The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Genesis 15:1-6, “After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, ‘Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you; Your reward shall be very great.’
2 Abram said, ‘O Lord GOD, what will You give me, since I am childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?’
3 And Abram said, ‘Since You have given no offspring to me, one born in my house is my heir.’
4 Then behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, ‘This man will not be your heir; but one who will come forth from your own body, he shall be your heir.’
5 And He took him outside and said, ‘Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.’ And He said to him, ‘So shall your descendants be.’
6 Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as
righteousness.”

Have you ever met someone who was presented with a nice gift, yet behaved as if it were less worthy than the one who had given it? Let’s say you had a rich friend, known throughout the entire area as one who possessed more than anyone could count. But when the gift he gave was opened, anticipating faces suddenly turned to a gloomy disappointment.

Gifts are the business of the giver. This makes us critical of Abram; for in the passage above, he seemed like a small child, whimpering over the lack of an heir. Yet, the gift he was given was less than he expected.

Has that ever happened to you? You wanted a bicycle –but you were given little hand toys that buzzed when you tossed them gently into the air.

The promise of the LORD, however less than Abram expected, was surely more than he was worth –at least, at that time. Abram was concerned that he had no family, so he whimpered until the LORD revealed how extensive His promise to Abram actually was!

The psalmist says: “Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. 4 Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way
to the LORD, trust also in Him, and He will do it. 6 He will bring
forth your righteousness as the light and your judgment as the
noonday” (Psalm 37:3-6). Just trust Him and see!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

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

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