December 4,1996
Dear Br. Farnley:
I am sure you recall the incident, in the life of Christ, when He healed ten lepers and only one returned to thank Him for this gift. In Christ’s day, there wasn’t any known cure for leprosy. Because of the sanitary laws, imposed upon the Israelites by Moses at the direction of God, lepers were ostracized and lived, as it were, the life of the dead. They were shunned by family, friends, and associates and forced from society. Compelled to associate only with others who shared this dreaded disease, they were, for all practical purposes, already dead.
What Christ gave these ten men was life itself. In other words,
He resurrected them from a living death. Yet, only one man had
enough appreciation and thoughtfulness to return and thank Him
for the gift of life and health.
“And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? But
where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give
glory to God, save this stranger.” Luke 17:17
When Christ was on the cross, making an atonement for the entire
human race, how His heart must have been wrong with anguish to
realize that all of His disciples and, indeed, the very nation
of Israel itself, had apparently forsaken Him, leaving Him alone,
with the uncaring soldiers and the mocking crowd. How Satan must
have used this occasion to taunt Him with cruel barbs, to derided
His efforts to save a nation and world who despised and rejected
Him.
Recently, the Lord has impressed me to look at things from His
point of view rather then my own. Selfishly, we all desire to
go to heaven in order to escape this wretched earth and enjoy
the pleasures of eternity. Who doesn’t want to live for ever
in heaven, yet, if this is our only motivation then we shall never
see the glory side of eternity.
From one end to the other, the Bible is filled with praise to
God for His marvelous works. While He does not desire praise for
selfish reasons, as we so often do, He desires us to acknowledge
His benefits and to appreciate His sacrifice. Only in this way,
can we understand His great love for us and be lead to yield our
selfish desires in preference to His unselfish agape.
For several years, I have had a strong desire to encourage men
in their Christian walk. In my own personal life and experience,
I have encountered numerous obstacles and temptations. How I have
often yearned for a friendly word from another man. How I have
desired to be able to talk to a brother who would have the time
and desire to listen and talk with me. How many evenings, when
sourly beset with temptation, have I wondered the house wishing
there were another man I could converse with, and finding none.
Somehow, men have lost the ability to be a sensitive listener,
especially for other men. Out of my deeply felt need for male
companionship, the Lord directed me to offer encouragement and
understanding to other men, hence the ministry of “Dear Brothers”
a sub-ministry of Homeward-Bound Family Services. When the Lord
gave me this computer, I compiled a list of the men I knew, although
all of them are only acquaintances. At the present, this list
comprises 44 names. Every week, I spend Friday evenings and Sabbaths
afternoons writing to approximately ten names on this list.
To write and send a good letter, requires at least an hour and
a half of effort. I love what I do, for I know the feelings of
desperation and loneliness over the absence of male caring.
The brotherhood of men is fragmented, therefore, highly ineffective.
Christ desires men to encourage each other to attain unto the
highest standard of excellence possible in our character development,
Godliness, Godlikeness. Can you imagine any other god who would
extend to his subjects such a high privilege as our God has given
us?
As with Christ’s reaction, when only one leper returned to
give Him thanks, so, recently, I began to loose hope that this
ministry was producing any tangible benefits. Over the last several
month, I have written approximately sixty letters to men. Your
letter was the first note of appreciation that I have received.
Only one other man expressed gratitude for the letter I sent to
him. Several wives have notified me that THEY appreciated the
letters sent to their husbands, but I did not send these letters
to their wives.
The Lord must have impressed you to send your letter when you
did, for the very day I received it, I was under sore temptation
and difficulties and was feeling rather low in spirits. Praise
the Lord that He is mindful of our infirmities and seeks to encourage
us even if we forget to praise Him for His mercies. What a wonderful
God we have who cares for us in a manner that we would do well
to imitate.
How many lonely men there must be all around us and how easy it
is for us to brighten their lives. It is our duty to encourage
them and to bring sunshine into their lives by our thoughtfulness
and generosity. If we are heaven-bound, then it should be our
greatest desire to encourage as many others in their walk as possible.
After all, it is selfish of us not to do all in our power to encourage
others in the same direction that we so desire to follow for ourselves.
But we are all TOO busy to think of others. I would answer, TOO
BUSY DOING WHAT? What is more important, in the last moments of
earth’s history, then to devote every effort, every moment
of our time to spreading the gospel in every way we can?
Thank you for your kind letter. It encouraged the encourager.
May the Lord bless you for your thoughtfulness to one who needed
encouragement, himself. Your brother in Christ.
Allen A. Benson