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The Retirement Years
I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son,
thine only son from Me.”
This great act of faith is penciled on the pages of sacred history
to shine forth upon the world as an illustrious example to the end of
time. Abraham did not plead that his old age should excuse him from
obeying God. He did not say: “My hairs are gray, the vigor of my
manhood is gone; who will comfort my waning life when Isaac is no
more? How can an aged father spill the blood of an only son?” No;
God had spoken, and man must obey without questioning, murmuring,
or fainting by the way.
We need the faith of Abraham in our churches today, to lighten
the darkness that gathers around them, shutting out the sweet sunlight
of God’s love and dwarfing spiritual growth. Age will never excuse
us from obeying God. Our faith should be prolific of good works, for
faith without works is dead. Every duty performed, every sacrifice
made in the name of Jesus, brings an exceeding great reward. In the
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very act of duty, God speaks and gives His blessing. But He requires
of us an entire surrender of the faculties. The mind and heart, the
whole being, must be given to Him, or we fall short of becoming true
Christians.—
Testimonies for the Church 4:144, 145
.
David’s Prayer
I was shown David entreating the Lord not to forsake him when
he should be old, and what it was that called forth his earnest prayer.
He saw that most of the aged around him were unhappy and that
unhappy traits of character increased especially with age. If persons
were naturally close and covetous, they were most disagreeably so in
their old age. If they were jealous, fretful, and impatient, they were
especially so when aged.
David was distressed as he saw that kings and nobles who seemed
to have the fear of God before them while in the strength of manhood,
became jealous of their best friends and relatives when aged. They
were in continual fear that it was selfish motives which led their friends
to manifest an interest for them. They would listen to the hints and
the deceptive advice of strangers in regard to those in whom they
should confide. Their unrestrained jealousy sometimes burned into
a flame because all did not agree with their failing judgment. Their