The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Psalm 6:1-9, “O LORD, do not rebuke me in Your anger, Nor chasten me in Your wrath.
2 Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am pining away; Heal me, O LORD, for my bones are dismayed.
3 And my soul is greatly dismayed; But You, O LORD– how long?
4 Return, O LORD, rescue my soul; Save me because of Your lovingkindness.
5 For there is no mention of You in death; In Sheol who will give You thanks?
6 I am weary with my sighing; Every night I make my bed swim, I dissolve my couch with my tears.
7 My eye has wasted away with grief; It has become old because of all my adversaries.
8 Depart from me, all you who do iniquity, For the LORD has heard the voice of my weeping.
9 The LORD has heard my supplication, The LORD receives my prayer.”

Most of the Psalms fits neatly into specific categories. Psalm 1, for example, is what we call a didactic or teaching psalm. Psalm 2 is a Messianic psalm because it speaks of the Messiah. Psalms 3 and 4 are supplicational in that they are prayers for God’s specific favors. Psalm 6 is penitential in that the psalmist is beseeching the LORD for forgiveness of sin.

In the first four verses, the psalmist cries out for mercy! His sin is different from that of Psalm 51, in that here he does not reveal what the sin is. I’m sure you’ve experienced the need to cry out for God’s mercy, but were too ashamed to mention your sin. I have had that experience. Sometimes in open public prayer, we even “cover” ourselves through generalized expressions of regret, leaving those who listen without the slightest notion of what sin was intended.

David knows there is no way he can pray after death. He is so ashamed he could literally die! Yet, faith in God is his only way out. Apparently, David’s friends were attempting to comfort him, for he says, “Depart from me, all you who do iniquity…” He obviously views his friends to be as guilty as he; thus, how can their prayers help?

All of this concludes with the LORD hearing and answering David’s supplication. The LORD hears the sincerity of all supplicants and responds accordingly. Rest assured that the LORD hears our prayers! Rest assured that we stand in need of praying! We need to pray for each other and even for those who never pray for us. They may not know it, but God does hear and answer prayer! He just doesn’t answer prayer that is not shared with Him.

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,

Psalm 1:1-6, “How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers.
4 The wicked are not so, but they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.”

So much is in print today with regard to the ways of evil men and women. The LORD delightfully blesses those who do not walk in the paths of sinners! He rejoices in those who resist hanging out with those who scoff at the LORD and His teachings.

He delights in those who follow His Word and think about Him throughout the day. They are stalwart and unmovable, as they reside in the spiritual refresh-ment the LORD provides. Furthermore, they prosper in every way that glorifies the LORD. It’s totally different with the wicked.

Today we thresh wheat differently than they did in Old Testament times. Mixed as it was with the chaff, when all was tossed into the air, only the heavier wheat kernels fell to the ground for collection. The chaff was carried away by the wind. Those who are wicked and engage in evil and openly denounce Almighty God, will be swept away by divine winds, carried into judgment.

The LORD knows those who are truly His. Their sinfulness has been swept away through the blood of the LORD Jesus Christ. The Father knows the ways of both the righteous and the wicked. He will preserve the righteous; the wicked will perish in the fires of Hell. Check up! Make certain you’re numbered with the righteous!

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,

Exodus 15:26, “And He said, ‘If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the LORD, am your healer.’”

“Did you hear what I said?” Now, before you get mad at me, notice closely that those words are italicized and ensconsed in quotation marks. It is not something I am saying to you; it is simply a replecate of a six-word warning that you doubtlessly heard more than once from your parents when you were younger.

At the same time, it may be appropriate to ask just how loud does the LORD have to shout to get our attention? The clear and unmistakable implication of the verse above is that the Israelites knew the LORD’s commandments, but they had yet to learn the value of keeping them. We know that Jesus died on the Cross and arose from the dead to save us; but have we followed His instruction to repent and turn away from sin and trust Him alone for our eternal salvation?

The verse above is an Old Testament verse. It is Moses’ directive to Israel in Old Testament times. In principle, however, it applies to us in our generation. There are so many voices crying this and crying that. We need to heed the Voice of the LORD! He alone is worthy of our trust! At the time, His promise to Israel was that they would be free from the diseases He had put upon the Egyptians. In principle, He promises to free us from our sins and set our feet on the path of righteousness. Are you on that path? You can be! Simply ask His forgiveness for sin and believe His Word. You are in my prayers.

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,

Proverbs 16:25-32, “There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end
is the way of death.
26 A worker’s appetite works for him, For his hunger urges him on.
27 A worthless man digs up evil, While his words are like scorching fire.
28 A perverse man spreads strife, And a slanderer separates intimate friends.
29 A man of violence entices his neighbor And leads him in a way that is not
good.
30 He who winks his eyes does so to devise perverse things; He who
compresses his lips brings evil to pass.
31 A gray head is a crown of glory; It is found in the way of righteousness.
32 He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, And he who rules his
spirit, than he who captures a city.”

Remember that person who always pretended to know the answers to everything? He could spin a tale until he actually believed it himself. Just be careful! It is more than likely that such a person will lead you astray from all knowledge of real truth.

Watch out, too, for the slanderer! He grumbles about “things,” and shares untruths that reflect upon and discredit others. When he speaks ill of others, he’s often covering up the wrong he’s done in his own life.

Stay far away from the violent person! His words become so gnarled in his own mind that he even confuses you with the one of whom he was expressing vicious anger.

What you can depend upon is the person whose physical hunger keeps him active in the honest work in which he’s engaged. He will never leave an “adequate” employment for the promise of a “pie-in-the-sky” opportunity.

Perverse means “facing the wrong way.” This is the man who leads others to do something he himself ends up not doing. He talks big, but reverses himself on what he has urged others to do. When everything goes wrong, guess who gets the blame.

The truly dependable one is the old gray-headed one, who has walked the many miles of dusty, difficult days. He’s dependable, level-headed, and self-controlled in all situations. When you get to know him, you’ll learn that his self-control is truly the control of the Holy Spirit, Who resides within him and leads Him into right paths.

Solomon has given us some fabulous insights into ourselves and others. We will do well to study his wisdom and allow the Spirit of God to implant it all within us. The LORD is our greatest Friend! We are our own greatest enemy.

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,

Proverbs 16:20-24, 32, “He who gives attention to the Word will find good,
And blessed is he who trusts in the LORD.
21 The wise in heart will be called understanding,
And sweetness of speech increases persuasiveness.
22 Understanding is a fountain of life to one who has it,
But the discipline of fools is folly.
23 The heart of the wise instructs his mouth
And adds persuasiveness to his lips.
24 Pleasant words are a honeycomb,
Sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.”
32 He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty,
And he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city.”

Most of us have been in situations we would have rather not have been. Some of them were dangerous; all of them were “sticky.” In such cases, wisdom is the key word to extraction. Speaking kindly increases your chance of being successful in overcoming the adverse situation.

It’s difficult to know what to say in one of those undesirable situations. Yet, if you’re wise, your heart will inform your mind what is expedient to express. Your pleasantness will ultimately succeed in persuading your adversary. Kind and thoughtful words are not expected; yet, when they are expressed, they extract the steam from your adversary’s intention. At the same time, the LORD will erase and replace your defensive words with kind and thoughtful words that dismantle the thinking of your opponent.

Have you never tried this? Do you really doubt that such can occur? Try it in good faith. Trust in the LORD. He will never let you down.

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