The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

1 Samuel 12:2b-4, “I am old and gray, and behold my sons are with you. And I have walked before you from my youth

even to this day.

3 “Here I am; bear witness against me before the LORD and His anointed. Whose ox have I taken, or whose donkey

have I taken, or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed, or from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind

my eyes with it? I will restore it to you.”

4 And they said, “You have not defrauded us, or oppressed us, or taken anything from any man’s hand.”

“I want to live my life so there will be no regrets.” I remember hearing those words from the finest Christian I have

ever known. Twelve simple words that encompass what it means to come to the end of life and be ready to meet the LORD.

The prophet Samuel was nearing the end of his life, and his life survey revealed nothing of which he was ashamed.

He had indeed walked with the LORD before the people from the days of his youth. His mother brought him as a young boy to the then-prophet Eli. And from that day forward Samuel faithfully served the LORD.

I have stolen nothing from anyone; I have not defrauded or oppressed anyone or taken a single bribe in judgment, Samuel said. And the people unanimously agreed. He was a pure man, who stood ready to face the LORD and account for how he lived his life. Moreover, the people agreed and took an oath before the LORD to that effect.

Those who cannot in good faith say of themselves what Samuel said, will one day find themselves unprepared to face the LORD God. Yet, we must all stand before God and give account of whether we have accepted His Son, Jesus. Beyond accepting Jesus Christ, we will also have to give account of how we lived. Did we live for Him? Did we yield out lives to Him and be and do all that He commanded us to be and do?

What is your life like? If you were called to meet Him before you concluded reading this Letter, would you be prepared? There’s an old hymn that comes to mind that helps to guide us:

Trust and obey,

For there’s no other way

To be happy in Jesus,

But to trust and obey.

Stay in the Word of God, the Bible, daily! Stay with Him in prayer, throughout the day! Walk where He leads, and He will shield you from evil and give you His Words to speak. God bless you! You are in my daily prayers.

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Revelation 3:11, “I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have…”

Revelation 22:7, 12, 20, “And behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is he who heeds the words of the

Prophecy of this book…. Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to

Every man according to what he has done…. He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am

Coming quickly.’ Amen. Come, LORD Jesus.”

When a crisis occurs and you have need for help, it’s not likely that you will engage the dispatcher on

the phone in a lot of “chit-chat” before getting out the meaningful word — HELP!!! Urgency compels us

to take as little time as possible. You may not even notice the calmness in the dispatcher’s voice. But,

she (they are usually ladies) is, nevertheless, very concerned to get you the help that you need. Name,

address, situation requiring help (fire or robbery, etc.) – all require very few words. Yet, you are likely

to repeat the important words several times: friend, child, not breathing, ambulance, hurry!

That being true of us in an emergent situation, we should not be surprised at the LORD’s use of the word

“quickly” four times in only four verses. And the situation of which He speaks is infinitely more urgent

than any call that we might ever initiate for physical help.

Jesus has completed His task on Earth and has departed to Heaven where He resides with His Father.

Yet, He has not gone forever. He has promised repeatedly that He will come again. In a recent discussion

with a friend concerning how quickly the world seems to be rushing toward its own end and destruction,

it occurred to me that this same “Coming,” of which Jesus spoke, was heard by people a century ago.

As we move through time at what seems to be a milisecond pace, we come closer and closer to the ultimate

end.

“Quickly…quickly…quickly…quickly!” Do you sense the urgency of our LORD’s reminder? At the same time,

He has given us the prophecy of which He speaks. They are contained in His Word, the Holy Scriptures. He

also has an award He is going to bestow upon every one who has done what was laid before him. It might be

reverently referred to as a “spiritual scavenger hunt.” We who have accepted Him as our LORD and Savior

are to be fervently seeking the lost and presenting them with the Gospel of Peace. Are you doing that? Or are

you mired down in the muck of things of lesser value? No eternal reward for that. Are you a true, born-again

believer in Jesus? Quickly accept Jesus as you Savior! Quckly reach out to the lost! Quickly share the Word

with them! Quickly! Quickly! For “night is coming, when no man can work” (John 9:4).

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

John 16:13-14, “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak

on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.

14″He shall glorify Me; for He shall take of Mine, and shall disclose it to you.”

Don’t you hate to see people leave when you have enjoyed their visit? As a child, I can remember hating to see people go. “Can’t you stay a little longer?” I would ask hopefully. “Couldn’t you catch a later bus? I don’t want you to go…”

Jesus ministry was nearing its end. And His disciples felt just like that about His departure. In some ways, I think He would have liked to have stayed. But, remember His Words, “I do always those things that please the Him (the Father”) (Jn 8:29). He had come for the Father’s purpose, and that purpose had been fulfilled. Now, it’s time for Him to return to the Father.

