The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Genesis 1:1-5, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

2 And the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of
the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.

3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.

4 And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the
darkness.

5 And God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there
was evening and there was morning, one day.”

With the commencement of the year A.D. 2025, it seems appropriate that we
start with the first verses of our LORD’s instructive words: “In the
beginning.” Isn’t that where we each started? Didn’t we each have a
beginning? You may not remember it, but you had one!

Your parents instructed you in the “to do” and “not to do” lists of life.
They also held you accountable for your behavior in both designated areas.
But, why would they do that? Could it be that they believed that the passage
above (and countless other passages they would ultimately thrust before you)
were invaluable to your living a life that would be pleasing both to
themselves and to the LORD?

God is the Creator! Everything that we can see, and everything that is
hidden from sight, are His creation. “Hidden” is the exact word because
until God said, “Let there be light.,” nothing of any aspects of His
creation could be adequately viewed. Man himself had not been created. Thus,
His creation in apposition to darkness, He called Light.

Summarily, the LORD created mankind, male and female. And for a time, they
lived wholesome lives. But there were and are obstacles coming.

Heartily in Christ,

(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

Dear Grands,

Deuteronomy 1:1-11, “These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel
across the Jordan in the wilderness, in the Arabah opposite Suph, between
Paran and Tophel and Laban and Hazeroth and Dizahab.

2 It is eleven days’ journey from Horeb by the way of Mount Seir to
Kadesh-barnea.

3 And it came about in the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh
month, that Moses spoke to the children of Israel, according to all that the
LORD had commanded him to give to them,

4 after he had defeated Sihon the king of the Amorites, who lived in
Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, who lived in Ashtaroth and Edrei.

5 Across the Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses undertook to expound this
law, saying,

6 “The LORD our God spoke to us at Horeb, saying, ‘You have stayed long
enough at this mountain.

7 ‘Turn and set your journey, and go to the hill country of the Amorites,
and to all their neighbors in the Arabah, in the hill country and in the
lowland and in the Negev and by the seacoast, the land of the Canaanites,
and Lebanon, as far as the great river, the river Euphrates.

8 ‘See, I have placed the land before you; go in and possess the land which
the LORD swore to give to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob,
to them and their descendants after them.’

9 “And I spoke to you at that time, saying, ‘I am not able to bear the
burden of you alone.

10 ‘The LORD your God has multiplied you, and behold, you are this day as
the stars of heaven for multitude.

11 ‘May the LORD, the God of your fathers, increase you a thousand-fold more
than you are, and bless you, just as He has promised you!”

Were you ever given instructions that included passing them on to someone
else? That is exactly what the LORD said in these opening words to Moses.
That’s precisely what your pastor gives you when he preaches to you on
Sunday! (Knowing that should cause you to listen all-the-more carefully to
what is being said).

Israel had experienced some physical victories over their enemies. Yet, they
were not to rest on their laurels. Physical situations in the area had
changed. A new king was now in charge; and the LORD instructed Moses to move
the people in yet another direction.

Moving should not always be thought of as “running away.” Israel was simply
following the LORD’s directive. Pastors sometimes move from one church to
another. If they do so at the LORD’s directive, no one has the right to
challenge them. It is simply the LORD’s instruction. Note, too, that the
LORD did not immediately share why He was telling them to move. That could
have caused trouble among the people. The LORD always knows more than His
people. If they (and we!) are quietly

faithful, He will reveal what we need to know in His own good time.

We should never forget that we are here for Him, just as He is here for us!
Faithfulness will, in good time, reveal the details. Just keep on being
faithful!

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