International Prayer Day First Monday each month 10 am

Joel Griffith 7/12/25 Joel Griffith 7/12/25

Having no point.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,” Hebrews 12:1

There is a saying that life without God is like an unsharpened pencil; it has no point. I have given this saying a lot of thought recently, watched three funerals online within the past couple of weeks; guess that I am reaching that point in time. Sitting here during the celebration of life services and looking at people who I don’t recognize and don’t know if they too are redeemed or are just there at this service in honor of the departed.

These children in the attached photo are a small group of children attending a Lutheran school near the border with the DR and they, like you and me, have God’s Word and we should be moved to put all that hinders us from sharing His Word with the lost in this world. It should be easy to do but satan continues to make it difficult.

“When you carry the Bible, Satan gets a headache. When you open it, he collapses. When he sees you reading it, he faints. When he sees that you are living what you read, he flees and when you are about to share the Gospel news with others he will try and discourage you.” Thank you for helping children like these with your prayers and support as they take the saving message of Jesus Christ to the lost in their neighborhoods.

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 7/11/25 Joel Griffith 7/11/25

We are one.

“I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one.” John 17:11

“Ou fe yon sel”. What image comes into your mind when you consider the message from our Savior in John 17 that says “we are one”? Back in the day, during a Lent service, I still clearly recall while gazing at the Cross, listening to Pastor Luke’s message and then looking back over the congregation gathered in the Christ Lutheran Sanctuary, and the image of ‘we are one’ was present there that night in Lincoln.

While eating lunch with a few older than me men recently, and I was sharing that another Lutheran told me that a young man from a non-denominational church had told them when finding out they were ‘Lutheran’ that they were not Christian. Being a Lutheran is not being a Christian?

Back in the day, while I was living in Haiti, a member from another Lutheran Mission Society that supported a different Lutheran Pastor in Haiti indicated that the Pastors that I was working with were not ‘really’ Lutheran Pastors. Being a Haitian Lutheran Pastor trained at the Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne didn’t mean that they are ‘Lutheran’?

Remember the political parties placing ads on the airwaves back in November telling how good their candidates are and how bad the opponents ‘really’ are. It seems that our society has become very prolific at pointing fingers, spreading facts that may or may not be true and proclaiming that ‘my way’ is the high way and you are wrong. What is happening in our world? We all can’t be right all of the time and we all can’t be wrong; all of the time. We were all there when the crowd shouted for Pilate to release Barabbas. We were all there during the scourging. We were all there when the nails were being driven to hold our Savior on the cross. We were all there when He said ‘it is finished.’ We were all there; He died for all of us.

The children in the attached photo attend the Lutheran school in Ouanaminthe. These three boys and three girls are like me; Lutherans and Christians. Doesn’t matter what this world may say about them and me, Christ died for our sins and now He is risen; risen indeed!!! Ou fe yon sel; we are one! Thank you for joining me in supporting the Trinity HOPE feeding program at their school. I thought that a good song to close this devotion would be the words to ‘We are one in the Spirit’ that was written by Peter Scholte.

“We are One in The Spirit, we are One in The Lord. We are One in The Spirit, we are One in The Lord. And we pray that all unity may one day be restored. And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our Love, yes they'll know we are Christians by our love. We will work with each other, we will work side by side. We will work with each other, we will work side by side. And we'll guard each man's dignity and save each man's pride. We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand. We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand. And together we'll spread the News that God is in our land.”

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 7/10/25 Joel Griffith 7/10/25

Never forget.

“I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.” Psalm 27:13-14

In my remaining time on this earth, I NEVER want to forget that the LORD has been merciful and gracious to me. He has proved Himself again and again to be slow to anger and continually abounding in steadfast love. When my patience grows thin when my life takes yet another wrong turn, when my basket of golden eggs shrinks before my eyes, when my life is full to overflowing with troubles and enemies, when my back is aching from sitting in this wheelchair; I can take hope in what God has accomplished for me on the cross of Calvary.

Our Triune God who sent His son to die for you, these children in Haiti and also for me AND will always keep His promise and not leave His children hopeless in whatever ailment life may be pouring into our buckets. As these children in Cap Haitian wait for their noon meal from Him, we too listen to the words of David and ‘wait for the Lord, be strong and wait for the Lord.’

While writing an article for Trinity HOPE in my room last night, I was thinking about how blessed I am to be here, with Him and without thinking about it, I began to sing along to the song ‘Nothing but the blood’ that was playing on the Internet radio that was written by Robert Lowry in 1876. The words express so well how wonderful it is to be washed by the blood of Jesus.

