PROMISED LAND MINISTRIES

JULY/AUGUST 2006

I AM THAT I AM

(by Rita Glasscock)

            Greetings of Peace and Blessings to all who read this.  Several weeks ago I was diagnosed with breast cancer.  I had tests run and I received a call from the doctor asking me to come in that Thursday afternoon for a consultation.  When he had gone over the results of all the tests and given us his recommendations for treatment, we left the office to consider the news which had been delivered to us.

            Over the years, as I have prayed for and ministered to people who have received difficult news, I have often wondered how I would respond and what emotions I would experience if it were me.  I have been blessed to see many displays of great faith and courage in the time of storm.  And each time that I have witnessed other believers’ confidence and trust in Him, it has caused me to love Him more.  These who have so greatly touched our lives in their time of trouble are the ones the Holy Spirit will bring to our memory just at the right time.

            When we walked out to the parking lot, I had to decide what to do then.  I had left work to come to this appointment and it was too late to go back to the office, so as I considered options, I remembered I had made a grocery list earlier in the day so I might as well go buy groceries.  I would go on with my life.  As I made my way to the store, I wondered “what do I do now.”  And then a scripture came to mind:  I am that I am (Ex 3:14).  I said “Lord, I know when Moses asked ‘who do I say sent me?’ and You told him, ‘I Am that I Am,’ You were letting Moses know that there were not any conditions which would change who You are.”  Just as You revealed Yourself to him as he followed Your instructions.  I knew the Lord was The Healer before today, and He will be The Healer tomorrow.   A newly-discovered physical condition does not determine who He is, or who you are.

            Then the Lord spoke to my spirit and said, “and you are that you are.”  “Just as you have believed Me and trusted in Me before this news, this news has not changed you – who you are.”  A revelation began to sweep across my soul!  Thank the Lord I did not have to stop and try to decide what to do, how to live, or how to respond to this news.  Nor did I have to try to remake myself to be like someone who seemed more spiritual.  I began to understand that the faith and trust we have in the Lord in our daily lives is sufficient to prepare us for whatever trial we may face today.  In Him we live and move and have our being.  It is He who conforms us to His image.  (Rom. 8:29)  The Lord had prepared Moses during the 40 years in the desert, when Moses was living day-to-day unaware of what lay before him.  Accordingly, His divine power has given unto us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that has called us to glory and power.  (2Pet. 1:3) 

            As I continued to meditate on this “burning bush” encounter with the Living Word, the Holy Spirit led me to think on the life of David when he was anointed by Samuel.  (1 Sam. 16-17).  The Lord had instructed Samuel, the Prophet, to go to the house of Jesse and there he would tell him which son was to be the next King of Israel.  Samuel visited the home of Jesse and asked to see his sons.  As they were presented to Samuel, all were handsome and, he thought, worthy to be anointed King.  But, as the seven sons were presented, the Lord said “no.”  Finally, Samuel asked Jesse if there were any more sons.  Jesse said “yes, there is the youngest, David, in the sheep field tending the sheep.”  Samuel asked that he be brought to him.  When he came, the Lord told Samuel that he was to anoint David.  In the days that followed, David continued to tend to the sheep.

            King Saul and the Israelites found themselves in a battle with the Philistines.  There was a mountain on each side and a valley in the middle—Israel on one mountain and the Philistines on the other.  For forty days they had confronted each other.  There was a Philistine giant named Goliath.  Each day he would come down into the valley and taunt the Israelites with a challenge for a man to come and fight him.  It was common for a battle to be decided by a representative from each army engaging in combat.

            Jesse, David’s father, sent him to take food to his brothers and check on the progress of the battle.  When he arrived, he saw Goliath and heard him call for someone to come and fight him.  As David observed the situation and asked what the rewards would be to whomever defeated Goliath, he rose to the challenge.  Saul offered David his armor.  David put it on but it did not fit.  He took it off.  He then took his slingshot and picked up five smooth stones from the riverbed.  When Saul questioned him concerning the armor, he responded:  “When I was tending sheep I killed a lion and a bear, and I can surely kill Goliath.”  David walked out onto the battlefield and Goliath couldn’t believe his eyes; but David took aim and the first stone struck Goliath in the forehead and killed him.  One man won this battle.  The Israelite army plundered the enemy’s camp.  If you are facing Goliath, God has chosen you to gain the victory.  One man has won the battle and one man only – Christ Jesus.  But, He will give us the victory.  As a result of your faith and confidence in the Lord God, there will be many that will plunder the enemy’s camp.

            “David was who he was.”  He wasn’t an army officer like his brothers; he didn’t have time to become one; and there was not one member of the army who would accept the challenge.  So, being in the army was not the answer.  (So many times when we are facing a battle, we think – if I could just be like …..)   The Lord had prepared him for Goliath before that day came.  It is the work of the Lord that conforms us to His image.  The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord.  As David tended the sheep and trusted God, he received the training and preparations he needed for the battles he would face; and Saul’s armor did not fit and was unfamiliar.  As we follow the Lord and trust Him in our daily lives, we are made ready for tomorrow.  That which we know and learn of Him is sufficient for the “Day of our Battle” with Goliath.

