I was shown that your brother had been convinced of the truth for some time, but influences had held him back. His wife had hindered him from obeying his convictions. But in her affliction she sought the Lord, and He was found of her. Then she felt an anxiety that her husband should embrace the truth; she repented that she had opposed him, that her pride and love of the world had so long kept him from receiving the truth. Like a weary child in search of rest but unable to obtain it, she at length complied with the gracious invitation: “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28. Her weary, burdened soul sought her Lord, and with repentance, humiliation, and earnest prayer she cast her burden upon the great Burden Bearer, and in Him found rest; she received the evidence that her humiliation and earnest repentance were accepted of God, and that for Christ’s sake He had forgiven her sins. (2T 49.1) MC VC

I was shown, Brother D, that you have but a short time to work. Do up your work thoroughly, redeem the time. In your business transactions let not a blot tarnish your Christian character. Keep your garments unspotted from the world. Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. Temptations may be all around you, but you are not compelled to enter into them. You may obtain strength from Christ to stand unsullied amid the pollutions of this corrupt age. “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” 2 Peter 1:4. Keep the eye steadily fixed upon Christ, upon the divine image. Imitate His spotless life, and you will be a partaker of His glory, and with Him inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. (2T 49.2) 1 I MC VC

Here, my sister, is a subject for your prayerful consideration and earnest meditation. Closely examine your own heart as in the light of eternity. Hide nothing from your examination. Search, oh! search, as for your life, and condemn yourself, pass judgment upon yourself, and then by faith claim the cleansing blood of Christ to remove the stains from your Christian character. Do not flatter or excuse yourself. Deal truly with your own soul. And then as you view yourself a sinner, fall, all broken, at the foot of the cross. Jesus will receive you, all polluted as you are, and will wash you in His blood, and cleanse you from all pollution, and make you fit for the society of heavenly angels, in a pure, harmonious heaven. There is no jar, no discord, there. All is health, happiness, and joy. (2T 81.1) MC VC

Sister L, you have not been indifferent to your salvation. You have, at times, made earnest efforts, and have humbled yourself before the church and before God; but you have not received that encouragement which you needed, and which Jesus would have freely given you had He been upon earth. Love is wanting in the church. Love for the erring is covered up with selfishness. There is a great lack of this precious grace among God’s people. You have thought that the people of God were indifferent to you, and your soul has rebelled against it. They have not felt right nor talked right. They have not pursued a right course. They are not justified in this. Heaven frowns upon it. Jesus pities you, and He invites you, weary, and heavy-laden, to come to Him and learn of Him who is meek and lowly in heart, and you shall find rest to your soul. The yoke of Christ is easy, and His burden is light. When perplexed, worried, and annoyed, flee to the Burden Bearer; tell it all to Jesus. Your brethren and sisters may not appreciate your efforts, and may never know how hard you do try to obtain the victory; yet this should not discourage you. If Jesus knows, if He is acquainted with your sincere efforts, be satisfied. (2T 81.2) MC VC

I was shown that if our ministers would exercise care to preserve their strength, instead of needlessly expending it, their judicious, well-directed labor would accomplish more in a year than could be accomplished by long talking, praying, and singing, which are so wearisome and exhausting. In the latter case, the people are frequently deprived of labor which they much need at the right time, for the laborer is in need of rest and will endanger his health and life if he continues his effort. (2T 118.1) MC VC

Our dear Brethren Matteson and D. T. Bourdeau have made a mistake here, and should reform in their manner of labor. They should speak short and pray short. They should come to the point at once and stop short of exhaustion in their labors. They can both accomplish more good by doing this, and at the same time preserve strength to continue the labors which they love, without breaking down entirely. (2T 118.2) MC VC

Chapter 16—Look to Jesus VC

In the vision given me June 12, 1868, I was shown the danger of the people of God in looking to Brother and Sister White and thinking that they must come to them with their burdens and seek counsel of them. This ought not so to be. They are invited by their compassionate, loving Saviour to come unto Him, when weary and heavy-laden, and He will relieve them. In Him they will find rest. In taking their perplexities and trials to Jesus, they will find the promise in regard to them fulfilled. When in their distress they feel the relief which is found alone in Jesus they obtain an experience which is of the highest value to them. Brother and Sister White are striving for purity of life, striving to bring forth fruit unto holiness; yet they are only erring mortals. Many come to us with the inquiry: Shall I do this? Shall I engage in that enterprise? Or, in regard to dress, Shall I wear this or that article? I answer them: You profess to be disciples of Christ. Study your Bibles. Read carefully and prayerfully the life of our dear Saviour when He dwelt among men upon the earth. Imitate His life, and you will not be found straying from the narrow path. We utterly refuse to be conscience for you. If we tell you just what to do, you will look to us to guide you, instead of going directly to Jesus for yourselves. Your experience will be founded in us. You must have an experience for yourselves, which shall be founded in God. Then can you stand amid the perils of the last days and be purified and not consumed by the fire of affliction through which all the saints must pass in order to have the impurities removed from their character preparatory to receiving the finishing touch of immortality. (2T 118.3) MC VC

