International Prayer Day First Monday each month 10 am

Joel Griffith 6/21/21 Joel Griffith 6/21/21

$3.25

“Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.” Hebrews 9:27-28

Before you read any further, take a big, long, deep breath, and hold it and then very slowly exhale until your lungs are empty. Imagine, that your lungs were holding the span of your life and when you reached a point where you needed to gasp for air; your time was up; no refill. Life is so short and fragile. We really don't have many years and to spend them doing dumb stuff on this side of Heaven seems like such a waste.

Back in the day, when I was working in Kimball County Nebraska, every once in a while, I would travel a few hours into Colorado and visit some ghost towns in the Rocky Mountains. As I recall, many had flourished in the late 1800’s and residents thought that the mines would last forever; but suddenly everything screeched to a halt as the silver disappeared. Almost overnight those bustling, loud population centers became vacant dust collectors on the side of a barren mountain. Those windswept ghost towns are now silent, hollow shells awaiting a Clint Eastwood western movie to come and use what is left of them.

What often looks as if it is here to stay and will make a significant impact can be frighteningly temporary. When God says, "That's it; time's up," it's only a matter of time. Our God is in complete control. He lets nothing out of His grip, He starts one and stops another. He pushes one ahead and holds another back.

In the attached photo, is lunch for thirteen Haitian school children; the cost is $3.25. Want to make a significant impact in a child’s life? How many more opportunities will you have to impact somebody’s life in a wonderful way? Yes, life is short. God has a plan for your life and the thirteen kids who will be eating a lunch of rice and beans. God has given you a real, almost too easy, opportunity to make an impact. Instead of thinking you can’t make a difference in your remaining days, see the significance of them in light of God's plan. Ask Him to help you view each day as He looks at it.

Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Amen.

May God be with you…Jay

Joel Griffith 6/19/21 Joel Griffith 6/19/21

The other side.

"I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die.” John 11:25-26

A few more people that I knew from Nebraska, went to the other side last week to meet Jesus face to face. It will happen to each of us someday, and I find comfort on quiet days from time to time to just sit and reflect on time spent with them and how happy I will be when I get the call.

Heavenly Father, this is a special moment in time to consider leaving here, because we all must at some point in time, answer the question, "Am I ready to die?" And not until we're ready to die are we truly ready to live. Many of us acknowledge that death is the last thing we want to think about, but thank You for bringing us face-to-face with that reality. Thank You for the gift of living on earth and the reminder that our days are fleeting. Make us ready for the harsh moments that are before us in during our journey in the desert; calm our spirits, and remove our fears. Thank You for Jesus Christ, who is the answer beyond the grave. This day, we acknowledge Him as Lord and Savior of life and death.

Now unto Him who is able to keep us from falling, and to present us faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever.

For Christ is risen indeed. In His name we pray. Amen.

Joel Griffith 6/18/21 Joel Griffith 6/18/21

Saying goodbye.

“Greet all God’s people in Christ Jesus. The brothers and sisters who are with me send greetings. All God’s people here send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar’s household. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.” Philippians 4:21-23

On this side of Heaven, saying goodbye can sometimes be difficult. When you travel with a mission team to visit school children in Haiti there is always perhaps one or two children who will just linger and hold on to your hand, your shirt sleeve, tap your leg with their hand just not wanting the moment to end.

When I lived in Haiti it was me at the airport, standing outside in the heat with the departing mission team, hanging with them at the airport while they stood in line waiting to enter the airport terminal. It was me standing there in the morning heat, trying to catch on more fleeting glimpse of their smile, one last hand shake, just one more hug…one last word in my native tongue before they left for North America and I would return to my truck and drive back to my apartment in Petionville.

After a week of conversation with English speaking brothers and sisters in Christ, it was hard to return up the long hill on Delmas to a hot and lonely apartment room. Saying goodbye can be difficult on both ends of the handshake. There is a song by a Gospel group called ‘The Nelons’ that is titled “Christians Never say Goodbye” and it comes to mind every time I have to say goodbye. Good bye to children in Haiti, goodbye to a loved one or goodbye to one who was close to death.
“I was standing by the bed side of a dear and precious saint with tear stained eyes I held his hand, his life was growing faint. He looked at me and said; "my child why do you look so sad, I'm going now to my new home you'll see me again. Christians never say goodbye, we only move to our home on high; free from pain and never die with Jesus we will reign. A wife may lose her husband or a mother lose her child whatever the case we all can say Christians never say goodbye. Now he's gone to live in heaven, a life free from pain. His suffering now has an end and our loss will be their gain. By Jesus rights he is healed; his pain will be no more let's release the precious saint to the arms of the Lord.”

