November 30,1996
Dear Br. Bradley:
It is a cool, rainy Sabbath afternoon, and my thoughts turned to you, thus this letter. It is nice to realize that the Lord never forgets us, that His thoughts towards us are only good all the time.
Each of us, no matter how young or old, no matter how poor or
rich, no matter what our circumstances may have a missionary field
in which God calls us to work, and our work, for Him, is never
finished. As long as we have breath to praise Him, and ears to
hear of His entreaties and a voice to speak of His love, we are
commanded to tell others of the good news of the gospel.
I am referred to the scripture, “Honor thy father and mother:
that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God
giveth thee.” Exodus 20:12. Since I have not yet received
any land, from the Lord, He must be referring, in this verse,
to the new earth. Children ought to be able and willing to look
to men of mature years and their accumulated wisdom of a life
time. Here, we have a wonderful opportunity to love and cherish
children and impart to them lessons that will spare them the mistakes
that we have made. A life time of knowing good and evil may save
them many evils.
If we remain faithful to the end, each of us shall realize the
truthfulness of that promise. For some of us, such as my son,
the end may come sooner then it does for others. Some men are
granted long lives and abundance of days in which to do good.
We should endeavor to cram into every day of our lives as many
good works as possible. While works do not save us, they are an
evidence of our love for the Lord and His heritage.
We may be limited by physical or mental disabilities but this
does not prevent us from smiling or praying for our brothers and
sisters. We should endeavor to bring all the sunshine possible
into another persons life, for in this way, sunshine enters our
lives. As we give, so we receive.
As God’s men, we have a solemn responsibility to our last
breath, to share Christ with any one who will listen and even
to those who will not, for we are never freed from this joyous
burden. Never will Christ say to us, because of advancing years,
your term of service is now ended, enjoy your remaining days with
no care for the blood-bought souls whom I love and cherish. No!
He will never utter these words. Never!
As long as we have breath, and as long as Christ lives within
us (which are essentially the same thing) we must testify of Him
to all around us.
Be of good cheer, Br. Bradley, your burdens are not yet ended.
There is still work for you to do. Look about you, see the wonderful
blessings of the Lord which He pours into your life daily and
cheerfully bear the privations and hardships that fall to each
of us. By your sunny countenance and lovely, Christ-like temperament
and disposition, you may yet lead many people to the throne of
grace.
May the Lord bless you. Your brother in Christ.
Allen A. Benson