February 2011
“There is no fear in LOVE; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love because HE FIRST LOVED US.” 1 John 4:18,19.
Hello Dear Hearts,
This is the month we think about love. We send Valentine cards, flowers, gifts, there are phone calls and e-mails to express our love for each other. WE in CHRIST experience a whole new dimension of Love. John was so overwhelmed with the reality of God’s love he wrote about His Love using the word “love” 33 times.
Love is the motivating power of the Gospel. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…As the Father has loved Me,I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no man than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” John 3:16a, John 15:9-13.
This love is not a mushy emotion, but a force of real power. It casts out fear and overcomes worry, doubt and anxiety. In fact accepting God’s love can transform every aspect of our lives.
When asked to name the greatest commandment, Jesus said, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind.” So the greatest thing we can do is love God with everything that is in us. As we do this we burst forth into praise and worship. Praise is a central part of who we are in Christ. We are to show forth the praises of Him who has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light.
January 2011
“Live a life filled with LOVE for others, following the example of Christ, who loved you and gave Himself as a sacrifice to take away your sins.” Ephesians 5:2
Hello Dear Hearts,
I had the most unusual experience in witnessing I have ever had. I invited a young Jewish man and his Christian girlfriend for dinner. I had witnessed to him previously sharing some scriptures in the Old Testament and the New. Since he had been studying Hebrew I suggested that he should bring his Hebrew Bible.
The night that they came we were experiencing a terrible storm that caused flash floods, closing highways etc. After they arrived I received a call from my friend Pam. Due to the weather it was impossible for her to get home. I immediately invited her to come here and spend the night. As she joined us for dinner, one of my guests, was telling me how her mother had followed my career. She mentioned the Laurence Welk show and some of the Billy Graham movies. At that point Pam told them I had one of the films here, “The Restless Ones”. They instantly wanted to see it.
Billy preached a dynamic message at the end of the film, presenting so powerfully the plan of salvation. When it was over, they raved about the picture, which enabled me to continue to share the love of Jesus. When I asked if he would like to pray after me he said, “Yes”. However when I prayed “Thank you Lord for forgiving my sins” he said “NO! I don’t want a scapegoat to pay for my sins”. Then I told him, “God says in His Word, “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord”. “And this is the record God has given unto us eternal life and this life is in His Son, he that has the Son has life, and he that has not the Son of God has not life.” In all my years of witnessing, since 1949, I have never had anyone say, “I don’t want my sins forgiven”. “According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear.” Romans 11:8 Please pray with me that God will strip the veils from his eyes, that he may see Jesus, his Messiah.
I want to thank you for the many Christmas cards, letters and lovely gifts I have received. I am overwhelmed by your love and faithfulness.
As I reminisce about all the Christmas celebrations, I’m reminded of St. Francis of Assisi. He was born in 1182 and lived only 44 years. Yet we quote him to this day and churches worldwide celebrate the re-enactment of the birth of Christ called the “Babe of Bethlehem.” In 1223 he requested and received special permission from the Pope, to build a manger scene in the open air and conduct a Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve. St. Francis taught God’s love and was known for his great love for God, for people and the creatures around him. At this first manger scene there was an ox, a donkey, sheep and shepherds. The friars and villagers sang carols of the Nativity, danced and carried torch lights. This simple practice of re-enacting the first Christmas would slowly spread throughout all of Europe and England. The crèche {a French term for “manger” or “crib”} scene, would become the most cherished Christmas motif of France and other European countries and Western civilization would forever incorporate the manger theme as part of Christmas festivities.
I’ve mentioned being involved with different churches on the Island, with different programs, the latest is St. Theresa’s feeding the homeless. And I have some exciting new plans for outreach this New Year that I’ll share with you in my next letter.
I PRAISE GOD FOR YOUR PARTNERSHIP WITH ME IN THIS MINISTRY. IT IS THE LOVE OF CHRIST THAT PROPELS US.
