s, the one and only solace of His
sacred heart was to hear good news of the progress of the Faith, and the
proclaiming of God's Word, and the spreading of the holy Teachings, and
the unity and fervour of the friends, and the staunchness of His loved
ones. This news would bring smiles to His countenance; this was the joy of
His precious heart.

Meanwhile He trained a number of the faithful and reared them with the
hands of His grace, and rectified their character and behaviour, and
adorned them with the excellence of the favoured angels of Heaven--that
they might arise today with a new spirit, and stand forth with wondrous
power, and confront the forces of idle fancy, and scatter the troops upon
troops of darkness with the blazing light of long endurance and high
resolve; that they might shine out even as lighted candles, and moth-like,
flutter so close about the lamp of the Faith as to scorch their wings.

The Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Baha, may our souls be sacrificed for
His meekness, is our guiding light upon the path, it is the very bounty of
the Abha Kingdom. This Text is the decisive decree, the way that leads
aright, the highest hope of all who stand firm in the Covenant of the Lord
of Lords. It is tidings of great joy; it is the ultimate bestowal.

37: We rejoiced greatly to learn of the unity ...

(159) We rejoiced greatly to learn of the unity among the friends, their
staunchness, their ardour, and the fact that they have established a
Spiritual Assembly. It is clear that the stronger grow the bonds of
yearning love among the believers, and the fiercer its fire, the more will
they find themselves embraced by the bounties of the Ancient of Days, and
receiving the continuous confirmations of the Greatest Name. Thus will the
Assemblies of the friends become reflections of the gardens of the
Concourse on High, mirroring forth the radiance of the Abha Kingdom.

From Their supernal realms and Their immortal heights, He the exalted Bab,
and He Who is the Beauty of the All-Glorious, and the wondrous presence of
'Abdu'l-Baha, all These are gazing down upon Their faithful loved ones,
beholding what they do under all conditions, their behaviour and conduct,
and all their words and ways, waiting to cry 'Well done!' when They see
the Teachings carried out, and 'Blessed art thou!' to whoso may excel in
doing the bidding of his Lord.

Those divine, those sacred and exalted Beings bore every grief, and They
a