Bournemouth, England.
Dear Gracie,
Little girls like to get letters, so I am writing to tell you a little story about some children during the war.
Do you remember sitting in the armchair in my room? I thought you looked very tired and would soon be fast asleep when you got into bed, like Charlotte was. Then I thought of the little children during the war, how often they had to get up in the night and run to the shelter for safety.
One night when in bed asleep, I was suddenly awakened by the loud noise of several sirens all going at the same time. They were waking everybody up as enemy planes were coming nearer nearer, and might soon drop their bombs. A few minutes later, I heard children’s voices, and the patter of their little feet running along the road to the shelter. I could hear one boy’s voice shouting to his little brothers and sisters to hurry up and run fast to the shelter before the bombs drop. Their mother was a short distance behind, and she was running too, perhaps with a baby in her arms, and blankets to put around her children in the shelter.
I thought of the hundreds of children in the towns and villages round about who were running along the streets in the dark, seeking a shelter. Oh, if they only would run as quickly into the arms of Jesus, they would be safe, not only for a few hours, but for time and for all eternity. We often sing,
“Safe in the arms of Jesus,
Safe on His gentle breast,
There by His love o’ershadowed
Sweetly my soul shall rest.”
David knew what a safe shelter he had in God! In Psalm 61, he says, “For Thou hast been a shelter for me.” In Psalm 62 he says, “My refuge is in God. Trust in Him at all times; ye pele, pour out your heart before Him: God is a refuge for us.”
With lots of love, from your friend,
R. G.
ML 05/27/1956