December Letter
“An angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them and the glory of the Lord shone round about them… in the city of David there has been born for you a SAVIOR, who is CHRIST the LORD…And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men…And as it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said…Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing…which the Lord made known unto us.” Luke 2:9-15
Hello Dear Hearts,
I pray this letter will not be just another Christmas letter I write but as we view the familiar scriptures, may we be blessed, challenged and inspired to actually grasp the immensity of what God has done.
We celebrate the greatest and most incredible event in human history, when God, the Creator of the Universe left heaven and became a baby! “In the beginning was the WORD and the WORD was with God, and the WORD was God…All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made…And the WORD was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory…”John1:1-12 a
November Letter
“I shall remember the deeds of the LORD; surely I will remember Your WONDERS of old. I will meditate on Your work and will muse on Your deeds. Your way, O God, is holy; what god is great like our God? You are the God who works wonders; You have made known Your strength among the peoples. Psalm 17:11-14 NASB
Hello Dear Hearts,
In 1867, a group of ministers, educators, writers and others began meeting in the Reverend John Sargent’s home in Boston. The group was called “ The Radical Group”. Members came from all religious denominations, and they made many contributions to society. For example, years prior to the Civil War, many of them fought against slavery and raised concerns for Justice for all.
However, a scholar, Gary Wilson Allen, noted that the group was also “formed to discuss the abolishing of all vestiges of supernaturalism”. They wanted to redirect religion toward more focus on moral actions, emphasizing teachings such as the Sermon on the Mount, while de-emphasizing MIRACLES and the POWER of GOD.
In many ways they were like the people in Jesus’ hometown, Nazareth. “He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief.” Elsewhere, people flocked to see Jesus. They were healed, delivered and many miracles took place. In some of our churches today we sense that same reticence to believe in the supernatural power of God. Jesus said, “You shall receive POWER after the Holy Ghost has come upon you.” Acts 1:8 “And these signs shall follow them that believe; in my name shall they cast out devils, they shall speak with new tongues; …they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.” Mark 16:17,18.
October Letter
“For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God.” Colossians 1:9,10
Hello Dear Ones,
There is much on my heart I want to share with you. First, I want you to know that I pray for each one of you who partner with me. I thank God for your love and for the way that He has drawn us together. When I look back at the amazing threads of the tapestry He weaves in our lives, I marvel, as I’m sure you do.
You may remember, in my last letter I wrote, “Some say that ONE can’t make a difference”. And I went on to name a few who have made a tremendous difference. I would like to tell you about Adoniram Judson. He was born in Massachusetts in 1788. He lived a wild and reckless life, even though he was raised in a Christian home. He came to hate the faith so strongly he became an atheist. While trying to sleep in an inn, he listened with great concern to the cries of a dying man in the next room. The following morning, he heard the man had died and was shocked to learn the man was a friend from college.
He realized that his friend was “lost” forever; and that he too was lost. As a result, he gave his life to Christ. As he grew in the knowledge of the Lord he became burdened to become a missionary.
JUDGMENT CONDEMNATION
There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit (Romans 8:1).
The RV leaves out all that is after the comma, following Westcott and Hort. But Stephens’ Text gives it as quoted above, and this the AV or KJV follows. There has been great controversy about this verse. Perfectionists just cannot see that there might be condemnation for a believer, regardless of how unjust he may be.
Terms and their definitions are greatly at fault. Christendom has taken on a ‘lingo’ these days from traditions and philosophies of men that pretty effectively obscures the truth of the Word of God and makes it ineffective.
For instance, these folks will quote Deuteronomy 25:1 to prove that justifying the righteous is the opposite to condemning the wicked. And they are right! But the question we have to face sooner or later is, Who are the righteous and the wicked mentioned? What is the context?
The verse in question reads, If there he a controversy between men, and they come unto judgment, that the judges may judge them; then they shall justify the righteous, and condemn the wicked. Of course the judging must be according to the law given at Sinai. And this law was given to a people who had been redeemed that night in Egypt by virtue of the blood being sprinkled. And that same people were also redeemed from Egypt by the strong arm of Jehovah. And these same people had been given the atonement at Sinai which was to make a redeemed people fit to enter the presence of Jehovah. So then the righteous and wicked mentioned in the verse above were a redeemed people, and that by the blood of the lamb.