“What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus; what can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow; no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus. For my pardon, this I see, nothing but the blood of Jesus; for my cleansing this my plea, nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow; no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus. Nothing can for sin atone, nothing but the blood of Jesus; naught of good that I have done, nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow; no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus. This is all my hope and peace, nothing but the blood of Jesus; this is all my righteousness, nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow; no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus. Now by this I’ll overcome, nothing but the blood of Jesus; now by this I’ll reach my home, nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow; no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus. Glory! Glory! This I sing, nothing but the blood of Jesus; all my praise for this I bring, nothing but the blood of Jesus.”

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 7/9/25 Joel Griffith 7/9/25

The Lord will take me.

“Hear my voice when I call, LORD; be merciful to me and answer me. My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, LORD, I will seek. Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, God my Savior. Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me. Teach me your way, LORD; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors. Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, spouting malicious accusations.” Psalm 27:7-12

The tenth verse of Psalm 27 “Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me” has always caused me to consider what that means to me and also to children living in Haiti. The journey of both my parents has ended and they have received their Heavenly reward; their relationship with me has ended but my relationship with my Heavenly Father is ongoing and will never cease.

The relationship that I have with my daughters continues and will prayerfully be continually blessed in the coming years. The children in attached photo attend the Lutheran school in Cap Haitian and their relationship with their parents is unknown, but their relationship with their Heavenly Father is assured. The relations with their parents will be the last to desert them, but if their parents should happen to desert them for their denouncing of vodouism, there is a Father who never forgets and never departs. Some of the greatest of the saints have been cast out by their families for their coming to Christ, and have been persecuted for righteousness' sake. It has happened to Pastor Revenel Benoit in Gonaives and has probably happened in the lives of other children who have turned from vodou to accept Jesus as their risen Savior. Thank you for keeping them in your daily prayers.

I heard a song on the Internet radio recently titled ‘Things like that’ by Joe Nichols and I was able to locate the lyrics. It is a country song, not written in the 1800’s; not a song out of the Lutheran Hymnal; but it sure has a message that needs to be heard today as it touches on the value of relationships with our children and with our Heavenly Father.

“His daddy taught him all about huntin and fishin, how to work on that old truck when it needed fixin, how to say sir and how to say mam, how their ain't nothing wrong with getting dirt on your hands. Have mercy on all of the kids out there who haven't been raised to even care about things like that these days. His momma used to cook every meal in the kitchen, she helped with his homework and taught him religion, she laid down the law and he let her know where he was going and when he'd be home. Have mercy on all of the kids out there who haven't been raised to even care about things like that these days. As the years changed him from a boy to a man he was blessed with a generous heart and a plan wherever life takes him wherever he's at he's gonna find some way to give something back. Now his weekends are spent doing what he loves most with 12 little angels who call him coach; some have nothing and some are spoiled rotten but when they're with him they're not forgotten. Have mercy on all of the parents out there who haven't been raised to even care about things like that these days. As the years changed him from a boy to a man he was blessed with a generous heart and a plan wherever life takes him wherever he's at he's gonna find some way to give something back.”

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 7/8/25 Joel Griffith 7/8/25

Finding shelter.

“For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the LORD.” Psalm 27:5-6

When a North American drives through the countryside of Haiti there is one thing that will cross your mind as you observe houses without glass in the windows and a cloth for a door closure; there is no security. When living in Haiti there was no AAA or OnStar to call when I had a flat tire or got lost and no 911 when there was danger or an emergency.

The safety of believers living in Haiti is not within the walls of their houses, but is found in the Triune God who brings them comfort throughout their daily activities. To the children who attend Christian schools and live in a home similar to the one in the photo that was taken just outside of Ouanaminthe, they have been placed upon an impregnable rock by their Eternal Father where the vodou priest cannot snatch them away in the night.

The children in Haiti, you and I need to join the men of the Old Testament who prayed in faith, not wavering, and spoke of their answer to their prayers as a certainty. Our Heavenly Father has promised the generations of believers that He will be with us daily. David was by faith so sure of a glorious victory over all those who beset him that he arranged in his own heart what he would do when his foes lay all prostrate before him.

There are over 52,000 answers to prayers each day when children come from their small homes walking to a school where they learn more about a risen Savior and receive their daily meal. In the same manner that Christ defeated satan on Calvary, the vodou priest is defeated when a child of God is trained to share the Good News and is fed their daily bread; a reason to rejoice!

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 7/7/25 Joel Griffith 7/7/25

Whom shall I fear?

