The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

1 Corinthians 16:8-9, “But I shall remain in Ephesus until Pentecost;

9 for a wide door for effective service has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.”

Why you will remember is one of the great philosophical questions of all time. Tennyson wrote the answer in The Charge of the Light Brigade: “Ours is not to reason why; ours is but to do or die.”

I’ve thought a lot about the set-back we’ve had recently. Rose Marie has been alarmingly close to death only to be snatched from its awesome jaws in “the nick of time.” But, why?

I won’t bore you with the scores of possible answers that have swirled through my mind. I’ll simply say, I think I know why. Paul was en route to Jerusalem and he was about to pass through Macedonia. He stated that he had considered spending the winter with the church there. Just had’t made up his mind about that. What he had determined was to remain at

Ephesus until Pentecost. But why?

“…for a wide door for effective service had opened to (him), and there are many

adversaries.”

When you a serious fisherman, you fish where the fish are. Opportunites abounded in

Ephesus! It was a lost city with lost people; and that’s what Paul was all about! He wasn’t called to merely sail the oceans and enjoy restful days aboard a ship. He was called to

preach the Word to lost people and to call them to faith in the LORD Jesus Christ. The opportunities in Ephesus were Paul’s “wide door for effective service.”

Do you get it yet? Had Rose Marie not encountered multiple health issues, we would never have had the scores of opportunities to share Jesus with a multitude of lost people! Oh, I know the adversaries! Satan’s crowd double-timed their attacks on me! Not people, angry at what she and I were saying to them about the Savior. No! It was the terribel anxieties that knotted my stomach each time I had to call 911 — and knotted it even more until the EMTs arrived. Those anxieties were the adversaries. And when the situations relented, and I thought we had escaped the storm, it all took action against us again, and again!

But the glories of sharing with the lost. The light in their eyes that said, “Someone cares for my soul!” It has been worth it all. What’s more, we have been drawn closer to Him through the process. If you’re not in the “battle,” you just don’t know the joy there is. Oh, there’s an Ephesus for you somewhere, too. You signed up; let’s reach out to people before the Final Trumpet sounds!

We love you and rejoice in our prayers,

Nana & Dado III

(Rose Marie & Gene)

P. S. Every doctor (and there are many!) for the last two or three days has been positive with

respect to Rose Marie’s physical process. The LORD has used them to help us, and us to

help them. God bless you! And may He always be praised!

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 116:1-5, I dearly love the LORD, because He gives earnest heed to my voice and my supplications.

2 Because He has inclined His ear to me; therefore, I shall call upon Him as long as I live.

3 The cords of death encompassed me, and the terrors of Sheol came upon me; I found distress, anguish, affliction and sorrow.

4 Then I called upon the name of the LORD: ‘O LORD, I beseech Thee, I earnestly pray, save my life!’

5 Gracious is the LORD, blameless and righteous; yes, our God is compassionate and merciful.”

Have you ever had difficulty praying? I mean, you know you ought to pray and you truly want to, but you just can’t seem to get it out. Let me tell you, nothing encourages sincere prayer like uncontrollable circumstances! Yeah, you think you’ve got a pretty good hold

on things and then –!!! It’s then, that it reality strikes you.

David commences by acknowledging his genuine love for the LORD. The LORD is a Friend and He gladly hears the petitions of His children. He is not far away. Just tonight I said to a nurse, “My wife is a truly born-again Christian. Are you a Christian?” He said, “Yes, and Jesus is here in this room with us right now.” WOW! What an open, declarative testimony!

David vows that he will forever call upon the name of the LORD. But, why would he say that? Read what he says: death was all around him and the terror of dying brought great distress and sorrow into his life. What could he do? What did he do? He called on the Name of the LORD. Good advice. It just might be good advice to start making friends with the LORD before terror and the prospect of dying presents itself to you.

While Rose Marie was still home and in distress, she kept saying, “Oh, LORD help me! Help me!” It was pitiful to hear and it literally dealt my heart and emotions a huge blow to hear it; yet, I knew she was not in fear of Hell. She was not in fear of dying. She was just encountering something she had never encountered, and it scared her mightily! Do I have to say it? Yes, it scared me terribly, too!

Yet, while we were both “out of it” for the moment, the LORD’s presence was with us; and He saw us through. He is gracious! He is righteous! And He is compassionate!

When we’re witnessing to lost persons, we encourage them to get right with God before it’s too late. Good advice, huh? Well, we need to take some of our own medicine. It’s best to be close friends with the LORD before tragedy strikes you or a close loved one. Start learning to call upon Him daily, seriously! Take your Christian faith extremely seriously! One day you will need His Friendship and there won’t be time for looking up His number.

We truly love you, and thank you for all your prayers,

Nana & Dado III

(Rose Marie & Gene)

Rose Marie is still intubated, making communication almost impossible. Tomorrow the doctors

will examine two valves in her heart to make sure they are not contaminated. Then, they can

remove the breathing tube. Bottom line: all of her doctors, including her son, believe she is

moving in the right direction. God bless you for praying for her!

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,

Proverbs 17:17, “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.”

A long-distance telephone call this evening prompted the verse above. It was from a friend –a long-time and very close friend; and “a brother (who understands) adversity.”

As many of you know, Rose Marie has battled some health issues for several years. We

have sought medical answers from the finest of doctors and nurses. They have labored

strenuously and lovingly, but without the ultimate success they and we sought. She has

had a mysterious blood-loss that kept her anemia her worst enemy.

