The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Numbers 32:15-23, “Now behold, you have risen up in your fathers’ place, a brood of sinful men, to add still more to the burning anger of the LORD against Israel.

15 “For if you turn away from following Him, He will once more abandon them in the wilderness, and you will destroy all these people.”

16 Then they came near to him and said, “We will build here sheepfolds for our livestock and cities for our little ones;

17 but we ourselves will be armed and ready to go before the sons of Israel until we have brought them to their place, while our little ones live in the fortified cities because of the inhabitants of the land.

18 “We will not return to our homes until every one of the sons of Israel has possessed his inheritance.

19 “For we will not have an inheritance with them on the other side of the Jordan and beyond, because our inheritance has fallen to us on this side of the Jordan toward the east.”

20 So Moses said to them, “If you will do this, if you will arm yourselves before the LORD for the war,

21 and all of you armed men cross over the Jordan before the LORD until He has driven His enemies out from before Him,

22 and the land is subdued before the LORD, then afterward you shall return and be free of obligation toward the LORD and toward Israel, and this land shall be yours for a possession before the LORD.

23 “But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the LORD, and be sure your sin will find you out.”

With all the LORD had done for His people, when they came up against a difficulty they had not previously encountered, they rebelled against Moses and against the LORD. Have you and I ever considered that truly spiritual leadership has been given to us that we might learn to love and follow the LORD?

Certainly, the obstacle that Moses’ people encountered looked difficult. What they needed, however, was to look to the LORD instead of the obstacles before them.

How like this crowd we often are! We know His will, and we’ve been told to face it in His strength and move forward. But we’re gripped with fear because we’ve taken our eyes off of Him!

Being the wise leader that he was, Moses challenged the people by reminding them of the LORD’s leadership; then saying (in effect): “Do what you want – just remember that your sin will ultimately catch up with you. You can’t do wrong and get by!”

What was true of those who doubted Moses is true of us when we balk at following the LORD’s leadership: our sin will ultimately be our undoing! So, be careful. Who knows best? You simply cannot do what’s wrong in God’s eyes and get by.

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

Dear Grands,

Psalm 33:12-18, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD,

The people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance.

13 The LORD looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men;

14 From His dwelling place He looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth,

15 He who fashions the hearts of them all, He who understands all their works.

16 The king is not saved by a mighty army; a warrior is not delivered by great strength.

17 A horse is a false hope for victory; nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength.

18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, on those who hope for His lovingkindness.”

Who would have believed that a nation could mire itself down in such a mess? Particularly, is that so when we have such a heritage! Still, a child takes no notice of how clean his clothes are or what they cost his parents; he’s simply mesmerized by that puddle of water! It’s a blisteringly hot day, so why not engage in a little boy’s “cool off”?

Besides, we have money—ample money, as a nation! At least, we thought we did, until after our recent election. It was then that the truth was revealed! The idea that “You can’t do wrong and get by” underscores the importance of ethical behavior and personal responsibility in achieving lasting success and respect.

Yet, the Word of the LORD cries out: “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD!”

We are not our own! We belong to our Maker! We are His children! Obedience is our responsibility! We possess Him as our Redeemer. He possesses us as His redeemed!

He has provided for us His Word. By it, we are to live and be honorable in His sight.

It is our responsibility, therefore, to love and cherish Christ as our Redeemer. We are to live as His children. Obedience is our forthright responsibility! We are to trust and obey.

Trust and Obey,

For there’s no other way

To be happy in Jesus;

But to trust and obey.

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

Dear Grands,

Jeremiah 7:23-28, “But this is what I commanded them, saying, ‘Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you will be My people; and you will walk in all the way which I command you, that it may be well with you.’

Why do so many individuals experience trouble? Could it be that they have willfully chosen to disobey the LORD? Jeremiah continues with the accusation that “they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels and in the stubbornness of their evil heart, and went backward and not forward.”

