Christians, but in the day of God, when our works shall be compared with the divine law, then it will be found that they have not come up to the standard. Others who saw their course fell a little below them, and still others fell below the latter class, and thus the work of degeneracy went on.
Throw a pebble into the lake and a wave is formed, and another and another; and as they increase, the circle widens until they reach the very shore. Thus, our influence, though apparently insignificant, may continue to extend far beyond our knowledge or control.—“Review and Herald,” Jan. 24, 1882.
THE POWER OF ASSOCIATION
In our institutions, where many are laboring together, the influence of association is very great. It is natural to seek companionship. Every one will find companions or make them. And just in proportion to the strength of the friendship, will be the amount of influence which friends will exert over one another for good or for evil. All will have associates, and will influence and be influenced in their turn.
The link is a mysterious one which binds human hearts together, so that the feelings, tastes, and principles of two individuals are closely blended. One catches the spirit, and copies the ways and acts, of the other. As wax retains the figure of the seal, so the mind retains the impression produced by intercourse and association. The influence may be unconscious, yet it is no less powerful.
If the youth could be persuaded to associate with the pure, the thoughtful, and the amiable, the effect would be most salutary. If choice is made of companions who fear the Lord, the influence will lead to truth, to duty, and to holiness. A truly Christian life is a power for good. But, on the other hand, those who associate with men and women of questionable morals, of bad principles and practices, will soon be walking in the same path. The tendencies of the natural heart are downward. He who associates with the skeptic will soon become skeptical; he who chooses the companionship of the vile will most assuredly become vile. To walk in the counsel of the ungodly is the first step toward standing in the way of sinners and sitting in the seat of the scornful.
CHOOSE NOBLE ASSOCIATES
Let all who would form a right character choose associates who are of a serious, thoughtful turn of mind, and who are religiously inclined. Those who have counted the cost, and wish to build for eternity, must put good material into their building. If they accept of rotten timbers, if they are content with deficiencies of character, the building is doomed to ruin. Let all take heed how they build. The storm of temptation will sweep over the building, and unless it is firmly and faithfully constructed, it will not stand the test.
A good name is more precious than gold. There is an inclination with the youth to associate with those who are inferior in mind and morals. What real happiness can a young person expect from a voluntary connection with persons who have a low standard of thoughts, feelings, and deportment? Some are debased in taste and depraved in habits, and all who choose such companions will follow their example. We are living in times of peril that should cause the hearts of all to fear. We see the minds of many wandering through the mazes of skepticism. The causes of this are ignorance, pride, and a defective character. Humility is a hard lesson for fallen man to learn. There is something in the human heart which rises in opposition to revealed truth on subjects connected with God and sinners, the transgression of the divine law and pardon through Christ.
STUDY THE SCRIPTURES
My brethren and sisters, old and young, when you have an hour of leisure, open the Bible, and store the mind with its precious truths. When engaged in labor, guard the mind, keep it stayed upon God, talk less, and meditate more. Remember, "Every idle446word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of Judgment.” Matt. 12:36. Let your words be select; this will close a door against the adversary of souls. Let your day be entered upon with prayer; work as in God’s sight. His angels are ever by your side, making a record of your words, your deportment, and the manner in which your work is done.
If you turn from good counsel, and choose to associate with those who you have reason to suspect are not religiously inclined, although they profess to be Christians, you will soon become like them. You place yourself in the way of temptation, on Satan’s battle ground, and will, unless constantly guarded, be overcome by his devices. There are persons who have for some time made a profession of religion, who are, to all intents and purposes, without God and without a sensitive conscience. They are vain and trifling; their conversation is of a low order. Courtship and marriage occupy the mind, to the exclusion of higher and nobler thoughts.
The associations chosen by the workers are determining their destiny for this world and the next. Some who were once conscientious and faithful, have sadly changed; they have disconnected from God, and Satan has allured them to his side. They are now irreligious and irreverent, and they have an influence upon others who are easily molded. Evil associations are deteriorating character; principle is being undermined. “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise; but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.” Prov. 13:20.
AVOID FLIRTATION
The young are in danger; but they are blind to discern the tendencies and result of the course they are pursuing. Many of them are engaged in flirtation.447They seem to be infatuated. There is nothing noble, dignified, or sacred in these attachments; as they are prompted by Satan, the influence is such as to please him. Warnings to these persons fall unheeded. They are headstrong, self-willed, defiant. They think the warning, counsel, or reproof does not apply to them. Their course gives them no concern. They are continually separating themselves from the light and love of God. They lose all discernment of sacred and eternal things; and while they may keep up a dry form of Christian duties, they have no heart in these religious exercises. All too late, these deceived souls will learn that "strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." Matt. 7:14.
Words and actions and motives are recorded; but how little do these light, superficial heads and hard hearts realize that an angel of God stands writing down the manner in which their precious moments are employed. God will bring to light every word and every action. He is in every place. His messengers, although unseen, are visitors in the workroom and in the sleeping apartment. The hidden works of darkness will be brought to light. The thoughts, the intents and purposes of the heart, will stand revealed. All things are naked and open to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.