Dear sister, we are determined to be impartial and not have our words or acts in any way influenced by hearsay. We have no pets. May the Lord give us heavenly wisdom, that we may deal righteously and impartially, and thus meet the mind of His Spirit. We do not want our works wrought in self. We do not want personal feelings. If we think we are not specially considered, or if we see, or imagine that we see, positive neglect, we want the spirit of our forgiving Master. The people who professed to be His followers received Him not, because His face was toward Jerusalem, and He gave no special indication that He was to tarry with them. They did not open their doors to the heavenly Guest, and did not urge His abiding with them, although they beheld Him weary with His journey, and the night was drawing on. They gave no sign that they really desired Jesus. The disciples knew that He designed to tarry there that night, and they felt so keenly the slight thus given to their Lord that they were angry, and prayed Jesus to show proper resentment and call down fire from heaven to consume those who had thus abused Him. But He rebuked their indignation and zeal for His honor, and told them that He came, not to visit with judgment, but to show mercy. (2T 566.1) MC VC

This lesson of our Saviour’s is for you and for me. No resentment must come into our hearts. When reviled, we must not revile again. O jealousy and evil surmising, what mischief have ye wrought! how have ye turned friendship and love into bitterness and hatred! We must be less proud, less sensitive, have less self-love, and be dead to self-interest. Our interest must be submerged in Christ and we be able to say: “I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.” Galatians 2:20. Christ has told us how to make everything easy and happy as we pass along: “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Matthew 11:28~29. The great difficulty is, there is so little meekness and lowliness that the yoke galls and the burden is heavy. When we possess true meekness and lowliness we are so lost in Christ that we do not take neglect or slights to heart; we are deaf to reproach and blind to scorn and insult. (2T 566.2) MC VC

Sister I, as the peculiarities of your case come clearly before me, I see a serious objection to your traveling. You do not take upon yourself the burdens that you should. You call forth sympathy from others, but do not give in return. You lay your whole weight where you are, and too frequently are waited upon when those who bear their own burden and yours also are no more able to do this than yourself. You are too helpless for your own good, and the influence is not such as that of a minister’s wife should be. You need more physical labor than you have; and from what has been shown me, I think that you would be more in the line of your duty engaging cheerfully in the work of educating your daughter and encouraging a love of domestic duties. You did not receive the education in this direction that you should have had in your girlhood, and this has made your life more unhappy than it would otherwise have been. You do not love physical labor; and when journeying, you fill the bill of an invalid, and fail to be helpful and do what you can to lighten the burdens you make. You fail to realize that frequently the very ones who wait on you are no more able to perform the extra task than you are. You lean on others, and lay your whole weight upon them. I have no evidence that God has called you to do a special work in traveling. (2T 567.1) MC VC

You have an education to obtain that you do not yet possess. Who can so well instruct the child as the mother? Who can so well learn the defects in her own organization and in her child’s as the mother while in the performance of the duties which Heaven has allotted her? The fact that you do not love this work is no evidence that it is not the work which the Lord has assigned you. You have not sufficient physical or mental strength to make it an object for you to travel. You wish to be ministered unto, instead of ministering to others. You are not helpful enough to offset the burden you are to your husband and to those around you. (2T 567.2) MC VC

The world is full of dissatisfied spirits who overlook the happiness and blessings within their reach, and are continually seeking for happiness and satisfaction that they do not realize. They are constantly on the stretch for some expected, far-off good greater than they possess, and are ever in a state of disappointment. They cherish unbelief and ingratitude, in that they overlook the blessings right in their pathway. The common, everyday blessings of life are unwelcome to them, as was the manna to the children of Israel. (2T 640.1) MC VC

Sister G is addressed by Christ: “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:28~30. The words, deportment, and general example of Sister G teach a lesson entirely different from that taught by our Lord. She loses much in overlooking the present blessings within her grasp and uneasily searching for happiness. Her efforts are unrewarded, and her fruitless search makes great unhappiness for herself and for all who associate with her. Her unrest, her anxious, troubled spirit, is expressed in her countenance and casts a shadow. This gloom, unbelief, and discontent encourages the temptations of the enemy. By her continual distrust, by borrowing trouble, she casts a shadow instead of shedding a sunbeam. (2T 640.2) MC VC

Brother G should be patient and forbearing, and carefully shield her from unnecessary burdens; for she is not prepared to bear them. She, in her turn, should watch against the incoming foe, should take up her life burdens unmurmuringly and bear them with cheerfulness, sweetening them all with gratitude because they are no heavier. Brother G is prone to look upon the dark side. He should hold himself in readiness to do the will of God and use to the very best advantage the influence which God has given him. He should cheerfully perform the duties of today and not borrow tomorrow’s trouble to make himself miserable over. He has not to perform the duties of next week, but the work and duties which the day brings. (2T 640.3) MC VC