On a hot afternoon in Ouanaminthe, two girls stood by the open door of our vehicle waiting to say goodbye. Goodbye is only temporary in this world. These faces will be reunited with me in Heaven. Thank you for helping to prepare these children for the reunion with Jesus, and with you in Heaven.

May God be with you…Jay

Joel Griffith 6/17/21 Joel Griffith 6/17/21

Gift of salvation.

“Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles. Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid more than once when I was in need. Not that I desire your gifts; what I desire is that more be credited to your account. I have received full payment and have more than enough. I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” Philippians 4:14-20

There are mission teams that bring gifts; suitcases full of odds and ends that mission team leaders seemingly imagine are needed by the recipients in a faraway land. Our ancestors in North America gave blankets, beads and buttons to the Native inhabitants prior to moving into their land; it’s in our gene. When the Apostle Paul went on his journeys, Churches provided for him, not the other way around.

The Apostle Paul was an ambassador for Christ and his message was the news of the gift of salvation that is found only in Christ. Sometimes we go astray from this direction and return to the ways of our sinful culture. Instead of bringing that which is of real value and will last forever, the Gospel, we tote and deliver worthless trinkets that only bring short lived happiness. The child from Ouanaminthe in the attached photo is giving thanks to God for her daily food, and for your support. She doesn’t know you or me, but she does know Him who brought this food to her table. It is not about me or you, it is about Him.

I read a pearl of wisdom recently which says “When you pray for others, God listens to you and blesses them, and sometimes, when you are safe and happy, remember that someone has prayed for you.” Thank you for continuing to pray for the children in Haiti who receive the true gift of life and the gift of nourishment daily. Also, never forget that you are in their prayers as well. We recently sang ‘Christ be my leader’ which was written by Timothy Dudley-Smith in the early 1960’s and this song reminds us of the presence of Christ in our lives each and every day.

“Christ be my leader by night as by day; safe through the darkness for he is the way. Gladly I follow, my future his care, darkness is daylight when Jesus is there. Christ be my teacher in age as in youth, drifting or doubting, for he is the truth. Grant me to trust him, though shifting as sand, doubt cannot daunt me; in Jesus I stand. Christ be my Savior in calm as in strife; death cannot hold me, for he is the life. Nor darkness nor doubting nor sin and its stain can touch my salvation: with Jesus I reign.”

May God be with you…Jay

Joel Griffith 6/16/21 Joel Griffith 6/16/21

A feeding program.

“Love the Lord, all his faithful people! The Lord preserves those who are true to him, but the proud he pays back in full. Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord.” Psalm 31:23-24

I can’t begin to count the number of times that I have spoken to somebody that supports a ‘feeding’ program at a school in Haiti. To me, there is only one real ‘feeding’ program and the others are either treats, sad copies or are doing more harm than help to the physical bodies of the students in school.

When I ask what type of ‘feeding’ program they support, the answers vary. Filling a shipping container with peanut butter and crackers, bags of rice, bags of dry beans, granola bars and vitamin gummies or, packing those items in bags and sending them to Haiti with a mission team.

The result of this type of ‘feeding’ program is predictable; the Haitian school will always need help from you. When the shipping container is unavailable or if the mission team can’t come due to political unrest, earthquake or a pandemic, the children go hungry and the vodou priest plants a seed of doubt; “Why didn’t your God send you food today?”

Trinity HOPE wires funds to their feeding program directors in Haiti so they can purchase food from the local vendors and transport it to the Christian schools so over 42,500 children like this child, will receive a well-balanced meal every day they are in school, learning about their Savior. And prayerfully, when the schools are able to fund these feeding programs, they will be on their own as they have the purchasing, cooking and serving the meals down pat.

May God be with you…Jay

Joel Griffith 6/15/21 Joel Griffith 6/15/21

Your identity.

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” John 8:12

When Jesus said, “I am the light of the world”, He was defining himself. He was saying, “I know who I am.” If somebody asked you that question, what would be your reply? Six years ago today, Normal, IL became my home and now I can finally proclaim that I am finally ‘normal’ on this side of Heaven but I will also tell you that I am a sinful human being who is saved by the blood of Jesus Christ. I imagine that the majority of this world will not tell you that they are sinful; it’s really not a secret that nobody knows and can’t be hidden. The three Haitian girls in the attached photo are like me, sinful human beings who are redeemed.

