The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

2 Chronicles 14:8-12, “Now Asa had an army of 300,000 from Judah, bearing large shields and spears, and 280,000 from

Benjamin, bearing shields and wielding bows; all of them were valiant warriors.

9 Now Zerah the Ethiopian came out against them with an army of a million men and 300 chariots, and he came to

Mareshah.

10 So Asa went out to meet him, and they drew up in battle formation in the valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.

11 Then Asa called to the LORD his God, and said, ‘LORD, there is no one besides Thee to help in the battle between the

powerful and those who have no strength; so help us, O LORD our God, for we trust in Thee, and in Thy name have come

against this multitude. O LORD, Thou art our God; let not man prevail against Thee.’

12 So the LORD routed the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled.”

Have you ever felt helpless? I mean really helpless! I can recall that felling as if it were yesterday. My late wife had been ill for many months. Her doctor was a true Christian, and he had done everything possible to remedy her physical difficulty. Then one day, he looked squarely at me and said, “I just don’t know what else I can do for her.” My heart “sank,” as it were, because I knew exactly what he meant: the likelihood of her survival was in serious doubt.

In ou verse above, Asa came to battle with 580,000 strong, valiant men; but, Zerah, his opponent, had 1,000,000 men! To say it looked bleak and helpless is an understatement beyond words! Whatever Asa “felt” within himself, we are not told. He was courageous, and forged ahead toward his opposition. But, as he stood steadfast, he prayed –

LORD, there is no one besides Thee to help in the battle between the powerful and

those who have no strength; so help us, O LORD our God, for we trust in Thee, and

in Thy name have come against this multitude. O LORD, Thou art our God; let not

man prevail against Thee.

Today, we face a worldwide crisis of an invisible virus that numbers far greater than the army Asa faced. We have human experts that weild medical swords against our unseen enemy. We ourselves have no strength or knowledge to oppose this enemy. What are we to do? The answer is simple: do as Asa did. Trust LORD, but don’t run from the battle.

We trust in Thee, and in Thy Name have come against this multitude,

O LORD, Thou art our God; let not man prevail against Thee.

Asa didn’t start the confrontation. Zerah did. But Asa trusted in the LORD over and above his 580,000 men. His trust in the LORD brought the LORD into the battle. Now, the Name of the LORD God was at stake! The battle opponents had shifted. Zerah and his million men were now facing Almighty God. Dear reader, that is precisely what we need to do in every instance of human endeavor.

We are not to shirk at the coronavirus. We are to fact it squarely with the weapons we have. But, over and above all, we must trust the LORD! He delights in blessing His children in every situation. We are to trust Him; He is to fight for us. At that point, it’s all over!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

2 Chronicles 7:12-15, “Then the LORD appeared to Solomon at night and said to him, ‘I have heard your prayer, and have chosen

this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice.

13 “’If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My

people,

14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray, and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then

I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

15 “’Now My eyes shall be open and My ears attentive to the prayer offered in this place.’”

Sometime ago, when the Arkansas Razorbacks (university) football team wasn’t doing so well, I used to tease the principle of Shiloh

Christian School (elementary to high school), saying that Shiloh Christian should challenge the Razorbacks to a game. Of course, it

never happened. Yet, had such an obvious imbalance ever occurred, one thing was certain: the referee would do the coin toss at the

beginning of the game. Why is that necessary? Because there is to be a “balance” for the teams, regardless of which seemed the

greater.

Something like that occurred after Solomon prayed to the LORD. The LORD appeared and said that He had heard the king’s prayer.

There was no immediate threat from the LORD when He said, “If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain…” He was merely saying that should there ever be a shortage of rain on the fields or locusts devouring the grain or a plague of any kind, it would be due to a sin among the people. Certainly, Solomon could not have known every sin the people committed because there were so many people.

Were sin to occur, however, the LORD would bring devastation upon the people. Nothing was accidental. What then were the people

to do? Four distinct things would bring things right again. First, they were to humble themselves before the LORD. Humility goes a long

way in solving any indiscrete practice. The man who misuses his machine, so that it dies, does well in extricating himself by going

immediately to his boss. So it is with man and God. Second, they were to pray, petitioning the LORD for forgiveness, much like the man going to his boss on his own behalf.

Third, they were to seek the face of God. That is, they were to so appeal to Him that He would not turn His back on them. They wanted

to see His face. When we’re guilty of wrong, we don’t want to face the one we have wronged –unless, we are seeking forgiveness.

Fourth, they are turn from their wicked ways. A child confesses a wrong doing to his parent. The parent faces the child and listens to

His plea. Then the parent says, “I’ll forgive you this time; but don’t let it happen again.” That’s what we want to hear from God when

we’ve done wrong in His sight.

But, where’s all of that “balance” mentioned in the beginning. Ah, here it comes! The LORD promises to 1) hear from Heaven; 2) to forgive mankind’s sin; 3) to heal (restore) the land. There’s a saying that says, “There’s no free lunch.” If we want the blessing of

Almighty God, we have to give up our sin! Sin displeases God! And we want His face and not His back. There’s no time like the

present. Get balanced with the LORD! He is Love and wants to bless and reward His children. We just have to learn to obey!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

P. S. Notice the attachment and pray for our Nation’s Leadership! The LORD is hearing our prayers!

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

2 Chronicles 6:28-31, “’If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence, if there is blight or mildew, if there is locust or grasshopper,

if their enemies besiege them in the land of their cities, whatever plague or whatever sickness there is,

29 whatever prayer or supplication is made by any man or by all Thy people Israel, each knowing his own affliction and his own pain,

and spreading his hands toward this house,

30 then hear Thou from heaven Thy dwelling place, and forgive, and render to each according to all his ways, whose heart Thou

knowest for Thou alone dost know the hearts of the sons of men,

31 that they may fear Thee, to walk in Thy ways as long as they live in the land which Thou hast given to our fathers.’”

There is no, possible method available to determine the accuracy of this statement; however, I am confident that more people throughout the world have invested more heavily in PRAYER than perhaps in more than a generation!

I have never read the Chronicles of the Old Testament quite like I am reading it today. Solomon was asked by the LORD, “What

would you like Me to give you?” The whole world and all of its riches were before him; he only had to ask. In his boyish acumen,

he asked for wisdom from the LORD. And wisdom he received –along with riches of all kinds and wealth untold! In his initial, public

prayer in the presence of his people, King Solomon exhibited the LORD’s gift of wisdom.

It might be too much of a stretch for us to declare this Solomonic prayer a prophecy of things to come in our own day; yet, he touches

upon our needs as he inculcates the variety of “enemies” we face today: famine, pestilences, plagues, sicknesses– all causing pain throughout the land. Then, in absolute reverence, the king uplifted his hands receptively toward the LORD Almighty and appealed to

Him to hear his solemn prayer. Forgive and render “to each according to all his ways,” because You alone know what lies in the hearts of all mankind. May they reverence You,” he prayed, “and walk in Your ways as long as they live…”

That says it all. I can only add, “May it be so, LORD Jesus! May we connect with You in earnest prayer, and learn the joys of current,

daily fellowship in love with our Creator, Savior, and LORD!”

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

P. S. If you find this Letter helpful, please feel free to share it with others.

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Ephesians 1:1-4, “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints who are at Ephesus, and who are faithful in

Christ Jesus:

2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places

in Christ,

4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him.”

Ephesus, in the time of Paul, was the second largest city in the Roman Empire. Ephesus was a city of about 250,000 people, and was known, among other things, for its famous Temple of Diana (Artemis). Paul had been there and indeed there were true Christians in the city. It was to them that the apostle said, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the LORD Jesus Christ.”