The workers should take Jesus with them in every department of their labor. Whatever is done, should be done with an exactness and thoroughness that will bear inspection. The heart should be in the work. Faithfulness is as essential in life's common duties as in those involving greater responsibility. Some may receive the idea that their work is not ennobling; but this is just as they choose to make it. They alone are448capable of degrading or elevating their employment. We wish that every drone might be compelled to toil for his daily bread; for work is a blessing, not a curse. Diligent labor will keep us from many of the snares of Satan, who “finds some mischief still for idle hands to do.”
BE NOT ASHAMED OF WORK
None of us should be ashamed of work, however small and servile it may appear. Labor is ennobling. All who toil with head or hands are working men or working women. And all are doing their duty and honoring their religion as much while working at the washtub or washing the dishes, as they are in going to meeting. While the hands are engaged in the most common labor, the mind may be elevated and ennobled by pure and holy thoughts. When any of the workers manifest a lack of respect for religious things, they should be separated from the work. Let none feel that the institution is dependent upon them.
Those who have long been employed in our institutions should now be responsible workers, reliable in every place, as faithful to duty as the compass to the pole. Had they rightly improved their opportunities, they might now have symmetrical characters and a deep, living experience in religious things. But some of these workers have separated from God. Religion is laid aside. It is not an inwrought principle, carefully cherished wherever they go, into whatever society they are thrown, proving as an anchor to the soul. I wish all the workers carefully to consider that success in this life, and success in gaining the future life, depend largely upon faithfulness in little things. Those who long for higher responsibilities should manifest faithfulness in performing the duties just where God has placed them.
The perfection of God’s work is as clearly seen in the tiniest insect as in the king of birds. The soul of the little child that believes in Christ is as precious in His sight as are the angels about His throne. “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” Matt. 5:48. As God is perfect in His sphere, so man may be perfect in his sphere. Whatever the hand finds to do should be done with thoroughness and dispatch. Faithfulness and integrity in little things, the performance of little duties and little deeds of kindness, will cheer and gladden the pathway of life; and when our work on earth is ended, every one of the little duties performed with fidelity, will be treasured as a precious gem before God.
In Our Schools
In our schools missionary nurses should receive lessons from well-qualified physicians, and as a part of their education should learn how to battle with disease and to show the value of nature’s remedies. This work is greatly needed. Cities and towns are steeped in sin and moral corruption, yet there are Lots in every Sodom. The poison of sin is at work at the heart of society, and God calls for reformers to stand in defense of the law which He has established to govern the physical system. They should at the same time maintain an elevated standard in the training of the mind and the culture of the heart, that the Great Physician may coöperate with the human helping hand in doing a work of mercy and necessity in the relief of suffering.—“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. 6, p. 136.
A LACK OF ECONOMY
As my guide conducted me through the different departments, the lack of economy everywhere stirred my soul with grief; for I had a full sense of the debt hanging over the institution. The petty dishonesty, the selfish neglect of duty, were marked by the recording angel. The waste permitted here and there, in the course of a year amounts to a considerable sum. Much of this might be saved by the helpers; but each will say, “It does not belong to me to look after these things.” Would they pass these things by so indifferently if the loss was to be sustained by themselves? No; they would know exactly what to do and how to do it; but it makes all the difference, now that it belongs to the institution. This is the fruit of selfishness, and is registered against them under the heading of unfaithfulness.
In the dining room and kitchen I saw marks of negligence and untidiness. The floors were not cleanly, and there was a great lack of thoroughness, of nicety and order. These things speak to all who have access to these rooms, of the character of the workers. The impression would not be made that the sanitarium had a class of neat, faithful, orderly helpers. Some have labored faithfully, while others have done their work mechanically, as though they had no interest in it except to get through as quickly as possible. Order and thoroughness were neglected, because no one was near to watch them and criticize their work. Unfaithfulness was written against their names.
The matron looked upon the same that I saw, but she good-naturedly passed it by, and seemed to have no sense of the true state of things. I saw a few trying451to change things for the better, and pleading for a faithful discharge of duty; but an indignant protest was raised, and most unmerciful thrusts were given by those who ventured to take this responsibility. Unpleasant remarks were unsparingly made, and feelings of jealousy and envy indulged, and those who would have been true and faithful found numbers so large against them that they were compelled to allow things to drift on as before. These are some of the existing evils at the sanitarium.
Our Influence
Every act of our lives affects others for good or evil. Our influence is tending upward or downward; it is felt, acted upon, and to a greater or less degree reproduced by others. If by our example we aid others in the development of good principles, we give them power to do good. In their turn they exert the same beneficial influence upon others, and thus hundreds and thousands are affected by our unconscious influence. If we by acts strengthen or force into activity the evil powers possessed by those around us, we share their sin, and will have to render an account for the good we might have done them and did not do, because we made not God our strength, our guide, our counselor.—“Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. 2, p. 133.
