The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Ecclesiastes 10:2, “A wise man’s heart directs him toward the right, but the foolish man’s heart directs him toward the left.”

Some months ago, I read this verse quoted by a conservative political advocate. It was a cute usage

of Scripture, and no doubt contains some wisdom. But the verse’s intention surely goes further than

that. One commentator says, “…right and left have for centuries been used as referring to good and

bad. In fact, we still use the expression, ‘my right-hand man.’ The heart of the wise always goes in the

right direction.”

Clarke says, “The right hand and the left are used in Scripture to express good and evil. The wise man

is always employed in doing good; the fool, in nonsense or evil.”

Wisdom and foolishness are a heart problem. It isn’t a lack of education; the real problem is a bad

disposition or attitude. As someone noted, “…thoughts determine actions, actions determine habits,

habits determine character, and character determines destiny.” All of that is simply to say: guard your heart. Always to make sure that you are being honest (Proverbs 23:7) and open to the truth (2 Thes. 2:10-12).

Every day we are given choices regarding what we will think about and what we will consider to be of value.

The wise person chooses to set his mind on spiritual realities (Philippians 4:8). The fool allows himself to dwell on the less valuable, the less good, and finally that which is positively evil. This verse also makes it clear that wisdom and foolishness go in opposite directions. The fool will never end up backing his way into what is good and right. Without a serious change of heart, the fool will always be a fool.

Be wise. Examine your opportunities and approach them in the leadership of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit will always lead you in right ways.

May our prayers of love always avail for your blessings,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Proverbs 27:1, “Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth.”

Twenty-nine excited athletes and their coach were traveling a mere 164 miles to play in a

championship game. I can only imagine what they were saying to one another:

“We’re going to smash ‘em!”

“We’re going to be the champs!”

“I can’t wait to get on that ice!”

“We’ll show ‘em how the game is played!”

I’ve traveled on school buses with athletes. There is every expectation of success and glory.

There’s boasting and bragging about their own abilities. Victory is in the bag!

But on this trip, 15 will soon be dead and 14 will be injured. The game will not be played.

There will be no victory, only anguish and fear and death and mourning.

I wonder: How many left home, having prayed with parents? or how many were praying for

success in their venture? How many even had the slightest thought that this would be their

last day on Earth?

I’m not seeking to inject morbidity into this letter, much less into your life. But, things like

what happened to these young Canadians do occur! No athletic team would think of

contending with another team if they had not prepared. The exercised, they skated, they

practiced shots on the ice. Moreover, they had a game plan. But, were they prepared

for the eternity they were about to enter? Hopefully, they were. We may never know.

What we can and do know, however, is that eternity in Heaven awaits the arrival of all

who know the LORD Jesus Christ and have embraced Him in true, spiritual faith. We do

not save ourselves by what we do, but we rely and trust solely in Him and what He did

for us on the Cross. His victory there was substantiated by His Resurrection from death!

May each of us so live for Him daily that even the tragedies of life cannot smother our

assurance of His love and protection. And may our example before others show the

victory we anticipate because of Him!

Our love and prayers for you are offered daily,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Acts 15:36-40, “And after some days Paul said to Barnabas, ‘Let us return and visit the brethren in every city in which we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are.’

37 “And Barnabas was desirous of taking John, called Mark, along with them also.

38 “But Paul kept insisting that they should not take him along who had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work.

39 “And there arose such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another, and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus.

40 “But Paul chose Silas and departed, being committed by the brethren to the grace of the Lord.”

President Trump has recently taken a strong stand against the decades-old trade practices of the

Chinese. While he stands adamantly against the Chinese unfair trade practices, he insists that

President Xi (pronounced “she”) and he are friends. Is it possible to disagree strongly with a position

of a friend without severing the friendship? We’ll look into the Bible for the answer.

If you read the from the start of Acts 15, you will see that false teachers had so infected the

early church with their false teachings that the apostles agreed to debate and settle the issue

in a large council meeting in Jerusalem. The entire council heard from Peter, Paul, Barnabus,

and James. The result was a unanimous rejection of the false teaching and a retention of the

teaching embraced by Peter, Paul, Barnabus and James.

When the meeting was over, everyone went home –that is, almost everyone. Paul and Barnabus

had been a primary missionary team, so they talked about revisiting churches they had founded,

strengthening them in the faith. Barnabus wanted to take Mark, who was his young relative. Mark

had gone with them previously, but for some reason had turned back in the middle of the trip and

gone home. Paul objected to taking Mark, as he was not dependable. The two argued about whether

to take Mark, “And there arose such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another,

and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus.”

