Rick Anderson's Blog, page 11

The Journey Home

Kim and I recently returned from a trip to the Bahamas with my brother and some of his family.  When my brother approached us about going on the trip with them, we had to count our pennies to see if we could afford to make the trip.  The only way that we were able to go was that we paid for the airfare with air miles that we had earned on our credit card so that the flight was essentially free.

When we booked the flights, we were able to get tickets down to the Bahamas together but the only flight options available for the return had Kim leaving on Tuesday, flying through Ft. Lauderdale and with me leaving on Wednesday, flying through West Palm Beach and Newark, New Jersey.  Our journey home would end up having Kim fly back alone and my return voyage taking over 12 hours to complete, putting me back in Houston at midnight

Needless to say, I tried and tried to change the return tickets before we left and was unsuccessful.  We ended up driving two cars to the airport so that we could both get home from our separate flights on two different days.

We made it to the Bahamas and spent nearly a week of fishing, snorkeling, touring the area and spending time with my brother and his family.  Finally, it was time for us to begin our journey back home.  On Tuesday, our guide and I took Kim by boat to the marina where she caught a cab to the airport for her return flight.

We then went back to the large trawler where everyone was fishing, turned down the two-way radio and began watching an old Clint Eastwood movie.  After an hour or so, a boat pulled up alongside us and asked us to turn our radio back on to channel fourteen.  They then advised us over the radio, "You have a person at the airport whose flight has been delayed.  She needs for you to pick her back up!"

We hurried back into the small boat and tore out for the marina, where we found Kim waiting at the dock for us.  It turned out that her flight had been delayed for a day due to mechanical problems.

The next day, we made the same trip to the marina where Kim and I both unloaded and hailed a cab.  Since my flight was at noon and hers wasn't until several hours later, we dropped her off at a shopping area where the cabbie agreed to pick her back up in a couple of hours.

I checked in at the little airport in Marsh Harbor, Bahamas for my flight to West Palm, Newark and Houston, then went outside and took a seat.  Momentarily, one of the clerks came out and asked, "Where is your wife?  We've got her on the same flight with you to West Palm Beach!"  I told her that she was in a shopping area and she told me to come with her.  We got into her car and tore out for the shopping area where we had left Kim.  Don't expect that to happen in Houston!

We soon found her and headed back to the airport to get her boarding pass.  The clerks had changed her flight so that now she was supposed to have a flight from West Palm directly to Houston.  For some reason, they were unable to print her boarding pass for the trip to Houston and said that we'd have to wait to get those in West Palm.

We made the short flight in the puddle jumper to West Palm where we went through customs and quickly made our way to the counter to get Kim's boarding passes.  I already was in possession of the boarding passes for my long flight home through New Jersey.  We told the agent what we needed and she asked to see our identification and my boarding passes as well.

We stood there for what seemed an eternity as she pecked on her keyboard, called her supervisor over for guidance, pecked some more and then handed what looked like a boarding pass to me.  "Here's a voucher to get you both by taxi to Ft. Lauderdale airport, and here's both of your boarding passes for a direct flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Houston, arriving at 7:25 pm this evening.

I was stunned!  I had tried with all of my power to get the flights changed so that we could fly home together and was only met with frustration.  Now without our even trying, we would be together for the entire journey.  Only God could have orchestrated the events that kept us together!

Hebrews 11:1 says, "Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see."  God has untold blessings in store for those who follow Him.  Sometimes when we least expect it, God reminds us that He is in control and that He is walking along beside us on our life's journey.  Remember to walk by faith and not by sight, for it is the only way to live the life abundant in Christ Jesus.

I'll Fly Away

It was early on Saturday morning and I was being lazy, not wanting to get up out of bed.  Kim dragged into the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee and I heard her urgent request, "Rick, come look!"

I reached to get my glasses so that I could "look" and actually see whatever it was that she wanted me to see.  I rolled out of bed, drug on my robe and hurried into the living room.  She was looking out the window at something.  She just said, "Look!  I'm getting my camera!"

I peered out the window through the blinds and immediately saw five Canadian geese walking around on the bank at the far side of the pond. "Wow!" I said, "I've never seen Canadian geese in our back yard before!"

