December 2nd, 2014
Dear Friends,
We trust you, like us, enjoyed the Thanksgiving Day holiday. Many people we met in the recent weeks have told us that Thanksgiving is their favorite holiday. We treasure their sentiment; it reveals the true heart of so many Americans. Family, the blessings of freedom, the values of the founding fathers and the sweetness of hearth and home are still held dear in our hearts. This rapidly changing world and the growing pains of our country might discourage us now and then; but when we listen, we hear the cries for the greatest need of every living being. LOVE.
Marie and I have enjoyed a full autumn working with those seeking discipleship. We have rejoiced to see quite a few go on in a deeper relationship with Christ and we await the joyous testimonies of the work God is doing and will do in you. There has been quite a lot of time spent in hospital visitation and hospice vigil. We are always blessed in these difficult situations by the Lord’s Presence and while there are tears of sadness due to sufferings or separation from those we hold dear, the Presence of our loving Christ brings comfort and hope and the promise that one day we will be free from sorrow and pain. We see that through suffering of body or soul, we experience in Christ a freedom already, as we become more like Him and enter into the blessings of the Kingdom of Heaven.
In working with many couples, we have seen only three come to divorce. In each of these three, however, one of the spouses has come to Christ and the children of one family. Even when things do not come to the resolution we hope for, we know that the true hope lies in a man or woman coming to know their Redeemer, Jesus Christ, and to live in a growing relationship with Him. When our relationship with Christ is what it should be, there is healing for every relationship with others. It is our tendency to focus all our energies in the direction of our troubled relationships. We constantly need to remind ourselves that the answers lie in looking to Christ. Are we willing to let Him work the necessary changes in us first? Do we trust Him with this painful relationship? Let’s surrender ourselves to His love first, and then commit to Him those with whom we desire reconciliation. He will do the healing in a miraculous and lasting way. It is the way of love.
“ …But God be thanked, that you were the servants of sin, but you have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered to you.”
“Being then made free from sin, you became the servants of righteousness.”
Romans 6:17-18
Christ came to earth to liberate us from the hold that sin has on us. It required the ultimate demonstration of Love by God, Himself . It took the marvelous plan of God, the Father; it took the willingness of His precious and holy Son; it took a terrible cross. We who have trusted in Him for salvation have been liberated from the hold that sin had on us. As we come to comprehend this, we find in ourselves a desire to obey the Word of God. God tells us that we “become servants of righteousness”. We discover that in our new life we are bound to doing what is right and good because Christ lives in us and we are a new creation.
The dynamic teaching of doctrine is a critical need in the Body of Christ. It is through coming to understand God’s Word and His plan of salvation that we realize what we have been given in Christ. When we know who we are in Christ we begin to live according to who we are, and the freedom we have been given becomes a reality in our everyday lives.
Pray that Dan and I will be given wisdom to skillfully bring the teaching of the doctrine of God’s Word to the Body of Christ. Please pray also for open doors of opportunity. This work is at the heart of the vision of Ceaseless Love Ministries because it is the true answer for every life and every situation. It is the greatest need of the Church in these days. Dear friends, pray for the hearts of God’s people to be made ready, through the work of the Holy Spirit, to receive and “obey from the heart” the powerful and wonderful Word of God!
Ceaseless Love continues by God’s grace and your loving support. Your prayers and sacrificial gifts bless and bring the Light to many. Dan and I often wish that you all could be present in those moments when we see in the person sitting across the table from us the work of the Spirit and the sudden joy and freedom the Truth brings. You are a participant in the work God is accomplishing in His people.
It is our prayer that God would bless you in this richly beautiful Christmas season. We encourage you to look back on the way God has demonstrated His grace in your lives this past year. You will know the Love of the Prince of Peace in your hearts and rejoice that He has come.
“I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” Jn. 10:10
With our love and blessings at Christmas,
Dan & Marie
Daniel, Grace, John & Clark