International Prayer Day First Monday each month 10 am

Joel Griffith 9/19/24 Joel Griffith 9/19/24

Our Cornerstone.

“I have heard the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you have built, by putting my Name there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.” 1 Kings 9:3

Prior to living in Haiti, it was my perception that a congregation worshipped in a ‘Church’ and if the congregation had a day school that too was another structure. Most of the churches that are in Haiti are more like the early Church in Acts.

The attached photo is of the Lay Pastor standing in front of the Lutheran Church at Berjot which is located on the East edge of Les Cayes. This Church also happens to be his home and the woman standing in the doorway is his wife. I took this photo in 2002 and at that time the Pastor also had a few children from the neighborhood who would come daily to learn about Jesus Christ. Pastor Israel Isidor advised that this part of Les Cayes not only had a strong vodou presence but also had many cases of leprosy.

Whether you worship the Triune God in a large brick or stone Church or a small concrete block building tucked into a small neighborhood; He is always there. The hymn ‘Christ is our Cornerstone’ was composed by John Darwall in 1770 and translated by John Chandler in 1837 and its words still provide us with the importance of Who is the cornerstone of our Church and lives; here in North American, in Haiti and throughout the world.

“Christ is our Corner-stone, on Him alone we build; with His true saints alone the courts of heaven are filled. On His great love, our hopes we place of present grace and joys above. Oh, then, with hymns of praise, these hallowed courts shall ring; our voices we will raise the three in One to sing. And thus proclaim in joyful song, both loud and long that glorious name. Here, gracious God, do Thou forevermore draw nigh; accept each faithful vow and mark each suppliant sigh. In copious shower on all who pray each holy day, Thy blessing pour. Here may we gain from heaven the grace which we implore, and may that grace, once given, be with us evermore. Until that day when all the blest to endless rest are called away!”
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 9/18/24 Joel Griffith 9/18/24

Don't deceive yourself.

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” James 1:22

What do you imagine is really important to the child in the attached photo? This young girl attends the Lutheran school in Cap Haitian and on this day was visited by a Trinity HOPE mission team and received a bracelet that was used to help tell the story of our Triune God. What is really important to the life of this child?

She no doubt lives in a neighborhood where the vodou drums are pounded in the evening and animals are sacrificed. She no doubt has some members of her family that still visit the local vodou priest in hopes that they can receive healing or an answer to a problem that is happening in their lives. She has probably heard that gangs are moving into her neighborhood. What is really important to the life of this child?

She has heard the Gospel message; this little lamb is saved. Her light is being refueled to shine brightly in a neighborhood of darkness. The cupboard in her house is most likely empty each morning but she is being fed at school every day. Her light is shining brightly as she takes the message of the Triune God into the neighborhood of doubt and fear. In the same manner as she hears the Word daily, she, and us continue to ‘do what it says’ as we continue along on our earthly journey doing His work and answering His call. In 1834 Edward Mote wrote the words for the hymn ‘My hope is built on nothing less’ and as you read those words, consider her life, your life and what our Savior accomplished for us and continues to accomplish through us.

“My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness; I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand. When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace; in every high and stormy gale my anchor holds within the veil. On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand. His oath, His covenant, and blood support me in the whelming flood; when every earthly prop gives way, He then is all my Hope and Stay. On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand. When He shall come with trumpet sound, oh may I then in Him be found; clothed in His righteousness alone; faultless to stand before the throne! On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.”

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 9/17/24 Joel Griffith 9/17/24

Are you lacking much?

“Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. Fear the LORD, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.” Psalm 34:8-10

As you sit and read this devotion today, take just a few moments to consider what you lack at this point in your life’s journey. Are you lacking stuff, time, friends, treasures, food, shelter or good health? The final verse from Psalm 34 should cause each of us to take an inventory of our lives and also consider how others on this planet might reply of what it is they may be lacking.

The child in the attached photo attends the Lutheran school in Bois Marchand on the northwestern edge of Gonaives. I can’t imagine what she would say that she lacks; probably food at home as she told me that she had nothing to eat before walking to school and nothing to eat the night before we met on this hot day in March of 2010.