Now, it seemed as if Paul was left to journey alone. But interestingly enough, “…it (had) seemed

good to Silas to remain there.” So, Paul chose Silas and departed…” But what about the argument

they had? What effect did that have upon their future friendship? In Second Peter 3:16, Peter spoke

of Paul as “our beloved brother.” And in Second Timothy 4:11, Paul says, “Pick up Mark and bring

him with you, for he is useful to me for service.”

Earlier, Paul and Barnabus had a disagreement regarding Mark. It was not a disagreement concerning

each other. It concerned an aspect of their joint ministry. We all have differences of opinion of a variety

of subjects; still, that must not inhibit us from maintaining friendships. And even though it might for the

moment, it need not be something that erases a friendship forever. Paul and Barnabus were Christian

men, who determined not to let anything destroy their friendship, their ministry, or their testimony for

Jesus Christ. We must learn the same. We must learn to be like Jesus, who in His dying hour said,

“Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” Love covers a multitude of disagreements –and sins!

We love you and pray for you each and every day,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

Proverbs 8:22-35, “The LORD possessed me at the beginning of His way, Before His works of old.

23 “From everlasting I was established, From the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth.

24 “When there were no depths I was brought forth, When there were no springs abounding with water.

25 “Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills I was brought forth;

26 While He had not yet made the earth and the fields, Nor the first dust of the world.

27 “When He established the heavens, I was there, When He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,

28 When He made firm the skies above, When the springs of the deep became fixed,

29 When He set for the sea its boundary, So that the water should not transgress His command, When He marked out the foundations of the earth;

30 Then I was beside Him, as a master workman; And I was daily His delight, Rejoicing always before Him,

31 Rejoicing in the world, His earth, And having my delight in the sons of men.

32 “Now therefore, O sons, listen to me, For blessed are they who keep my ways.

33 “Heed instruction and be wise, And do not neglect it.

34 “Blessed is the man who listens to me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at my doorposts.

35 “For he who finds me finds life, And obtains favor from the LORD.”

This is a long passage; but to address it, it seemed necessary to share the whole thing.

Personification is attributing human characteristics (seeing, walking, etc.) to things that are

not human. This passage does just that. It is Wisdom “dressed up” in human clothing.

Wisdom was with God before He created the Earth, the planets, the skies, water, and dust. I will

leave it to you to read this Scripture carefully. Just think of Wisdom as being the voice that is

speaking. Then from verses 32 through 35, Wisdom gives specific instruction to us! “Listen

to me”; “keep my ways”; “heed instruction”; “watch”; “wait.” “For he who finds me finds life, and

obtains favor from the LORD.” Don’t ever believe that what you think is right is truly right. Only

the Word of God is right. And it is absolutely right! The LORD has given us His Word in such

clarity of language (Greek), that it is virtually impossible to misunderstand it, unless we (and

those who teach us) neglect to read, absorb, and live it out in our daily lives. As Isaiah says,

“Seek from the book of the LORD, and read…” (34:16). Do it daily for spiritual wisdom just as

you eat daily for physical strength.

We love you and continue daily to pray for you all,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”

Dear Grands,

2 Peter 3:3-4, 8-9, “Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, 4 and saying, ‘Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.’”

8 “But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”

It is inevitable that false teachers will produce false followers. When their teachings encounter truth, they

mock and make fun of those whose truth does not agree with them. Mockers have ungodly impulses that require the destruction of truth in order that they may pursue their ungodliness. When they ask, “Where is the

promise of His coming?” they are not really wanting to know. They are simply trying to escape the truth

that would keep them from their ungodly behavior.

What, then, are we to do when they behave in this manner? Keep your mind on his basic thing: as the LORD reckons time, there is no difference between a day and a thousand years. He is not “busy,” so that He has become slow in fulfilling His promise. Rather, He is patient, giving sufficient time for the lost to repent of their sin and come to Him for their salvation. In the meantime, He is also giving us time to share the Gospel with those

who are still living in sin.

The Associated Press is reporting today that a 69-year-old Korean-Chinese woman living in China close to

the North Korean border is sharing the Gospel with North Koreans; and when become Christians, she urges

them to return to North Korea and share the Gospel with the people there. She is constantly monitored by

both Chinese and North Korean authorities, yet for 20 years she has continued to share Christ under those

perilous conditions. Under what “perilous conditions” are we sharing our faith? And how much time do we

truly have?

Our daily prayers include each of you, whom we truly love,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”