I did a Google search and found that there are at least 18 times in the Bible where Jesus said, “I am” and then gave a description. He described himself as the door, the bread of life, the way, the truth, the resurrection, and the life. Over and over, He defined Himself; Jesus knew who he was and, as a result, He was not under any pressure.

Jesus understood his identity and it’s crucial that you, me and these three school children understand ours too. When you’re unsure about your identity, you’ll be pressured to fit into other people’s molds that this world says are ‘normal’ or ‘acceptable’. They will try to make you what they think you should be, rather than who God made you to be.

The Bible says you were created by God. You are deeply loved by him. You are accepted as you are. Our Heavenly Father has a plan for your life. When you understand this, you’ll find yourself free to serve other people; in your home town and in foreign places.

Jesus constantly did things that surprised everyone else, because He was free; He felt no pressure to meet people’s or this world’s expectations. He chose to serve others, regardless of how it might be perceived. He washed his disciples’ feet; something they were too insecure to do for each other. You, me and these three bright faces can find a sense of security in knowing that each of us, sinful as we may be, are dearly loved and accepted as a child of God. There’s no need to pretend to be anyone else.

May God be with you…Jay

Joel Griffith 6/14/21 Joel Griffith 6/14/21

Heroes.

“But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God.” 1 Peter 2:20; 3:17

A week ago we observed the 77th anniversary of D-Day and remembered the sacrifice of heroic lives on that day. I consider their sacrifice to be heroic. There had to be moment of fear before taking that first step out of the landing craft or jumping out of an airplane surrounded by darkness and explosions. I wonder how much of that measure of courage is within our cultural gene pool today.

We need heroes like there were back in the day; I mean genuine heroes, authentic men and women who are admired for their achievements, noble qualities, and courage. Such people aren't afraid to be different; they take risks. They stand a cut above. Yet they are real human beings, sinful with flaws and failures like anyone else. But they inspire us to do better. We feel warm inside when we think about this rare breed of humanity. The kind we can look up to without the slightest suspicion of deception or hypocrisy. The kind who model excellence when no one is looking or for that matter when half the world is looking like it did in 1944.

I don’t know about you, but I'm concerned that we seem to be running out of heroes like that. Certainly, there are some, but not nearly as many, it seems, as when I was a small boy. Back then I distinctly recall looking up to numerous people in various segments of society; politics, athletics, music, education, science, the military, religion; all of whom not only stood tall during their moments of excellence, but they finished well too. Yes, they finished well. People fondly remembered their name, their story and shared how their story impacted their lives.

You may be surprised to know that for any number of people, you are the person others point to. It may be in the place where you work, the next door neighbor, the person who sits in the same pew and no one has even told you. As you look at the photo of this classroom in rural Haiti, look closely at the two male teachers; they are heroes for Christ to the children and their families as well. These two guys and these school kids are heroes for the Kingdom. And you, the pot full of rice and beans cooking on the coals is from you; doing Kingdom work. You are a hero.

If you are one of the people putting food in that pot, then you're not like the majority of this world. You're living differently, and I commend you for it. It takes unusual people to make a difference in our world. Mediocre people impact no one, at least not for good purposes; not for Kingdom building. But one person of truth, like you, can impact the whole world!

May God be with you…Jay

Joel Griffith 6/12/21 Joel Griffith 6/12/21

Surrounded by injustice.

“And I saw something else under the sun: in the place of judgment; wickedness was there, in the place of justice; wickedness was there. I thought in my heart, "God will bring to judgment both the righteous and the wicked; for there will be a time for every activity, a time for every deed." Ecclesiastes 3:16‑17

The Men’s Bible study group is going through a Max Lucado study and last Saturday he suggested, and further encouraged us to be thankful for the bumps in our journey, the painful aches and even the closed doors. It's not often that we think about this type of response, but today Father, we thank You for the injustices in life that have crippled us, broken and crushed us. Unfair circumstances have bruised us deeply and beaten us into submission and bought us closer to You. Inequities have brought us to such a dead end that we can't see the way back out. The only direction we can look is up and often that seems like way too far to crawl. We often think that our unjust circumstance is what has ruined our lives when truth be told, it could be the means You have ordained to give us life. Father, if those people we know who have trudged through the valley of the shadow of death were not alive today, walking with You and telling us to keep going; where would we be? How much we daily need their life’s examples and encouragement! In light of Your sovereign grace, we thank You for blindness, for paralysis, for loss, for death, for a pandemic, for broken dreams, for dissolved partnerships, for failed leaders and for disillusionment. In faith, we praise You for times of insecurity, failure, divorce, and even those when others have treated us unjustly. We see the storm, but You enable us to also see beyond the storm and enable us to trust You to make all things just in Your time. We believe that You sovereignly intend for good what others intentionally mean for evil.