But among these are both righteous and wicked men. Note the slothful and wicked servant of Matthew 25:26, yet a servant of his master. Was he not unjust? And so we find the just and the unjust before the judges in Deuteronomy 25:1. But they are redeemed men. There is no word to indicate that the wicked man is an unbeliever. That is not the question. It is solely a matter of works.
This leads us up now to our text again. In the chapter before (Romans 7) Paul speaks of his own experience with the 2 natures in the child of God. His new nature is just, and the old is unjust. He can walk after either one. To walk after the old nature only brings condemnation. He would become a castaway, a thing which he feared. See 1 Corinthians 9:27. If there is no condemnation of any kind to them which are in Christ Jesus, then why did Paul take such pains to walk uprightly and not unjustly? Is it possible that a workman could not be ashamed? See 2 Timothy 2:15.
In the light of Romans 7 & 8 one of the most dangerous doctrines is that of sinless perfection, no condemnation to the believer regardless of his actions. And this is one of the great dangers of right division. Beware (Colossians 2:8).
September 2010
September 2010 “I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight, I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron: And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches in secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the Lord which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.” Isa. 45:2,3 Hello Dear Hearts, Our Mighty God of the Universe wants us to know and remember He is the God of ISRAEL. I have written before, that the Jewish Feasts of the Old Testament have great significance for us as Christians. The Feast of Passover was fulfilled through the death and resurrection of Jesus, and the Feast of Pentecost was fulfilled with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. One feast that has yet to be fulfilled in the Jewish calendar is Rosh Hashanah, or the Feast of Trumpets. “Blow the trumpet in Zion….For the day of the Lord is coming.” Joel 2:1. During the celebration of Rosh Hashanah, a ram’s horn, or shofar, is blown as a reminder of the day when the Messiah will come back with the sound of a trumpet. God cared so deeply about this day that He called it one of “My appointed days”. Leviticus 23:2 As the first day of the Jewish New Year they were to put all normal activities aside and examine their hearts for sin, their attitudes and relationships with people and with God; a time of reflection and prayer. The traditional greeting says, ”May you be written and sealed in the Book of Life for a good year”. Rosh Hashanah also begins the ten “Days of Awe”, known as the High Holy Days that end with Yom Kippur the Day of Atonement. Israel is in the news daily. According to a CBN news report some Israeli rabbis believe the ancient prophecies of Ezekiel 38 are unfolding in today’s headlines. When Israel stopped a Turkish flotilla from sending weapons to Hamas-controlled Gaza, an international judgment occurred. Sweden, Ireland and other nations planned boycotts against the Jewish state. And Turkey, once an ally of Israel and the West, has shifted allegiance to Iran, whose Prime Minister Ahmadinejad, has repeatedly said he will wipe Israel off the map and continues to call the Nazi Holocaust, the genocide of nearly six million Jews at Auschwitz, a “myth”. I have been privileged to hear and get to know Rosemary Schindler, a great niece of Oskar Schindler, a famous hero of the Jews, who helped over 1100 to escape the Holocaust during World War 2. You may remember an amazing film that was produced about his daring and heroic rescues, ”Schindler’s List.” Rosemary continues to carry out the Schindler legacy to support the Jewish people and Israel, together with Schindler’s survivors and descendants. And they say one person can’t make a difference. It was one person, Abraham, God used to be the father of faith for many nations. It was one person, Moses, who led the Israelites out of the bondage of Egypt. It was one person, Joseph, who interpreted Pharaoh’s dream and saved the Israelites and many nations through famine. It was one perso, Esther, who saved the nation of Israel from annihilation. It was one person, Jesus, who died on the cross and rose again. He conquered sin, death and Satan. He redeemed us for eternity. It was one person, Peter, who went to the Centurion’s household and preached Christ and opened the door to the Gentiles. It was one person, Phillip, who joined the Ethiopian eunuch and preached the Kingdom of God. It was one person on Maui, who told of the saving grace of Jesus Christ the Messiah to a young Jewish woman. It was one person on the beach who shared the love of Christ to a lonely lady. It was one person who entered a shop to get a pedicure and was greeted by a young woman with, “You don’t remember me. You brought me to Jesus many months ago. I remember you don’t have a car, I know where you live. I’m going to pick you up, do your pedicure and take you home. Here’s my cell phone number.” I am one person and YOU ARE ONE PERSON, who shares the vision of OUR ministry. Thank YOU FOR YOUR LOVE, PRAYERS AND SUPPORT. God has called us by our name and we are ”written and sealed in the Book of Life” for Eternity. Georgia Lee
Iranian Christian Detained in Ahvaz
By Joseph C. DeCaro, Worthy News International Correspondent
AHVAZ, IRAN (Worthy News)– Members of a home-based church in the city of Ahvaz are worried about one of their own who has not been heard from since his arrest, Worthy News has learned.