“The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident. One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. Psalm 27:1-4

How often do you stop and look at what is going on in this world and ask yourself “what the heck is going on here?” Professional football, basketball and baseball players and team owners bickering over how to split up billions of dollars; BILLIONS of dollars. Icebergs melting faster than ever before recorded. Our country’s debt is trillions of dollars and we still are giving money away in foreign aid. Haitian friends of mine whose parents came here to have them born in the U.S. and become dual citizens are now learning that has been determined to be null and void. Our country chooses just two people to run for President of the free world and a panel of five celebrities to judge fifty contestants to serve as Miss America for a one-year term. Stop the madness.

To the small child in the attached photo, none of the news in the above paragraph is news to her. The most important news to her is that she has a friend in Jesus who defeated the vodou priest down the street; even though he will not acknowledge that truth. What matters to her is that she is saved, has a home in Heaven and gets a noon meal at her school in Cap Haitian. Tomorrow may be her moment in time to share the news of her Savior without another friend in her neighborhood who still lives in fear. Thank you for helping to prepare her for this moment on her journey. “The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 7/5/25 Joel Griffith 7/5/25

Prayer guide for July 2025

We begin our prayer time in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. + Amen.

Prayer Guide for July – 2025

We begin our prayer time in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. + Amen.

“I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.” Martin Luther

‘Adoration’

1 Samuel 2:1-2; “Then Hannah prayed and said: “My heart rejoices in the Lord; in the Lord my horn is lifted high. My mouth boasts over my enemies, for I delight in your deliverance. “There is no one holy like the Lord; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God.”

This is the month that we, citizens of the United States of America, celebrate our Independence from a foreign country that once called us their colony. And now centuries later, we American’s, enjoy and hold precious the freedom from the oppression that was upon the lives of our ancestors. As believers, we celebrate every day that this priceless freedom which was sacrificially given to us through the precious blood of Jesus Christ on the Calvary cross two thousand years ago. And although we celebrated that empty tomb in our House of Worship months ago, we need to do it again; Christ is RISEN!!! HE is Risen Indeed!!! How blessed we are living here and being loved, comforted and blessed by our Triune God.

A time of ‘Adoration’ to our Triune God.

· Please take time to sit quietly and gaze at His creation and feel His presence in your life; guiding, forgiving, protecting and loving.

· Think about the provisions, protection and hope that surround you in these challenging times, because of His unfailing love for you.

· Give thanks for where God has placed you in this land where we have so many freedoms and the gifts that you were given to use for Him along your journey.

· Try to grasp the immense work that our Creator is doing in the lives of each Haitian child who attended a Christian school this past year.

‘Confession’

James 5:16; “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”

We were born, sinful and unclean, through no fault of our own, but because of the sins of our parents, grandparents…Adam and Eve.

God sent His only Son to die for our sins. Jesus did everything right while he was here on this earth. He loves you with a love that cannot be measured. He gave to the world when no thanks were returned to Him. He healed when there was no hope, and He died without complaint. Jesus did nothing wrong and everything right; all this for you. He lived for you and died for you. Our sins nailed Him to the cross on Calvary and kept Him there until His life on earth had ended.

· A time of personal confession.

Our sins are placed at the base of the Calvary cross...His cross, and we give thanks that the times we have fallen short in the eyes of our Heavenly Father have been washed clean and we have been forgiven through the Blood of our Risen Savior Jesus Christ.

‘Thanksgiving’

I was looking back at what I had written in the July 2024 prayer guide and had shared a quote from Sylvie Bertrand, the UNODC regional representative who had been quoted as saying, “It’s time for people in Haiti to live peacefully; for their kids to go back to school, for them to be able to eat every day.” And then she went on to say; “national authorities are well-trained, well-equipped, and ready to face and curb down the level of violence.” A year later and none of her well-meaning statements have come to pass. Actually, with each month, the gang led violence has spread and gotten worse. In January 2010 a powerful earthquake destroyed much in Port-au-Prince (PAP) and today, the violent Haitian gangs have brought chaos into nearly 90% of the neighborhoods and now much of PAP looks and feels like a ‘war zone’ like it did after the earthquake. When you see photos of smiling Haitian children with a bowl of food on their lap, try to imagine the many differences in their lives in Haiti this July and yours in North America. In July, it is hot here in Illinois and I have A/C, ice cubes without frozen bugs staring at me and food; some fresh, some frozen but always plentiful. And I feel safe. Our first thank you should always be for having a Savior. Jesus secured a permanent home for us in Heaven. We also give thanks for God’s planning and timing here in the U.S.A. and also in Haiti. We give thanks to our Triune God, because we trust in Him and know that one day soon, peace, children back in school and the availability of food will return to all of Haiti in His timing. He has been faithful to generations of His children since the beginning of time.

