And finally, as teachers, let us remind ourselves that in this matter of promoting the bearing of testimonies we should exercise a patience that is full of tolerance and forbearance. Some few individuals are converted suddenly; others respond to the truth gradually; and there are those who do well if they really respond to the feeling of conversion at the end of a lifetime. As one of our leaders has so beautifully pointed out, the Master, Himself, did not convert the world in a day, nor a year—He has not converted it in all these centuries. His plan seems to be to teach the truth and wait patiently until the divinity in man asserts itself—until man walks by his own light into eternal truth. Under the inspiration of such example may teachers well labor on in earnestness, happy in the thought that He will hasten in His own due time what to them may seem a long, slow process.
"Perchance, in heaven, one day to me
Some blessed Saint will come and say,
'All hail, beloved; but for thee
My soul to death had fallen a prey';
And oh! what rapture in the thought,
One soul to glory to have brought."
Questions and Suggestions—Chapter XXIV
1. Why is conversion the real test of religious teaching?
2. What are the outstanding characteristics of a person newly converted to the Church?
3. Discuss the significance of each of the factors that make for conversion.
4. Illustrate how to kindle the spiritual fire.
5. State why or why not you favor making assignments for testimony day.
6. What is a testimony?