{"id":4794,"date":"2019-08-13T00:01:45","date_gmt":"2019-08-13T05:01:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jfbelievers.com\/?p=4794"},"modified":"2025-12-07T21:16:23","modified_gmt":"2025-12-07T21:16:23","slug":"ageless-encouragement-cracker-jacks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/2019\/08\/13\/ageless-encouragement-cracker-jacks\/","title":{"rendered":"Ageless Encouragement & Cracker Jacks"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A Letter From The 1st Century…<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Two months ago, a letter came in the mail. It was an eye-catching parcel addressed to the church, and from all outward appearances, it looked like it had been sent by someone we knew, personally. Indeed, it was mailed to us by the children in Menomonie’s “Foundations Room” program. A small note inside the envelope read, \u201cHey gang! We were studying Paul\u2019s letters of encouragement to the churches, so we thought we\u2019d send our beloved sister church a letter! All the words are from the kids alone & in their handwriting (& spelling) Love you guys! Danielle K<\/em>\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If I’m honest, reading through the pile was a bit emotional. I wavered between bursts of laughter and heartfelt tears. The encouragement they meant by their little epistle had certainly found its mark, and I feel it most appropriate to pass along their words of edification to the rest of our church\u2026after all, it was all<\/em> of us to whom they wrote. I hope you are as blessed by their words as I am. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The letter reads as follows:   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTo the church\nof God which is at Duluth and all the Sants thar:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Greetings frum\nthe Foundations Room kids at JFBeleavers Menomunie. Grace and peace we are\nwriting to you to encourage you in bilding up your church. I hope it is warming\nup for you up thar.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I hope you are\ngeting to know each other. more. I hope your new security system works well. We\nare praying that new people will come over to the church. We\u2019re praying for\nyou, if you get sad or mad, just think of God and that he\u2019s watching over you.\nGod always has enough grace for you, and you can never do too much sin to make\nhim not be able to forgive. Whenever you\u2019re stressed out, just go the Bible for\nhelp and encourgement. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re really\nproud of the work you have been doing up there. Keep up the good work. We hope\nyou are encourged by the verses and quotes we are sending you<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Love, your\nchurch family,<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Madison, Micah,\nHannah, Caleb, Josie, Sophia<\/em>\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A 1st Century Reply…<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A letter like that truly deserved a response. So, a few weeks later, from my office at the church, I composed an epistle of my own\u2026it read:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJustin the\nElder, called to be a pastor of Christ Jesus to the city of Duluth, by the will\nof God, and Jesse our brother. To the Foundations Room and all her glorious\ninstructors, along with the church of God in Menomonie and those who are being\nsanctified in Christ Jesus. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grace and Peace\nto you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I thank my God\nalways for your love and concern, as I continue to do, having received your\nletter of encouragement. My soul being refreshed by your words I am now able to\ncontinue, in the strength of God\u2019s spirit, with the ministry entrusted to me.\nHaving received the consolation of God by your hand, I wish myself to impart to\nyou a gift, if possible, that we may rejoice together in the grace of God. For\nmy joy is found in your rejoicing. I pray that you may prosper in all things\nand that your soul will be refreshed by the gift. I\u2019m thinking Twinkies maybe.\nSomething like that. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is my hope\nthat I may see you again before winter if God wills, for the spirit warns me\ncontinually of its coming, as the devil seeks to make war against the saints\nthrough the use of much ice and of snow. For we wrestle not against flesh and\nblood, but against blizzards and shoveling caused by principalities and\nspiritual wickedness in high places that really know how to make life\ndifficult. Nevertheless, we do not lose heart. For the Spirit Himself\ntestifies, that those who persevere in long months of dark and cold will reap\nthe true joys of heaven if they freeze not.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now concerning\nlivestock. I hear that there are some among you who have ponies? And I do\nbelieve it! For there must be ponies among you, that those of you who are\nspiritual may be edified along with the saints of old. But let not the ponies,\nnor chickens, nor dogs, nor cats, nor any such thing in the kingdom of God,\nbring division among you, my little children, for the kingdom of God is not\nponies and donkeys, but the Spirit of God in the bond of love. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My little\nchildren, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now I urge you,\nbrethren, take note of those who cause division, and tell on them that they may\nbe spanked, for sound discipline is truly painful for the moment, but afterword\nyields the peaceable fruit of righteousness for those who refuse it not. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I hope to see\nyou shortly, and we shall speak face to face. When I come, I will bring Ira\nwith me, for he is a true son to me and useful in the ministry, and a beloved\nbrother as you well know. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Greet the\nfriends by name, but stay away from kissing each other with a holy kiss, for\n\u201cthe lips of the righteous know what is acceptable\u201d. The spirit has told me\nthat flu season will be upon us shortly, and I hope to find you in good health when\nI come. Peace be to you. Our friends greet you. Jesse the Elder greets you.\nChelsey greets you. The elect lady Sara and her children greet you in the Lord.\n<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I, Justin, write\nthis greeting with my own hand. This is the sign of genuineness in every letter\nof mine. It is the way I write. May the grace of Christ dwell in you richly.\nAmen!!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Promise Fulfilled…<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I saw Pastor Tim only recently, and I passed along a\npackage of snacks to be delivered to the kids. In it was a note that said this:\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs I had purposed\nin my heart a month ago, brethren, to provide for you a gift, so now I seek to\ncomplete my desire to bless you as well. Although it be not Twinkies, according\nto what I had said in my first epistle, I believe that, by the grace of God,\nyou will be blessed by our offering. It is a super-sweet savor to the Lord that\ntastes like caramel. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For this reason\nI have sent you Tim, my father in the Lord, whom I love, who is faithful in the\nLord. He will deliver this generous gift that is being administered by us, and\nhe will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which agrees with what I\nteach everywhere in every church. Rejoice in hope. Be patient in tribulation.\nAmen<\/em>\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks for the encouragement, kids! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enjoy the Cracker Jack!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

-Pastor Justin (a bond-slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Letter From The 1st Century… Two months ago, a letter came in the mail. It was an eye-catching parcel addressed to the church, and from all outward appearances, it looked like it had been sent by someone we knew, personally. Indeed, it was mailed to us by the children in Menomonie’s “Foundations Room” program. … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":4798,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4794","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pastors-notes"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4794","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4794"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4794\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15803,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4794\/revisions\/15803"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4798"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4794"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4794"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.jfbduluth.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4794"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}