The men of experience and piety who led out in this work, who denied self and did not hesitate to sacrifice anything for its success, are now sleeping in the grave. They were God’s appointed channels through which the principles of spiritual life were communicated to the church. They had an experience of the highest value. They could not be bought or sold. Their purity and devotion and self-sacrifice, their living connection with God, were blessed to the upbuilding of the work. Our institutions were characterized by the spirit of self-sacrifice. (2SM 215.1) MC VC

But in some respects the work has deteriorated. While it has grown in extent and facilities, it has waned in piety. In the days when we were struggling with poverty, those who saw how wondrously God wrought for the upbuilding of the cause, felt that no greater honor could be bestowed upon them than to be bound up with the interests of the work by sacred links which connected them with God. Would they lay down the burden and make terms with the Lord from a money standpoint? No, no. Should every timeserver forsake his post of duty, they would never desert the work. They would say, “If the Lord placed me here, He desires me to be a faithful steward, learning of Him day by day how to perform the work acceptably. I will stand at my post until God shall release me. I will know what it means to be a practical, wholehearted Christian. I expect my reward by and by.” (2SM 215.2) MC VC

The believers who in the early history of the cause sacrificed for the upbuilding of the work were imbued with the same spirit. They felt that God demanded of all connected with His cause an unreserved consecration of soul, body, and spirit, of all their services and capabilities, to make the work a success. The testimonies came to them, claiming for God all their energies in cooperation with the divine agencies, and all the increased ability gained through the exercise of every faculty. (2SM 215.3) MC VC