Acts 21:14, “And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, ‘The will of the Lord be done!’”
Dear people from here and around the world have prayed for Rose Marie. We are so blessed to have so many friends –praying friends, friends who care. Yet, in the Providence of Almighty God, He has elected to take her. She has not left us yet –only deeply in sorrow at the thought.
She is receiving the very BEST of care at Circle of Life hospice. The doctors and nurses are “top notch,” loving and tender. I cannot describe how well she has been treated. We rejoice in that.
Your prayers and support have meant so much more than you could possibly know! Richard, Teri, Robert and I are so grateful.
Resurrection Sunday was an enormous time of praise and worship. Rose Marie’s room was filled to capacity with family and close friends. We sang and sang and sang the great hymns of the Faith! And when Teri leaned in and asked Mom if she could hear the singing, she nodded yes.
Her body is simply worn out. She has so many balancing issues that all of her doctors were nonplused. Yet, she witnessed to them when she was so ill. “I know the LORD Jesus Christ as my Savior,” she said; “and I am ready to meet Him.” Christian and non-Christian doctors and nurses were astoounded at her boldness, despite it being spoken between quick short breaths. What a girl I married!
Notification from Teri just came. She is ready to go and see Mom. More later….
God bless you! And thank you all for your faithful prayers.
2 Chronicles 7:6-7, “And the priests stood at their posts and the Levites, with the instruments of music to the LORD, which King David had made for giving praise to the LORD– “for His lovingkindness is everlasting “– whenever he gave praise by their means, while the priests on the other side blew trumpets; and all Israel was standing.”
Someone once wrote:
Music resonates within the human spirit. At the heart of humanity is a song of the soul.
The spiritual significance of music can transcend communities, cultures, and creeds.
Music continues to inspire spiritual expression as sound reflects and affects faith and values. Beliefs and perceptions will transcend the very nature of music and lyrics.
As modern and up-to-date as this quotation sounds, many years previous were the words of our Scripture above. Solomon was dedicating the Temple, and the priests and Levites stood in place with instruments of music which were dedicated to the LORD for His everlasting lovingkindness.
Such was experienced again today, when relatives and loved ones gathered around the
bedside of Rose Marie and sang praises to the LORD for His love and care for His faithful
servant. How long she will be with us, it is impossible to know. Occasionally, she opened her eyes and gave clear indication that she had heard and enjoyed the music. Indeed it
resonated within her human spirit. She was not blessed with great musical ability, but she
loves what emanates from those who are.
Moreover, she loves the LORD and immerses herself daily in serious prayer and Bible study. Having come to the LORD at age 16, she has walked with Him and spoken to others about Him for 70 years. Now, she comforts herself in the fact that she is soon to meet Him.
Face to face with Christ, my Savior,
Face to face—what will it be,
When with rapture I behold Him,
Jesus Christ who died for me?
Face to face I shall behold Him,
Far beyond the starry sky;
Face to face in all His glory,
I shall see Him by and by!
Our entire family dearly loves you. We have been blindsided by what has been thrust upon us! Yet, it is a situation of fact that comes ultimately to everyone. While we grieve, we do not see ourselves as any less deserving than many families. We simply solicit your earnest prayers for the comfort of our Heavenly Father. And may God bless you abundantly!
Romans 6:8-10, ‘Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him,
9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him.
10 For the death that He died, He died to sin, once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.”
Death is never easy for those who are left behind. Yet, there is a death that leads to death, and a death that leads to life. Paul understood precisely what he meant when he wrote the three verses above. The Romans to whom he addressed this letter and had died to themselves and to the world about them, Paul could confirm that they would live forever with Christ.
Furthermore, he affirmed that they would never die again. Christ died but once and He arose from the dead. If we trustfully believe in Him, we will die but once. If, however, we give superficial acknowledgement to Christ and have never truly trusted in Him, we will die physically and spiritually and be forever without hope.
A medical worker said to me, “I believe there’s someone somewhere who started all of this,” (meaning the universe). That worker, scientist, healer of physical ills is going to make it to physical death in this life. If, however, that medical worker were to trust in Jesus Christ,
the way of Eternal Life lies paved before him.
Rose Marie’s hospitalizations provided scores of opportunities to witness for Jesus Christ. Those to whom we witnessed were either outspoken believers or silent unbelievers. The
Gospel tract that I handed to each one was received as if I had given them a solid gold watch!
It’s the same as this Letter. I cannot guarantee that any of you will read and devour the truths it contains. What I do know is that we have reached out to you with the Truth of the
LORD’s Word. It is the Holy Spirit who initiated the outreach, and it is the Holy Spirit who stirs the hearts of unbelievers to accept Christ as their LORD and Savior.
Attached to this Letter is an artistic drawing that says “The Wages of sin is DEATH.” Now, turn the drawing upside down and read “The Gift of God is Eternal LIFE.” A simple turn of the drawing changes everything! And a simple trust in the Savior changes everything, too.
Where are you: Lost or Saved? If you’re lost, you only need to repent (ask God’s forgiveness). If your saved, you need to listen to the Holy Spirit as He leads you to share Christ with others (witness). Start living your life to the glory of Almighty God!
Nana & Dado III
(Rose Marie & Gene)
P. S. Rose Marie is now resting comfortably in the Circle of Life Hospice. This was the place she
personally elected as a wayside resting place on the way to Heavenly Glory! I will not say
that this has been easy. It is the most excruciating experience of my entire 83 years! Yet,
I rest in the reality of personl faith in Jesus Christ as her LORD and Savior. Furthermore,
her hospice doctor is a Christian friend of our doctor son. The LORD is in control.
