The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Haggai 2:2-9, “Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people saying,
3 ‘Who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? And how do you see it
now? Does it not seem to you like nothing in comparison?
4 ‘But now take courage, Zerubbabel,’ declares the LORD, ‘take courage also, Joshua
son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and all you people of the land take courage,’ declares
the LORD, ‘and work; for I am with you,’ declares the LORD of hosts.
5 ‘As for the promise which I made you when you came out of Egypt, My Spirit is abiding
in your midst; do not fear!’
6 “For thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘Once more in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry land.
7 ‘I will shake all the nations; and they will come with the wealth of all nations, and I will
fill this house with glory,’ says the LORD of hosts.
8 ‘The silver is Mine and the gold is Mine,’ declares the LORD of hosts.
9 ‘The latter glory of this house will be greater than the former,’ says the LORD of hosts,
‘and in this place I will give peace,’ declares the LORD of hosts.”

Anyone who follows the spiritual trend of the LORD’s people, are bound to notice the wavering between the godly and the carnal lifestyles. The people sin; the LORD redeems them. They sin again; and the LORD redeems them again. Our verses above give a glimpse of the people of Haggai’s era.

The people had not abandoned the LORD altogether, yet they were exceeding fearful of
what lay before them. Three times in verse four alone, the LORD says, “take courage.”
Then, in verse five, He again admonishes His people saying, “My Spirit is abiding in your midst; do not fear!” His intention is further stated when He adds that all things are His and
He will shake the nations until He empties them of the gold and silver that are His and are needed to beautify His House.

We are not far from where the LORD’s people were as noted in these verses. We lay claim
to silver and gold, and all things precious– things that belong to God. We learn to love His possessions more than we love Him. And that is precisely what leads us into sin. He disciplines us, as He did His ancient people until they repented and turned again to Him in faith. He blesses, and things go well, until they again turn away from Him to the “things” that are His. The cycle is non-stop throughout the ages.

One thing must be made clear: the LORD is superior to all things! The precious things that
are His are nothing when compared with Him! The LORD is incomparable! When we learn
to live by that premise, we will have truly welcomed Him in our hearts, as our LORD and Savior!

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

Dear Grands,

Haggai 1:12-14, “Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the LORD their God and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the LORD their God had sent him. And the people showed reverence for the LORD.
13 Then Haggai, the messenger of the LORD, spoke by the commission of the LORD to
the people saying, “‘I am with you,’ declares the LORD.”
14 So the LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the
remnant of the people; and they came and worked on the house of the LORD of hosts,
their God…”

There are 17 references in the Bible to “old age.” You may not believe it, but I was never
interested in anything relative to “old age,” until I entered the realm. Far too many negative things are said today about the “aged.” There was a time when I contributed to those negative remarks in a humorous manner, but no more! I have “transgenderized.”

I never think about getting older until I notice the alterations in some words in the Scripture.
Look at the word obeyed in verse 12 above. That’s a childish word –one we all had to
learn when we were “kids.” Yet, mentioned 169 times in the Scriptures, it relates quite often
to us as adults. This passage in Haggai reminds us all that we are both “spiritual” in nature and potentially a “child” of God. Yet, He wants us to grow into spiritual adulthood. That’s as natural spiritually, as it is physically.

As we grow spiritually in obedience, we learn to reverence the LORD. When I was very
small, I learned to speak of my adult neighbors by their Christian names. Yet, never did I
personally address them that way! Only as I grew older, did I commence to speak as an
adult to those well beyond my age. The LORD “grows” in our thinking as we grow intellectually. And we commence to relate to Him as a “child of God.”

Verse 13 above shows that once Haggai grew into adulthood, he became a messenger
of the LORD. That does not mean that children are exempt from witnessing of Him. I know
adults who came to faith in Christ because of the witness of a child. But, “messenger,” here
leans toward maturity. It may mean a “preparation for a larger service.” Certainly, it speaks
of spiritual development, a maturation in the faith!

Commission is a word that emphasizes permanence. It may refer to one becoming a pastor
or a missionary or some other form of full-time Christian service. It was the word the LORD
used when He said, “I am with you.” It is His word-promise that He will never leave or forsake
those of us who are truly His.

Where are you in the grand scheme of things? Do you know Him as LORD and Savior of your life? Are you obeying Him as you ought? Is He always referenced in your words of conversation? Has He called you to become what you have yet to become? Salvation made you part of His Family! It is a forever-Family! He rejoices over us as we rejoice over our children. Does your life occasion rejoicing in His Family? I trust that it does. May God bless you abundantly!

