The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Psalm 31:23-24, “O love the LORD, all you His godly ones! The LORD preserves the faithful,

And fully recompenses the proud doer.

24 Be strong, and let your heart take courage, All you who hope in the LORD.”

What do you do when you have a question, but not the answer? The tougher question is, What do you say when someone asks you a question for which you have no answer? There’s a very simple solution to each of these queries: you ask the One who knows! You research His answer in the Bible!

“But,” you say, “my question isn’t a biblical question.” It may not appear to be, but in all truth, it is. Sometimes we become so encumbered with the views of mortal men and their solutions, that we tell ourselves that they have all the answers because they present themselves as possessed of “great knowledgeable intellect.” If we believe man instead of believing God, we place ourselves on the rocky road to ruin.

The psalmist makes a strong case when he instructs us to “love the LORD.” He even allows that those who do are acknowledged by the LORD as His “godly ones.” For it is the LORD who preserves the faithful. If anyone claims otherwise, the LORD views him as “proud,” and renders to him what a fool deserves!

Therefore, those who truly belong to the LORD are encouraged to “be strong, and let (their) hearts take courage.” There is nothing to fear; no one will attack us without His knowledge. No trouble will ultimately suppress us! Why? Because the LORD is our Hope, our Protector, our Redeemer! Nothing is stronger than He! If fear still oppresses you, you have yet to allow Him to fully ocupy your life. May He show you His protection as He instructs your mind with answers to questions unsaved men will never know until they come to know Him as their LORD and Savior! Start tomorrow with bright hope! He is alive and always ready!

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,

Psalm 30:4-5, “Sing praise to the LORD, you His godly ones, And give thanks to His Holy Name.

5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning.”

These are but two verses out of 12 in this Psalm. David is encouraging us to “sing praise to the LORD!” He identifies those to whom he speaks as the LORD’s “godly ones.” That is reasonable because only the godly are able to sing praises. Further, the psalmist directs us to “give thanks to the LORD’s Holy Name.”

Giving thanks to anyone for anything presupposes they have given to us something of sufficient value – a value that requires a sincere “Thank You” from us. Stop for a moment and think of the multiple blessings you have because of the LORD!

1. You have life! Your very origin comes through Him.

2. You have health! It varies by degrees as you get older, but you have it.

3. You have wealth! Wealth varies –not by what you want, but by your needs.

4. You have friends! True friends are always concerned to help you.

5. You have a job! The energy to do your work comes from the LORD!

6. You have family! Some may have slipped the bonds of Earth, but others remain

that they might encourage you.

7. You are loved –genuinely loved—even by those you fail to love as you ought.

We allow ourselves to become discouraged when we see and think of things we want, but do not have. Why not think of what we have for which we have yet to say “Thank You, LORD!”

Some things He withholds from us, knowing them to be hurtful and injurious to our lives. Some times He is angry with us because we do not recognize His blessings and thank Him for them.

The LORD Himself hurts when He has to discipline us! No true, loving earthly father delights when he is forced to punish his child for doing wrong. His own weeping, and ours, may last the night, but we rejoice in the morning when we come to learn that His way was best!

So, examine the multiple reasons you have to “sing praise to the LORD” and start SINGING with all your heart! The greatest music this side of Heaven comes from the hearts and voices of the LORD’s children as they praise Him! So sing, Sing, SING!

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,

Ephesians 6:1-3, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.

2 Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise),

3 that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the Earth.”

Recently, I viewed a documentary that dealt with some serious issues in which children younger than

teenagers were involved. That prompted my reading of the above verses and utilizing this space to

warn everyone (children and adults) of our responsibility to keep our eyes on Jesus and adhere to His every command.

We are all children until we either reach the respected level of adulthood or live apart from our parents. Some would perhaps wish to read that first line as “…obey your parents when they are in the LORD.” Yet, that is NOT what the Scripture says. If you have not reached adulthood or continue to reside in your parents’ home, you are to be subject to them. The Greek word “obey” (?????????) is

a present, active imperative verb, second person plural, which includes all “children” and emphasizes the command to submit to parental wishes.

To “honor” one’s parents means the children are to respect and revere the parents, inasmuch as they have authority over all who reside in their house. The value of this to the LORD is noted in that the commandment is the first in Scripture to carry with it the promise of long life on the Earth. In the practical sense, if one never learns to respect and obey his parents, he will never grow into adulthood with respect and obedience of any authority, legal, moral, or corporate. The Home is the preparatory level for all life-learning.

