I received an e-mail today from my father-in-law that was just too good to not post and pass on. I have taken creative license to modify some of the content of the e-mail. Enjoy!
Good Morning Matthew,
I hope and pray for you everyday that GOD continues to refine you, like the passage from Malachi 3:3 (Amplified Bible) He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and He will purify the priests, the sons of Levi, and refine them like gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord offerings in righteousness.
This verse may seem puzzling so here is a story to help explain what I think it means. A woman in a bible study group, reading Malachi of course, offered to find out the process of silver refining. The woman called a silversmith and set up an appointment to watch him at work. So one day she went and met the silversmith and watched him while he worked. As she was watching him he explained the process while actually refining some silver. “Well you see ma’am you have to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames are the hottest. This is to burn away all the impurities.”
She asked “does it have to sit there in the hottest part of the fire all the time while the silver is being refined?”
He said “yes not only do I have to keep it sitting there while holding it, but I have to keep an eye on the silver the entire time it is in the fire. If the silver is left a moment to long in the flames it will be destroyed.”
The woman asked. “How do you know when the silver is fully refined?”
He smiled at her and said, “That’s easy, when I see my reflection in it”.
So if you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that GOD has his eye on you and will keep on watching you until he sees His image in you.
We love you all very much Matthew, DeeAnn, and the children. Thought you would like this.
Pops AKA; Dad
I do like it Dad, I really do. Love you.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Please Pray For This Man And His Family
The link below is to a church website in San Diego. It is a web page dedicated to Mr. Dong Yun Yoon and his family. The man lost his wife, his 1 month old daughter, I believe his niece, and his mother in an F-18 fighter jet crash this past Monday in San Diego.
In Loving Memory of the Yoon Family
Because a military jet was involved I wanted to offer up a few words to both the family of the crash survivors and military families that have lost a loved one in defense of our freedom. Track with me for a minute.
I was watching Saving Private Ryan the other night. There is a scene where WWII, Chief of Staff, General Marshall learns that the mother of one Private James Ryan would soon be receiving 3 telegrams from the war department informing her that 3 of her sons, Ryan's brothers, were killed in action. Immediately General Marshall gave orders to his subordinates to find capable men who's mission it would be to bring the only surviving brother, Private Ryan, back home to Iowa. To explain his reasoning for such a bold and seemingly foolhardy mission he read the following out loud to his men:
"I feel how weak and fruitless must be any words of mine which should attempt to beguile you from the grief of a loss so overwhelming. But I cannot refrain from tendering to you the consolation that may be found in the thanks of the republic they died to save. I pray that our heavenly Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement, and leave you only the cherished memory of the loved and lost, and the solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the alter of freedom. –Abraham Lincoln."
Those words, written over a hundred years ago, still ring true today. We should give all the families positively contributing to society, helping one another, and serving our country's citizens, whether in the military or not, all of our appreciation, our respect, and our heartfelt prayers for the all the sacrifices they make. May God bless, keep, and protect you always. In Jesus name, Amen.
In Loving Memory of the Yoon Family
Because a military jet was involved I wanted to offer up a few words to both the family of the crash survivors and military families that have lost a loved one in defense of our freedom. Track with me for a minute.
I was watching Saving Private Ryan the other night. There is a scene where WWII, Chief of Staff, General Marshall learns that the mother of one Private James Ryan would soon be receiving 3 telegrams from the war department informing her that 3 of her sons, Ryan's brothers, were killed in action. Immediately General Marshall gave orders to his subordinates to find capable men who's mission it would be to bring the only surviving brother, Private Ryan, back home to Iowa. To explain his reasoning for such a bold and seemingly foolhardy mission he read the following out loud to his men:
"I feel how weak and fruitless must be any words of mine which should attempt to beguile you from the grief of a loss so overwhelming. But I cannot refrain from tendering to you the consolation that may be found in the thanks of the republic they died to save. I pray that our heavenly Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement, and leave you only the cherished memory of the loved and lost, and the solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the alter of freedom. –Abraham Lincoln."
Those words, written over a hundred years ago, still ring true today. We should give all the families positively contributing to society, helping one another, and serving our country's citizens, whether in the military or not, all of our appreciation, our respect, and our heartfelt prayers for the all the sacrifices they make. May God bless, keep, and protect you always. In Jesus name, Amen.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Believe the Good News and Spread Joy to Everyone
Isaiah 12:1-6 (GNT)
A day is coming when people will sing, "I praise you, Lord! You were angry with me, but now you comfort me and are angry no longer. God is my savior; I will trust him and not be afraid. The Lord gives me power and strength; he is my savior. As fresh water brings joy to the thirsty, so God's people rejoice when he saves them." A day is coming when people will sing, "Give thanks to the Lord! Call for him to help you! Tell all the nations what he has done! Tell them how great he is! Sing to the Lord because of the great things he has done. Let the whole world hear the news. Let everyone who lives in Zion shout and sing! Israel's holy God is great, and he lives among his people."
A day is coming when people will sing, "I praise you, Lord! You were angry with me, but now you comfort me and are angry no longer. God is my savior; I will trust him and not be afraid. The Lord gives me power and strength; he is my savior. As fresh water brings joy to the thirsty, so God's people rejoice when he saves them." A day is coming when people will sing, "Give thanks to the Lord! Call for him to help you! Tell all the nations what he has done! Tell them how great he is! Sing to the Lord because of the great things he has done. Let the whole world hear the news. Let everyone who lives in Zion shout and sing! Israel's holy God is great, and he lives among his people."
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