Psalm 20:4; “May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.”

Heavenly Father, we come to You now with hearts, minds and words filled with ‘Thanksgiving’.”

· We give thanks for our Creator, Redeemer and Holy Spirit.

· We give thanks for over 52,000 children who received a daily meal form Trinity HOPE this past year.

· We give thanks our providence; monetary, food, clothing, timely moisture, shelter and our freedom from oppressive foreign powers.

· As we give of our first fruits may we also give a portion of our best to His children in Haiti who need and are always thankful for the assistance we can provide because of You.

‘Supplications’

Psalm 33:8-22; “Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere him. For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm. The Lord foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples. But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance. From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind; from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth; he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do. No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength. A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save. But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine. We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in you.”

From the eyes of a native Haitian; their ancestors gained freedom from the French 221 years ago. Now, it must not feel like they are living in a free country. They are being chased out of their homes; robbed, raped and murdered not by a foreign country but by gangs of violent thugs from their own country. Many living in PAP are fleeing their homes and migrating elsewhere in Haiti where other family members live. And if there are no family to run to, they must find shelter in the open land or city streets. And hurricane season is coming. Come Lord Jesus, Come. We lift up all of God’s children living in Haiti during these turbulent times.

Heavenly Father, we bring our supplications before You;

· Heavenly Father, please continue to lead and bless Trinity HOPE with Your loving hand; may our donor base grow this summer.

· Lord of the Harvest, please bless the efforts of the Haitian farmers, may their gardens and homes be protected from storms this summer and provide abundant crops.

· Heavenly Father, please protect Haiti from tropical storms this summer. Place Your mighty arms around Your children to protect them from the elements as hurricane season is here.

· Lord, may you direct, protect and watch over the Christian children and their families as satan would desire to harm them through violent actions by hopeless gangs. Please change their evil ways to repentant hearts.

· Father, may the efforts being used by the National Haitian Police begin to defeat the violent gangs in PAP and throughout Haiti.

· Father, bless Your children here in our nation. May we turn to You and draw others closer to Jesus during the many challenges we are facing.

Lord God, bless Your Word wherever it is proclaimed. Make it a Word of power and peace to convert those not yet Your own and to confirm those who have come to saving faith. May Your Word pass from the ear to the heart, from the heart to the lip and from the lip to the life that, as You have promised, Your Word may achieve the purpose for which You sent it; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

2 Corinthians 13:11-14; “Finally, brothers, good-by. Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints send their greetings. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”

“I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have graciously kept me this day; and I pray that You would forgive me all my sins where I have done wrong, and graciously keep me this night. For into Your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.” Martin Luther

May God go before you to guide you; may His arms be beneath you to support you, around you to protect you and above you to bless you. And may the blessings of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit be with you always dear sister and brother in Christ,

In His love, Jay Brinkmeyer

Joel Griffith 7/5/25 Joel Griffith 7/5/25

Praise the Lord.

“Praise the LORD. Praise the LORD, my soul.” Psalm 146:1

How often during a day do we stop our motions and pause to praise the Lord? What is there that has taken place in our lives to bring us to look up to the Heavens and gaze in amazement at what He has caused to happen in our lives? We give thanks for food, family, shelter, possessions and wealth, but what about a sliver of unbelievable proportions in our life when something just really smacks us with a “WOW” look at what God just did?

It happened to me at the rim of the Grand Canyon, at 110 feet under the Pacific Ocean, at the Trailridge Pass, at Niagara Falls, at the Hospitals in Western Nebraska watching my daughters being born, delivering a calf in the Sandhills and standing in the doorway of the Lutheran school in Cap Haitian.

Looking at these children who make up just a sliver of the more than 52,000 children that are being fed every day in Haiti by you and me is a reason to say ‘Praise the Lord’ because it is an awesome sight. One of the Hymns sang at a funeral recently was ‘It is well with my soul’ that was written by Horatio Spafford in 1873. The life of Alice was also a God thing as I had a chance to reflect on how God used this woman bring a piece of the love of Jesus Christ into my life’s journey before her journey ceased to exist. Feeding children in a small country that many will never visit is also a God thing in your life and in their lives. You are bringing a small piece of the love of Jesus into their lives each day.