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

Dear Grands,

Haggai 1:2-11, “Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘This people says, “The time has not
come, even the time for the house of the LORD to be rebuilt.”‘”
3Then the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet, saying, “Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses while this house lies desolate?”
5 Now therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts, “Consider your ways!
6 “You have sown much, but harvest little; you eat, but there is not enough to be
satisfied; you drink, but there is not enough to become drunk; you put on clothing,
but no one is warm enough; and he who earns, earns wages to put into a purse with
holes.”
7 Thus says the LORD of hosts, “Consider your ways!
8 “Go up to the mountains, bring wood and rebuild the temple, that I may be pleased
with it and be glorified,” says the LORD.
9 “You look for much, but behold, it comes to little; when you bring it home, I blow it
away. Why?” declares the LORD of hosts, “Because of My house which lies desolate,
while each of you runs to his own house.
10 “Therefore, because of you the sky has withheld its dew and the earth has withheld
its produce,
11 “I called for a drought on the land, on the mountains, on the grain, on the new wine,
on the oil, on what the ground produces, on men, on cattle, and on all the labor of your hands.”

It was a different time. The focus of the people in Haggai’s day was considerably different
from that of our time. Yet, the LORD is the same; and to a great extent, we are not unlike
the people of Haggai’s day. They recognized that their physical things had come from the LORD; but they were not spiritually focused on Him and His desire.

They had allowed the LORD’s House to fall into disrepair. There are, of course, places
of worship that today have need of repair. Yet, the physical is not primary. The LORD’s directive in Haggai’s day focused on the spiritual aspects of His House of Worship. We
give serious attention to the physical aspects of the buildings, but often neglect the
spiritual aspects of true worship.

The heart-cry of the LORD is always appropriate: “Consider your ways!” Everything
we possess ultimately comes from the LORD. Why are we not satisfied? Why are we
not openly expressive of the LORD’s blessing? Why are we not more seriously focused
on His will and purpose for us? For everything we possess, we owe thanks to the LORD.

Take inventory of your life and possessions. What do you possess that does not bring
honor and glory to the LORD? What would He have you to do with it? Consider your
ways.

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

Dear Grands,

Micah 7:2-7, “The godly person has perished from the land, and there is no upright person among men. All of them lie in wait for bloodshed; each of them hunts the other with a net.
3 Concerning evil, both hands do it well. The prince asks, also the judge, for a bribe, and a great man speaks the desire of his soul; so they weave it together.
4 The best of them is like a briar, the most upright like a thorn hedge. The day when you post your watchmen, your punishment will come. Then their confusion will occur.
5 Do not trust in a neighbor; do not have confidence in a friend. From her who lies in your bosom guard your lips.
6 For son treats father contemptuously, daughter rises up against her mother, daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; a man’s enemies are the men of his own household.
7 But as for me, I will watch expectantly for the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me.”

The careful reader will read and re-read these six short verses, which speak of the turbulence of Micah’s time; yet, they also strangely resemble our time, too. Those who were godly have either escaped or perished. They are no longer within the land.

The same is also true of those who are responsible to uphold the law. Crime and corruption have reached the highest levels of our “legal authorities.” Those who work
in the “high places” of the nation (judges, lawyers) –those responsible for maintaining law and order– exhibit instead the very corruption, which it is their responsibility to erase.

Husbands and wives are not trustworthy. Homes suffer destruction as parents fail
to rear their children in the “strength and power of the LORD.” Do we not live in such
a time as this Scripture describes?

Godly and dedicated parents swim against the current of corruption, often failing to
rear their own children in the way of the LORD. They fight valiantly against the current of corrupt morality only to lose the very children for whom they fought! They
and we work valiantly against the rising tides of corruption! Our confidence awaits
the salvation of God. For it is He who arises to the hour bringing salvation! He is for us; whatever now, can we fear?

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

Dear Grands,

Micah 6:6-8, “With what shall I come to the LORD and bow myself before the God
on high? Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings, with yearling calves?
7 Does the LORD take delight in thousands of rams, in ten thousand rivers of oil?
Shall I present my firstborn for my rebellious acts, the fruit of my body for the sin
of my soul?
8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you,
but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

Have you ever counted the innumberable things for which you are held accountable?
If you have an automobile, you are accountable for procuring a license for owning
the car. You also need a license that shows you know how to safely operate that car?
If you have health insurance, there are factors your must supply to procure a health
card. If you own a house, you are required to pay an annual tax for owining it. If you
live in a neighborhood, you are doubtlessly required to upkeep your property to the
level of your neighbors.

There are spiritual requirements, too. Living justly is one of those requirements. I
have neighbors, who are honest, and since honesty is a spiritually required factor,
I am required to be honest in my dealing with my neighbors.

My neighbors are kind. I was teasing one of them, who was treating his grass with
fertilizer. He seriously offered to treat my grass as well. What a kind offer!

Still, the LORD goes further in that He requires that we “walk humbly” with Him.
There are eight distinct dictionary meanings for the word “humble.” Being humble
requires that we refrain from arrogance and possession of a feeling of superiority to
others. Rather, we are to believe ourselves to be of less value than that of others.

The English word “humble” comes to us from the Latin word humilis, meaning
“insignificant.” Except for the LORD’s view, that is precisely what we are: insignificant!
Yet, it’s when we are nothing, that we become something to Him and are wrapped in
His incalculable love. Think about all of that! It all appies to you –and to me!

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