If we all continue to ‘seek the Lord’ we will realize how many blessings have been poured out for us and not be tempted by the ‘needs’ of this sinful world. Our Heavenly Father sent His only Son into this world to pay the price for our sins and Jesus promised that He has prepared a mansion in Heaven for each of us. Seek the Lord and lack nothing. In 1876 Henry Baker wrote ‘Redeemed, restored, forgiven’ and this hymn sums up all that we have today and will have in eternity.

“Redeemed, restored, forgiven, through Jesus' precious blood. Heirs of His home in heaven, oh, praise our pardoning God! Praise Him in tuneful measures Who gave His Son to die; praise Him whose sevenfold treasures enrich and sanctify. Once on the dreary mountain we wandered far and wide; far from the cleansing fountain, far from the pierced side. But Jesus sought and found us and washed our guilt away; with cords of love He bound us to be His own for aye. Dear Master, Thine the glory of each recovered soul. Ah! who can tell the story of love that made us whole? Not ours, not ours, the merit; be Thine alone the praise and ours a thankful spirit to serve Thee all our days. Now keep us, holy Savior, in Thy true love and fear and grant us of Thy favor. The grace to persevere till in Thy new creation; earth's time-long travail o'er, we find our full salvation and praise Thee evermore. “

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 9/16/24 Joel Griffith 9/16/24

As the deer pants...

“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng.” Psalm 42:1-4

When an invincible wall of barbed wire is placed in the middle of our journey we need to thank our Heavenly Father for those times when life is hard, when we can’t handle life’s challenges on our own, when we fully realize that our wisdom and resources are inadequate. Our North American culture makes this a hard pill to swallow.

When the wheels of my 4-wheel truck are stuck in the slimy, muddy goo of this world there is a part of me that absolutely hates the situation and I have no choice but to remember how much I need my Heavenly Father, and in those times, I can feel the longing of my soul for His presence, love and protection. The people that live in this stone house in the Arcahaie District of Haiti are sitting in their home and probably don’t see themselves facing problems as I do when I snapped this photo. No electrical or telephone lines running into their house or indoor plumbing.

Their children attend Lutheran school at Chincheron and they have heard about our risen Savior and know about the word ‘Salvation’ and have turned away from the vodou priest and out here in the middle of nowhere the gangs have not touched them; their lives have an urgent purpose to share His message. Without our Heavenly Father, our lives would have no real defined purpose. Without Him, we all would faint from exhaustion and fade away and not receive our Crown of Life. Without Him, our discouragement with this world would stack up higher and higher; with no hope of relief. And now, we yearn for the presence of our Heavenly Father and like a deer and the water, He alone can satisfy our soul. In 1984 Martin Nystrom took the words of this psalm and put them to music: “As the deer panteth for the water, so my soul longeth after Thee. You alone are my heart’s desire and I long to worship Thee.”

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 9/14/24 Joel Griffith 9/14/24

40 days of purpose.

“I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Ghost has called me through the Gospel, enlightened me by his gifts, and sanctified and preserved me in the true faith; in like manner as He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth, and preserves it in union with Jesus Christ in the true faith; in which Christian Church He daily forgives abundantly all my sins, and the sins of all believers, and will raise up me and all the dead at the last day, and will grant everlasting life to me and to all who believe in Christ. This is most certainly true.” The Explanation of the Third Article of the Apostle’s Creed by Martin Luther.

A couple of decades ago there was a popular book called the ‘Forty days of Purpose’ by Rick Warren. This was a Bible study that many millions of people went through and I went through this book a number of times; with a group in Davie, FL and with a few close friends via E-mail while living in Haiti and the book now rests in my bookcase only being referenced occasionally.

The truly important part of this book in my mind was that our being here is not about me, it is about our Triune God. He is the one preparing us and providing opportunities to use the time, talents and treasures that He has provided to us; we are not calling the shots. I don’t know if Mr. Warren studied Martin Luther but he might have as the phrase Luther wrote in the 1500’s “the Holy Ghost has called me through the Gospel, enlightened me by his gifts, and sanctified and preserved me in the true faith; in like manner as He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth” certainly reminds us today what force is working through us.