“When peace, like a river, attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, it is well, it is well, with my soul. It is well, with my soul. it is well, it is well, with my soul. Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, let this blest assurance control, that Christ has regarded my helpless estate, and hath shed His own blood for my soul. It is well, it is well, with my soul. My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought! My sin, not in part but the whole, is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul! It is well, it is well, with my soul. For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live: if Jordan above me shall roll, no pang shall be mine, for in death as in life Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul. It is well, it is well, with my soul. But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait, the sky, not the grave, is our goal; Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord! Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul! It is well, it is well, with my soul. And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight, the clouds be rolled back as a scroll; the trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend, even so, it is well with my soul. It is well, it is well, with my soul.”

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 7/4/25 Joel Griffith 7/4/25

...only prayer.

“Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. “For the last fourteen days,” he said, “you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food; you haven’t eaten anything. Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head.” After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat.” Acts 27:33-35

The Apostle Paul had just survived a strong storm on the open sea and their ship was battered and he and the other prisoners, guards and crew had been tossing back and forth in the ocean for weeks; without hope. No radio, radar or emergency warning device to send for help…only prayer.

You cannot help to consider the news the past decade of our country being financially challenged and being tossed back and forth and seemingly being damaged again and again; we are in a similar situation as the Apostle Paul. In our personal lives there have been times when our journey was battered again and again by this fallen world and nothing that we can do seems to help…only prayer. The attached photo is of three children who attend a Lutheran School in Gonaives which is located in the Artibonite District. They have survived hurricanes, floods, gone without food and been battered by the lies of the vodou priest. Their hope and our only hope comes from a risen Savior Jesus Christ.

Following in the footsteps of Paul, we give thanks for our blessings and pray for our Triune God to rescue His children from the calamities of satan and this world. On this day that we celebrate our Independence, it seemed fitting to share the words from the hymn “Eternal Father” which was written by William Whiting in 1860 and joined with music by John B. Dykes in 1861. These are words that our country needs to remember, draw hope from and give thanks to our Triune God for being with us and ask for his deliverance and blessings.

“Eternal Father, strong to save, Whose arm hath bound the restless wave, Who biddest the mighty ocean deep its own appointed limits keep; oh hear us when we cry to Thee, for those who peril on the sea! O Christ, whose voice the waters heard and hushed their raging at Thy Word, Who walked on the foaming deep, and calm amidst its rage didst sleep; oh hear us when we cry to Thee, for those who peril on the sea! Most Holy Spirit, who didst brood upon chaos dark and rude, and bid its angry tumult cease, and give, for wild confusion, peace; oh hear us when we cry to Thee, for those who peril on the sea! O Trinity of love and power, our family shield in danger’s hour; from rock and tempest, fire and foe, protect us wheresoever we go; thus evermore shall rise to Thee glad hymns of praise from land and sea.”

May God be with you,

Jay

Joel Griffith 7/3/25 Joel Griffith 7/3/25

Saving others.

“Be merciful to those who doubt; save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear; hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.” Jude 22-23

Snatching souls from the fire sounds like work for a fire department, not a Christian child living in Haiti. The children in the attached photo attend school at Christ the King in Merrotte which is in the Arcahaie District in the Northern claw of Haiti; they have just received their lunch and are headed back to the class to each lunch as they prepare to learn how to go out into their world and save souls.

How were you prepared to seek and save lost souls from the fires of hell? Did you have formal training? Thinking back, I didn’t give a lot of thought to going out into the mission fields of this world and actively save souls but that is what the Son of God has instructed us to do. The children in Merrotte are facing the evil foe in the form of vodou priests and people who just don’t know any better and continue to follow and believe his lies and the lies of the great deceiver; satan.

There is a familiar hymn “I am trusting Thee Lord Jesus” that was written by Frances R. Havergal in 1874 that was one of the childhood songs that I was taught when being prepared to go out into the world and seek and save souls. Hope that it will bring back memories for you too and remind you of your calling.

“I am trusting Thee Lord Jesus, trusting only Thee; trusting Thee for full salvation, great and free. I am trusting Thee for pardon; at Thy feet I bow, for Thy grace and tender mercy trusting now. I am trusting Thee for cleansing in the crimson flood; trusting Thee to make me holy by Thy blood. I am trusting Thee to guide me; Thou alone shalt lead, ev'ry day and hour supplying all my need. I am trusting Thee for power; Thine can never fail. Words which Thou Thyself shalt give me must prevail. I am trusting Thee, Lord Jesus; never let me fall. I am trusting Thee forever and for all.”

Be certain that your support is making a difference in the lives of His children in Haiti as they go about doing His work of rescuing lost souls from the fire. Be thankful that our Triune God is using your life to continually be used to rescue lost souls from the fires of hell.

May God be with you,

Jay