March 7th, 1916.
Received by James Padgett.
Washington D.C.
I am your old friend and chum, Frank Davis.
Well, I am glad to be able to write you, a thing when on earth, I never expected anybody could do, and it is only recently that I learned that such a method of communication could be used.
I am quite happy now, but when I first came to the spirit world I was in considerable darkness and suffered some. As you may know I was an ordinarily good man when on earth, by that I mean I never had any really bad or vicious habits which a great many men have, and I loved my wife and children very much and died loving them.
You also know that I was not what was called an orthodox Christian having imbibed my beliefs from my father, but I believed in God and, also, that he would not be severe on me for my short comings when I should come to stand in His presence. But I now know that there were other things that I should have believed and experienced in order to fit me for a condition of happiness which I firmly expected would be mine.
I have found that belief is a very important thing, both on earth and in the spirit world, and that these creations of the mind have a wonderful influence in determining the happiness or the contrary of a spirit in this life.
I never had any of the Love of God in my heart, except in a general way, which was, I suppose, of the same nature as the love for my family, but, I am afraid, not to the extent that I loved them. And also, I rather prided myself on my own moral excellence, and supposed such qualities would be sufficient to make me a pretty happy spirit, but I soon found my mistake. When we come to offset our moral qualities against the evil thoughts and deeds of our earth life they are largely in the minority and don't count for very much while these evil thoughts and deeds, or rather the recollection of them exist in our minds and memories.
Well, it will do no good to rehearse the experience of my earth life now, but I found myself in darkness and suffering and realized that I was paying the penalties for the sins that I had committed.
But after awhile these recollections commenced to leave me and I found that I was getting into more light and less suffering, but the movement was very slow, and at times, hardly perceptible. After a while I met some beautiful and loving spirits who seemed to take an interest in me, and told me of the way to get rid of my sufferings and to reach the planes of light where happiness was, and I had to listen to them, for I saw that they were so superior to me, and they told me that they had been mortals like myself and had come up out of darkness and suffering such as I was then undergoing. Well, to make a long story short, I finally acted on their advice and found that way, and you will not be surprised when I tell you that the way was through and by the Divine Love of the Father. I tell you this because I know, and all the speculations of philosophers and religionists cannot bear a feather's weight in the argument against my "know." Yes, I found this Love or rather it found me and now I am very happy.
I am in the third sphere and am trying my very hard for more faith and more Love, and I know that I will get it, because I have before me every moment living examples in those who have received it to a wonderful degree and are still receiving it and progressing.
As we in the long ago were old chums and thought a great deal of each other, I thought that you would be interested in knowing that I am happy and a redeemed child of the Father and on my way to spheres celestial.
Well, I will not write more tonight, but sometimes I should like to come and have a real heart to heart chat about old times, for though those are things of the past and not to be compared with what I have now in the way of experience, yet as you are on earth I feel that we might both enjoy talking over old times, because we used to have some happy times together.
So with all the old time friendship and love, and with a new love too, I will say goodnight.
Frank Davis