19. When There was no “Thus Saith the Lord”

“I have not been given the message, Send for Bro. John Wessels to come to Australia. No; therefore I do not say, I know that this is the place for you. But it is my privilege to express my wishes, even though I say, I speak not by commandment. But I do not want you to come because of any persuasion of mine. I want you to seek the Lord most earnestly, and then follow where He shall lead you. I want you to come when God says, Come, not one moment before. Nevertheless, it is my privilege to present the wants of the work of God in Australia. Australia is not my country only as it is the Lord’s province. The country is God’s; the people are His. A work is to be done here, and if you are not the one to do it, I shall feel perfectly resigned to hear that you have gone to some other locality.”—Letter 129, 1897. (From a letter to John Wessels, concerning the need for a sanitarium in Australia and the possibility of his coming to Australia to launch such an enterprise.)EGWATHW 9.6