GREETINGS TO OUR ADVENTIST WOMEN AROUND THE WORLD.
May I come into your home for a little visit today? The editors of THE MINISTRY magazine have invited me to arrange this special feature for you each month. What an assignment! You live in so many different countries and serve in varied capacities, your ages run such a wide gamut, and your interests and backgrounds are not the same.
How can I ever hope to meet such a challenge? I can't alone, but with the Lord's help and your cooperation I believe we can continue to have a MINISTRY feature that will be inspirational, interesting, and instructional. We will seek to build it around one mutual theme —our love for Him and for His work.
By His Side
Do you like our feature title? As you no doubt have already guessed, it has a double meaning. Our first desire is to walk closely by the side of our Saviour. The only safe place for all of us to be in these uncertain times is by His side. Then many of us have husbands who serve as ministers of the church. As wives we serve by their sides. It is our desire to hold up their hands and see them succeed, to make their work easier and more effective.
What Is Our Goal?
We wish to provide material that will interest our varied readers. We hope it will be of such interest that BY HIS SIDE will be the first page you will turn to when you receive THE MINISTRY each month. We want our contributions to be inspirational, instructional, and challenging. May they bring out the best that is in us. And may the hands that write the material be guided by the Holy Spirit.
Our pages should contain instruction that will tell us how to do our work better. We all desire to be more efficient workers for God; in our homes, offices, or wherever we are endeavoring to do our part for Him. There are so many of you around the world who with the Lord's help excel in your work, and if you will share your success secrets with the rest of us, there should be no lack of helpful material.
What Is Ahead?
We have many ideas and plans. First we want to communicate. Today the popular term is "dialog." We are thinking of beginning a column for discussion of problems. They appear in almost endless succession every day. The woman's world is full of problems—in our homes, with our children, and problems with our work. However, we are all more interested in solutions than we are problems. I am sure most of you have found the solutions. Will you tell us briefly and succinctly how the Lord has helped you to meet the problems and solve them successfully? Everyone likes to share good experiences. We never tire of hearing how the Lord has blessed, led, protected, and healed. Share some of your good experiences with us. The recital must be brief, because our space is limited, but tell us in your own style how the Lord has been by your side and helped you to work for Him.
There will be other features—articles from the pen of well-known writers and from your pen, we hope. These articles will deal with various topics of interest to women. Don't wait for me to write and ask you to submit such an article. Send it in soon. Our editors will decide on its suitability.
For instance, here is a problem that could be discussed: How can we as wives help to keep our husbands in better health so they may be able to serve more efficiently and longer in His cause? And another problem: When custom seems to demand a heavy, rich dessert in the evening when we have suppers or social gatherings, what can we serve that is light, healthful, and tasty?
This is just a little introductory get-acquainted letter to let you know what we have in mind for BY HIS SIDE in the months ahead. Pray that God will use these pages to His honor and glory and to the end that we all will be more efficient and dedicated wives and workers.
With Christian love,
Dollis M. Pierson