What will the disciples do, being left all alone? Oh, but they’re not being left alone! The Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit of God, is coming, and He will be to them even more, in that the Spirit will occupy the soul and spirit of all of those who follow Jesus. Remember after the resurrection, that Jesus appeared to all of His disciples except Thomas? With the Holy Spirit, all who follow Jesus –wherever they are! – will have Him living within them! They won’t miss a thing! If you have accepted Jesus, the Holy Spirit is living in you right now!! And the Spirit will guide and instruct you in all things of the LORD Jesus, explaining His Word as you read it daily.

Hey, remember that bus that my relative had to catch? As a Christian, the Holy Spirit rides with her on that bus! She’s never alone, just as you and I are never alone. And that’s how our lives glorify Jesus! We follow the leading of the Spirit. We don’t have to “act” holy; we are holy – not because of what we do, but because the Spirit leads us. 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 God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

John 15:17-20, “’This I command you, that you love one another.

18 “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.

19 “If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose

you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

20 “Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me,

they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also.’”

Does everyone like you? I’ve met a number of persons who didn’t like me. Don’t let it bother you. Jesus did not say everyone would like us; rather, He said that we are to love them regardless of what they think of us. Admittedly, it’s hard to love some people. But we can love them if we love them through Christ. You probably know some Christians that you don’t like. Those are the very ones Jesus had in mind when He said, “love one another.” The word “another” (???????, allelon) means “another of the same kind”; in other words, other Christians.

One good reason not to want to be loved is because if the world loves you, you’re probably not a true Christian. See, the world hates Jesus! And if you begin to look too much like Him, the world will hate you the same way. Haven’t you noticed how your non-Christian “friends” stop phoning or texting you? Oh, they may say “Hi,” when they run into you somewhere, but you don’t live like they do, so you’re a stake in the heart of their parties. You kill their fun when you mention Jesus or the Bible or prayer. They have no idea how much joy you and I have in Him and all things related to Him.

Let’s suppose for a moment that you and your non-Christian friends work for a Christian boss. Out of the boss’s hearing, your non-believing friends speak of him as a tyrant! Do you have any idea what they say of you when you’re not around? Well, verse 20 above tells it quite clearly: “’A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me,

they will also persecute you.” You see, they don’t consider you or Christ as a “member of their group.” If they don’t speak well of Jesus, don’t expect them to speak well of you.”

But there’s a “flip side” to all of this. Those who live by the LORD’s Word (the Bible) will love you. And that’s the love you want. It’s true and pure and wholesome and Christ-like. And it’s a love that builds you up, not puts you down. Get

with the right crowd! Oh, be nice to the crowd that doesn’t like you, too. Some day, one of them will need a true friend, and will discover that you are the only one who will help. Keep ready! Stay in the Word! Keep praying! And keep loving!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

John 15:7-9, “’If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall

be done for you.

8 “By this is My Father glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.

9 “Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love.’”

Someone recently said, “I never really… When it says, following Jesus, it’s actually turning away from sin. What it talks about in the Bible, there’s no faith without obedience. I had had faith about like, ‘I believe Jesus died on the cross for me, but I never really implemented it into my life.’ I never like, ‘I’m gonna be obedient.” Any idea who said that? It was the singer, Justin Bieber. After all he’s been through, he’s finally catching on.

There are four interpretations of Greeks sentences that use the word “if.” One construction means, “If it be true –and it is.” Another construction means, “If it be true, but it isn’t.” Still a third means, “If it be true –maybe it is, maybe it isn’t.” And the last construction means “If it be true, and I wish it were, but it isn’t.”

You may recall from a previous Letter that the word “abide” means “to settle down and make you home” in Christ the LORD. Add to that what we have in in Jesus’ words above and you can read His words like this: “If you settle down and make your home in Me, maybe you will, maybe you won’t…” But, if you do, you may pray and receive what you ask. Making our home in Him is more than a stop-off place for a rest, and then continuing to live as we did before. Bieber has the idea; do you?

You see, everything in our lives is to be to the LORD’s glory! God wants us to succeed! He just wants us to know that our success in anything is due to His power and love working in us to bring it all about. The minute we forget that, He allows things to crumble. Too often, then, we rail against Him for the crumble, when it’s all our fault for not maintaining our home in Him and thanking Him for what He has done! Isn’t that simple? Then, why are we like we are (note that I’m including the writer of this Letter)? It’s not you, it’s us!

There’s more that could be said, but we need to digest what we know and allow it to bring glory to our LORD first. Practice what you know this week, and see how your life changes!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas 72764

United States of America

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”