s in mind, and
from hour to hour we must develop our heedfulness, our love and affection,
our sagacity and magnanimity.

It is the hope of this writer that the friends of God will put forth such
efforts, and will so radiate their love for Him, as to light up the world;
a love that will make the heart of the Guardian leap for joy, and then,
God willing, he will soon come back again, so that before I close my eyes
upon this life, the separation I endure will be over, and I can bid you
all farewell with a happy heart.

My only joy, in these my numbered days, and the joy of the Master's
consort, rests in the hands of those well-loved friends of 'Abdu'l-Baha.

Upon you be the glory of the All-Glorious.

78: 'O God, My God! Thou hast lighted the lamp of ...

(206) 'O God, My God! Thou hast lighted the lamp of Thy Cause with the oil
of wisdom; protect it from contrary winds. The lamp is Thine and the glass
is Thine, and all things in the heavens and on earth are in the grasp of
Thy power.'(207)

O servants of the Abha Beauty's sacred Threshold, O beloved friends of
'Abdu'l-Baha!

It is well known that from the earliest dawning of the Sun of Revelation,
until the setting of the holy Covenant's Orb, the Ark of the Faith has
continuously been battered by great waves of affliction, and beaten by
calamity's storms. Tempest and whirlwind have ever assailed this holy
Tree.

Still, the exalted Star has continued on its destined journey, and despite
the piled-up clouds of hate and error, its rays of grace have illumined
the whole earth.

The Ark of Salvation was made the safe refuge of the righteous, and the
holy Tree was hung with bright, immortal fruit, so that the honeyed yield
of the love of God is sweet on the lips of His people. Out of the grace of
the Blessed Beauty, eyes began to see, and ears to hear, and through the
bounty of 'Abdu'l-Baha the spirits turned vigilant, and souls awoke, and
to the hearts were divine mysteries confided, and individuals became
day-springs of light.

And for ever and ever, time without end, the glance of God's bounty and
bestowal is, from the hidden world above, unceasingly cast down, and He
watches over us with favour and grace. It behoves us, then, to offer up
thanks with every breath, and to be blissful at all times.

Although the towering citadel of God's Cause is upraised on foundations of
iron, and His Word is founded on authority and power, and the loyal and
firm in His