been such a tremendous joy and blessing to the congregations. I had the privilege of being behind him on the platform that evening, and as he outlined the work and then told about the plans for enlarging the Brooklyn Bethel home and factory, the applause from the vast audience surged in renewed outbursts. While one could see no distinct face from the platform, it was easy to sense their joy. Those experiences are still vivid in my mind, and they are things for which I am grateful.

MORE FOR WHICH TO BE GRATEFUL

Years have gone by since then and our spiritual paradise has become richer. Not all who have been at Bethel have remained faithful in their service. Some lost their sense of gratitude; they no longer appreciated the things that God had given them. This has been a lesson to me to be grateful for the service I am given to perform. Also, there are others, some serving here at Bethel longer than I have, still faithful and appreciative of their privileges—and from these too I learn, for they are a source of much encouragement.

The time came when our headquarters at Craven Terrace in London became too cramped. We needed to ‘lengthen our tent cords.’ (Isa. 54:2) A suitable location near good transport facilities, yet away from the city, was needed. But what a location we obtained! Actually in the green belt, yet having an extension of the London Underground quite near. Here, near the old Mill Hill village, we have our new home—dignified and set in beautiful surroundings. It is like a paradise. My, but what a hive of activity; and our modern printing press turns out the magazines by the thousands. Cause for gratitude indeed!

Now we have the additional pleasure of the Kingdom Ministry School in our home. We enjoy having the brothers from the districts and the circuits and the congregations with us, enlarging our family and bringing many blessings to us, even as they receive many.

I am a little older than I was in that wonderful Kingdom year of 1914 when the truth reached my heart and enriched it; older, too, than when I embraced the full-time preaching work in 1922. But somehow I don’t feel old. I am still able to work the day through with the younger brothers, who show me much kindness, and for this I am very grateful.

From the department where I work I can see the old Miehle press I started with, still turning out work. If it can still work, why shouldn’t I? The psalmist’s words still echo in my mind: “What shall I repay to Jehovah for all his benefits to me?” I am sure that there is still much I can repay, and I want to do it—with gratitude.

Christians Should Witness

“Under God, every Christian should be on the witnessing team. Already in the fourth century the noted church father Jerome declared: ‘Baptism is the ordination of the laity.’ More recently Dr. John R. Mott wrote: ‘The great periods of the church have been those when the lay people have taken their place in the ministry of the church. . . . All have been called to witness for Christ. More than 235 passages in the Bible lay this responsibility squarely on the shoulders of the faithful.”—The Lutheran Witness, October 20, 1959.