25 “Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have sent you all My servants the prophets, daily rising early and sending them.

26 “Yet they did not listen to Me or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck; they did more evil than their fathers.”

27 “You shall speak all these words to them, but they will not listen to you; and you shall call to them, but they will not answer you.

28 “You shall say to them, ‘This is the nation that did not obey the voice of the LORD their God or accept correction; truth has perished and has been cut off from their mouth.'”

Nations are no better than the constituents that comprise them. If we want our nation to seek and obey the LORD, we must comply with His instructions. We must be ready to obey and conform to His directives. Far too often we appear to listen to the LORD’s Voice, but fail to follow through as He has directed us.

It was reassuring recently to see President Trump’s initial Cabinet Meeting bow together in prayer, being led by one of his Cabinet members. Several members of his Cabinet have voiced clearly and publicly that Jesus Christ is their LORD and Savior. We are prone to criticize them when they fail to follow what they pledged; ought we not to take them at their word and keep them wrapped in our daily prayers?

Whatever your political affiliation, let me urge you to pray for our nation and for those who have been elected to lead us through these next four years.

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, The people whom He has chosen for His own Inheritance” (Psalm 33:12).

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

Dear Grands,

2 Chronicles 14:2-4; 8-11 “Asa did good and right in the sight of the LORD his God,

3 for he removed the foreign altars and high places, tore down the sacred pillars, cut down the Asherim,

4 and commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers and to observe the law and the commandment. For he said to Judah, ‘Let us build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars. The land is still ours because we have sought the LORD our God; we have sought Him, and He has given us rest on every side.’ So they built and prospered.

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8 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 You 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 You, and in Your name have come against this multitude. O LORD, You are our God; let not man prevail against You.”

There’s nothing quite like having a leader, who is all and more than he wants you to be! Asa was that kind of leader! “He did good and right in the sight of the LORD his God.” Initially, he “removed the foreign altars and tore down the sacred pillars,” and everything that was not to the liking of his God.

What an incentive for us! Do we seek to harbor things in our lives that we know to be abhorrent to our LORD Jesus Christ? When we do so, we are eliminating the power and ultimate victory that He longs for us. We cannot expect to have victory when we work against the will of the LORD.

There is never a battle of any kind for which we do not need the LORD! Even so, the army our “Asa” has amassed for us is twice our size. Asa had but 580,000 men; whereas the opposition numbered a million or more. It was then that Asa prayed to the LORD for Divine assistance!

Then, “Asa and the people who were with him courageously pursued them as far as Gerar; and so many Ethiopians fell that they could not recover! They were shattered before the LORD and before His army. Asa and his army then carried away exceedingly much plunder!

Opposition is nothing when the LORD is our Leader! We always prosper when we trust and follow Him. Still, we must learn to obey and lean on no one else.

It’s then that we will experience the victory!

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

Dear Grands,

Malachi 3:7-10, “From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from My statutes, and have not kept them. ‘Return to Me, and I will return to you,'” says the LORD of hosts. “But you say, ‘How shall we return?'”

8 “Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed Thee?’ In tithes and offerings.

9 “You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the whole nation of you!”

10 “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the LORD of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.”

Everything we possess has come from the hand of the LORD! “Oh, I bought this myself,” you say. Did you really? Yes, the money was in your possession and transferred to the seller. Still, have you considered how you came to possess sufficient money for the purchase? Yes, you worked and saved until you had sufficient funds to buy the item you wanted. Still, who gave you the strength for the work for which you were paid?

I have never been able to out-give the LORD! When He lays it upon my heart to give, there is always sufficient money. When it appeared that there was an insufficient amount for something needed, He always assessed whether I truly needed it, and if so, He provides the necessary funds. Does He not say, “And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive”? (Matt. 21:22).

“So then, let no one boast in men. For all things belong to you, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come; all things belong to you, and you belong to Christ; and Christ belongs to God” (I Cor. 3:21-23).

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