The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Mark 14:32-36, “And they came to a place named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, ‘Sit here until I have prayed.’ 33 And He took with Him Peter and James and John, and began to be very distressed and troubled. 34 And He said to them, ‘My soul is deeply grieved to the point of death; remain here and keep watch.’ 35 And He went a little beyond them, and fell to the ground, and began to pray that if it were possible, the hour might pass Him by.

36 And He was saying, ‘Abba! Father! All things are possible for Thee; remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what Thou wilt.’”

Some things are worse than death. It may not seem so with us, but it was so with Jesus.

No one in Scripture prayed more often or more fervently than Jesus. It might seem that

He needed less to pray than anyone else because He was the Son of God, but He did not

see it that way. We, too, might assume that because we have accepted Him, prayer is not

so necessary to us as to the lost, who desperately need His saving grace. But, the responsibility

for praying is, nevertheless, laid heavily upon us.

Two things are to be observed in Jesus’ prayer: first, He prayed that “if it were possible, the

hour might pass Him by”; and second, that the cup might be removed from Him. Let us be

very clear. Jesus was not afraid to die. He understood completely that He would be raised

to life again, even after death. Let me suggest that Jesus’ prayer for the removal of the cup

was that He did not want to be made sin. From death, He did not recoil. But from sin, He

did! Strangely enough, it is the other way with us. We recoil from death, but not from sin.

May He encourage us to seek only that which is glorifying to Him!

We pray for you; please pray for us –especially, for Nana!

Heartily in Christ,

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,

Mark 13:5-9, “And Jesus began to say to them, ‘See to it that no one misleads you.

6 Many will come in My name, saying, “I am He”’ and will mislead many.

7 “And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be frightened; those things

must take place; but that is not yet the end.

8 “For nation will arise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be

earthquakes in various places; there will also be famines. These things are merely the beginning of birth pangs. 9 “But be on your guard; for they will deliver you to the courts,

and you will be flogged in the synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings

for My sake, as a testimony to them.’”

One of the misfortunes of my youth was being under the preaching of men who

never understood prophecy. Believe it or not, Nana introduced me to what the

Bible says about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Her pastor, and later my

mentor, Dr. Earl L. Pounds, introduced her to that biblical teaching. There are still

multiple, well-meaning pastors who never mention the Second Coming. And there

are those who do, who know nothing about it, except what some other preacher

has compiled in a book. I even have a list of men who managed to convince some

people that they were Jesus! Imagine!

Further, you cannot view and hear news today without hearing of wars and

turmoil throughout the world. Jesus warned us: “be on your guard.” Some godly

men, who know and preach the truth, are being held in the prisons of godless

nations simply because they are followers of Jesus Christ. Some are put to death.

The godly “will stand before governors and kings for (Jesus’) sake, as a testimony

to them.” We are not imprisoned –except for our fears—fears of what others

will say about us, or fears of not being able to answer the questions of the ungodly.

Olympians train for years simply to win a medal. How much more important it is

for us to train to win the lost to Jesus Christ! Medals can be destroyed. Our witness

of Him will never be destroyed! We don’t all witness in the same way, but we are all responsible to witness. The Holy Spirit is the One who brings them to faith in Jesus!

We love and pray for you daily,

Nana & Dado III

UPDATE: Nana’s procedure went well. She is now home

recuperating. Thank you so much for your prayers.

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,

Mark 12:41-44, “And He sat down opposite the treasury, and began observing how the multitude were putting money into the treasury; and many rich people were putting in large sums.

42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amount to a cent.

43 And calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury;

44 for they all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on.”

It’s difficult to open email or view television today without being besieged for money!

Give! Give! they cry. It’s only $19 a month! That’s only 63 cents a day! The portrayal of poor, unfortunate kids simply tugs at your heart! Often, however, things are not quite like they appear.

I learned in India of a man who enlisted a number of young people, gave them bicycles and Bibles and had them pose for a picture. They were touted as the man’s “evangelistic team” that was going out to share the Gospel. Once the picture was taken, the Bibles and bicycles were confiscated, and the kids disappeared into the crowd. The picture, however, was used to raise money from unsuspecting victims.

Jesus watched carefully as people, rich and poor, gave money to the Temple treasury.

As the Scripture says, “…many rich people were putting in large sums.” But a poor

I remember reading this as a kid. I knew the Bible was true and that Jesus did not lie,

but I couldn’t figure out how the widow gave “more” than the rich men. But, she did.

