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“AND WHEN THESE THINGS BEGIN TO COME TO PASS, THEN LOOK UP, AND LIFT UP YOUR HEADS; FOR YOUR REDEMPTION DRAWETH NIGH.” Luke 21:28
Rejoice? Many would say “what do we have to
rejoice about?” Shall we rejoice at Jesus’ words?
“UPON THE EARTH DISTRESS OF
NATIONS, WITH PERPLEXITY; THE SEA
AND THE WAVES ROARING.” Luke 21:25
In Jesus’ final message just before His trial and
crucifixion, He gave us several
awesome signs to look for that
would indicate the nearness of
His coming. Of course the
critics say, “We have always
had hurricanes, earthquakes,
famines, wars, pestilence, and
on and on!” But, NEVER have
we had these so-called, “natural
disasters” in such intensity and
frequency. In this hurricane season
we have had 15 hurricanes
and severe tropical storms —
an all time record! And the
season is not over yet! By the
way, Katrina was the worst in
recorded history!
The same phenomenon with earthquakes — four times
the amount in recent years since records began to be recorded! Remember last year’s horrible
9.15 earthquake that caused the worst tsunami in
history? Former U.S. Secretary of State, Colin
Powell, who visited Indonesia and India, said in all his years he had never seen such utter devastation.
How about pestilence? I spoke personally with
Leo Slingerland, our station manager in Nairobi,
Kenya. He gave me the horror report that several
hundred a day are dying of AIDS — in fact, with a
shudder, I heard him say the coffin makers are running out of wood, and many who have died of
AIDS are simply being buried in mass graves! And
this is just one of the many African nations, plus other nations around the earth, where the AIDS epidemic is rampant!
But if you think we have had it bad so far,
according to the prophet
Isaiah, we haven’t seen anything
yet! Now, let me insert
here that this is not a doomsday
letter, for we who know
Jesus Christ have this blessed
word from the apostle Paul
who writes:
“FOR GOD HATH NOT
APPOINTED US TO
WRATH, BUT TO
OBTAIN SALVATION
BY OUR LORD JESUS
CHRIST.” I Thess. 5:9
Praise God for our blessed
hope — but for the ungodly
and the wicked:
wicked: If you think
Katrina, Rita and the
numerous other hurricanes
and tropical storms were bad,
read with me Isaiah 24!
Before we do, I know we who
are saved will be with Jesus at the great marriage
supper of the Lamb before these horrors occur on
planet earth. Praise the Lord! So, buckle up your
spiritual seatbelt, because compared to Katrina,
which has virtually destroyed New Orleans, here is
what is coming as God’s wrath is poured out on an
ungodly, Christ rejecting world!
“BEHOLD, THE LORD MAKETH THE
EARTH EMPTY, AND MAKETH IT WASTE, AND TURNETH IT UPSIDE
DOWN, AND SCATTERETH ABROAD THE
INHABITANTS THEREOF.” Isa. 24:1
Let me add here that as I write this letter I have just
flown over New Orleans by helicopter with Don Tipton
of Friend Ships ministry. I wept as I saw firsthand the
utter devastation of that great city. Don and his wife,
Sondra, have pulled two of their large mercy ships into
the harbor and I got to meet dozens of precious volunteers,
young and old, who are working day and night
helping restore some of the city that can be restored —
putting on new roofs, passing out food and water,
witnessing the love of Christ, passing out Bibles, and on
and on! TBN bought the helicopter that Don said has
saved many lives, picking up refugees from rooftops,
even taking the dogs, cats, parrots and other pets to
safety! We gave from your “HIS HAND EXTENDED”
$200,000 to Friend Ships; $200,000 to Franklin
Graham’s, “SAMARITAN’S PURSE,” and another
$200,000 to Tommy and Matthew Barnett’s “DREAM
CENTER,” who has lovingly accepted over 300 of the
homeless refugees into their facilities! God bless them!
Pitiful New Orleans practically fulfilled verse one of
Isaiah 24, but even that horror is a Sunday school picnic
compared to what is yet coming to this earth after
God has evacuated His people from the utter destruction
to come.