The 27 year-old Neshan Saeedi was arrested by plain-clothes security forces that entered his house on July 24.
The security officers searched his home and seized personal belongings: a computer, CDs of Christian seminars and teachings, Christian books, Bibles, and family photo albums.
Saeedi’s family was taken to Chaharshir detention center in Ahvaz for several hours of questioning and harsh interrogation. Security officers said they were apostates who were unworthy of raising their 6 year-old daughter, and if they continued their Christian activities, they might lose custody of her. They were also accused of anti-government activities by acting as agents of foreign powers.
After the interogation, the wife and daughter were released, but no one has seen Saeedi since.
After the arrest, members of the home-based church who fellowshipped with Saeedi have scattered and disbanded. Security agents are desperately seeking two other leaders of the church while Saeedi is presumed to be under great pressure to reveal the names of all church members.
August Letter
August 2010
“All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshipped God.” Revelation 7:11 NASB
Hello Dear Hearts,
As I sat down to write this letter, I was not sure what the Lord wanted me to share with you, so I prayed as I always do before I begin, but I still didn’t have His leading. I opened a book I had been reading, turned to a page where the author mentioned worship. I closed the book and opened the Word to a scripture on worship. So I’m going to write about WORSHIP.
It’s the thing we often neglect in our busy lives, but it is of utmost importance to our relationship with our Almighty God. He alone is worthy to be worshipped. He said “I AM THE LORD THY GOD, there is none else, I AM GOD.”
True worship begins with awestruck reverence for who God is and what He has done for us. There are so many ways to worship God. In the Old Testament there was fasting and praying, feasts and sacred days, music and dancing unto the Lord, sacrificing/offerings, prophets proclaiming God’s POWER. In the New Testament we come into the holy presence of God through our High Priest Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Now God wants us to present our bodies as living sacrifices.
King David was a passionate worshiper. He gave an offering of more than one hundred million dollars of his personal treasury….”because I have set my affection on the house of my God”. Then he worshipped the Lord as he prayed, “Blessed be thou, Lord God of Israel, our Father, for ever and ever. Thine O Lord is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty; for all that is in the heaven and the earth, is thine; thine is the Kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength to all. Now therefore, our God, we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name.” t Chron.10b-13
When our focus is on our circumstances and our world seems out of control, we need to worship our Mighty God. There is power in praise. There may be a time when you feel such desperation, like the bottom has fallen out, your heart is breaking, you feel that you have nothing left to give; lift up your hands and offer the sacrifice of praise. We need to truly understand this power! It’s not just a cliché, it’s the Word of God. It’s a mighty weapon that drives away the pain and the enemy. It lifts you into a healing place, into another level of closeness to God. When Job was told everything he had was suddenly and tragically lost, including the death of all his children, he rent his robe, shaved his head and fell down upon the ground and WORSHIPPED. “The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” As he raised the shield of faith against the onslaught of Satan he saw the victory. As the righteousness of God in Christ, when we put our trust wholly in Him, HE IS ABLE TO RESTORE our broken lives.
