The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Psalm 123:1-2, “To Thee I lift up my eyes,

O Thou who art enthroned in the heavens!

2 Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master,

As the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress;

So our eyes look to the LORD our God,

Until He shall be gracious to us.”

We all have troubles from time-to-time. Our troubles

are not always the same as other’s. If our car does not

start, we look to a mechanic to fix it. If our house is on

fire, we look to firemen to extinguish it. If we are sick,

seek out a doctor. In a sense, each of these is a “first

responder.” But are they really? Oh, they respond,

but are they our first responder? Better put, should

they be our first responder?

The psalmist says, “…our eyes look to the LORD our God.”

Our eyes, our thoughts, don’t always look first to the LORD;

but they should because the promise is “He shall be gracious

to us.” The word “until” tells us that He has not forgotten our

cry. Our circumstances, as bad as they are, will not always

imprison us. He will come to our rescue! But we must

trust Him without doubting. What is there that God cannot

do? Didn’t you trust Him once? Why not trust Him again?

We love you and pray for you daily,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Psalm 90:10, 12, “As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years,

Or if due to strength, eighty years, Yet their pride is but labor and sorrow;

For soon it is gone and we fly away…

12 So teach us to number our days, That we may apply our hearts

unto wisdom.”

Did you ever think that you were wasting away your very life?

I never ever thought of life that way until I reached my current age.

As you get older, you will look back upon your life. You will think

more intelligently. You will evaluate time more importantly. The

problem is: time has slipped by; and those things that you once

thought were so important make you laugh at how stupid you

were to once value them.

There is, I guess, some comfort in knowing that I was not

the only one who valued silly things. Still, they were foolish

things and the opportunity to redeem the time has long passed.

The psalmist looked back over his life and undoubtedly saw

Mistakes he had made. The wisdom he possesses in his old

age, he now passes on to us for consideration: “Teach us

to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto

wisdom.”

Robert Dick Wilson looked at the lives of his ancestors and

estimated how many days he had to live. He then divided the

time into learning, application, and writing. He studied biblical

languages, what they truly meant in Scripture, and then wrote

down what he had learned. His plan was wise; his life was

full; his words were left to inspire those who would follow him.

What are you doing with your life?

We continue to pray for each of you,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Psalm 86:11-13, “Teach me Thy way, O LORD; I will walk in Thy truth;

Unite my heart to fear Thy name.

12 I will give thanks to Thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart,

And will glorify Thy name forever.

13 For Thy lovingkindness toward me is great,

And Thou hast delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.”

Exactly where David was in his spiritual journey with the LORD,

we do not know. What we do know is that he was teachable.

He allows that he does not know it all, and he promises that

He will abide by what the LORD tells him. David also admits

that his heart is often divided. “Unite my heart,” he says.

We know how that is. We desire to do something that we

know is wrong; but, simultaneously, we desire to do the LORD’s

will. Sometimes we seek to justify doing wrong, telling ourselves

that we can use that “wrong” to do good. That never works.

David promises “to walk in” God’s truth; he promises to
“give thanks” to the LORD and “to glorify (His) Name forever.”

What a challenge that is to us!! God’s love for us is overwhelming!

His lovingkindness is indescribably supreme! And His salvation

has guaranteed us a place with Him in Eternity. Have we learned

something of how great God is? Then, we should praise Him forever!

We love you, but not as fervently as the LORD does,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Psalm 73:25-26, “Whom have I in heaven but Thee?

And besides Thee, I desire nothing on earth.

26 My flesh and my heart may fail,

But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

I spoke yesterday with the widow of a dear and close friend.

I had delayed phoning her, not knowing of her demeanor

after their long life together. I need not have worried. She

virtually voiced the comfort of the psalmist, whose rest lay

clearly in the LORD. “Whom have I in Heaven but Thee?”

When we are young, our plans and desires center largely

on earthly “things.” But as life races by –and it does!—

our thoughts move Heavenward. Our flesh and hearts

may fail, but God is more and more our strength and focus.

No, I am far from morbid. I’m not-at-all focused on death.

Death is negative. In some ways, it’s even selfish. Yet, we

dare not omit it completely from our ultimate thoughts.

Our LORD is there; loved ones are there. But while we

await that journey, we are to focus on Christ’s Coming,

the Rapture of all believers and share His Gospel whereby

others may be caught up with us on that Glorious Day!

You are in our daily prayers! We love you desperately!

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Psalm 69:13-15, “But as for me, my prayer is to Thee, O LORD,

at an acceptable time; O God, in the greatness of Thy lovingkindness,

Answer me with Thy saving truth. 14 Deliver me from the mire, and do

not let me sink; May I be delivered from my foes, and from the deep

waters. 15 May the flood of water not overflow me, And may the deep

not swallow me up, And may the pit not shut its mouth on me.”

The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 15:4, “For whatever was written in

earlier times was written for our instruction, that through perseverance

and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”

It is because of Paul’s word that I can see an application of our verses

In Psalm 69 to our nation’s situation today. The Charlottesville situation

severely divided our nation. The liberal media again worked against us

and we were in turmoil. Then “Harvey,” the greatest storm in our nation’s

history, literally “turned the tide.” The melee and commotion of Charlottesville

was buried in “Harvey.” I believe the LORD allowed “Harvey” in order to take

our national mind off of Charlottesville. And the prayers of His people

produced even news anchors to speak openly of God, as if they were

Christians.

I am always impressed with Franklin Graham’s prayers, but when Vice

President Pence (a truly born-again believer) called on his wife, Karen, to

pray in Rockport, Texas, I was emotionally moved! Nor was I alone. The

Good LORD has placed some (perhaps, more than we know) of His people

in government “for such a time as this.” Now, we must turn from our sin and

our cynicism, and truly trust Him. We have an “opening” to speak to others

about Jesus, just as we did when a Billy Graham Crusade came to our area.

We dare not miss the opportunities the LORD has given us!

May the LORD strengthen and bless you, is our prayer,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”