“THE EARTH IS UTTERLY BROKEN DOWN,
THE EARTH IS CLEAN DISSOLVED, THE
EARTH IS MOVED EXCEEDINGLY.”
Sounds bad? Dear Father, read on:
“THE EARTH SHALL REEL TO AND FRO
LIKE A DRUNKARD, AND SHALL BE
REMOVED LIKE A COTTAGE; AND THE
TRANSGRESSION THEREOF SHALL BE
HEAVY UPON IT; AND IT SHALL FALL AND
NOT RISE AGAIN.” Isa. 24: 19, 20
Dear Partners, I pray you will share this letter and
Scriptures with those who are lost. We have found that
the hearts of virtually all the people of the vast Gulf Coast
region are open as never before to the Gospel of Jesus
Christ. I am told they literally grasp the Bibles even
before the food and water!
So now what? I learned that the law enforcement
agencies at all levels have literally emptied the city,
including the wicked French Quarter. The voodoo is
gone; the Santeria is gone; the houses of prostitution are
gone; even the casinos are wiped out in Mississippi.
Mardi Gras is over — at least for now! Praise the Lord
God most high forever and ever. Amen!
But now, dear Partners, the Harvest is great, but the
laborers are few. Souls are streaming into the Kingdom of
God, not just in the Gulf Coast, but from all over the
world! TBN is God’s Voice to virtually the whole wide
world! Will you help Jan and me and your great TBN
family bring this glorious Harvest into His fold? Our
eternal future is assured through the blood of Jesus
Christ, BUT THEIRS IS NOT! Most of us cannot go
personally to help bring the suffering lost ones to Christ,
but we can add a few dollars to our regular TBN pledges and support — please do it this month. We have virtually
exhausted our “HIS HAND EXTENDED” benevolence
fund, and we are being told by the government it will take
months, even years, to restore the Gulf Coast to even some
semblance of what it once was.
Finally, let us rejoice as Jesus told us, that “all these
things” simply assure us that “our redemption draws nigh”!
Even, in the meantime, as we do experience many of the
“birth pangs,” as dear Hal Lindsay admonishes us, we do
not have to fear — ah, read and rejoice:
“GOD IS OUR REFUGE AND STRENGTH,
A VERY PRESENT HELP IN TROUBLE.
THEREFORE WILL NOT WE FEAR, THOUGH
THE MOUNTAINS BE CARRIED INTO THE
MIDST OF THE SEA; THOUGH THE WATERS
THEREOF ROAR AND BE TROUBLED…. BE
STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD:
I WILL BE EXALTED…IN THE EARTH. THE
LORD OF HOSTS IS WITH US; THE GOD OF
JACOB IS OUR REFUGE” (Psa. 46: 1, 3, 10).
Praise the Lord!
Jan and I thank you and praise God for you as we labor
together to bring in this final Harvest of precious souls.
We love you more and more with each passing year, now
32 1/2, praising the Lord together!
Don Tipton, of Friend Ships, and Paul
in front of “ANGEL ONE,” the helicopter
donated by TBN, which is being used
for relief efforts in New Orleans.
The mercy ship “Hope” lies
anchored behind Don Tipton and
Paul. TBN has partnered with
Friend Ships and other ministries
to help with the massive relief
efforts in New Orleans and other
Gulf region areas stricken by
Hurricane Katrina.
Pictured with Paul are Sondra and Don Tipton,
founders of Friend Ships, along with one of their
volunteers. TBN has assisted Friend Ships in sending
two cargo ships to New Orleans filled with tons of
food, clothes, medical supplies and volunteers.
Pastors Matthew and Tommy Barnett, and Aaron
Jayne of the Los Angeles Dream Center, joined
Jan on a very touching Behind the Scenes program.
They spoke of how, in addition to their regular inner
city ministry in Los Angeles, the Dream Center has
also taken in 300 people from New Orleans who have
been displaced by Hurricane Katrina.
Jan welcomed 36 evacuees from New Orleans,
currently living at the Dream Center, as her special
guests on Behind the Scenes. TBN has donated
$200,000 to the Dream Center to help them as they
reach out with Jesus’ love to those whose lives have
been disrupted by Hurricane Katrina.