The geese were in no hurry to leave but sauntered around without a care, resting whenever they took a notion.  I wondered what our resident white goose might think about the invasion of the "foreigners".

It wouldn't be long before our goose came to investigate the commotion, but wisely kept a safe distance from them.  The Canadians hung out for most of the morning before deciding that it was time to fly away, headed for home.

I was prompted by the experience to recall the passage in Hebrews 13:14 "For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come."

For those who follow Christ, we are just passing through this world on our way to be with Christ forever.  We are only here for a short time as transients in a foreign land.  One day, we too, will fly away.

There's an old song that says it much better than I can.  "Some glad morning when this life is over, I'll fly away; to a land where joy shall never end, I'll fly away.  I'll fly away, O glory! I'll fly away!  When I die, hallelujah, by and by, I'll fly away!"

One thing that the geese know is that they are driven to get to their true home where blessings galore await them.  Maybe we could learn something from these geese.  Could it be that the trajectory of our lives should be headed toward a distant land?  Too often, we live as if we will never leave this earth…as if this is our true land.  Scripture seems to be telling us something else, however.  The Bible tells us that we should live with the knowledge that we must leave this earth if we are to get to the true prize that awaits those who have lived loving and serving the Lord.

Remember what old Isaiah said in 40:31; "But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint."

Let us live as if this day were our last and draw our strength from the Lord of hosts who loved us enough to die for us on the cross of Calvary.  Let us not worry about storing up treasure in this place where moths and rust will destroy it, but rather store up treasures in heaven, where we will be forever with Christ, the Lord.  Hallelujah, what a Savior!!

The Battle of San Jacinto

We had just concluded our Bible Study after completing the last chapter of the Letter to the Hebrews, and having just read that powerful benediction near the end of the chapter when one of the attendees spoke up.  "Today is the anniversary of the Battle of San Jacinto."

Everyone around the table engaged him regarding his comment.  "Oh, really?" some replied and others knew full well that today was the anniversary of the battle that won independence for the Republic of Texas.

He went on, "I was there at the monument on the one-hundredth anniversary on April 21st, 1936."

One of the ladies in the group added, "I was there, too!  I was there on that same day!"

They continued to talk and reminisce about having been at the same place at the same time three-quarters of a century ago when they were both just children.  They didn't even know each other at the time but now were good friends by the grace of God.

I could only sit there slack-jawed as I reflected on how these two wonderful Christian people who had been through so much and touched so many lives had now come together after all these years to be in one place.  I was awed by how God had used them to sow the seeds of His love and grace to so many over the years and how they had both, along with many others, touched my life with the light of Christ that shines through them.

I couldn't help but to look once again at the letter to the Hebrews before I closed my Bible.  How many people throughout the centuries had been touched by this letter?  People from many nations and tongues had been encouraged in their faith by the words written down on that scroll so long ago, yet it still speaks nearly two-thousand years later.  Not to mention, the entirety of Scripture that contains God's Word and how powerfully it continues to speak and draw us to Christ, the Word of God made into human flesh.

I must admit that I am in awe at all that God has done to reach out to all of us.  Not only has he given His Son for us to pay the price for our sins and to give us victory over death, but also the way that He keeps reaching out to us through the Word and through believers that shine the light of Christ into our worlds to testify about what great things God has done for us.

He choreographs "Love Events" in our world so that we might be able to testify to others through both word and deed about the love of God in Christ.  He shines the light of His love in and through us to encourage others and help them to understand the truth about Christ.  He draws us to His Word that gives us strength for our life's journey, which is in fact a journey of faith that ends at the Throne of God.

May we each rejoice over God's wonderful gift of salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ.  May we work in harmony with the Spirit of God that testifies within us that we are His children and may we shine the light of His love to others as God guides us and gives us the ability.  May we never cease to be amazed at the wonders of God and His mighty power as we see signs and wonders around about us every day.  Give God the glory for the great things that He has done!

Hebrews 13:20-21 (NLT) "Now may the God of peace– who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood–may he equip you with all you need for doing his will. May he produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to him. All glory to him forever and ever! Amen."

