Day.... You are the lowly, of whom God has thus spoken in His Book: "And
We desire to show favour to those who were brought low in the land, and to
make them spiritual leaders among men, and to make them Our heirs." You
have been called to this station; you will attain to it, only if you arise
to trample beneath your feet every earthly desire, and endeavour to become
those "honoured servants of His who speak not till He hath spoken, and who
do His bidding".... Heed not your weaknesses and frailty; fix your gaze
upon the invincible power of the Lord, your God, the Almighty.... Arise in
His name, put your trust wholly in Him, and be assured of ultimate
victory.(64)

As early as 1923, Shoghi Effendi was moved to open his heart on this
subject to the friends in North America:

Let us pray to God that in these days of world-encircling gloom, when the
dark forces of nature, of hate, rebellion, anarchy and reaction are
threatening the very stability of human society, when the most precious
fruits of civilization are undergoing severe and unparalleled tests, we
may all realize, more profoundly than ever, that though but a mere handful
amidst the seething masses of the world, we are in this day the chosen
instruments of God's grace, that our mission is most urgent and vital to
the fate of humanity, and, fortified by these sentiments, arise to achieve
God's holy purpose for mankind.(65)

* * * * *

Fully aware of the condition into which society had fallen, the
consequences of his betrayal at the hands of family members on whose
assistance he should have been able to rely, and the relative weakness of
the resources available to him in the Baha'i community itself, Shoghi
Effendi arose to forge the means needed to realize the mission bequeathed
to him.

To one degree or another, most Baha'is no doubt appreciated that the
Assemblies they were being called on to form had a significance far beyond
the mere management of practical affairs with which they were charged.
'Abdu'l-Baha, who had guided this development, had spoken of them as:

...shining lamps and heavenly gardens, from which the fragrances of
holiness are diffused over all regions, and the lights of knowledge are
shed abroad over all created things. From them the spirit of life
streameth in every direction. They, indeed, are the potent sources of the
progress of man, at all times and under all conditions.(66)

It fell to Shoghi Effendi