“For He says: ‘In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.’ Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2).
William Miller was born in 1782 in Massachusetts in the United States. He grew Up in a Christian home and in his younger days, was a justice of the peace and a soldier. At the age of 34, the Holy Spirit impressed his heart to make him conscious of his sinful condition. However, when he returned to his former beliefs, he did not find the security of eternal life and the future looked bleak. The judgment seemed a terrifying moment, and he did not understand very well what would happen.
He began attending church with his family, as did all respectable families at that time, and he offered to read the sermons. They began to absorb him, and the idea of a loving and compassionate Savior began to be born in his heart. As he read the Bible, he discovered that it gave evidence of that Savior whom he needed so much. He was surprised to note that it was a Book that contained principles that were adaptable to the needs of the fallen world, and that made him admit that the Scriptures were indeed a divine revelation. In them he found a friend in Jesus who satisfied and calmed him. You no doubt know that it was his diligent study, especially the book of Daniel, that led him to the conclusion that the earth would be purified in the spring of 1844 with the Second Coming of Christ. He felt impelled to tell what he had discovered, and doors were opening for him to preach everywhere.
After the Great Disappointment, Miller did not stop studying the Bible or believing in God. Shortly after that sad day for the pioneers of our Church, he wrote:
“Although I have been twice disappointed, I am not yet cast down or discouraged. I have set my mind upon another time, and here I mean to stand until God gives me more light, and that is today, today, and today, until He comes .. .”
There are several beautiful versions of this hymn entitled “I Have Fixed My Mind.”
We can make it our prayer today; we can thank God for His Word, for the light we have received, and for the gift of salvation. And, without getting discouraged, we can set our minds on what is ahead.
