Dear Friends & Family,
Julie and I send you a big hug. Sometimes my son Seth says, “You got to risk it to get the biscuit.” I want to risk my heart today. Recently Psalms 48:9 has taken my soul on a pretty cool journey. This is the way it reads in the New Living Translation. “O God, we meditate on your unfailing love as we worship in your temple.” So I allowed my heart to go there and began meditating on His big love for us, His children and for me personally. It’s like standing on the beach and looking at the ocean. My mind can’t comprehend or take it all in, but it inspires such awe. Staring at His love for me brings a faith and courage that I am not able to otherwise muster up.
When I look back in my life, I can see Jesus has been there loving me in just the way I needed that day or during that season. When looking forward to the future, I see a simple path in a beautiful forest like garden. I can only see to the next curve right ahead. That’s ok, because I can see Jesus with His arm around my shoulder, walking with me and talking with me. So I don’t have to see further or more than that. Jesus with me is enough. This floods me with peace.
When I look at ministry, I see Jesus standing there talking to the people. He is kind of transparent and I am standing inside Him. Then it’s me, but He is standing behind me with His hands on my shoulders. Then the scene changes again and I am talking, but He is walking around in the crowd hugging people and whispering in their ears. When I see Jesus, He is always smiling. I hope you will see His smile while reading this. That smile preaches love like no preacher ever has or will.
As I experimented with this, I tried to take my imagination and memory back to a recent mistake. I wanted to see what Jesus is doing when I miss the mark. The screen was totally blank. I could not see anything on the screen and Jesus was nowhere to be found. Then I heard, Isaiah 43:25 “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins”. Then He said, “I don’t remember because it does not exist. That’s why I am not there.” Ok, now I get it. I don’t believe all of this is “just my imagination running away with me”, like Mick Jagger.
So what about the biscuit? Well, Jesus said “I am the bread of life. The person who aligns with me hungers no more and thirsts no more, ever. I have told you this explicitly because even though you have seen me in action, you don’t really believe me. Every person the Father gives me eventually comes running to me. And once that person is with me, I hold on and don’t let go.” John 6:35-38 (MSG).
Just to quickly update you, on August 2 I will travel to Ciudad Victoria, Mexico. Every year since 1998, Bobby and Lynn Crow have given me the wonderful privilege to teach at the Palabra de Vida Bible Institute. I am looking forward to teaching and activating the students in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. We will also have a three day healing crusade in the church.
Currently, Ciudad Victoria is ranked number 8 of the 50 most dangerous cities of the world. My heart is stirred to pray for the cartels. So the leaders and members can have dreams and visions and visitations of Jesus like the ones we hear about in the Middle East. My heart is stirred to pray for the evangelists that are in Mexico and those that God is sending there. I will return to Colombia August 12th. We have also been working on the details and logistics for two revival crusades in Asia that are scheduled to take place in the months of October and November.
Also, please pray for Julie she needs a miracle healing in her right thumb. The doctors are saying all the cartilage is gone and it’s bone on bone. It has been giving her fits of pain shooting up the right arm and into the neck.
We really hope this letter will encourage you to “risk it to get the biscuit”. Jesus has more for us! Thanks so much for standing with us in faith and prayer. For being so kind and generous to support the ministry.
With much love and another big hug,
Charley & Julie
