The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Luke 4:36-39, “And amazement came upon them all, and they began

discussing with one another saying, ‘What is this message? For with

authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come

out.’ 37 And the report about Him was getting out into every locality in the

surrounding district. 38 And He arose and left the synagogue, and entered

Simon’s home. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever;

and they made request of Him on her behalf. 39 And standing over her, He

rebuked the fever, and it left her; and she immediately arose and waited

on them.”

These two instances bring into focus one salient truth: sin is a reality!

With the demon-possessed man, it is easy to detect sin; but with Simon’s

mother-in-law, it is a bit more difficult. If we think back to Adam and Eve,

there was no sin in the beginning. But when they sinned, all manner of

evil infested human life, even all creation. Sickness is not always indicative

of personal sin; but it is indicative of sin’s reality. Certainly, some illnesses

are the result of personal sins. We need always to do a spiritual self-checkup

to see if the LORD is trying to get our attention.

There is no indication in Scripture that Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” was the

result of some personal sin. Neither Nana nor I are without sin, but I could

never accept that her heart surgeries were required because of something

she had personally done wrong. What I am saying is that every disease and

every malfunction in our bodies is traceable to the Garden of Eden. Nor is it

wrong to seek a physician for healing. Luke himself was a physician and

travelled with the Apostle Paul. A hospital chaplain once said to me, “All

healing is divine. It’s just that in some cases the LORD uses physicians.”

Stay safe and do regular, spiritual check-ups. The LORD often speaks in

strange and mysterious ways.

Love and prayers always,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”