After our paper is printed it passes through four processes in the Gordon home before it is mailed out. These processes are pictured here. Folks of our community graciously volunteer their help in this project.
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Dear Shut-In . . .
EXCERPTS from
LILLIAN'S LETTERS
WHAT IS THE real goal in our life?
What are we sowing in life's garden? If we're lazy we'll reap weeds. If we sow for self and if self doesn't satisfy (and it doesn't) we're left stranded . . . for we've only sown self. If we sow for others it has a chain reaction and we reap others. If we sow kindness we reap kindness; strife -- strife; gentleness -- gentleness; etc. Galatians 6:7.
Let's think of banking too. No, money isn't the only system going. There are blood banks and eye banks, but that's not what I mean either. I mean let's work for the Lord, and have Him put our paycheck on account in the bank of heaven. Let's be anxious stewards for the Lord, not on the pay-by-the minute plan. Just because someone doesn't pat us on the back or praise us in some way doesn't mean we shouldn't be active in the work of the Lord.
We should take out more time to pray -- pray that God will use us . . . make us soul winners for Him. God rarely if ever has any on His retired list. One doesn't have to be president, a senator, or a governor to be a good American. Every American is a testimony of America . . . and some are giving us a black eye. So with our Lord. Christian, be like Christ in love, beauty, selflessness, courage.
Get, Go, and Do.
This year Jesus may call us home. It should be a thing to anticipate, not dread.
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When I'm away from home a letter from home is a must, a priceless treasure. I'll perhaps read it over and over. My world is all upset without it. Our world, spiritually speaking, is all upset too if we don't get some kind of contact from Home (Heaven). We need those letters (Bible reading) to keep our equilibrium.
Phoning in often (prayer), is great for the morale, and most essential. It will calm your soul . . . bring serenity. We don't do it nearly enough. No wonder our spirits get to dragging so often. Stop a minute and call home.
May the closeness of His presence be your sweetest gift. Do keep writing. I do so enjoy hearing from you.
Miss Lillian Butt suffers from rheumatoid arthritis. Before her illness she was a nurse.
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SUNSHINE THROUGH SHADOWS
by GEORGE RUDOLPH
BEING BORN OF orthodox parents, naturally I had very strict religious training. Because I did not smoke, drink, nor indulge in any other vices, I was considered a good moral person and no one (apparently) was concerned about my spiritual state.
One day while riding in an automobile with another young man, I met with an accident. I was thrown from the car, falling sixty feet to a railroad track below. My injuries were so serious that no one expected me to live--except God, whom I did not know at the time. Since God's ways are not our ways, it was a great surprise when I rallied, in a measure, although due to spinal injuries the lower part of my body and legs were left paralyzed.
While convalescing after leaving the hospital, a young lady from the Cleveland Hebrew Mission called at my home and directed a message of salvation and hope to me. I told her that it all seemed to fantastic. Then one day I saw that my indifference was getting me nowhere, and I began to ponder the things I had heard. Giving heed to the Spirit of God Who made a way for the light of Calvary to shine into my darkened heart, at last I saw my lost condition and accepted Jesus Christ as my Saviour.
Having received a taste for spiritual things, I began to hunger and thirst after spiritual knowledge and soon discovered that the Lord Jesus said: "I am the Bread of Life; he that cometh to Me shall never hunger, and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst." I desired to have that which many of my friends did not have, the more abundant life, and I rejoiced to read that Jesus said, "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." How my heart thrilled as I found this truth in my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!
A wonderful peace came into my soul, and I realized that it was an inward peace which only God can give; for He says, "My peace I give unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid!" I was so tired and weary in soul, but Jesus said, "Come unto me--and I will give you rest." Praise God, I came, and found in Him my Haven of rest.
