, yea, even harder.

If by this method every one of the friends of God were to try to lead one
soul to the right path, the number of the believers would be doubled every
year. But this should be carried out with perfect wisdom and in such a
manner that no harm would ever result therefrom.

THIS WORLD A MIRAGE

O beloved of God! Know ye that the world is like unto a mirage which the
thirsty one thinks to be water; its water is a vapor; its mercy a
difficulty; its repose hardship and ordeal; leave it to its people and
turn unto the Kingdom of your Lord the Merciful. Thus the lights of mercy
and beneficence may shine upon you, the heavenly table descend for you,
your Lord may bestow upon you the greatest gifts and favors, whereby your
breasts may become dilated, your hearts gladdened, your souls purified,
and your eyes enlightened.

O beloved of God! Is there any giver save God? He chooseth for His mercy
whomsoever He desireth.

He shall open unto you the doors of His knowledge, fill your hearts with
His love, rejoice your spirits by the wafting of His holy fragrances,
illumine your faces by the Manifest Light and elevate your names among the
people.

PROTECTION OF THE BAHA'IS

Throughout these years of disturbance and commotion when the world of
humanity was physically and spiritually afflicted, the friends of God
passed the day in rest, ease and comfort. In the western countries only a
few shared in the hardship and affliction of other souls while the mass of
the friends and the maid-servants of the Merciful ... have been living
quietly and peacefully. In the Orient every nation became distracted and
every gathering dispersed save the friends of God who remained all
protected and sheltered from every trouble and calamity in the Fort of
Baha'u'llah's protection. Verily this is a divine miracle--that we
helpless, friendless, unprotected, unsupported wanderers in these regions
should be saved amidst the fire of oppression and tyranny. This is God's
miracle.

THE RETURN OF CHRIST

In the day of Christ all nations were expecting that His Holiness Christ
should come from heaven, and He came from heaven, though outwardly He came
from the womb of Mary. Hence, He hath said in the Gospels: "No one shall
ascend to heaven except the one who hath come from heaven." Now all the
people expect Him to come from heaven.

If thou wishest to find the truth, compare the days of the Manifestation
of the Be