Luke 24:6-9, “’He is not here, but He has risen. Remember how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee,
7 saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’
8 And they remembered His words,
9 and returned from the tomb and reported all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.”
It’s somewhat easy to state something, being able to prove it is something else. Our LORD Jesus was crucified and buried; but on the third day He arose from the grave never to die again. What proofs do we have? Check out the following:
PROOFS OF
THE RESURRECTION
OF JESUS CHRIST
I. Jesus’ body was not stolen!
1. Jesus’ enemies would not have stolen His body because that have propagated the very prediction that He would rise from the dead.
2. Jesus’ disciples could not have stolen His body because Pilate established Roman guards to stand watch over the tomb lest His body be stolen.
(1) Ironically, many of Jesus’ disciples were not fully convinced of His Resurrection itself.
(2) The very character and the later history of the disciples compels us to believe that they neither stole nor secretly carried away the body of Jesus.
II. In nearly 20 centuries, no body –except the Resurrected body of Jesus Christ– was ever found. Thus, the evidence needed to disprove Christ’s prophecy is missing.
III. The mathematical probability of anyone being able to perpetrate any hoax –especially concerning Christ’s Resurrection– over 20 centuries is astronomically negative!
IV. The prophecy prediction record of the Old Testament is 100 percent accurate!
V. Notice that the chief priests and the elders never questioned whether the tomb was empty. There is no record anywhere that they even questioned whether the guards’ report were true. They knew is was true!
VI. Notice that the soldiers were told to say that Jesus’ disciples came and stole the body away while they (the soldiers) were asleep! How could they have known what was going on if they were asleep?
VII. The leaders of Judaism in Jerusalem, who had put the LORD Jesus to death, had nothing to offer to contradict these disciples as they continued to preach Jesus and His Resurrection– because all Jerusalem knew the tomb was empty. If there had been trickery involved, sooner or later it would have been suspected, then proven.
VIII. Had fraud occurred, surely one of the disciples, even most of them, would have confessed it under the horrendous persecution they underwent. It may be possible to live a lie, but men seldom die for a lie –and most of these men died for what they believed.
IX. The result ultimately would have been that the message that Christ had risen would have suffered the fate of all such unfounded stories– it would have lost its power. Instead, this truth has swept the world, closed pagan temples, won millions of disciples, brought hope to a despairing humanity, was the very foundation truth of the early Church, and is as freshly glorious as ever!
X. But not only did Jesus come alive again, He did not disappear to leave the disciples speculating through all the subsequent days as to what had happened to Him. Instead, He appeared to them literally, visibly, frequently and in bodily form –to more than 500 believers following His Resurrection from the dead.
Approaching now nearly 65 years in the Christian ministry, it has been my observation that those who persist in denying the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, are in the grip of some personal sin which they are unwilling to surrender in order to lay hold of Christ. As with physical survival, it is in the nature of man to embrace hope, not to disparage or deny it. Thus, when men engage in unmitigated attacks upon the only One who offers true hope to all mankind, it is undeniable proof both of man’s own decadence and of his love of sin.
We love you and continue to pray for you,
Nana & Dado III
(Rose Marie & Gene)
P. S. Belief in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ enables me to say my dear, sweet, loving wife
of just shy of 64 years, has suffered irreparable health problems that is taking her from
me and from this earthly life. Totally unforseen, she had just been discharged from
hospital with pneumonia, when it became necessary to rush her to the Emergency Room
the following day. Her problems are too numerous to list here. I can only say that I need
your prayers as she enters Circle of Life Hospice tomorrow. This was her decision, as she
said, “We’re coming close to the end.” Her witness to doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists
cleaning ladies and all was endless. “I know the LORD Jesus Christ as my Savior; I know
where I’m going,” she said, as she pointed upward. May her tribe increase!
Matthew 28:1-8, Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave.
2 And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it.
3 And his appearance was like lightning, and his garment as white as snow;
4 and the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men.
5 And the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified.
6 “He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.
7 “And go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going before you into Galilee, there you will see Him; behold, I have told you.”
8 And they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples.”
For centuries the Nation of Israel had awaited her Deliverer! Now that He had come, Israel was faced with two monumental decisions: she must conform to Him as the Messiah, or she must contend with Him. Unfortunately, Israel chose the wrong alternative! Jesus was crucified at the hands of Gentiles, and through the promotion of the Jewish religious leaders….
First, hear the angelic annunciation: “He is not here…” (vv. 5-6). This announcement is important because of its implication of His past presence. They disciples as well as the angels knew He had been there (Mat 27:59ff).
“And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in
his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock; and he rolled a large
stone against the entrance of the tomb and went away. And Mary Magdalene
was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the grave.”
At the same time, there is affirmation of His absence from that very place. It was a place of the dead. The angels asked the women, “Why do you seek the Living One among the dead” (Lk. 24:5), when Christ is the God of the living? Jesus said of Himself, “‘I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me shall live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die” (Jn 11:25-26).
All of this is true, and it is of supreme value! Jesus made us to live; sin invaded us with death. Don’t spend your time with devilish things! Don’t allow the world’s ways to invade and take over your life! To do that is to spend your life in a well manicured graveyard.
Jesus arose from the grave, and so must you. He did it to save you from your sins. You
must accept Him in order to live with Him forever in Heaven. And while we are still on this Earth, we are responsible to tell others of His saving grace! Let’s get to it!
Nana & Dado III
(Rose Marie & Gene)
P. S. Rose Marie was moved out of ICU into another unit of less intensive care. It is a step in
the right direction, yet there are still some serious aspects of her care of which the doctors
are aware. The doctors need your prayers, too. God bless you for your prayerful concern.
