“GIVE THANKS”

“All Your works shall give thanks to You, O Lord and all Your saints shall bless You!

They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom and tell of Your power, to make known to the children of man Your mighty deeds, and the glorious splendor of Your kingdom.

Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and Your dominion endures throughout all generations.

The Lord is faithful in all His words and kind in all His works. (Psalm 145:10-13)

In this season of “thanksgiving,” the words of the psalmist remind us of the goodness of the Lord towards us because He has called us to be His people.  The psalmist declares, “ALL Your works shall give thanks to You”.  That is us, among other things.  We are called upon to give Him “thanks”.  Giving thanks does not always come easy.  I find when things are going well, I am naturally inclined to give thanks, but when things don’t go so well – it is a lot more challenging.  Giving “thanks” for the three powerful, life-changing schools we have had this year is really easy.  All of them had more participants than expected and yet we were able to minister to everyone who needed a session and then some.  We had new people at every school and people who were at more than one school in the same year.  There was a sense of joy and laughter that had not always been present. There is a deepening of commitment to the ministry and to seeing this ministry grow.  Ministry is taking place regularly in Lodi, thanks to Gris and her team; at the Little Country Church, thanks to Rick Caldwell and his team; at Henry and Decatur, IL. thanks to Tom and Jan and their team; in Kingwood, TX where Bill and Laura have been ministering, and to Rick Vance who has both ministered and taught about the power of the Holy Spirit.

The psalmist reminds us to tell others about the glory of the Father and His kingdom and acknowledge His power at work in our midst.  It never ceases to amaze me how the Lord can bring healing and restoration to people who as Anne often said, “were walking wounded”, and had been for years.  When allowed to forgive and be forgiven, to be cut free, to experience deliverance and the healing of the whole person, lives are transformed, loads are lifted; and everyone gives “thanks”!  God is good indeed!

When I look at the world in which we live – all that is going on in Israel, Gaza, and the Middle East; the ongoing war in Ukraine; the open border and all its challenges; the challenge of inflation; the protests on several fronts; the divisions within our nation politically, socially, theologically, sexually, etc.; it is good to be reminded there is one God and He is sovereign always.  It is all going to work out just as He planned.  We can trust and rest in Him because He is both “Love” and “Just”, and as an old song says, “He has the whole world in His hands”.

I find these words to be most comforting and encouraging, “Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and Your dominion endures throughout all generations.  The Lord is faithful in all His words and kind in all His works.”  No matter what, God’s kingdom does not change regardless of what goes on in the kingdoms of this world.  Neither the “world, the flesh or the devil” will be able to thwart “The Father’s” plans. His plan has endured all the generations preceding us and will continue to until “the skies unfold, and we behold His glory”.  We can trust His Word because it is “Truth” and never changes, nor disappears.  His Word always is for this time.  It is always current no matter what the world thinks, or how we choose to interpret it or deny it.  As the psalmist wrote, “The Lord is FAITHFUL in ALL His Words”!

As I reflect on being “thankful”, I am drawn to remembering Anne and the men and women who in the early days laid the foundation of VMTC, working out the pattern, discovering things that worked, and things that didn’t, dealing with leadership styles and opinions, as well as opposition.  I am grateful for the directors over the years who caused the Ministry to grow, who challenged and sustained the Ministry; for all the thousands of men and women who have been set free by the pattern of VMTC; for the sacrifice of time and resources many have given to spread this Ministry around the world; for the wonderful freedom and love this Ministry has brought to so many families and churches; for the opportunity so many have had to have their lives transformed, marriages saved, families restored and folk set free.  The Lord indeed is faithful.  I am thankful to you, who participate, pray, give, love this Ministry, and who continue to undergird it.

As you celebrate this “Thanksgiving” may you know how grateful I am for you.  Because of you, this Ministry continues to grow, and many lives are changed so they can glorify the One who has set them free.  Because of the pattern of prayer, many can daily walk in 16newfound freedom rejoicing, as well as encouraging others to discover they too can walk in freedom and to love in ways they never could before.

I am indeed thankful for you.  May you and yours have a wonderful and beautiful “Thanksgiving”!

Love and blessings,