Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.”  Eph. 3:20

Greetings in the Name of Jesus,

I hope you all had a great summer and that it was a time of drawing nearer to the Lord.  As of July 1st, we began our seventh year with Hand to the Plow Ministries.  Looking back, we’ve covered many miles and brought the message of repentance and consecration to many people in the Church.  God’s people must repent of their worldliness and pray, believing that God is able to do great and mighty things above our wildest imaginations.  A few months ago I wrote in our prayer letter that I believed another awakening was on the horizon.  A few people have told me that they disagree, and that the Scriptures teach that in the last days there will be the great falling away.  It is true that there will be that falling away, and that in rejecting the truth, people will believe the lie.  My point is that God has always raised up a standard-bearer in the time of declension.  And I don’t think it’s a sign of victory for the people of God to just be holding on by their fingernails, hoping for the Rapture.  We should look for the Rapture (the time when Christ comes and takes His people out of the world), then we will be ready for the Rapture.  However there are many in the Church who just love the world.  For years we’ve been cuddled by our own backslidden leaders.  You mention revival and they harden themselves right up because they know revival means getting right with God and separating themselves from the world.  And religious people, along with non-religious, love the world.  “And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming” I John 2:28.

II Chron 7:14 is still in the Bible:  “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”  And God is still “able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.”  However, there’s a catch in that verse, and reading on it says, “according to the power that works in us.”  What kind of power is at work in the Church of America?  What kind of power is at work in your own life?  In other parts of the world there are multitudes of people being saved.  Why?  Because people are willing to be separated from the world in order to know Christ in fullness of glory and power.”  “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers.  For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness?  And what communion has light with darkness?  And what accord has Christ with Belial?  Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever?  And what agreement has the temple of God with idols?  For you are the temple of the living God.  As God has said:  I will dwell in them, and walk among them.  I will be their God, and they shall be my people!  Therefore, Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord.    Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.  I will be a Father to you, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty!  Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”  (II Cor. 6:14 and 7:1)  We can have that happen here in the United States.  The principles from God’s Word as summarized in II Chron. 7:14 worked back then and they also work today.

A few days ago a dear brother said to me, “Jim, I don’t see any evidence from Scripture to support what you say.”  Look at Haggai 2:6,7:  “For thus says the Lord of hosts:  ‘Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord of hosts.”  The prophet was given a promise for many years in the future.  He never saw the fulfillment, but we are in these days.  God is shaking the earth.  I often hear, “The wickedness of Man is so great that God can’t get through.”  What do you mean, “God can’t?”  Is anything too hard for the Lord?  Is anything too big for Him to accomplish?  Read Isaiah 59:1,2:  “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, That it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, That it cannot hear.  But your iniquities have separated you from your God;  And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.”  The future of our land lies squarely in the lap of the Church.  Read Matt. 16:16-19:  “And Simon Peter answered and said, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’  Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.  And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.  And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”  What kind of binding up are we doing, and what kind of loosing are we doing?  For years I’ve watched Pastors and other leaders fraternize with the enemy, the world.  A few months ago I was listening as a Sunday School teacher taught about the New Age.  He talked about the video computer, Nintendo, and how dangerous many of the games are.  In expressing my opinion I said that Christians should get them out of their homes.  These games are destroying young peoples’ lives by the thousands.  The pastor wasn’t there to hear my comments or the teacher’s, but afterwards his wife, who was present, asked me to repeat myself to him.  I did, and watched his face turn to stone.  He didn’t want to offend his children, but the tragedy is that he’s lost two of them already by allowing the world to have its deadening influence.  It’s incredible how Satan has blinded the eyes of so many to believe that separation from such things is going to diminish their happiness in life.  If only we could see how these things are keeping us from having a glorious relationship with the Holy One.  But Satan has seduced many into the things of the world to keep us from the things of eternity.   We’ve known Christians who think it’s fine to allow their children to dress up and go out on Halloween.  God help us, but many pastors allow the same.  This is the Devil’s holiday, and it grieves the Lord to see those in the Church (who profess to be Christians) giving their children over to be devoured by the prince of darkness.  Do we understand that on that night witches, warlocks, and the various branches of the church of Satan come together to pray to their god, Lucifer, that souls would be bound in his kingdom.  Do we understand that the church of Satan regularly fasts and prays against Christians and the destruction of our homes.  We’re in a war, and it’s a do or die situation, where the Church of Jesus Christ must shake off the dirt of this world, pray, receive the anointing of God, and then go forth to conquer.

This morning a young man was arrested for raping a six year old girl and then slashing her with glass.  He was wearing a shirt with the satanic pentagram and the word Slayer (a rock group) written on it.  If Satan can have such impact through his people, how much more we, the people of God.

I hear Christians say, “We’re just going to hold on until the Rapture.”  Listen to me!  What kind of a God are you serving?  He is not impotent, He’s Omnipotent, and this lie that’s being taught that the Church is going to leave this world in a lukewarm state, I’m not buying.  When the Church is raptured out, the world is going to know we’ve been here, and we’re not going out with our tails dragging between our legs, but rather as the Church triumphant, and that’s also how we’re going to come back.

Again, others have said, “Jim, look around.  Do you think that God can turn the hearts of these people who are so hard?  To this I say “Look at the Church in Central America, South America, Korea, China, The Soviet Union.  Right now there’s an awakening taking place in Central America where many churches are seeing 10, 20, 30 souls a week getting saved.  Why is it happening there and not here?  I believe it’s because they’re poor in the things of the world, while we are rich.  We will see God do great things when we also come down off our lofty thrones of self-righteousness and materialism and become like children, basking in the light of His presence, communing with Him and He with us.  I’m looking for people with that simple childlike faith who believe as I do what Paul said in our opening verse (Eph. 3:20).

Concerning the Ministry:

We’re sorry to be so long in getting any message to you.  I had written a letter in July , and even had the envelopes sealed and addressed, but God never gave me any peace about sending them, so I didn’t.

We’ve started to meet with a group in our home on Wednesdays to develop a core group of people to pray and then go out to seek the lost.  It is not our intent at this time to start a Church, as our burden remains the same — to see churches wake up.  However if the churches don’t want to move forward, then we’re going to bypass them.  Souls need to be reached, and the faithful in the Church want to do it, but there is usually such opposition that they don’t.  George Whitefield and John and Charles Wesley were ordained in the Church of England and yet the churches barred them from their pulpits, so they went to the streets.  I’ve tried to work with pastors and churches and they fight this tooth and nail.  My main burden remains for Media and its surrounding areas, and Mansfield.  I know I’m offensive when I call churches to repent, but I will not compromise.  Lord willing, I will be starting up a similar group in the Media area as God leads.  We’ll keep you posted, but for now pray that God would raise up faithful laborers to go out into His harvest.  It is our hope and prayer that churches will catch the vision and burden and join in.

Praise the Lord, He has supplied us with another van, a 1980 Ford, which accommodates us well, however the engine burns oil and uses quite a bit of gas.  So please pray that another engine might be found.  Also with all my driving we’re praying for a second vehicle that is economical so that I can leave the van with Bev and the children when I’m on the road.

On Sept. 30, I will be continuing a work started over a year ago at the North Urbana Baptist Church near Hammondsport, NY.  This will be the final preparation, as the main meetings for souls will be held from Oct. 21-Oct. 26.  Please pray that God would pour out His Spirit and move in such a way that only He would receive the glory and not man.

Many of you have sent encouraging letters to us, and we thank you.  The Lord has allowed adversity to come to strengthen our character and resolve.  Sometimes I’ve found my knees buckling from the weight, when a letter would come and encourage us.

On our way home from Philadelphia in August with the new van, I was sideswiped by an 18-wheeler.  Praise God, no one was hurt, only our left sideview mirror was ripped off and a scratch down the left side.  A 4 ½ hour trip turned into a 10 hour trip.  Upon arriving at our home we found our pet cat, Tom, lying stiff on our front lawn, and our old Chevy (immobilized for the past two years) removed illegally by a boy in the neighborhood.  That night I didn’t feel like praying, but, in spite of my feelings, I went to my Father in heaven.  My mind was racing as I thought of the problems we were facing.  Finances were tight and the events of the day were upsetting, to say the least.  The accident kept running through my mind, plus I had four of our five children with me and could still see the trucker’s face when I told him that by pulling over prematurely he almost killed us.  Instead of singing praises, I felt like singing, “They’re coming to take me away, ha, ha.”  However the Lord led me to some Scriptures that calmed my heart.  Hasn’t God promised that He would keep us in perfect peace if we would only keep our minds stayed on Him?  Satan’s attacks are annoying, aren’t they?  The next day Bev came in with an envelope she found lying on the porch.  When she opened it, it read, “Go get ’em Jim,” plus $300 cash.  God is so good, isn’t He?  Remember our opening verse and always remember that you’re in His sight and He loves you and will always care for you.  Praise the Lord!  Keep looking up.  God bless you all.

Your Brother in Jesus,

Jim