Recently, she underwent an angioplasty and three arteries were fed stents that freed up blood flow that was so vitally needed.

But, tonight –after several turns in hospital for pneumonia— one of her doctors discovered and cauterized the problem! He found and shut off the leak! Immediately, her kidneys

displayed a positive note. And all of her doctors give her a thumbs-up, saying she was pointed in the right direction. (News for all doctors: She has always been pointed in the Right Direction!) That’s the Direction from which the answer came!

Yes, there are wonders in medical science. Still, the greatest miracles come not from science, but from the LORD. And that distant, long-time friend, is a “friend (who) loves at all times, and is (simultaneously) “a (true) brother, who (understands) adversity.” Thanks, Don, for your love and prayers! You have always been an encourager. May the LORD bless you

for it, as He blesses the girl for whom you prayed.

May God’s blessings be yours! We love you all.

Nana & Dado III

(Rose Marie & Gene)

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,

Jeremiah 16:17-19, “My eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from My face, nor is their iniquity concealed from My eyes.

18 “And I will first doubly repay their iniquity and their sin, because they have polluted My land; they have filled My inheritance with the carcasses of their detestable idols and with their abominations.

19 “O LORD, my strength and my stronghold, And my refuge in the day of distress, To Thee the nations will come from the ends of the earth and say, ‘Our fathers have inherited nothing but falsehood, Futility and things of no profit.’”

Of all the things that I despise,

The foremost one is compromise.

It’s the only two lines I can recall from a poem I wrote many years ago. And I’ve quoted it to myself often when the temptation came to lessen the cords that bind me to the LORD and His directives. Oh, yes, the surprise ought not to be that I was tempted, because all of us are almost all of the time.

The LORD watches all we think, do, and where we go. Nothing is ever hidden from Him! What’s more, His chastisement of His born-again Christians is ever as hurtful as was His

chastisement of His ancient people. He told them, “I will…doubly repay (your) iniquity…”

There are consequences to sin.

Only this week, I have had opportunity to discuss morality with some people. “Do you compromise?” I asked; “There are consequences to sin.” The pressure of peers is often enormous. “Don’t ask him to come,” some will say. “He is like she is: a spoil sport, a goody

two shoes,” they used to be called. Simon Peter spoke of such attitudes when he said,

“…they are surprised that you do not run with them into the same excess of dissipation, and they malign you; 5 but they shall give account to Him who is

ready to judge the living and the dead.” (1 Pet. 4:4-5).

In the end, Jeremiah determined to stay on the LORD’s side and do His bidding. He is “my

strength and my stronghold., and my refuge in the day of distress.” Then he recounted his

past and said, “Our fathers inherited nothing but falsehood, fulity and things of no profit.”

Don’t give in to the pressure “friends” want to apply to your life! Look ahead at what the LORD has for you today and in the Day when He Comes! Be courageous! Say with Jeremiah,

Of all the things that I despise,

The foremost one is compromise.

We love you in the LORD, and He loves you more that you will ever know,

Nana & Dado III

(Rose Marie & Gene)

P. S. Rose Marie is destined to leave the hospital tomorrow. Her pneumonia is now

virtually obliterated, and her house has been thoroughly cleaned through the

love and generosity of some dear friends. Welcome Home, sweet Rose Marie!

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,

Jeremiah 16:15, “’As the LORD lives, who brought up the sons of Israel from the land of the north and from all the countries where He had banished them.’ For I will restore them to their own land which I gave to their fathers.”

Google Maps have literally brought the world to our doorstep. It’s fun to look up old addresses and find the houses in which you once lived. Some are gone; some have been remodled and are hardly recognizabile. Particularly, is this true for some who have lived overseas. Times change, people change, cultures change, and buildings change. In some instances, it’s difficult to believe you once lived there!

In the earlier chapters of Jeremiah, the LORD had become furious with Israel and Judah. It was He who had led them and provided for them –until…they saw their prosperity and reckoned it of greater worth than the LORD who had given it to them. In His anger, the LORD dispersed the nations into far countries and given them over to the occupants who lived there.

In time, they realized that their sin was what brought this disaster upon them. The LORD commissioned the prophet Jeremiah to show the people the way out of their troubles. The nations were to repent; then, the LORD promised to “restore them to their own land…”

In the year 1948, the LORD fulfilled His promise! The Jews were moved of the LORD to return to the Land the LORD had given to Abraham.

There are many miracles connected with the nation of Israel, some of them since they returned to their homeland. The Six-Day-War was itself a miracle. Virtually every country in the Middle East had guns pointed against the Jews; yet they prevailed and now possess the Land.

We have all sinned against the LORD, too. Sometimes that sin is costly! Yet, the LORD is a loving Father and wants to restore things for His Christian people, as well. Perhaps He has promised you something that He has yet to fulfill. It could be because there is unconfessed sin still in your life. When that occurs, He is prepared to leave us in the clutches of a foreign

people until we repent. Then, He delights in returning us to the Land He has promised.

Are you where God wants you? Are you preparing for what He has for you to do? It took the Jews a long time to get back to their Promised Land. It might be the same for you.

Praying for you daily that you might enjoy the blessings of the LORD,

Nana & Dado III

(Rose Marie & Gene)

P. S. Rose Marie is progressing in health. We expect her to be released from the hospital

in another day or two. She remains weak, but has never had any pain! Her sense of

humor and engaging smile has been a blessing to her care-givers and family. She

truly appreciates your prayers for her, as do we all. God bless you abundantly!

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.”