The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Psalm 31:19-20, “How great is Thy goodness, Which Thou hast stored up for those who fear Thee,

Which Thou hast wrought for those who take refuge in Thee, Before the sons of men!

20 Thou dost hide them in the secret place of Thy presence from the conspiracies of man;

Thou dost keep them secretly in a shelter from the strife of tongues.”

The Holy Scripture are literally filled to overflowing with the promises

of the LORD. For every dismal occasion of life, there are Living Words

in the Bible —words that refresh our spirits. None of these words, however,

are available to those who do not know the LORD. They live in fear. His

encouragements lie in a “secret place,” discoverable to His people when

they take refuge in Him. Back in 1833, a woman named Ellen Goreh, wrote

the following poem about that “secret place.” It’s worth your reading.

In the secret of His presence
How my soul delights to hide!
Oh, how precious are the lessons
Which I learn at Jesus’ side!
Earthly cares can never vex me,
Neither trials lay me low;
For when Satan comes to tempt me,
To the secret place I go.

When my soul is faint and thirsty,
’Neath the shadow of His wing
There is cool and pleasant shelter,
And a fresh and crystal spring;
And my Savior rests beside me,
As we hold communion sweet;
If I tried, I could not utter
What He says when thus we meet.

Only this I know: I tell Him
All my doubts and griefs and fears;
Oh, how patiently He listens!
And my drooping soul He cheers;
Do you think He ne’er reproves me?
What a false friend He would be,
If He never, never told me
Of the sins which He must see.

Would you like to know that sweetness
Of the secret of the Lord?
Go and hide beneath His shadow;
This shall then be your reward;
And whene’er you leave the silence
Of that happy meeting-place,
By the Spirit bear the image
Of the Master in your face.

Love to you all. as we pray for one another,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands,

Ephesians 5:1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children;

2 and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you, and gave Himself

up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.

There’s really nothing quite like a sweet-smelling perfume. Under

the right circumstances, we just r-e-l-a-x and enjoy it as if nothing

else mattered. But, it’s not always easy to smell good. I remember

a lady in a church I once pastored. She was a godly lady and

knew her Bible very well. We often talked about how much we

agreed on Scripture –but she smelled so! It was stifling!!! I had

trouble breathing when around her. That was the physical side.

Spiritually, she was a “fragrant aroma.” ~ We become that fragrant

aroma when we are imitators of God and live and walk in Him.

Someone has said that “cleanliness is next to godliness.” But I

say that if you’re not clean, you won’t be next to anyone for very

long. You all are very sweet. See that you stay that way. 🙂

We love you under all circumstances,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands,

Galatians 5:22-23, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,

longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance:

against such there is no law.”

I’ve always loved grapefruit! When we lived in Florida, we had a

grapefruit tree that produced abundant, luscious grapefruit! We had

another tree that should have produced apples, but it lacked something

and never provided what it was intended to provide. ~ Paul says that

the Holy Spirit produces fruit through us! Love is the principle aspect.

From love comes joy; and joy brings peace. When we’re at peace, we

are patient; when we’re patient, we’re kind and good. We have trust

in the LORD and those who are His. We also exercise self-control.

If you examine all of these attributes carefully, you will see that they

are precisely the attributes exhibited in the life of Jesus Christ. Don’t

settle for just being a tree –be a productive, spiritual, loving “grapefruit”

tree that benefits everyone around you and glorifies Jesus!

We praise the LORD for each and every one of you,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Faithful Grands,

Psalm 33:10-12, “The LORD nullifies the counsel of the nations;

He frustrates the plans of the peoples. 11 The counsel of the LORD

stands forever, The plans of His heart from generation to generation.

12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, The people whom

He has chosen for His own inheritance.”

Early in this Election cycle, I phoned Dr. Robert Jeffress, pastor of

First Baptist, Dallas, and asked his secretary if he truly believed Donald

Trump was a Christian. I repeated my question and used “born-again

Christian,” specifically. She said “Yes” to both questions. I am still in

doubt and only the LORD knows the truth. Yet, I cannot but recall

that the LORD used Pharaoh to His advantage, and Pharaoh was no

believer in God. ~ The Scripture above assures us that the LORD is

in control. Political polls are no better than the questions they ask.

It’s the “counsel of the LORD (that) stands forever.” God is never

caught by surprise. There is no doubt but that this election is

historically important! Trump may not be born-again. I have no

question, however, but that Hillary is not. My trust in in the LORD!

His ways are always perfect. Remember His Word: “Blessed is the

nation whose God is the LORD.”

Prayerfully and Lovingly yours,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands,

2 Corinthians 12:7-9, “And because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to buffet me– to keep me from exalting myself! 8 Concerning this I entreated the Lord three times that it might depart from me. 9 And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may dwell in me.”

It is my studied belief that Paul himself was the man to whom he referred as having

been “caught up to Paradise.” He could have been so proud! And he was tempted

to be just that; therefore, the LORD allowed Satan to affect his eyesight –at least,

that is what I believe. Paul prayed earnestly that the LORD would relieve him of this

impediment, but the LORD said that His grace was all Paul needed. Further, the LORD

added, “for (His) power is perfected in weakness.” Does that sound strange? It does

indeed.

You may have heard me tell about Al Blumell, a German friend we had in Australia. Al

was led to faith in Christ by a woman who stuttered. Imagine! Her speech was impeded,

but the LORD’s power was not. In fact, His power was perfected in her weakness.

Whatever the LORD accomplishes through us (weaknesses and all), is HIS achievement!

We should never be proud, as if it were our doing. It never is! He just chooses to use

us (weaknesses and all) to bring glory to Himself. ~ God bless you as you allow Him to

use you!

We love and cherish each one of you,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas