The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Luke 9:23-26, “And He was saying to them all, ‘If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.
24 ‘For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.
25 ‘For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself?
26 ‘For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.’”

How many times in your life have you been given a choice? You can come with me or you can go with with your mother. You can ride in the boat or you can walk over the bridge? Literally, scores of decisions lie before us each and every day. The discourse that preceded our verses above reveal that Jesus’ disciples believed Him to be “The Christ of God.” It was then, on that basis, that He offered the choice of following Him.

Yet, following Jesus is not as easy as it might sound at first. It requires an absolute denial of one’s own desires. In the simplest terms, denial means giving up what you want to do and doing only what the LORD directs you to do. To some, it’s a total career change from the start; to others, it’s a shift from what you are already doing. Often, it’s a reduction in the monetary income –income you thought you could not do without.

Following Jesus is the overall recognition that He is LORD and He is both able and willing to provide everything that will sustain your life and its needs. Moreover, it is a life and ministry that produces change in the lives of others; and it brings cumulative joy to your own life as well. How can you lose by following Him? Simply stated, you cannot! There will always be those whose worldly wealth is beyond counting. But, without Him, they are spiritual paupers. Their earthly wealth is nothing when measured by His wealth and His love. Choose Jesus! Yield your life to Him today! When the gold of the earth has caroded, His wealth and His love will remain. Think about it, carefully….

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
Springdale, Arkansas 72764
United States of America

“We never know that Christ is all we need until He becomes all that we have.” – Corrie ten Boom