The Plight of Eyeyore
12 years ago
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Friday, January 1, 2010
A Letter to Family and Friends
I wanted to share the following letter I sent out:
Dear Friends and Family,
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Happy New Year to all of you as well! We share a common hope in Christ and that is the bond that ties us together. I praise God and thank Him for you and that you are striving to live for Him. I'm thankful I have you all to share my praises with.
Many of you know that my father past away a week before Christmas. I know you have been praying for me and my family. Thank you so much for the time you have spent in prayer. It is a sad time for me, but also a time of great rejoicing! I do believe that on my father's death bed he truly became born again!
Some of you would say, huh? What!? My dad was an Independent Fundamental Baptist preacher for 30+ years...and I'll tell you with as much honesty, but also with as much respect as I can...my father had RELIGION and not a relationship with Jesus Christ! I do not say this lightly, but with firm conviction and a warning to all of those who call themself a born-again believer and also for those who may be pretending or led astray in a man's false teaching...BEWARE OF THE LEAVEN AND YOKE OF THE PHARISEES! It almost dragged my father's soul to hell.
I have been praying for my father since I was a little girl and before I was even born again from my own sin. I have cried tears that could fill oceans and begged God to show my father the truth of repentance in Christ and the relationship and fruit and gifts of the Spirit that follow. There were times of great apathy in my Christian life where I said...I've prayed enough!!! I'm tired of praying for my Dad! But again and again God would smite my heart to pray more for my dad.
Well, God provided a way for me to see him the week of his death. I spent time caring for him as he laid helpless in bed and in pain. He couldn't eat and was now refusing water. Every bad feeling I had and reservation to truly love my dad was gone when I saw him lying there in that bed. Death was imminent now. Day was fading fast. Sin had paid it's wages and life would soon be past. (lyrics from a Ron Hamilton song flood my mind.) But then...
My dad asked me to pray for him. I prayed and he said..."I'm not sincere." He said it once, twice and then over and over again as if he were a broken record. "I'm not sincere, I'm not sincere." I asked, "You think I'm not sincere in my prayer for you?" He said, "No, no me! I'm not sincere! I have been rotten!" I fumbled for words and I sadly gave a pat answer, "No, Dad, God is on your side." He said, "No! God is NOT on my side!" I could not believe(I believe Lord, help my unbelief!) what I was hearing, I thought I would never see this day. Finally, God gave me a word..."Dad, you can pray right now and ask God to forgive you for not being sincere and He will forgive you." He insisted on praying right then and there. And for the next several minutes my father cried out to God in a way I have never seen before...He cried out for forgiveness of sin, he had prayed for my forgiveness specifically and our family's forgiveness. Tears streamed down the side of his face. I wailed and wept like Hannah at the altar.
Immediately, where once lived a haughty, prideful, religious pretender now presided a humble, redeemed servant of Christ who was now asking for hugs and telling me he loved me...
I AM COMPLETELY BLOWN AWAY BY THE POWER OF GOD AND THE POWER OF PRAYER!
Throughout the brief time he had left on the earth my dad encouraged us to forgive one another and to love one another. I didn't want him to die...I wanted him to live, to now live his life for Christ instead of living his life to fulfill the law. I cried as he slept and asked God to let him live. He died, but NOW he is born again. I do believe my dad is now in heaven where there is no more pain. That brings my heart much relief in this New Year.
And may you all be encouraged to keep on praying for those who are lost and in their sin. We get tired, we wonder, when Lord? You may think, "I've been praying all these years for my Mom, my friend, my co-worker." ...KEEP PRAYING! And keep on trusting in the POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT to call people to conviction of sin and lead them to salvation. Our faith may be weak at times, but His word still stands pure and true!
May God renew your vision for His kingdom this year and give you a fresh burden for those who are dying in their sin with no hope. May God bolster your families as you serve Him. Keep praying over those children and God will raise up servants for His glory. We love you and thank God so much for you!
