The men line the trenches, with every sense on the alert, waiting. The officer stands still with his eye upon his wristwatch, counting the minutes until the time for the advance shall come. At last the whistle sounds, and every man leaps out of the trench and goes over the top to the attack. There some of them meet death and wounds at once, others go on the preform the appointed task. But no one shirks his duty, although they know the peril they are going to face.
Brave men and boys going by the thousands into eternity. How our hearts ache to know that they are prepared to meet their God! How we hope they all had their Testaments and read them, and prayed to God before the attack! Oh! The awful responsibly these false teachers take upon themselves when they tell these dear men that their sacrifice means salvation to them. The following incident will tell you how Private D— found the truth and rest for his soul.
Rest for the weary
Dear friends, how often you are weary in this terrible war, and how much you have to bear, to see, to suffer, and it may be wounds or death. Are you ready for the last two, especially the last? You cannot have rest, rest for the weary, until you know that God loves you, and that the Lord Jesus Christ, Who is God, loves you, and has pardoned your sin, and that you are safe in Him. This is rest. Having this rest, your daily toil, your fighting, your imminent danger from the shells and bombs, you will be free from anxiety and fear, because He, the Lord Jesus, is with you. He is “Rest for the weary” Now listen to what I am going to tell you about Private D —. He has found rest by reading his Testament. This is the reason we are so anxious that all our men at the Front and elsewhere shall receive Testaments, so that they may read, mark, learn and obtain rest. Jesus Christ says still, “Come unto Me, all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11.).
In 1914 Private D —, just off to the War, was given one of our Testaments, by Colonel S —. Thank God, the young soldier diligently read this Word of God, the New Testament given to him in prayer and faith. Now hear what it did for him. So will it do for you, dear soldier, if you only read yours.
Private D―writes to Colonel S — this year, 1917, saying: — “You remember the New Testament you gave me in 1914; well, sir, I have read it, I think, over and over again, and still I find it a comfort to me. I can truly say it has helped me through many a weary day and night up here,” i.e., in the front line.
“Drawn to the cross which Thou hast blest,
With healing gifts for souls distressed,
To find in Thee my life, my rest.
Christ crucified, I come.
EMILY P. LEAKEY.