26
The Retirement Years
their house upon the sand, but upon the solid rock.—
The Review and
Herald, November 19, 1903
.
They Know How to Help Others
The aged standard-bearers in the cause of God are far from being
useless. The men who have held the beginning of their confidence
steadfast unto the end are not to be accounted second or third in the
work of God. They are not to be cast aside as having outlived their
usefulness. God has an important part for them to act in His work. By
learning of Christ they have obtained a rich experience. When they
have made false steps, they did not refuse to be corrected. When they
wandered from the path that Christ trod, they allowed Him to lead them
once more into it. Thus they have learned to help others.—
Manuscript
92, 1903
.
Those who have grown old and gray in the service of God are
not to be pushed aside by less experienced workers, who know very
little about the labor and self-sacrifice of these pioneers.... Those who
[33]
have such laborers among them are highly favored. Those who are
commissioned by the Lord to do a large and important work, a work
that will leave an impress for good or for ill on the world, according to
the way in which it is done, need to seek counsel from those who have
been instructed by the Lord.—
Manuscript 117a, 1901
.
The most tender regard should be cherished for those whose life
interest has been bound up with the work of God. These aged workers
have stood faithful amid storm and trial. They may have infirmities,
but they still possess talents that qualify them to stand in their place
in God’s cause. Though worn, and unable to bear the heavier burdens
that younger men can and should carry, the counsel they can give is of
the highest value.
They may have made mistakes, but from their failures they have
learned to avoid errors and dangers, and are they not therefore compe-
tent to give wise counsel? They have borne test and trial, and though
they have lost some of their vigor, the Lord does not lay them aside.
He gives them special grace and wisdom.
Those who have served their Master when the work went hard,
who endured poverty and remained faithful when there were few to
stand for truth, are to be honored and respected. The Lord desires the