We pray for those facing the frustration of injustice in these and dozens of other categories. We ask that they may be able to find in Jesus Christ the strength to go on, especially those who have decided to give up. We pray that they will offer everything to You in full surrender; everything. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Joel Griffith 6/11/21 Joel Griffith 6/11/21

Thank you for blessing me.

“I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:10-13

If my experience in Haiti and pictures and Holy Scriptures do nothing more than causing you to better understand how blessed your life is living where you are, and how wonderfully our Triune God continues to provide for you and all His children then all is well; Glory be to Him who has brought this about.

The attached photo is of Pastor Daniel Paul, his wife Clynie and their daughters in Ouanaminthe, Haiti. Clynie gave me a “How to speak Creole” book when I first moved to Haiti and it helped me to learn their language and I still have the book next to my laptop and open its pages from time to time to brush up and always before I return to go back as I need to be refreshed with words and phrases that have slipped away.

Pastor Daniel received his theological training at the Lutheran Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN and returned to Haiti in 2001 with Clynie to begin their ministry first in Port-au-Prince and later in Ouanaminthe. They have been blessed through a relationship with congregations in Washington State that have been mindful in assisting in ways that promote self-dependency. There is a Trinity HOPE school feeding program at their school and children in their orphanage are some of the children that attend this school; their ministry has been richly blessed. The song “Thank you Lord for Your blessings on me” by the Easter Brothers was on my computer gospel station recently and its words gave reason for the smiles from the Paul family.

“As the world looks upon me, as I struggle along. They say I have nothing, but they are so wrong. In my heart I'm rejoicing, how I wish they could see. Thank you Lord, for your blessings on me. There’s a roof up above me, I’ve a good place to sleep. There’s food on my table and shoes on my feet. You gave me your love Lord and a fine family. Thank you Lord, for your blessings on me. Now I know I'm not wealthy, and these clothes, they're not new. I don't have much money, but Lord I have you. And to me that's all that matters, though the world cannot see. Thank you Lord, for your blessings on me.”

May God be with you…Jay

Joel Griffith 6/10/21 Joel Griffith 6/10/21

Assistance.

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable; if anything is excellent or praiseworthy; think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me; put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:8-9

While living in Haiti my quiet hours either in the early morning or at night if it was just too hot to sleep were spent searching for Bible verses to insert into PowerPoint programs. The Apostle Paul provided me with a plethora of verses from which to choose from. These verses in the 4th chapter of Philippians rank very high on the closing passages that I used. Pastor Darrell Stuehrenberg would always remind me when he would read them in my message that these were his life verses; Pastor Darrell is now richly blessed in Heaven.

When we consider our mission, His mission for us, and how we can be used to do His mission to the assist the believers in Haiti to reach the un-believers in Haiti. these passages should be considered before anything is planned. Too often well-meaning North Americans have gone off to foreign lands with mission ideas that have enslaved believers in the mission fields. These types of ‘assistance’ do not go unseen by the un-believers; schools without a roof, broken trucks sitting idle for years, empty medical clinics and empty concrete block churches. Where is their God, why doesn’t their God come back and fix these problems?

The attached photo was taken in Ouanaminthe, Haiti. This school does not need to be fixed. The clothes that this young girl is wearing are just fine. The food in the bowl provided by Trinity HOPE is her daily meal. The smile on her face is genuine. She has a Savior who gave His life for her and prepared a place for her in Heaven. She has Jesus!

The hymn “Beautiful Savior” from the Lutheran Hymnal is such a wonderful reminder of what it is that we truly need and also what we have. No author was ever given for this hymn that appeared in 1677, must have been a Lutheran who didn’t want this hymn to be about him, but rather about the Savior.

“Beautiful Savior, King of Creation, Son of God and Son of Man! Truly I'd love Thee, truly I'd serve Thee, light of my soul, my Joy, my Crown. Fair are the meadows, fair are the woodlands, robed in flowers of blooming spring; Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer; He makes our sorrowing spirit sing. Fair is the sunshine, fair is the moonlight, bright the sparkling stars on high; Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer, than all the angels in the sky. Beautiful Savior, Lord of the nations, Son of God and Son of Man! Glory and honor, praise, adoration, now and forevermore be Thine!”

May God be with you…Jay