PUREX
July 8, 2013
Dear Dick and dear Martha,
The Holy Spirit keeps bringing you to my mind. At first I thought a snail-mail letter would be in order; but this morning I felt that urgency to let you know what is on my heart like "right away."
This past week we had two unexpected couples stop by from Borger, Texas. That's near Amarillo. They lingered on the street in front of our house. I noticed that they kept looking at the signs we have in the front yard and were also picking up a few of our newsletters. I waved them into the house and they eagerly accepted.
It wasn't long before we realized that this was one of those divine appointments. The one man was a pastor and the other man was one of the elders of the church. I believe the name of the church was "Grace." When they left four hours later we were all wearing heavenly roller-skates.
Rebekah was still in the hospital when they came the first time. She was being treated for a staph infection that developed after surgery for breast cancer. Before they left we all agreed that we needed to meet again, hopefully with Rebekah also being present. And that did happen on Saturday, three days later. We gathered in the Upper Room this time. Rebekah was a part of the party; but she stayed in her robe and nightgown. We surely enjoyed one another and prayed some pretty radical prayers. In fact when they came the first time I anointed the soles of their feet with Lion of Judah oil from Israel. Now, with every step they take they will be crushing the head of the serpent. I like the saying: Satan: Zero; Jesus: Won!
The elder of the church, his name is Robert, fell in love with Rebekah's sword painting. We eagerly gave him a print. We also showed him the wallet size copy with the prayer: "Lord, Make me an Instrument of Thy War" printed on the back. You might recall that we had 50,000 of them printed a few years ago and another 50,000 with "The Gates of Hell Shall Not Prevail" painting.
We talked about the prayer and the painting and how it was birthed. Suddenly the word "PUREX" flashed into my mind. I said, "The prayer and the painting is the equivalent of spiritual PUREX that will scrub us on the inside just like PUREX cleanses and bleaches our clothes on the outside.
Our friend asked if he could have 80 copies to take with him. We would have gladly given him a thousand or more had he asked for them. A year ago our friend Mary Lou from Laredo, Texas asked for 10,000 copies. We eagerly sent her 8,000. That's how many we were able to fit into the box we had at hand - why don't I just include the picture and a copy of the prayer here:
The conversation kept flowing along and then I remembered a story that was a part of our first newsletter back in 1979. I will just cut and paste here the significant part we included in a story we called "Wall Space for Jesus"
A widow had three sons. All of her sons had chosen to become merchant seamen. With great sorrow in her heart did the widow see her youngest son leave the house to go to sea. Her secret desire had been for one of her sons to settle nearby to fill the void and loneliness of her declining years. One day she voiced the pain and sorrow in her heart to a friend.
“How is it that each of my sons has chosen the sea?” she asked. “No one in our family has ever chosen this profession before.” The friend pondered the question as he looked about. His eyes came to rest on a masterful painting of a large sailing ship on the dining room wall. The captain stood at the prow scanning the horizon. Finally the friend spoke. “Your sons saw this sailing ship every day they lived in this house. The spirit of adventure and the desire for the sea was born into their hearts through this picture. You did not have to say one word to mold their lives".
And then I thought to myself, "If Believers would get a hold of the significance of honoring Jesus by displaying His Word and pictures that honor Him on the walls of their homes, and you do, we would bury Satan without one shot having to be fired.
At the rate we are sharing the prints, note cards and postcards we have left of Rebekah's paintings, we will need to live at least another ten years or more to see that they are all distributed. At this point we don't care if we sell them or give them away. But we do want everyone of them to only go where hearts are eager to receive them.
If what I am writing stirs your spirit, give us a hand. Direct folks to Rebekah's Art Gallery on our web site:
www.stretcherbearers.com/ArtGallery.html.
Pass this letter along to your friends. You might also like to re-read the article that incorporated the story about the widow and her five sons. Click on this link: Crafts for Christ. When folks read it, something is bound to happen deep down inside if they are to be involved.
It only takes a spark to set a heart ablaze. I am the Lord's heavenly arsonist. Help me set hearts ablaze. Our homes are to be 24 hours a day and seven days a week pulpits for Jesus Christ. No one entering our home should leave the way they came in. And let us not forget to announce Jesus to people who walk or drive by our homes! I tell you, Dick and Martha, whenever we walk into a home where Rebekah's art is displayed, we immediately feel at home and loved. It's just that simple. It's like an invitation for us to come in and come back. I know that Jesus and the Holy Spirit feel the same way when we honor them with art that touches their heart. A good word - don't you think? These words are easy to remember, easy to do, and easy to pass on.
Jesus has captured my heart. I love being His prisoner. He has taken good care of me ever since I said, "YES, LORD." I just love capturing hearts for Him and His Father. It's my fulltime job - it's not a job, it's my hobby. I am never bored.
Rebekah is slowly recovering from her surgery and a nasty staph infection. Having all those lymph nodes removed under her left arm was no picnic. She won't need radiation since they did not find any more cancer during the second surgery. The oncologist said that at our age radiation is optional. I am 80 and Rebekah is hovering close to it. What a blessing. It's 60 miles to Mercy Hospital in Durango - one way. Those trips nearly every day of the week for six weeks for radiation would have been hard on us and also the car.
God has renewed my spirit and I am ready to go for broke again. God heard your prayers for me. I am no longer a basket case. But the Holy Spirit keeps reminding me that every penny in my pocket is a penny of His grace.
Thank you for letting me spill these words all over you. I love being used as the Lord's Scribe and Storyteller
|
Peter & Rebekah
Pagosa Springs, Colorado
|
|
Sitemap
|
E-mail Peter and Rebekah
|
Guestbook
All writings by Peter, the Lord's Scribe and Storyteller and all paintings by Rebekah, the Lord's artist are copyright free.
|
|
|
|