He is a precious Friend to me, and He has promised never to leave me nor forsake me. In time of pain and illness, Jesus soothes my aching body, for He is the Great Physician. When in need of comfort, He is my consolation, for He is a Great Comforter. As for my material needs, He graciously undertakes for me, for He says, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; and ALL these THINGS shall be added unto you,"
Many of my Jewish friends have asked me just what I received when I accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as the Messiah of Israel. My possessions and treasures in Him may be illustrated by the various Jewish holidays:
First, there is the Sabbath which means "Rest," yet Israel does not know real rest, for they have not come unto Him Who is their Haven of Rest. Consider the Passover which signifies "Deliverance," although today they have no deliverance for they have not looked unto their Deliverer, the Lord Jesus Christ. Also they celebrate the "Feast of Weeks," bringing to mind the time when the Law was given unto Israel, but who in Israel ever kept the law? The "New Year" is a high holiday, but what can they look forward to without Him Who is their Beginning--the Alpha and Omega? The "Day of Atonement" follows, supposedly giving them assurance of sins forgiven, notwithstanding Leviticus 17:11 which says, "It is THE BLOOD which maketh atonement for the soul!" They have no assurance, for they have not as yet realized that the One Whose blood was shed at Calvary is their atonement.
Look at the "Feast of Harvest," which feast is supposed to be a joyous one, although even until today their only Harvest has been sorrow. We must not omit the "Feast of Lights," for in spite of it all they are in spiritual darkness because they are without Him Who is the Light of the world. ALL THESE BLESSINGS I have found in Christ Jesus my Lord.
Jesus grows more precious to me day by day, and I realize more fully than ever before that what Judaism could not do for me, my Messiah has done, for He is the fulfillment of the Scriptures which my parents taught me earlier in life. I praise God for my accident, for I now can understand that in His great love and mercy for me He had to break me down physically in order to build me up spiritually.
This testimony was taken from a tract and used by permission of the author.
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The cup that is full of sweetness cannot spill bitter drops however sharply knocked.
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ADVENTURE IN PRAYER
By REV. HARRY RICKARDS, JR.
(PART II)
(CONTINUED FROM THE FEBRUARY ISSUE)
THE FIRST GIFT we received for our trip was five dollars from a dear Christian widow. You say, "But, preacher, what is five dollars when you need eight hundred?" It has been said: "Little is much when God is in it." How true!
One afternoon we were out with the family and came home to find an envelope in the door with a fifty dollar check in it. A few days later a lady wrote: "Enclosed is a check. Use it any way you want. I don't know what you need or are praying for but the Lord led me to send you this."
A week later we received a card in the mail and when we opened it a bill dropped to the floor. I saw a five in the corner and took for granted that someone was sending five dollars for our radio broadcast. I looked at the card for a name or message. There was nothing but a verse of Scripture. When I picked up the bill I found it was FIFTY dollars. I do not know to this day who gave it.
Another Christian stopped one day and gave us a gift of twenty-five more. The folks in our church gave us a surprise picnic supper one evening and many gifts of money were given to us. We could not begin to name all those who showed so much love. Our Heavenly Father met the need, sending the eight hundred dollars. Praise His name!!
Missionary's Prayer Answered
When we arrived at the airport we found a number of folks there to see us off. As we were going to the exit leading out to the plane, one of the men came up to me with an unmarked, sealed envelope and said: "Pastor, God told me to give you this I don't know who it's for but I know there is someone or some work in Alaska that needs it. Pastor, I've done what God told me to do; you'll have to pray now and find to whom God would have you give it"
With this, he put the envelope in my pocket (my hands were full). But on the way up the steps into the plane the envelope fell out. (The Devil was at work.)
We were in the plane, getting ourselves seated and comfortable for the "take-off," when the stewardess came in and asked if anyone had lost a plain, unmarked envelope. (Devil defeated.) I said, "I believe that belongs to me." Once again the sealed envelope was in my possession. But who was it for?
In Alaska we were to meet a missionary family (yet unknown to us) that would greatly impress and challenge us. They are a young couple with three fine youngsters, not unlike any young married couple you might find in your own church, except they have made their Lord the very center of their married life. Their desires went beyond just a good job, a nice home of their own surrounded by the niceties of this life. They had caught the vision of living a life that would "count" for their Lord.
In Alaska every missionary must build his own home, church, etc. This young man, a carpenter--not a preacher, saw how he could serve his Lord in missionary work. He packed up his family and moved to Alaska to build for God.
He receives about eighty dollars a month from churches in the States. Think that through--a young married man with a family who could make six dollars an hour in his trade in Alaska, is living on eighty dollars a month! He gives all his time to building churches and working on other building projects on mission stations.
This puts us to shame, doesn't it? We with our new cars, television sets, and furniture. What are we doing to further the gospel in some of these difficult fields of the world?