The Beauty of Easter

Psalm 8:3-5 (NLT) "When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers– the moon and the stars you set in place–what are people that you should think about them, mere mortals that you should care for them?  Yet you made them only a little lower than God and crowned them with glory and honor."

As we march into Easter, complete with eggs and bunnies, crosses and empty tombs, food and family, it's easy to lose sight of the real miracle of Easter.  In all of our busyness and shoehorning too much into our lives, it is difficult to find time for pondering what Easter really means to us.

Take a moment to consider that God created the universe and everything that exists within it: trees, flowers, birds, animals, oceans, fish, mountains, stars, planets and galaxies that we can't even see or fathom.  In all of His gracious love, He created human beings, knowing that we would turn away from His love and rebel against Him, choosing to go our own way.  Due to our own selfishness and pride, we have to endure the consequences of our fallen state, which includes death, cancer, natural disasters, accidents and addictions to name a few.

The fact that God didn't just destroy us all out of disappointment but rather continued to reach out to us in His love, trying to redeem us through the law of Moses and the prophets, sheds great light on His mercy and grace.

Yet nothing prepared us for what He had in mind: a love so radical that it is incomprehensible to the human brain.  This loving God was not content for us to wallow in our fallen state but was so determined to right the wrong that we had committed by breaking our relationship with Him, that He had a plan to set it all right once and for all.

God's ultimate plan of redemption for fallen humanity was to send His Son, Jesus, into the world to forever change the way that we related to God.  This Son was born of a virgin and when He was grown, He ministered to the outcasts of society, preferring to mingle with them than the religious elite who were so filled with self-righteousness that they didn't even recognize this perfect Son of God.

The religious people hated Him and wanted Him dead.  This was all part of God's plan for redeeming us from our sinfulness and making a way for us to have our broken relationship with God restored.  In order for our debt of rebellion and sin to be paid once and for all, a precious sacrifice of blood had to be paid.  No human or animal in all of creation was ever able to pay that ominous debt.  Only the Son of God, who had never sinned, was worthy to pay that terrific price for all of our sin, once and for all.

So on a Friday, they stuck a crown of thorns on His head and forced Him to drag a Roman cross through the streets of Jerusalem to the place of His execution.  There they nailed Him to the cross, stripped Him naked and raised the Son of God up for the whole world to ridicule.  In God's mercy, this spotless Lamb of God suffered and died on that cross to set us free from our debt of sin that we could never repay.  On that cross, the King of Glory paid the ultimate price so that we might have our sins forgiven.

But that would not be the end…for He was laid in a tomb before sundown and on the third morning, He arose from the dead forever breaking the power of sin and death for all who simply believe and follow Him.  On that Easter morning, the Creator of the universe spoke to each of us and said, "I extend to you my mercy and grace!  I offer to cover your sins in the shed blood of My Son!  I died for you so that you might live forever with Me!  Won't you accept the sacrifice that I have made on your behalf?  Won't you embrace the love that I offer to you?  Won't you live in Me and I will live in you?  Won't you come to Me just the way that you are and let My mercy and grace wash you clean?  Will you come and take the salvation that I freely offer to you today?"

The mighty God who is so unimaginable in His power is also indescribable in His mercy and grace.  He has proven the depth of His love for us.  He has proven His mercy and grace.  The rest is up to us.  Won't you come home to Jesus today and let Him be the Lord of your life, giving you the hope of resurrection in Him.  That is the hope of Easter!  That is the joy of having your sins washed away!  That is the blessing of having a life-giving relationship with the living God!  Through Christ, our broken relationship with God is restored and we can walk with God forever, both in this life and the next.

1Corinthians 15:55-57 (NLT) "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?  For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power.  But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ."

Praying for Rain

The dryness of this early spring has become a concern to farmers, ranchers, gardeners and to all of us as we realize that the land needs moisture from the heavens in order to produce food for cattle and humans alike.  Churches and individuals are all praying for rain from above to come saturate the soil with life-giving moisture.