The girl standing next to me in Messif has been called by the Holy Spirit to do His work. The Holy Spirit does not just choose the tall or short, the young or old, the rich or poor, the sick or healthy or the meek or the courageous; He calls us all. This child living in Ouanaminthe, you and I are all being daily called by the Holy Spirit to use the gifts that we have been given to do His work; bring one more soul to hear the news of a Savior who is Christ the Lord. Your gifts are different than her gifts and also different than mine. Thank you for letting the Holy Spirit move you to help prepare this child for her call. A wonderful way to close this devotion is by using the words to a Welsh hymn ‘Sent forth by God’s blessing’ which was written by Omer Westendorf (1917-1997).

“Sent forth by God's blessing, our true faith confessing, the people of God from this dwelling take leave. The supper is ended. Oh, now be extended the fruits of this service in all who believe. The fruit of Christ's teaching, receptive souls reaching, shall blossom in action for God and for all. His grace did invite us, his love shall unite us to work for God's kingdom and answer his call. With praise and thanksgiving to God ever-living the tasks of our everyday life we will face. Our faith ever sharing, in love ever caring, embracing the children of each tribe and race. With your feast you feed us, with your light now lead us, unite us as one in this life that we share. Then may all the living with praise and thanksgiving give honor to Christ and his name that we bear.”

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 9/13/24 Joel Griffith 9/13/24

Future plans.

“May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us, yes, establish the work of our hands.” Psalm 90:17

It is so important to acknowledge that our accomplishments in our lifetime are really not much unless their directions come from our Heavenly Father. The importance of ‘His’ work is far greater than what this world holds as important. At this writing, the schools that have a Trinity HOPE feeding program will be starting on October 1 and be feeding over 50,000 meals. Haiti is still in chaos brought about by gangs and they have spread out. Children and their parents are patiently waiting for this turmoil to cease and His plans for this generation of Christian children to be set into place. There are Haitian missionaries attending these schools, waiting to take to Gospel message to the lost.

The attached photo is of a rather large cemetery on a mountain top near Chincheron in the Arcahaie District. The bones of vodou followers and Christians are stored here in above ground crypts. When passing by cemeteries in Haiti the question of how many went to their grave not having had a Savior always came up in my conversation with those riding with me as it seemed that there were many more following the vodou priest than clinging to Christ. Thank you so much for helping to feed 50,000 children and for following His directions to feed and help prepare those children to share the Good News of a Risen Savior with the lost. I close with the words from the hymn "Our God, Our Help in Ages Past" that was written by Isaac Watts, 1719.

“Our God, our Help in ages past, our Hope for years to come, our Shelter from the stormy blast and our eternal Home! Under the shadow of Thy throne Thy saints have dwelt secure; sufficient is Thine arm alone and our defense is sure. Before the hills in order stood or earth received her frame, from everlasting Thou art God, to endless years the same. A thousand ages in Thy sight are like an evening gone, short as the watch that ends the night before the rising sun. Thy word commands our flesh to dust: “Return ye sons of men!" All nations rose from earth at first and turn to earth again. Time, like an ever-rolling stream, bears all its sons away; they fly forgotten as a dream dies at the opening day. Like flowery fields the nations stand, pleased with the morning light; the flowers beneath the mower's hand lie withering ere 'tis night. Our God, our Help in ages past, Our Hope for years to come, be Thou our Guard while troubles last and our eternal Home!”

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 9/12/24 Joel Griffith 9/12/24

Comfort food?

“The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” Romans 8:15

Why does our Triune God call us to work in places outside of our own backyard? Away from my comfort zone. There are people that live within my city that receive their daily manna from the food bank and soup kitchen; why does the Holy Spirit nudge us to go outside of our city and State? When the hunger pains in a child living in Haiti become unbearable their cries can be silenced when their small stomachs are filled with a dirt cake. The woman in the attached photo is preparing quite a supply. I can almost hear her saying; “Ooohh…they’re SO GOOD!”