She gave everything she had! And there was absolutely nothing left for food.

This Letter is not a plea for you to give more to your church. It simply says that you

cannot out-give God! Further, while we ought to give money to the LORD’s work, He

wants us more than He wants anything that we possess. Is your life committed to

Him? Are you giving your time and your talents to Him? Do you want Him to notice

you and bless your life? Yield it all to Him! Like the poor widow, you will be noticed

and blessed by the Savior.

Our prayers of love and concern continue for you.

Please pray for Nana as she has her heart procedure today.

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,

Mark 11:1-9, “And as they approached Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples,

2 and said to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here.

3 “And if anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ you say, ‘The Lord has need of it’; and immediately he will send it back here.”

4 And they went away and found a colt tied at the door outside in the street; and they untied it. 5 And some of the bystanders were saying to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6 And they spoke to them just as Jesus had told them, and they gave them permission. 7 And they brought the colt to Jesus and put their garments on it; and He sat upon it. 8 And many spread their garments in the road, and others spread leafy branches which they had cut from the fields. 9 And those who went before, and those who followed after, were crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord…”

Many were the miracles of our LORD Jesus! These verses concern His Triumphal Entry

into Jerusalem. Kings rode colts in those days, and Jesus is identifying Himself as King. All of this I understood for many years, but the word “Hosanna” mystified me. I came to

understand it from a Jewish believer, and see it to have been the key to their deliverance and to ours. Hosanna means “LORD, help us!” It was the cry of the Jewish nation for

deliverance from the horrendous troubles they faced. And He is the only key to our deliverance today!

This week on national news a college professor reminded us that in the 1960s, our

Supreme Court ruled against prayer and Bible reading in our public schools. From that time, our nation has taken a downward turn, inflicting devastation of multiple sorts on us. What are we to do? The best of our political leaders seem not to know. But the Book our court snatched from the hands of our schoolkids, have left them –and us!—with the turmoil we have today. Is it too late for a turn-around? God only knows. I was heartened to hear the President include Scripture in a recent address to the nation. From all accounts (and I have sought several), our President is a born-again man. Not everything he says utilizes words I would use, but I’m sure I have done things that were not acceptable to the LORD. Still, the President can only accomplish what the LORD allows him to accomplish. Be prayerful for our nation! Be careful to live like a born-again believer! Read the Word for instruction! Listen to the Holy Spirit who indwells you! Hosanna!

May your and our daily prayers affect our nation,

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,

Philippians 2:5-11, “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,

6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

9 Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

What is your name? You’ve probably been asked that many times. And you’ve

replied by stating your name for the inquirer. Names have meanings, although

in more recent times, less thought has been given to the meaning than to the

sound. I researched the meaning of some names – names of our grandsons.

Jonathan means “God’s gift”; Richard, “Rich and powerful”; Jeffrey, “Peaceful”;

Matthew, “Gift of God”; Robert, “Bright; famous,” and Christopher, “Christ-bearer.”

No doubt some would attach a significance to the persons of these names. Yet,

there is one name that out-ranks all of them: Jesus, “Messiah, Savior, LORD.”

Paul writes that someday “every knee would bow” before Him. To bow before

someone is to acknowledge their superiority. It is to say, “I am bowing to you

because you are greater than I.” Paul further states that on that day every knee

would bow: those “in Heaven, and on Earth, and under the Earth…” On the Day

of Judgment those already in Heaven, those who are alive on Earth, and those

who are dead and in Hell –all will bow before the LORD Jesus Christ and acknowledge Him as Supreme! And in this solemn act, the Father will be glorified.

Think about that. If we are to bow before Him then, should we not bow before

Him now? Bowing before Him is an open acknowledgement to all people that He

is in control of our lives now. Baptism is such an acknowledgement. It says to all

observers (and more) that we are dead to ourselves –our desires, our way and

purpose in life—and have been raised alive only for His glory! Parents (and grand-

parents) glory in children who mirror the LORD in their lives. How much more

does the LORD glory in those who look like Him and live that others may see Him

reflected in their lives.

Our prayers are that your life will always reflect that of Christ Jesus,

Nana & Dado III

NOTE: Nana starts her shots today in preparation for

her heart catherization on Wednesday. Please

pray for a good resolution to her problem.

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”