Just as the land cries out for rain, our nation is struggling with major budgetary issues in order to breathe new life into our government that is on the brink of complete shutdown for lack of funds.  It appears that we need some help from above in order to be able to move forward as a nation.

I am reminded of what King David said in Psalm 143:4-6 (NLT) "I am losing all hope; I am paralyzed with fear.  I remember the days of old. I ponder all your great works and think about what you have done.  I lift my hands to you in prayer. I thirst for you as parched land thirsts for rain."

Certainly our nation is in need of a fresh rain from God to bless our land and to renew us again.  We need for God to heal us and to show us a new vision for the future.  We need less partisan bickering and more bi-partisan praying, just as the Founding Fathers did as the first official act of the Continental Congress on September 6, 1774.  (http://restore-christian-america.org/congress.html).

Our churches that are in decline need renewal.  We talk about needing revival yet there is little hunger and zeal for Christ.  We have become a people who are content in their discontent, satisfied with searching elsewhere for solutions to our problems, instead of humbling ourselves before God as King David did so long ago.

Even though the complex issues that frustrate our national leaders seem daunting and overwhelming to most of us, and we are uncertain what should be done in order to move ahead, God is still able to sort it all out.  He is the only one who can help us to move forward.  He is the one who has the solution to all of our woes, both for us individually, for our churches and for us as a nation.

As we consider the immense problems that we have in our nation, let us not just shrug our shoulders and think that we are powerless.  The best and most powerful tool that was available to the Founding Fathers is still available to us today: prayer.

The brother of the Lord, James tells us in James 5:16-18 (NLT) "The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.  Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for three and a half years!  Then, when he prayed again, the sky sent down rain and the earth began to yield its crops."

As I look out my window right now, the rain is peppering down from the sky, watering the dry ground with life-giving moisture.  The Lord has heard our prayers for rain!  May we be even more diligent in prayer for our nation and our churches so that God will rain down His goodness and grace upon us.    May we humble ourselves before Almighty God and seek His will in our lives, in our churches and for our nation.  May the Lord continue to bless our land and heal us of every infirmity!

The Cleaning

My feet sunk deep into the mud and the water quickly came up to mid-thigh as I continued my chore of pulling out the pond primrose from the little lake behind my house.  I had gotten all that I could reach from the bank and now was forced to delve off into the middle of the snaky muck and weeds in order to clear the water of the fast growing water plant that had grown steadily since the end of winter.

I dragged my rake through the water and pulled wads of deeply rooted plants from the water, then threw them on the bank for the sun to finish the job.  I was reminded of how God worked in our lives to clean the weeds from within us.

There's a mistaken notion with many who have not been Christ followers that they have to 'clean themselves up' before they can come to Christ or attend church.  I'm not sure how that idea got started or why it even exists, but the truth is that no one can clean themselves up enough to be holy in the sight of God.  God made a way for us to be made holy and right with Him and that is through faith in His Son, Jesus, who paid the price for all of our sins on the cross so long ago.

We only need to humble ourselves before God and accept His Son, Jesus, as Lord of our lives.  We come just as we are, warts and all, and God does the cleaning!  There's an old song that says, "Just as I am, without one plea, but that Thy blood was shed for me, and that Thou bidst me come to Thee, O Lamb of God, I come, I come".

I tried to take another step but my feet were stuck deep in the mud.  I pulled with all of my might and dislodged my foot, but my shoe remained planted in the muck.  I had to reach down with my hand and tug it loose, then swish the goo out from inside before placing it back on my foot and slogging another step or two to reach further into the weeds.

I thought about how difficult this whole process of cleaning was.  I thought of the price that was paid for my sins on Calvary.  What a precious price: the life of the Son of God was given for you and for me!  How precious is the blood of Christ and how wonderful is His salvation!!  "Just as I am, and waiting not, to rid my soul of one dark blot, to Thee whose blood can cleanse each spot, O Lamb of God, I come, I come".

Jesus beckons for us to come to Him just as we are and He will work within us to make us into the persons that He wants us to be.  We lay down our dependence upon ourselves and all of our striving to depend on the God who made us with His own hands.  "Just as I am, though tossed about, with many a conflict, many a doubt, fightings and fears within, without, O Lamb of God, I come, I come".

