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Testimonies for the Church Volume 5
His cause. A moment of thoughtlessness, a single misstep, may turn
the whole current of your lives in the wrong direction. And you may
never know what caused your ruin until the sentence is pronounced:
“Depart from Me, ye that work iniquity.”
Some young men know that what I have said fairly describes their
course. Their ways are not hidden from the Lord, although they may
be hidden from their best friends, even their fathers and mothers. I
have little hope that some of these will ever change their course of
hypocrisy and deception. Others who have erred are seeking to redeem
themselves. May the dear Jesus help them to set their faces as a flint
against all falsehoods and the flatteries of those who would weaken
their purpose to do right or who would insinuate doubts or infidel
sentiments to shake their faith in the truth. Young friends, do not spend
an hour in the company of those who would unfit you for the pure and
sacred work of God. Do nothing before strangers that you would not
do before your father and mother, or that you would be ashamed of
before Christ and the holy angels.
Some may think these cautions are not needed by Sabbathkeepers,
but those to whom they apply know what I mean. I tell you, young
men, to beware; for you can do nothing that is not open to the eyes
of angels and of God. You cannot do an evil work and others not
be affected by it. While your course of action reveals what kind of
material is used in your own character building, it also has a powerful
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influence over others. Never lose sight of the fact that you belong to
God, that He has bought you with a price, and you must render an
account to Him for all His entrusted talents. No one should have any
part in the work of the canvasser or colporteur whose hand is defiled
with sin or whose heart is not right with God, for such persons will
surely dishonor the cause of truth. Those who are workers in the
missionary field need God to guide them. They should be careful to
start right and then keep quietly and firmly on in the path of rectitude.
They should be decided, for Satan is determined and persevering in
his efforts to overthrow them.
A mistake has been made in soliciting subscriptions for our peri-
odicals for only a few weeks, when by a proper effort much longer
subscriptions might have been obtained. One yearly subscription is of
more value than many for a short time. When the paper is taken for
only a few months, the interest often ends with the short subscription.