Ephesians 3:20,
"Now to Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us!"
In Christ,
Deb Paul and Family
Dear Friends and Family,
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Happy New Year to all of you as well! We share a common hope in Christ and that is the bond that ties us together. I praise God and thank Him for you and that you are striving to live for Him. I'm thankful I have you all to share my praises with.
Many of you know that my father past away a week before Christmas. I know you have been praying for me and my family. Thank you so much for the time you have spent in prayer. It is a sad time for me, but also a time of great rejoicing! I do believe that on my father's death bed he truly became born again!
Some of you would say, huh? What!? My dad was an Independent Fundamental Baptist preacher for 30+ years...and I'll tell you with as much honesty, but also with as much respect as I can...my father had RELIGION and not a relationship with Jesus Christ! I do not say this lightly, but with firm conviction and a warning to all of those who call themself a born-again believer and also for those who may be pretending or led astray in a man's false teaching...BEWARE OF THE LEAVEN AND YOKE OF THE PHARISEES! It almost dragged my father's soul to hell.
I have been praying for my father since I was a little girl and before I was even born again from my own sin. I have cried tears that could fill oceans and begged God to show my father the truth of repentance in Christ and the relationship and fruit and gifts of the Spirit that follow. There were times of great apathy in my Christian life where I said...I've prayed enough!!! I'm tired of praying for my Dad! But again and again God would smite my heart to pray more for my dad.
Well, God provided a way for me to see him the week of his death. I spent time caring for him as he laid helpless in bed and in pain. He couldn't eat and was now refusing water. Every bad feeling I had and reservation to truly love my dad was gone when I saw him lying there in that bed. Death was imminent now. Day was fading fast. Sin had paid it's wages and life would soon be past. (lyrics from a Ron Hamilton song flood my mind.) But then...
My dad asked me to pray for him. I prayed and he said..."I'm not sincere." He said it once, twice and then over and over again as if he were a broken record. "I'm not sincere, I'm not sincere." I asked, "You think I'm not sincere in my prayer for you?" He said, "No, no me! I'm not sincere! I have been rotten!" I fumbled for words and I sadly gave a pat answer, "No, Dad, God is on your side." He said, "No! God is NOT on my side!" I could not believe(I believe Lord, help my unbelief!) what I was hearing, I thought I would never see this day. Finally, God gave me a word..."Dad, you can pray right now and ask God to forgive you for not being sincere and He will forgive you." He insisted on praying right then and there. And for the next several minutes my father cried out to God in a way I have never seen before...He cried out for forgiveness of sin, he had prayed for my forgiveness specifically and our family's forgiveness. Tears streamed down the side of his face. I wailed and wept like Hannah at the altar.
Immediately, where once lived a haughty, prideful, religious pretender now presided a humble, redeemed servant of Christ who was now asking for hugs and telling me he loved me...
I AM COMPLETELY BLOWN AWAY BY THE POWER OF GOD AND THE POWER OF PRAYER!
Throughout the brief time he had left on the earth my dad encouraged us to forgive one another and to love one another. I didn't want him to die...I wanted him to live, to now live his life for Christ instead of living his life to fulfill the law. I cried as he slept and asked God to let him live. He died, but NOW he is born again. I do believe my dad is now in heaven where there is no more pain. That brings my heart much relief in this New Year.
And may you all be encouraged to keep on praying for those who are lost and in their sin. We get tired, we wonder, when Lord? You may think, "I've been praying all these years for my Mom, my friend, my co-worker." ...KEEP PRAYING! And keep on trusting in the POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT to call people to conviction of sin and lead them to salvation. Our faith may be weak at times, but His word still stands pure and true!
May God renew your vision for His kingdom this year and give you a fresh burden for those who are dying in their sin with no hope. May God bolster your families as you serve Him. Keep praying over those children and God will raise up servants for His glory. We love you and thank God so much for you!
Ephesians 3:20,
"Now to Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us!"
In Christ,
Deb Paul and Family
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