This family was God's challenge to us. After prayer we believed that God would have us give the sealed envelope to them. We found out later that the money which was in the envelope was the exact amount this family had been praying for, in order to meet a particular need.
Praise the Lord! What a wonderful God we have! A Christian prays in Alaska and God reaches five thousand miles to answer his prayer. Oh, I tell you, I'm glad to be a Christian. I'm glad to stand with those who name the Name of Christ. We are far from "perfect," I know, but how wonderful to have a PERFECT SAVIOUR!!
(To be continued)
From "OUR TRIP TO ALASKA," by Harry W. Rickards, Jr.; Condensed and adapted for TRIUMPH by the Editor.
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Lord, teach me how to live each day,
In such a humble, selfless way,
That others may be drawn to Thee,
As they observe Thy life in me.
-- a.e.g.
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What Does The Future Hold For You--
HELL or HEAVEN?
EVERLASTING FIRE was "prepared for the devil and his angels." Although the devil enjoys freedom at the present time, there is coming a day when these solemn words will be fulfilled: "And the devil . . . was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone . . . , and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever" (Revelation 20:10). Sin brought about his downfall.
But "everlasting fire: shall also receive others. "And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire" (Revelation 20:15). If you continue as you are--in your sin ("all have sinned"), you will end up with the ruler of darkness, in "everlasting fire."
"Oh, but we'll be dead then," you object, "and won't know anything about it!"
Oh, but you will, Jesus tells of a rich man who repined in hell and knew very well what was happening. "And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame" (Luke 16:23,24).
Yes, my friend, the torments of hell are very real. You will find this out by and by if your name is not in the "book of life."
EVERLASTING LIFE,
on the other hand, is the destiny of all believers in Christ Jesus. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).
When you believe in Christ from the heart--trusting Him as your Savior--the sin question is settled once and for all, for "the blood of Jesus Christ (God's) Son cleanseth us from all sin" (I John 1:7b).
Your name is written down in heaven. (Luke 10:20)
And Jesus' words apply to you: "I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also: (John 14:2b-3).
Your future is determined this side the grave. You must make the choice between HELL and HEAVEN. What you do with Christ makes all the difference. If you do nothing with Him (which is to reject Him) you are guaranteed the former. If you receive Him as your Savior you are guaranteed the latter. What does the future hold for you?
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SERMON SERIES
THE FIRST EPISTLE OF PETER
No. 8
God Speaks To You
I Peter 1:22-25
"Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently (22): being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever (23). For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away (24): but the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you" (25).
THE ATOMIC AGE is full upon us. The cold war is being nervously waged. Whether it turns into a full-scale hot war, rests pretty much upon the shoulders of a boasting, quick-tempered, Vodka-drinking, God-hating communist. Is it any wonder fear grips the hearts of many?
As much as at any other time we need to hear from God. And He has spoken--does speak--to any who will hear Him.
Two things we see in our present study: the fact that GOD SPEAKS and that He speaks TO YOU.
GOD SPEAKS
The nature of what God says is seen in our text. First, what He says is always "truth." (22)
Jesus told Pilate: "To this end was I born, and for this cause came I unto the world, that I should bear witness unto the TRUTH." Pilate sarcastically asked: "What is truth?" Great thinkers in every age have asked the same question and have tried to answer it. All they have done is to propound a number of diverse theories on the subject. After all the theories have been read, we are still left with the question? "What is truth?"
Jeremiah, in no uncertain terms, says of God: " . . . the Lord is the God of truth." The Apostle John says: " . . . thy word is truth." The Psalmist adds: "Thy word is true from the beginning." When Jesus came witnessing to the truth, He was witnessing to God's Word.
Secondly, what God says "abideth for ever." (23) Negatively: it is "incorruptible." God is not mortal nor subject to decay. Likewise are the utterances of His mouth not mortal nor subject to dissolution. Some have thought otherwise.
Voltaire of the 18th Century and Ingersol of the 19th Century both predicted the downfall of the Bible shortly after their own times. Voltaire and Ingersol are gone but the Book they ridiculed remains. The house in which Voltaire made his blasphemous prediction became, only twenty-five years after his death, a Bible storage building and his printing press was used to print the Bible.
The Word has weathered all the storms against it by man and devil, "For ever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven."
