The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Note: I am sorry this is late. I had a video call from

Amber in China and had opportunity to minister to

her spiritually. She trusted Christ with me on Skype

some months ago. Pray for Amber Dai!

Mark 13:7-8, “And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars,

do not be frightened; those things must take place; but that is

not yet the end. 8 For nation will arise against nation, and kingdom

against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there

will also be famines. These things are merely the beginning of birth

pangs.”

Those verses sound like what we’re experiencing today. Yesterday,

I watched as Israel’s Prime Minister said he had never had greater

hope for peace in his lifetime. I cringed within myself, knowing

what the Jewish nation is going to face in the Tribulation. Scripture

is really coming to pass right in front of our eyes. Don’t be afraid,

but don’t get careless with your life. Jesus Christ is Coming! And

only the Father knows exactly when. Just live every day as if that

day were the day of His Coming.

We’re praying for you 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,

Mark 11:24-26, “Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask,

believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you.

25 “And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against

anyone; so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your transgressions.

26 “But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your

transgressions.”

It is simply impossible to walk through life without encountering opposition

in almost anything. However honestly you seek to do things, someone will

always arise in opposition to you, denounce you vehemently and impugn your

motives. Boy, can I attest to opposition! I’ve prayed earnestly and often,

asking the LORD to intervene. I’ve checked my faith, to be certain that I truly

believed the LORD would answer. Why, then, had He not answered and put

down my objectors? What I had forgotten (or in some cases, simply ignored)

was to forgive the person who had offended me. However wrong my offender

might have been, I must be willing to forgive him. Wow, that’s hard! LORD,

you know he’s wrong! Just deal with him! But, He had to deal with me first;

then, He could and would deal with my adversary.

Let me urge you to search your heart carefully. Think of those who have

genuinely offended you –not just disagreed, but really offended you! Get

over it! Forgive them for what they’ve done, however egregious it might

have been. Sometimes, you actually have to tell them face-to-face, “I’ve

forgiven you.” Hard? I reckon. But, if you want the LORD to forgive you

and answer your prayers, you have to forgive others. There’s no other

way.

We love you desperately and pray for you every single day,

Nana & Dado III

The prayer even of intensest faith is not perfect, unless the temper of the worshipper is also that of the Charity which forgives offences.

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands,

Mark 9:22-24, “’It has often thrown him both into the fire and

into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, take

pity on us and help us!’

23 And Jesus said to him, “If You can!” All things are possible

to him who believes.’

24 Immediately the boy’s father cried out and said, ‘I do believe;

help my unbelief.’”

We crossed the Mexican border at Laredo, Texas. It was our

first mission trip, and we were driving. Our car was a comfortable

Oldsmobile that I used to joke saying that it would pass anything

on the road except a filling station! It had the most accurate gas

gauge I’ve ever had on any car I’ve owned. And when the indicator

said “Empty,” it was empty! The roads were long and lonely. The

engine gulped the gas furiously, but there was no station for

refueling in sight. The gauge pegged “Empty,” but the engine

roared on. I could not believe it! Eventually, we came in sight

of a filling station. Ah, all is well.

The father of this demon-possessed son was at his wits’ end!

He poured out his heart’s desire to the LORD: “If You can…”

The LORD repeated the man’s words, “If I can.” No, it’s not

whether I can; it’s whether you can believe! And as it was

then, so it is for us today. “All things are possible to him

who believes.” Whatever you face today, the LORD is able

to deal with it. The problem lies not with whether He can, but

whether you and I believe He can. There is incredible power

that is never revealed because we fail to truly believe!

We love and pray for you daily,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands,

Mark 4:24, “And He was saying to them, ‘Take care what you listen to.

By your standard of measure it will be measured to you; and more will

be given you besides.’”

One of the chief methods of learning is by listening. There’s an old

adage that says, “The LORD gave us two ears and one mouth,” so we

should listen more and talk less. Barnes says, “You shall be treated

according to the use you make of your opportunities of learning. If

you consider it well, and make a good improvement of what you hear,

you shall be well rewarded. If not, your reward shall be small.”

Think of this when the pastor preaches today. Listen carefully. Over

the years, I’ve learned to ask the LORD for a personal message from

what the pastor says in and through his sermon. The more carefully

I listen, the more carefully I read the Word; and the more carefully I

read the Word, the more the LORD reveals to me. Then, I have more

responsibility to be and do what I learn. No, it’s not something just

for preachers; it’s for all of us. So listen today to the voice of the LORD,

as He speaks through the pastor’s word. It will make a difference in

your life.

Nana just reminded me that today is our 62ND Wedding Anniversary!

I had better be careful what I hear, too. ??

Love and prayers ever and always,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

Dear Grands,

Mark 1:15, Jesus said, “’The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand;

repent and believe in the gospel.’”

Mark writes as if he were in a terrible hurry. This may be in part because

he is writing to the Romans, who themselves were hurried in many things.

Two very important words he cites are repent and believe. Repentance,

which is having “a serious change of mind and heart about a previous point

of view or course of behavior,” is mentioned only three times. But belief,

which means having faith in or trusting, is cited 20 times. Repentance deals

with things in our past; belief deals with what is available in our future. Of

course, negative or evil things in our past have to be dealt with before we

can anticipate good things in our future.

Mark notes for us that Jesus stopped a huge storm on the Sea of Galilee,

cast a host of demon spirits out of a man, healed a lame man and forgave

his sins, healed a woman, who simply touched His outer garment, and

raised a 12-year-old girl from the dead. Now, what is your need? What is

mine? What are we facing today for which we need Jesus’ power? He

knows, so why does He not just do what’s needed? Maybe we’ve not

repented from our past. Maybe we have not truly believed in Him for what

we now need. Instead of asking, “Why doesn’t God do something?” maybe

we need to ask, “Why haven’t we done what we should?”

Love and prayers ever and always,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas