Praise the Lord, to all my beloved
sons and daughters in the Faith, wheresoever you are found, amongst the nations of the Earth:
Some call me “Dad O'Connor,”
which is fine with me, considering that I've been in the Faith most of my life; in the ministry since age Fifteen, and am
now just around the corner from age Seventy. I reserve to the young, however, the privilege of addressing me as “Grampa,”
or “Grampa Mike!” Now, don't you old geezers my age or older try that; and don't you “youngsters”
over age Forty try that! Ha ha! This is just for the very young. I am Grampa to them, but to you, my dear brothers
and sisters, over Twenty-Five, I am “Dad.” To all of my brothers and sisters over Sixty, I am “Brother!”
HA! Well, praise the Lord! I don't think a little sanctified humor ever hurt anyone, do you?
Well, it has been upon my heart
for some time to write a special letter to our precious children and young adults around the world. This is not in any way
intended to be a Theological treatise, nor a doctrinal article, but rather a sharing of my heart, as sincerely and earnestly
as I possibly know how.
Some have felt “Old Grampa
Mike” to be too hard and too set in his ways. I surely hope and pray that such is not the case, but I must confess that
my life has been a “school of learning,” and many of the lessons have been learned in the “school of hard
knocks.” I have often had to learn things the hard way, because as a child and a young person, I was a real hard-headed
critter! The Italians call this type person a “Capo-Doste,” which means, loosely translated, a “hard-head”
or a “rock-head.” Well, I suppose I have to confess such was my tendency in younger years. Hailing from a lineage,
primarily of Anglo-Saxons, who had more than their share of stubbornness and rebellion, it was not easy at times for me to
yield gracefully unto the Lord, and unto my spiritual leaders; so the Lord in His all wise dealings had ways and means to
bring me to where He wished me to be!
You know, Kids, serving the Lord
is not much different than a parent-child relationship. You can either obey and submit, or because He loves you so very much,
and does not want you to be lost to His purposes; He will bring you, even if He has to drag you along, with you kicking, screaming,
and resisting with all your might! He will bring you! Yes, He is well able to get us exactly to where we should be!
Because I have had to learn many
difficult lessons, and learn them in sorrow, heartbreak, and despair, I have a deep understanding and compassion for young
folk, especially, and even those into middle age. I sincerely hope and pray that all who read my words in this letter will
be helped and encouraged to “let go, and let God have His wonderful way!” Oh! May you give-up the reins
to your own life, in humble abdication unto the King of Kings! May you own Him and acknowledge Him as your Lord and Master
in every situation! May every heart prepare Him room! Indeed, may every heart invite Him to take His place as sovereign
Lord and Ruler! May each heart become His throne, and His every wish become your command! An old familiar adage says:
“If Jesus is not Lord of all in our lives; He is not Lord at all!”
I have ministered much in my
life to young folk and young adults. Our Lord Jesus has given me a special love and understanding to so minister among precious
young lives just starting out upon their pilgrimage journeys. I have witnessed many heartrending and tragic case histories
along the way. To this day, when alone in quiet reminiscence, I often grieve over such. I suppose this is one of the reasons
why I have such a concern and love for the young, and why I do all in my power to convey to them the importance and necessity
of not only “talking it,” but also of “walking it” faithfully and sincerely, every hour and every
moment of their lives.
Dear hearts, this is the only
way! Don't let anyone deceive you and lure you into the New Age lies floating around these days! This “contemporary
fantasy world” which has laid hold upon the Church, is destroying multitudes of young people around the world! “Easy
Believism;” “Seeker-Friendly;” “Dr. Feelgood Religion;” and all the other weird “Side-Show
Attractions,” are sweeping through the Church World, and leaving in their debris trail thousands upon thousands of precious
young lives!
I seem to cause some folk a degree
of embarrassment and nervousness, because of the message our Lord has given me to preach. It is not my desire to cause anyone
to feel apprehensive, but it is a fact that when we preach the Gospel as our Lord intended it to be preached, we will indeed
cause reaction! You may ask, “Why?” The answer is: Because if a person is unwilling to believe or to walk in the
Gospel as presented, they must find a way to “side-step” the same, and “cook-up” excuses for doing
so. This is where the problem arises.
A servant of the Lord who seeks
to be faithful and true to God's Word comes along and preaches the unadulterated, uncompromising Word of God, and in so doing,
hangs a “plumbline.” Now, the plumbline, as you remember from your industrial arts classes, hangs in a true perpendicular
fashion, due to gravity. It is the standard for straightness by which everything else must conform. It will expose and quickly
show-up anything nearby which is not straight! If there is even a slight deviation from perpendicular (in comparison to the
plumbline), such will become immediately apparent! There is no way to hide it, disguise it, nor to quickly “cobble”
it up, to give an illusion that all is well. The plumbline tells the tale, every time!
Likewise, the Word of God, when
preached in an uncompromising manner, will also “tell the tale.” Down South, the old folk had a familiar colloquialism
which they employed whenever expressing to reveal or expose any kind of “cover-up,” they would simply say: “Honey
Chile, I'm a' gonna' name the baby!”
So, indeed, the plumbline tells
the tale. Some may wonder why it should be so necessary to employ a “straight line,” which shall govern our building.
We will cite two examples:
Firstly; Moses was told by God
to be sure that he built the tabernacle according to the pattern (blueprint) that was shown to him in the holy mountain.
"According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments
thereof, even so shall ye make it" (Exodus 25:9).
Secondly; the Scriptures speak
of being justified by faith.
"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1).
The word “justify”
means simply: “to straighten out, or to be straightened out.” One of the first lessons I learned in typing was
how to justify the margins. Today, with modern computer technology, such becomes automatic with the push of one button. Years
ago, it was a long, tedious process, which could take an hour or more per page, whereby lines were drawn vertically in the
right margin, and spaces were counted. Then, each line had to be laboriously re-typed, counting the spaces, one at a time,
and either expanding or compressing words and spaces between words, with the half-spacer. (I can assure you, this was not
exactly recreational enjoyment! Ha!) So, the bottom-line is, any important letter or composition was not acceptable with uneven,
jagged margins; the margins had to be straight and true to perpendicular, to give the written material a degree of professionalism
and order. So it is in our lives!
Is it not amazing that part of
the “Salvation-Package” is that we, by faith, should be justified; that is, our lives should be made straight,
and that in all areas of crookedness and deviation, there should be a “straightening-out” and “lining-up!”
This is not an easy task, considering
that as part of Adam's fallen race, we are by nature, crooked, warped, convoluted, deviated, and untrue in our will, emotions,
and intellect. Before coming to Christ, the “old man” of sin is found as above, even in the heart, soul, and spirit!
It is no mistake that it is said of certain shady characters: “Oh! That guy is a real crook!” (Of course, “crook”
is derived from “crooked.”) In the South, should an unkind remark be made to a person, it is often stated: “Why
that old 'John Doe' is just as crooked as a snake! He's plumb crooked, that's what he is!” So, God is in the business
of changing all of that! His plan and purpose is to straighten us out, and line us up to the Word of God, which is
our blessed plumbline!
You see, God is building a “house,”
and each one of us is a part of that great building! He's building a great Temple in the Earth, which is the Body of Christ.
This Temple is built with many “lively” (living) stones:
1 Peter 2:5
"Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, and holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices,
acceptable to God by Jesus Christ."
Ephesians 2:19-22
(19) “Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and
of the household of God;
(20) And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner
stone;
(21) In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:
(22) In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.”
You may be sure that anything
that God builds is going to be perfect, precise, and straight! There will be no crookedness, no lopsided walls, no sagging
floors; nothing out of line! No sir! God is the Master Builder! He is the Great Architect of the entire universe! This is
why each one of us as individual stones, must be so carefully dealt with and chiseled down to size! All the crooked edges
and all the burs and nubs must be chiseled off, until we are perfectly true and square, through and through! Then, we are
fit, and ready to be placed into God's great wall! (Please read my article entitled: The Living Temple, in the Spring,
2011 edition of the Shield of Faith.)
Now the rubber hits the road!
There is only one way for all of this to be effected in our lives, and that is through the dealings of our Lord, and through
the work of His Holy Spirit, as we sit under the preaching and teaching of His blessed Word! It also means that we will be
humbly submitted to a godly Pastor and godly leaders within a local church structure! Anyone unwilling to do this is only
kidding himself, because in God's economy, there is no place for a “maverick,” “renegade,” nor “lone-ranger.”
I know this may sound tough to
some of you who are used to having your own way, and doing your own thing; but if you could only know how concerned I am for
each of you, you would be willing to listen! You see, my dear children, I was, as a young person, all of the above. Oh! I
loved my “freedom!” I prided myself in my “independence!” I was, as Ephraim, a “bullock, unaccustomed
to the yoke.”
Jeremiah 31:18
"I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus; Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a bullock
unaccustomed to the yoke..."
No yoke for me! No sir! Not I!
Not I! What I did not realize at the first, was that God's Word declared elsewhere:
Lamentations 3:27
"It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth."
Jeremiah spoke of the “ass
in the desert,” in a rather denigrating manner, for he portrayed that unharnessed beast in a manner bespeaking the rebellion
and insubordination of God's backslidden people.
Jeremiah 2:24
"A wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure; in her occasion who can turn
her away? all they that seek her will not weary themselves; in her month they shall find her."
Jeremiah 14:6
"And the wild asses did stand in the high places, they snuffed up the wind like dragons; their eyes did fail,
because there was no grass."
You will find also posted in
the Spring, 2011 edition of the Pine Cone, a marvelous tract which has changed the lives of many young men and women. It was
given in vision to a great Father in the Faith, named Bill Britton. Brother Bill was a Dad to many, including myself! I have
met very few such men of God, nor been tutored by more earnest and sincere Fathers in the Faith, among which he was numbered.
Bill was tough, and strictly
no-nonsense; but he had a heart as big as the ocean, and a spirit of patience to match! Bill had been a Master Sargent in
the Marine Corps, serving in Special Forces in World War II, known as the “Kelly Commandos” 101st Airborn Division.
Oh! How today we need such fathers, role models, and true men of God in our churches, to bring them into a place of maturity
and responsibility for the great task which shall be presented them, in the leading of the Church of our Lord Jesus Christ
in their generation. Thank God, there remain some such fathers, but not nearly enough to get the job done. I am sure that
Bill's military training and experience contributed to his noble manliness and leadership qualities, but it was far more than
this. Our Lord Jesus Christ, through many hard dealings and seasons of discipline in his life, had worked “steel in
his backbone,” and a “cast iron determination” in his soul to serve the Lord with all his heart, and to
lead as many others as possible into the Kingdom of God! (Brother Bill was a true disciple of Jesus Christ. The word “disciple”
means: “A disciplined one.”)
When you read his tract: The
Harness of the Lord, please do so quietly and prayerfully, in fact, I sincerely ask you to read it several times through,
perhaps over a week or two, until it really sinks down into your spirit. I promise you this: If you truly get ahold of its
message, it will change your life! It changed mine!
I wish to express to each one
of you around the world (for I know that this is reaching into every nation on Earth); I am writing to young folk from many
different cultures and lifestyles. Many who read this shall be from different nationalities, different beliefs, with different
understandings of life; but one thing remains constant, we all are struggling in one way or another upon our path of life.
Young people, especially, need help and encouragement! Young people, especially, need someone to relate to and to be able
to talk to! It is tragic that in these modern times, young people so often feel shut-out and alienated by their own parents,
and religious leaders. So many young people today have expressed sorrow in that they feel no one truly cares about them, or
has time for them.
Well, my beloved ones in the
Lord, I am here to tell you that we love you very dearly in Christ, and that we sincerely and genuinely care about you, and
have time for you! For this reason, I send forth even now, a heartfelt invitation to you all: “Please feel free to email
us or call us at any time, day or night, should you feel a need for prayer or just for someone to speak with! We are here
for you, and we want you to know that!
The time zones around the world
are different, but do not hesitate to call at any time, because if we are not in the office, we have an answering machine
where you may leave a message. Please speak slowly and distinctly, especially when giving your email address or telephone
number. This is very important, especially if using a cell phone. Again, speak clearly, slowly, and distinctly! Thank you!
We promise you faithfully that we will very sincerely pray for you, and be back in touch with you at our earliest convenience.
I have had such a dealing of
the Lord concerning you all, that I am going to begin with this article to write a “Heart to Heart Letter” in
each issue of the Pine Cone. We will be dealing with some serious issues which face young people everywhere. (For example,
in the Summer Issue, with the Lord's help, I will be sharing some of my own personal experiences, which hopefully will be
a help to many.) It is tragic that young people are left high and dry with many unanswered questions. We will address such
issues in a respectable and professional manner.
In the mean time, please be faithful
in praying for us. We most certainly need the prayers of our brothers and sisters, as we continue on in the work to which
we are called. God bless you one and all!
Dad O'Connor