So many people are shattered and lost, which leads me to a new story. I went to the beach to walk along the water to praise and worship the Lord. As I was praying, I sat on a large bolder and asked Him if He wanted me to share His love with someone. A few minutes later, a lady came over. She said, “You look like a woman who could give me some sound advice.” I smiled, “I’d like to try, what’s going on in your world?” She then proceeded to tell me about her husband who left her six years ago and about the man she’s with now. She poured her heart out to me. It was obvious she needed love and I knew just the One who would give it to her. As she prayed to receive Christ, tears streamed down her face, she felt His presence. Celeste hugged me for the longest time, before we said goodbye. Please pray that she will grow in the Lord.
THANK YOU LOVERS OF GOD FOR MINISTERING WITH ME. I PRAY FOR YOU AND PRAISE GOD FOR YOU
July 2010 Letter
“For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is FREEDOM.” 2nd Corinthians 3:17 NLT
Hello Dear Hearts,
This is the month we celebrate the birth and freedom of our Nation. Freedom is not free it always comes with great sacrifice. Countless men and women have lost their fortunes and their lives for our country. Also the freedom we celebrate in Christ cost the ultimate price, His death on the cross. Our God so loved us that He gave His only Son to free us from the penalty of sin; to re-unite us to Himself through His own Blood Covenant. On this fact, the history of our nation was founded. John Adams said, “We recognize no Sovereign but God and no King but Jesus.” Our laws were written from God’s Laws. And as we worshipped Him, He uniquely blessed our nation.
However our nation is again in peril. Bibles and prayer have been removed from our schools; as well as the Ten Commandments from our courthouses and public places. George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Ronald Reagan, all have, at different time, called our nation to a Day of Prayer. Many years ago the Congress authorized an annual National Day of Prayer. This year a federal judge took steps to have it declared unconstitutional. Anti-religious activists persuaded the military to cancel The Rev. Franklin Graham’s personal participation in a Pentagon event on the grounds that it might offend Muslims. Then an Islamic advocacy group in Washington tried to keep him from participating in a prayer event on Capital Hill with members of the House of Representatives. Franklin said, “It is shocking to experience, in our own country, such open opposition to Christian prayer for the nation.”
What are we to do? We have been silent too long. It is time for us to repent and to pray for God to make us worthy of “THE LAND OF THE FREE AND THE HOME OF THE BRAVE.’’
I thank you, my dear partners, for your faithfulness in prayer and support of this ministry! Much has happened this last month but, I must tell you one story. My dear missionary friend from Bulgaria Diana, lovingly called “DD”, met an elderly man from Germany on the beach. She told him of her “call of God” on her life. He introduced her to his wife. They were very cordial to her. “DD” was leaving in a couple of days so she wanted me to follow up with them. Her friend, Jenna, had met them and knew where they were staying.
The two of us prayed and went to see them. We sat on their little patio, had cappuccino and talked of many things including Jesus. I invited them for dinner at my place. They readily accepted. As they arrived a CD of Mozart was softly playing. We had a lovely dinner with lots of stories, talking and laughing. As they left, I told them I would stop by Saturday to say good-bye before they left Sunday morning.
As I walked up to their cottage they were both sitting on the patio waiting for me. They stood up to greet me with hugs. I told them I not only wanted to say good-bye, but I wanted to share something with them. We sat down, each of us pulling our chairs in a little closer. I told them how Jesus came into my life and gave me a peace and joy I had never known before. I told them of His love for them and how He wanted to come into their lives. I gave them a few scriptures and asked if they wanted to receive Him. They said, “Yes, but how?”
“Just pray out loud after me.” When we finished praying, I pulled out of my purse a Bible I had brought for them. As I walked away I praised God, their sins had been forgiven and they had a new purpose in life. I looked over my shoulder and saw them standing waving and throwing kisses.
Because of YOUR PRECIOUS PROVISON FOR OUR MINISTRY you allow me the freedom to share God’s love and bring in the harvest. I’M SO GRATEFUL! GOD BLESS YOU.
Georgia Lee