All of our efforts to succeed and heal ourselves has only brought emptiness and frustration.  We come to the place where we realize that, in spite of our pride, we must admit that we are shipwrecked and in need of a Savior.  "Just as I am, poor, wretched, blind; sight, riches, healing of the mind, yea, all I need in Thee to find, O Lamb of God, I come, I come".

In coming to Jesus, He welcomes us into the arms of His salvation.  He cleanses us from every dark blot of sin and begins to transform us by the power of the Holy Spirit, making us into a reflection of Himself so that we might be His ambassadors in the middle of a broken world that needs His saving grace so desperately.  "Just as I am, Thou wilt receive, wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve, because Thy promise I believe, O Lamb of God, I come, I come".

I finally got all of the pond primrose pulled up, then slogged wet and muddy up onto the bank.  A funny thing had happened!  Unbeknownst to me, my neighbor had noticed my activity.  As a result of what I had done, he had come to the edge of the water and had begun to rake the weeds from the water adjacent to his property.  All that I could do was to grin and reflect on how others might be affected as we who have come to Christ, shine the light of His love into our world.  Thanks be to God for His saving grace!

Wizards, Werewolves and Vampires; Oh, My!

My family and I went to Orlando for Spring Break and spent two days running through Disney World.  On the third day, we went to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure and began our journey in the Dr. Seuss attractions.  As we continued through the park, we made our way through a couple of other areas before we came upon the main attraction:  "The Wizarding World of Harry Potter".

The crowds quickly increased as we walked further into the area and the walkway became choked with a mass of people.  The shops all had lines of people waiting to get in and anyone wishing to ride the "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey" had to schedule a time in order to even stand in the line for the ride.

It is amazing the amount of infatuation and hysteria that exists toward the witchery and magic of Harry Potter.  Not too far behind in popularity is the Twilight series of movies that highlights the life of vampires and werewolves.

It's not anything new.  In my own childhood, we were captivated by "Bewitched" and "I Dream of Jeannie" on television while watching "The Twilight Zone" or reruns of the old Frankenstein or Dracula movies of the 1940's.

Humankind has always been infatuated with the 'other world' and trying to be in contact with it.  Even King Saul consulted a medium after the Prophet Samuel had died and the Lord refused to speak to him through any other source.  King Saul had the medium conjure up the recently deceased Samuel, who was not too happy to be disturbed.  1 Samuel 28 tells the account of the conversation between the King and the Prophet, and Samuel ends up giving King Saul an unwanted prophecy: You'll be dead by this time tomorrow!

In John 3, Jesus tells Nicodemus, the Pharisee, that He, Jesus, is the only one to have come down from heaven to earth.  Jesus tells Nicodemus that there's no way that he could understand the things about heaven when he couldn't even understand about what God was doing here one earth.  Jesus further tells him that he must be born again if he wants to see the Kingdom of God.  Nicodemus is confused.

As John tells us in Chapter 1 of his Gospel account, Jesus is the living and eternal Word of God that has always existed and will always exist.  It is through the Word that all creation came into existence and it is that same Word that became flesh in Jesus, the long awaited Messiah.  Through simple faith in Jesus, the living Word, we can have our sins washed away through the sacrifice that He made for us on the cross.  Through saving faith in Christ, we receive the Holy Spirit, who gives birth to us in a whole new way.

Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJ); "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."

So the only way to truly contact the 'other world' is through having a living relationship with Jesus Christ, who saves us from our sins and places an eternal piece of Himself within us to testify within us that we are children of God (Romans 8:16).  We are saved by the eternal living Word of God that cannot lie or ever fade away.  Through our relationship with Christ, we have direct access to God, who is Lord of all, and not just some fable without true power.  This mystery is even more fantastic than any story of human origin!

May our hearts seek the living God, who is the source of truth and life, while understanding that the mysteries of this world will one day pass away.  Through a life-giving relationship with Christ, we have everlasting life through God's Son who made the way for us on a cross so long ago.  Let us seek to grow in our love and understanding of God's grace as we walk through this world that is in such desperate need of a Savior.