Hunger is a pressing reason why we go to Haiti, but probably more important in the greater scope is satan worship that was brought to Haiti on French slave ships traveling from Africa. The devil is alive and well within the vodou priests residing in Haiti casting evil spirits throughout local neighborhoods.

Satan will be cast out of Haiti from within by the young missionaries that are being trained and fed in the Christian schools today; with your help. The truth and light is being spread by the mouths and actions of the young children who are being fed beans and rice and not dirt cakes. Their witness is dispelling the fear of the vodou priest and is bringing hope to a country that has for so long been without hope. Heinrich Held penned the words for the hymn “Come, Oh, Come, Thou Quickening Spirit” in 1664 and this particular hymn is one of those that goes on and on and the final three verses will close today’s devotion.

“Holy Spirit, strong and mighty; Thou who makest all things new, make Thy work within us perfect and the evil Foe subdue. Grant us weapons for the strife and with victory crown our life. Guard, O God, our faith forever; let not Satan, death, or shame ever part us from our Savior; Lord our Refuge is Thy name. Though our flesh cry ever: Nay! Be Thy Word to us still Yea! And when life's frail thread is breaking; then assure us more and more, as the heirs of life unending. Of the glory there in store, glory never yet expressed, glory of the saints at rest.”

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 9/11/24 Joel Griffith 9/11/24

Remembering.

“Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.” 1 Thessalonians 5:1-3

There are times in our lives when events will be burned into our memory banks. I remember how dense the fog was on the morning that my dad was killed in an automobile accident when I was seven; I remember how he looked dropping my sister and me at St. John’s Lutheran school and I also remember how he looked laying in a casket. I remember my 8th grade teacher Mrs. Shepherd coming into our classroom after lunch with tears in her eyes as she told us that President Kennedy had been shot in Dallas; I remember that we were sent home for the afternoon and walking home on that cold and cloudy November day.

I remember standing in the southwest quadrant of the I-80 interchange at Kearney, NE when I heard the radio in our State van announce that the Challenger space shuttle had exploded shortly after takeoff. I remember in June of 1999, when I was a mission team member preparing to eat dinner at the Hotel Kinam in Petionville, Haiti when I was told that I had a phone call and went to the front desk and learned that my sister had lost her battle to liver cancer.

On this day in 2001 I was sitting at a computer in a cyber-café in Petionville on a hot and humid sunny morning. This building had four rooms, no glass in the windows, and no AC; just a few electric fans to circulate the humid, hot air. The front room was set up as a waiting room with a small B&W television. The next room had six computers set up on tables. The two rooms adjacent to this room were where the family who owned this business lived and one of those rooms had a few baby goats making sounds and smells that only goats can make; there were gnats and mosquitos buzzing in the still air.

I had paid the attendant for an hour of time to use their internet and was in the middle of checking my mail when I heard “ohs” coming from the waiting room and was curious so I stood and peeked around the corner of the doorway to see what was causing their reaction to what was being shown on the television. The French-Canadian news channel was broadcasting the video footage of the first airplane smashing into the World Trade Center; my heart sank.

I sent an Email to my LCMS World Mission supervisor Pastor Jim Tino advising that all seemed safe in Haiti and finished sending a report I’d written to some mission societies in North America and then logged off and went to the waiting room. At that time, I was not driving by myself so I had to sit and wait for my driver to return to pick me up at a designated time so there was about thirty minutes of sitting in the waiting room, watching the television and praying.

When my driver returned, I called my supervisor on the satellite phone and found out that the LCMS World Missions was bringing some missionaries out of their country for safety reasons but I assured him that it seemed to be very quiet in Haiti’, almost somber, and the only reaction to this event was sadness on the part of the Haitian people, offering me condolences in the loss of those innocent people.

When we least expect them, destruction comes like a thief in the night. We are comforted that our Savior has conquered sin, death and the devil for us on the cross of Calvary. Nothing in this world can separate us from His love and our faith continues to rest upon Him. While satan continues to throw unexpected calamities into this world that impact our journey and remain in our memory it is okay to not lose sight of them but it is also important to never forget who is in control of this world. Our Triune God allows things to happen in our lives that seem to be unthinkably horrible but through them all we grow stronger and closer to Him.