Parents, too, have the counter-responsibility to “train up a child in the way he should go” –that way being the way of the LORD as noted multiple times in Holy Scripture. Children, such as I viewed in the documentary mentioned previously, go bad because their parents are either bad themselves or neglectful to engage in proper training of the child. Still, unwise parents are no child’s excuse for involvement in unwise activities. The problem with juveniles today arises from the lack of good parental instruction. And the reason for the lack of good parental instruction lies with the parents’ parents! The LORD has great and glorious things for those who follow His commands!

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,

Ephesians 4:29-32, “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, that it may give grace to those who hear.

30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by Whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.

32 And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.”

“Where in the world did that come from?” I can barely recall hearing those words. They came from a mother, who heard her small son use an exclamation never heard from her or her family. No, it was not my mother; nor was it from me. I told you yesterday that I never used any kind of “gutter” language. Had I ever done so, you would not be receiving this Grands Letter just now. If I could but recall the occasion of that exuberant, effusive language – but I cannot.

We all do say things, however –expressions that are totally out of place for any occasion. Paul says, “Stop it! The only words you should ever use are those that edify or build up the other person; and even then, only words that the moment requires. Use kind words that give grace and benefit to both you and the hearer.”

From the moment we repented of our sin and trusted the LORD Jesus Christ as our Savior, we received the Holy Spirit, who now lives within us. He is both the “seal” of God and God’s “downpayment” against His full and complete Redemption. The Spirit is there to guide our thoughts and words as well as our actions. When we fail to obey His instructions, it grieves (?????) and distresses Him, much like an earnest and loving parent is distressed when his child doesn’t obey.

We must obey and cooperate with the Holy Spirit in expelling from our lives all “bitterness (??????) and wrath (?????) and anger (????) and clamor (??????) and slander (?????????), along with all malice (?????)” –five important words we need to study and expel forever from our lives!

Further, we must learn and incorporate into our minds and hearts three vital words on the positive side of the ledger: kind (???????), tender-hearted (???????????), and forgiving (?????????). And why must we incorporate these words, including forgiveness? It is because Christ has forgiven us for our sin against Him, sin that is far and away greater than any sin anyone has committed against us.

You can do this! The indwelling Holy Spirit will help you do it! And God the Father will be glorified!

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,

Ephesians 4:25-28, “Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth, each one of you, with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.

26 Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger,

27 and do not give the devil an opportunity.

28 Let him who steals steal no longer; but rather let him labor, performing with his own hands what is good, in order that he may have something to share with him who has need.”

Paul is not seeking to prove that the Ephesians –even Ephesian Christians – always spoke falsely. They were human and possessive of fallen human natures, so all things that could be categorized as untruthful, were as much a part of the Ephesians as everyone else. Still, there are many kinds of falsehoods. Paul’s instruction is that all things false must be eliminated from the Christian life.

Anger grips a lot of us. I don’t get angry the way I used to; but as a kid, I had a ferocious temper! I never cursed, never used the LORD’s name inapproiately, but I very often got steamingly mad! That tempered fell away a lot after I got married. To be sure, from time-to-time, my wife and I disagreed on things. But we sought always to forgive each other before bedtime.

Anger confuses those who employ it. They get so “steamed up” they cannot put together a good argument; besides all of that, it opens wide the door for Satan to gain control of your life. You may even believe that you have gotten everything straightened out, but Satan has rushed the door and gained an entrance. He will then cause all kinds of future trouble!

Theft follows anger quite closely. Anger confuses thinking, often causing one to believe that things not his are “absolutely” his! Paul’s mandate is that we start “performing with (our) own hands what is good.” The Smithsonian Channel aired a good series some nights back. I don’t always approve of shows they air, but this series dealt with how food was produced in early American days –food that provided good jobs as well as nourishment in the days of the Great Depression. Yes, there were conflicts among some of the early food producers, but the emphasis was that each man had ideas that he produced; and a host of people lived through the Depression with jobs and sufficient food because of it.

Do you really have cause to be angry? Are you so very much in need that you have to steal? What talents do you have? How can you share them with others so as to make their lives easier? Have you really thought about it? We’re not here for ourselves! We’re here by the grace of God, and we need to share His and other things with others! Give all of this some serious thought. It’s in the Bible, so you know it’s right!

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.”