Counsels for the Church - Ellen G. White

than they did before.
God suffers His poor to be in the borders of every church. They are
always to be among us, and the Lord places upon the members of every
church a personal responsibility to care for them. We are not to lay our
responsibility upon others. Toward those within our own borders we are to
manifest the same love and sympathy that Christ would manifest were He in
our place. Thus we are to be disciplined, that we may be prepared to work in
Christ's lines.
Care of Orphans
Among all whose needs demand our interest, the widow and the
fatherless have the strongest claims upon our tender sympathy. They are the
objects of the Lord's special care. They are lent to Christians in trust for God.
"Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the
fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from
the world." James 1:27.
Many a father who has died in the faith, resting upon the eternal promise
of God, has left his loved ones in full trust that the Lord would care for them.
And how does the Lord provide for these bereaved ones? He does not work a
miracle in sending manna from heaven; He does not send ravens to bring
them food; but He works a miracle upon human hearts, expelling selfishness
from the soul and unsealing the fountains of benevolence. He tests the love
of His professed followers by committing to their tender mercies the afflicted
and bereaved ones.
Let those who have the love of God open their hearts and homes to take
in these children. It is not the best plan to care for the orphans in large
institutions. If they have no relatives able to provide for them, the members
of our churches should either adopt these little ones into their families or find
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