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 9/10/24 Joel Griffith 9/10/24

Sitting on the fence of belief.

“The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.” “You have said so,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” “He is worthy of death,” they answered. Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him.” Matthew 26:64-67

I came across this snippet of wisdom last weekend; “To the world you might be one person, but to one person you might be the world”. Following Jesus may not bring you applause from this world’s finest but to that one person, who is sitting on the fence of belief and has never heard the name of our Savior or has but hasn’t surrendered to the Son of God; your message is the most important one in their life.

This morning, I am asking you to just spend a few moments of time looking at this girl attending the Lutheran school in Ouanaminthe. The first thing that you should know is that the children at this school wear uniforms, and she has none. In a country where families have little earthly belongings her family is just managing to exist. The bowl of food resting in her lap is her daily manna. I can only imagine that this child is coming from a vodou household and she daily hears contradicting words about what she is learning in school. She may be sitting on that fence of belief. At her school, she has the news of a Loving Savior and is fed. At home there are no promises. The Son of God came to earth for this child. Jesus went to the cross on Calvary for this single child and for each of us. How great a sacrifice He gave for each of us and when considering what He accomplished on Easter what a privilege to share in helping to prepare this child to be His missionary. The hymn ‘Christ, the life of all the living’ was written by Ernst Homburg in 1659 and verses 1, 5-7 seem like excellent words to close this devotion.

“Christ, the Life of all the living, Christ, the Death of death, our foe, Who, Thyself for me once giving to the darkest depths of woe. Through thy sufferings, death, and merit I eternal life inherit: thousand, thousand thanks shall be, dearest Jesus, unto Thee. Thou hast suffered men to bruise Thee that from pain I might be free; falsely did Thy foes accuse Thee. Thence I gain security; comfortless Thy soul did languish me to comfort in my anguish. Thousand, thousand thanks shall be, dearest Jesus, unto Thee. Thou hast suffered great affliction and hast borne it patiently, even death by crucifixion, fully to atone for me; Thou didst choose to be tormented that my doom should be prevented. Thousand, thousand thanks shall be, dearest Jesus, unto Thee. Then, for all that wrought my pardon, for Thy sorrows deep and sore, for Thine anguish in the Garden, I will thank Thee evermore. Thank Thee for Thy groaning, sighing, for Thy bleeding and Thy dying, for that last triumphant cry, and shall praise Thee, Lord, on high.”

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 9/9/24 Joel Griffith 9/9/24

The Good Life.

“I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:9-10“I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:9-10

Back in the day, March 1970, my journey of being gainfully employed began with the State of Nebraska in Kimball Co. At that point in time, the first I-80 interchange on the West end of Nebraska was a mile east of Pine Bluffs, WY. And there was no more interstate in Nebraska to the East until you reached Chappell, NE. My reason for sharing this bit of history was the road welcome sign in the attached photo. Nebraska…the Good Life. “Nebraska: The Good Life” is only considered an unofficial slogan. The official one is this: “Nebraskaland: Where the West Begins.” I really prefer the unofficial slogan.

I’ve been reading an E-Book titled “What Happens Next; A Traveler’s Guide through the End of This Age” by Max Lucado. It has been a fascinating book and I am looking forward to finishing it; and find out what’s next. A part of me says; ‘you fool, why did you buy another book?’ I already know what God has planned; the Good Life. God has set out an abundant life for His children, but for me, the time between now and then is slipping past, fast. Just look at the signs. Every new headline brings a totally new set of circumstances and experiences. Now I'm not suggesting you do crazy things before our Lord Jesus shows up again…cool your jets, remain in His Word.

Our Heavenly Father has a mansion prepared for you, me and millions of His children in Paradise; the Good Life. Our Heavenly Father is joyfully watching for you; He's in your corner. He wants to pour out His great pleasure on you; He desires that you live abundantly, joyfully, freely. He wants you to come and be with Him in the Good Life…and bring a bunch of friends.

May God be with you,

Jay