Closing Labors
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A Solemn Charge
The spirit that characterized Mrs. White’s life and labors during
the closing years of her ministry, is reflected in the communication,
“Courage in the Lord,” addressed to her brethren assembled at the
1913 General Conference. Her words of exhortation were in reality a
prayer and a benediction:
“I pray earnestly that the work we do at this time shall impress
itself deeply on heart and mind and soul. Perplexities will increase; but
let us, as believers in God, encourage one another. Let us not lower the
standard, but keep it lifted high, looking to Him who is the author and
finisher of our faith. When in the night season I am unable to sleep, I
lift my heart in prayer to God, and He strengthens me, and gives me
the assurance that He is with His ministering servants in the home field
and in distant lands. I am encouraged and blessed as I realize that the
God of Israel is still guiding His people, and that He will continue to
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be with them, even to the end.
“I am instructed to say to our ministering brethren, Let the mes-
sages that come from your lips be charged with the power of the Spirit
of God. If ever there was a time when we needed the special guidance
of the Holy Spirit, it is now. We need a thorough consecration. It is
fully time that we gave to the world a demonstration of the power of
God in our own lives and in our ministry.
“The Lord desires to see the work of proclaiming the third Angel’s
message carried forward with increasing efficiency. As He has worked
in all ages to give victories to His people, so in this age He longs to
carry to a triumphant fulfillment His purposes for His church. He bids
His believing saints to advance unitedly, going from strength to greater
strength, from faith to increased assurance and confidence in the truth
and righteousness of His cause.
“We are to stand firm as a rock to the principles of the word of
God, remembering that God is with us to give us strength to meet each
new experience. Let us ever maintain in our lives the principles of
righteousness, that we may go forward from strength to strength in the
name of the Lord. We are to hold as very sacred the faith that has been
substantiated by the instruction and approval of the Spirit of God from
our earliest experience until the present time. We are to cherish as very
precious the work that the Lord has been carrying forward through His