Healing Fountain

Meredith was driving home from her job as a forester late one afternoon when she alertly spotted a vehicle on the opposite side of Highway 59. That vehicle was pulled to the shoulder of the road. Now what caught her eye wasn't the fact that the car had pulled to the side of the road, but that there was smoke coming from the edge of the forest immediately beside the vehicle. Meredith had to drive a short distance down Highway 59 in order to get to a crossover where she could double back to investigate. By the time she doubled back, the vehicle had left the scene but she discovered a small fire burning in edge of the woods. She stopped her truck, ran to the fire and quickly realized that it was too much for her to handle without some assistance. She raced back to the truck and called out on two-way radio for assistance.

What you need to understand is that the conditions in the forest were perfect for a wildfire. What I mean is that it was late fall and the grass was brown and dead. The humidity was very low and the ground was very dry as it had not rained in several weeks. On top of that, the wind was blowing from the West/Northwest at a steady rate. In other words, within a few short minutes, the fire was raging out of control and devastating everything in its path with the smoke and flames. Pine needles were scorched instantly as they sizzled like hot grease. The wind drove the flames deeper into the forest as the fire grew at a rapid rate. Sparks and embers from the fire danced upward, tossed by the wind until they settled into the dry grass far from the original fire and started altogether new fires that ignited the forest into an inferno of heat and smoke. Grown trees were consumed in minutes as a wall of fire spread outward by the driving wind from the place of her beginning. Thick, gray smoke choked everything with its breath of death and rose high above to lord over the destruction that the fire ravaged. Shrubs and grass were quickly consumed by the death march. Rabbits, deer and other quick-footed animals had a chance to get away while the slower moving animals and reptiles would meet with certain death.

From the time Meredith made that radio call, men and women flew into action, racing to the scene of the fire. Big trucks loaded with bulldozers hurried to the area in order to get in front of the fire and remove the fuel ahead of it with heavy equipment. Volunteer fire departments scurried to homes in order to stand vigil with water trucks should the fire come close to the homes. State agencies teamed with the forest industry to work in harmony as they martialed their forces in order to direct the fire toward a natural barrier.

Now these men and machines were not able to stop the devastation on their own. Their only hope was to influence the fire toward a direction that they hoped it would go. Not only were human resources working, but natural forces were also influencing the fire. The cool temperatures of the evening kept the flames down overnight so that the rage was diminished. The winds died down at night as well, which kept the fire from racing so quickly. All of these factors worked in order to drive the fire toward a natural barrier: Fountain Creek. After a day and night of fighting the wildfire, the flames finally reached the banks of Fountain Creek. The fire reached the waters in the middle of the night when it was cool and the flames were low. The raging fire that had consumed nearly two thousand acres was influenced by the efforts of countless individuals working in harmony in order to direct the flames to the banks of Fountain Creek. Fountain Creek stopped the devastation and death. Fountain Creek halted the stench and smoke. Fountain Creek said "no" to the spread of soot and ash.

There's an old song that goes like this: There is a fountain filled with blood, drawn from Emmanuel's veins, and sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains. You see, the true fountain that can stop the devastation caused by sin in our lives is the blood of Jesus Christ. He can stop the lifelessness from spreading in our lives and give birth to abundant life and life eternal that springs forth within us like a fountain.

After the fire had died away, many people went to work in order to reclaim the land that had been devastated. Large bulldozers prepared the ground, scraping away the charred remnants of the forest that once stood on the property. Tree seedlings were planted and the naked soil stabilized with grass. Food plots were planted for the deer and song birds. Animals began to reenter the property that was once devastated. Birds began to eat the grass seeds. Crickets and grasshoppers jumped in the grass. Foxes and coyotes began to ramble through the woods. Armadillos and wild hogs rooted for grubs and roots underneath the soil. Life returned to the lifeless place.

In Galatians 6:8, Paul tells us, "Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful desires will harvest the consequences of decay and death. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit." He also says in 2Corinthians 5:17 (NLT); "This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" I pray that you know this loving God who can heal the most devastated sinner with one drop of His precious blood.