You’ve doubtlessly heard grace described as “God’s Redemption At Christ’s Expense.” Peace is the confidence of God’s love. The two little words “to you” are in Greek known as the dative (case) of advantage. Grace is to our advantage because without our LORD’s love there would be no redemption of mankind from sin.

Paul goes further to say that through salvation, God has “blessed us with every spiritual blessing” that is currently housed in Christ in the heavenlies. Just pause and think about that for a moment. If the LORD were to ask you to name the one thing you would like more than any other, what would you say? WAIT!!! Don’t ask yet! Think for a moment. (Hint: remember Solomon? The LORD asked him that very thing. What did Solomon say? Do you remember? He asked for wisdom. [2 Chron 1:7-12]) Is that what you would say if the LORD asked you? I wonder….

Paul also says that the LORD “chose us in Him (Christ)…that we should be holy and blameless before Him.” Holy means sacred; blameless carries the idea of “above reproach.” Just as godly parents didn’t produce children so they could be drug addicts and tear down the family name, God didn’t save us so we could bring reproach on His Name! The best way to destroy the goddess Artemis is not to smash and tear down her pagan image; rather, it is simply to win Ephesians to faith in Christ. Ultimately, Artemis will disappear.

But if Christian lives are no different from what their pagan lives were before meeting Christ, Christ has effectively been brought down to the level of a pagan god.

Now, let’s put the question again: “If the LORD were to ask you to name the one thing you would like more than any other, what would you say?” I’m praying for you daily. Please pray for me.

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

P. S. All politics aside, our President and Vice President live under unimaginable pressure every day! It is our Christian duty to pray for those

who are in authority over us. I live under some pressure. You do, too; but none of us knows the pressure of a president.

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

1 Chronicles 20:5-8, “And there was war with the Philistines again, and Elhanan the son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath the

Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.

6 And again there was war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature who had twenty-four fingers and toes, six fingers on each

hand and six toes on each foot; and he also was descended from the giants.

7 And when he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea, David’s brother, killed him.

8 These were descended from the giants in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants. (1 Chr. 20:5-8

NAS).

Before basketball gave way to cancellation, I saw some interesting games on television. On more than one occasion, I saw teams

trail by 10 or more points in the mid-to-late minutes of the second half only to then come back to beat their opponent. Those were really

thrillers! It gives new meaning to the old saying, “It’s not over until it’s over.”

If there is humor in Heaven, I’d like to chide David just a little –not because he killed Goliath, but because he failed to kill Goliath’s brother, Lahmi. But, I’d have to be careful because Shimea, David’s brother, killed a giant of Gath, who had six toes on each foot and

six fingers on each hand. He might overhear our conversation.

The point of these verses above is this: No matter what evil comes against you, it is erasable if you trust the LORD. Further, no matter

how many evils you erase by faith in the LORD, there will always be another that is set to infiltrate your life. We never completely get rid of evil; yet, at the same time, we always have the LORD as our sword and our shield from evil.

I’ve often heard preachers tell of instances when they battled evil and won. (I should probably include myself in this group, as I’m as

susceptible to pride as anyone.) Yet, when you hear men brag about how they conquered this or that, just remember the Scripture that says, “Pride goes before destruction; and an haughty spirit before a fall” (Prov. 16:18 KJV). Sometimes men (and women) speak

as if their sin were all in the past; when in reality, they are still caught up and entangled in it.

Jesus said, “But let your statement be, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; and anything beyond these is of evil” (Matt. 5:37 NAS).

It is possible for a team to win in the final seconds of the game. It is also possible for a believer (even a preacher) to overcome evil in

his own life. But it is never due to his own initiative! It is the LORD who died for our sins; and it is He who wrestles with sin in our lives

and it is He who ultimately conquers it. We just need to stop feeding the wrong and allow the LORD to do His work in our lives!

Think about this as we move toward the Crucifixion and Resurrection remembrance days.

Jesus paid it all;

All to Him I owe;

Sin had left a crimson stain,

He washed it white as snow.

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”