NEED OF OPPORTUNITY FOR CHRISTIAN CULTURE
No soul can prosper without time to pray, to search the Scriptures; and all should, as far as possible, have the privilege of attending public worship. All need to keep the oil of grace in their vessels with their lamps. Above all others, the workers who are thrown into the society of worldlings need to have Jesus held up before them, that they may behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. The godless element to which they are exposed makes it essential that personal labor should be bestowed upon them. Who could be closely related to these patients, and hear them talk, and breathe in the atmosphere that surrounds their souls, without running some risk? Counteracting influences should always be exerted, lest, through the tempting allurements of Satan, the worldly element shall steal away hearts from God. Never let the worldly class be honored and great deference be paid to them above those who love God and are seeking to do His will.
Those who, from whatever cause, are obliged to work on the Sabbath, are always in peril; they feel the loss, and from doing works of necessity they fall into the habit of doing things on the Sabbath that are not necessary. The sense of its sacredness is lost, and the holy commandment is of no effect. A special effort should be made to bring about a reform in regard to Sabbath observance. The workers in the sanitarium do not always do for themselves what is their privilege and duty. Often they feel so weary that they become demoralized. This should not be. No soul can be rich in grace only as it shall abide in the presence of God.
God is the great proprietor of the sanitarium, of the Review and Herald office, of the Pacific Press, of our colleges. In all these institutions the managers must receive their directions from above. And wherever the temptations that come through association with the ungodly are strongest, there the greatest care must be exercised to place the workers in close connection with Christ, and the influences proceeding from Him. His word must be our guide in all things; and if poverty comes because we abide by a plain, “Thus saith the Lord,” we must abide by it, even at the loss of all things else. Better have poverty in temporal things, and abide in Christ, and be nourished by His word, which is spirit and life. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Matt. 4:4. The world may smile as we repeat this to them, but it is the word of the Son of God. He says, “Whoso eateth My flesh [the word that Christ speaks to us] . . . hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:54.
We can not always be on our knees in prayer, but the way to the mercy seat is always open. While engaged in active labor, we may ask for help; and we are promised by One who will not deceive us, "Ye shall receive." The Christian can and will find time to pray. Daniel was a statesman; heavy responsibilities rested upon him; yet three times a day he sought God, and the Lord gave him the Holy Spirit. So to-day men may resort to the sacred pavilion of the Most High and feel the assurance of His promise, "My people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places." Isa. 32:18. All who really desire it can find a place for communion with God, where no ear can hear but the454one open to the cries of the helpless, distressed, and needy,—the One who notices even the fall of the little sparrow. He says, “Ye are of more value than many sparrows.” Matt. 10:31.
If the rush of work is allowed to drive us from our purpose of seeking the Lord daily, we shall make the greatest mistakes; we shall incur losses, for the Lord is not with us; we have closed the door so that He can not find access to our souls. But if we pray even when our hands are employed, the Saviour’s ear is open to hear our petitions. If we are determined not to be separated from the Source of our strength, Jesus will be just as determined to be at our right hand to help us, that we may not be put to shame before our enemies. The grace of Christ can accomplish for us that which all our efforts will fail to do. Those who love and fear God may be surrounded with a multitude of cares, and yet not falter or make crooked paths for their feet. God takes care of you in the place where it is your duty to be. But be sure, as often as possible, to go where prayer is wont to be made. The Saviour says, “Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white; for they are worthy.” Rev. 3:4. These souls overcame by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony. Amid the moral pollution that prevailed on every hand, they held fast their integrity. And why?—They were partakers of the divine nature, and thus they escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. They became rich in faith, heirs to an inheritance of more value than the gold of Ophir. Only a life of constant dependence upon the Saviour is a life of holiness.
Section IX
TEACHING HEALTH PRINCIPLES
THE CHURCH SHOULD AWAKE
We have come to a time when every member of the church should take hold of medical missionary work. The world is a lazar house filled with victims of both physical and spiritual disease. Everywhere people are perishing for lack of a knowledge of the truths that have been committed to us. The members of the church are in need of an awakening, that they may realize their responsibility to impart these truths. Those who have been enlightened by the truth are to be light-bearers to the world. To hide our light at this time is to make a terrible mistake. The message to God’s people to-day is, “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.” Isa. 60:1.
On every hand we see those who have had much light and knowledge deliberately choosing evil in the place of good. Making no attempt to reform, they are growing worse and worse. But the people of God are not to walk in darkness. They are to walk in the light, for they are reformers.
Before the true reformer, the medical missionary work will open many doors. No one need wait until called to some distant field before beginning to help others. Wherever you are, you can begin at once. Opportunities are within the reach of every one. Take up the work for which you are held responsible,—the work that should be done in your home and in your456neighborhood. Wait not for others to urge you to action. In the fear of God go forward without delay, bearing in mind your individual responsibility to Him who gave His life for you. Act as if you heard Christ calling upon you personally to do your utmost in His service. Look not to see who else is ready. If you are truly consecrated, God will, through your instrumentality, bring into the truth others whom He can use as channels to convey light to many that are groping in darkness.