Thirdly, God's Word "liveth." (23)
It is truth; it is eternal truth; it is living eternal truth. " . . . the word of God is quick (living), and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword." It lives because it is the Word of the living God. It lives because it gives life to man. It lives because it was written by the living Spirit, who yet operates in and through it to make it an active force in the world.
No other word can make such claims. Books by the millions have been written, even about the Word of God, yet His Word stands alone as that which "liveth."
This is the nature of what God says, but what specifically, is it that He says? " . . . (it) is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you." (25) It is not just "the word which is preached unto you," it is "the word which BY THE GOSPEL is preached unto you." The Pharisees and Sadducees expounded the Old Testament Scriptures each Sabbath to the people. But this that the disciples preached was both the Old and the New Testaments.
Jesus one day spoke with some unbelievers. He said: "Search the scriptures (Old Testament) . . . they are they which testify of me." The word of God is the Old Testament combined with the New, to present the Christ. The Old, prophesies the coming Christ; the New, witnesses His coming. One Testament is not complete without the other. Together they form the true and living and eternal Word of God.
But it is not enough to know that God speaks, we must see to whom He speaks. He speaks through the Holy Bible to the most important person on the face of the earth. He speaks
TO YOU
The Bible is God's Word to YOU. Your responsibility is to obey it. "But, preacher," you object, "I thought faith was the important things."
And it is important, very important. Without faith it is impossible to please God. But genuine faith includes obedience. Christians are indeed called "believers" in the Bible, but so are they called "children of obedience."
Naaman the leader of the Syrian army during the days of Elisha, believed Elisha could cure his leprosy and thus he "came with his horses and with his chariots, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha." But to his dismay, the prophet did not appear to pray for him and to wave his hand over the diseased parts as he expected. Rather, he sent word that Naaman should wash himself seven times in the Jordan river.
"Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times . . . according to the saying of the man of God." Our part, like the Syrian captain, is found "in obeying the truth." We are not to obey only the part that may suit us, but the whole truth of God--the Bible in every part.
For any who think they need not concern themselves with obedience, there is a solemn warning in the Scriptures: Christ shall return "in flaming fire taking vengence on them that . . . OBEY NOT the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ."
When Naaman dipped himself in the Jordan in obedience to the saying of the man of God, "he was clean" of his loathsome disease. Likewise "ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth."
Jesus said: "Now ye are clean through the word . . . " Christ loved us and gave Himself for us "that he might . . . cleanse (us) . . . by the word." Oh, Christian, dip deep, not once--but often, into the blessed Word whereby comes your purity. The world in which we live, with which we rub elbows, leaves smudges on our souls; cleansing comes by immersion into the "pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb." Freely plunge into the purifying river of God's word.
Obedience to truth purifies the soul and as well as issues in "unfeigned love of the brethren." Since this is the sure fruit, "see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently." What good is it to profess to hold the truth of our Lord's "new commandment." and yet not practice it? More than anything else this will prove that we are His disciples. Here is a good opportunity to measure our obedience to revealed truth.
Naaman dipped himself in the Jordan "and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child." Almost like being born a second time, was it not? And that's exactly what happened to us when we "obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered (us)," at that instant "being born again . . . "
But we were born again, "not of corruptible seed." John assures us it was "not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man." Jesus said: "That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." In our text we read. "For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away." In short, all that flesh can produce is decay and death.
But how like Naaman we are, who at first strenuously objected to Elisha's instructions, saying: "Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean?"
Is not this the cry of many today? "MAY I NOT come my own way to God?" "MAY I NOT obtain cleansing on the basis of my own merits?" MAY I NOT do this -- MAY I NOT do that. Such are the reasonings of disobedient men.
Jesus settles the question once and for all with His words to Nicodemus: "Verily, verily, I say unto thee. Except a man be born of water (i.e. the Word) and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
We are born again, then, not by some effort of our own, "but of incorruptible (seed), by the word of God." "Incorruptible seed" may very well refer to the Holy Spirit, thus making this verse coincide with Jesus' statement. The new birth is a miracle performed in our hearts, whereby we receive new, spiritual, eternal life. This miracle is performed by the Holy Spirit, working through the Word of God. On our part, we must obey God when He says: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved"
A final word of exhortation -- "God . . . hath in these last days spoken unto us in his Son." "He that hath an ear, let him hear . . ." "But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves."
"Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man . . . "
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