            The day we heard the news of my cancer, we began to seek the Lord as to our next steps.  He led us to go to M.D. Anderson in Houston.  We spent two weeks there in tests.  Treatment started June 30^th with the start of chemo, which will be given every three weeks for eight treatments; then surgery; and then radiation will follow.

            I believe the earth is a stage and God’s will is the curtain and the Lord tells His story daily through our lives.  Each of us wait in the wings off the stage and then one day it’s our turn.  The account of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego has always been a favorite of mine.  I believe that several weeks ago the Lord decided to tell the story of the fourth man in the fire with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.  He called my name and said, It’s your turn—you can play this part.  I am in the fire and I--like them--can say, “whether I live or die, I am the Lord’s.”  One of the first things Tommy and I talked about was that we love life, but we are also ready to die.  We want to live every day God has given and not miss a one.  I count it a privilege to stand in the fire and be able to say, “yes, there is a forth man in the fire – it is The Lord.”

            We thank you for all your prayers on our behalf.  We are experiencing the fruit of your calling our names before His Throne of Grace.  I have not had one moment of fear.  I know that there will be easy days and hard days; however, we have great peace and comfort as we go through this time.  The week of the diagnosis I heard a sermon on the life of David and came away with these stones, which I am using:

1.                   Pause and be still and listen to God

2.                   Enlist others to help and pray

3.                   Surrender to God and

4.                   Resist the enemy

5.                   Expect God to come through – expect a miracle.

I get up everyday expecting a miracle.  Last week as I was praying, the Holy Spirit quickened the scripture Prov. 18:21.  “The tongue has the power of life and death and those who love it will eat it’s fruit.”

The Lord let me know that I was to speak death to every cancer cell in my body that was detected and also any that were too small to be revealed.  Then speak abundant life to all healthy cells.

I will be sending out reports on my condition, via email, as developments take place.  If you want to be on the list, please send or call in your email address to the office at the Promised Land.  Our Thursday 9:30 a.m. Bible Study will continue and we will keep our regular schedule of events.  Thank you for your prayers and support.

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GRANDMAMA’S CORNER

By RG

A NIGHT WITH THE SHEPHERD LORD

Several weeks ago, Grandmama’s Corner could be found in College Station--And it was filled with the good times of four boys and a dog—a Great Dane named Big—which has recently become part of the family.  Since Grandmama’s Corner visited you last time, the boys’ parents have purchased two acres of land with a huge Spanish-style home on it, and they are busy in “Flip that House.”  What a time!  Back to my story.  One night Bailey, 8-1/2 years old, decided to make a pallet so he could sleep by my bed.  When we settled in for the night we began to talk about the Lord and quote scripture.  I asked if he had ever memorized the 23^rd Psalm and he said “no.”  So, we began a journey through that wonderful chapter, which has become my resting place for the last month.  There we were in the dark and all you could hear were our two voices lifting up God’s precious Word.  The Lord said He would not let one Word fall to the ground.  So we knew God was carrying the Word—and it was telling our story that night—The Shepherd Lord has caused us to lie down in the middle of two acres of green pastures.

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NEW PASSENGER FOR THE JOURNEY

May 1, 2006 our prayers were answered when Vicki Bullard arrived to become part of Promised Land Ministries.  How thankful we are that she is here.  Her feet hit the ground running, and she has not let up.  Vicki and husband, Tony, are ministers and missionaries and have brought a great Blessing to Promised Land.  Vicki is at the Promised Land office Monday-Wednesday and Friday from 10:00am – 3:00pm.  She will be able to help you during these hours.

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HARVEST TIME MEXICO

Remember a few months ago we were given a bus for Tierra Prometida.  We decided to plant that bus with another ministry in Mexico.  There has been a harvest.  I have to say this has been one of the most exciting things we have been involved in there in Mexico.  We have never planted a bus before, and there was great expectation for a bumper crop.  Pastor Zuniga and Aurora have told us that the Mexican people have a hard time getting hold of the concept of giving.  Many of them have lived in such poverty that they struggle with seed faith giving.  We knew the Lord wanted us to plant the bus, and we knew lives would be changed.  Every time we go to Mexico, it is very apparent we are not just establishing an orphanage, but God wants to change mindsets—in them—and us.  We spoke with Aurora last month and this is what we heard.  A Mexican pastor from another city had heard of Tierra Prometida and came to visit.  He brought enough food to fill the large pantry.  He came back a week later and brought a fridge and large freezer, plus enough meat, chicken, beef and pork to fill them both.  A short time later, he arrived for the third time and said, “The Holy Spirit told me to give you my van.”  Aurora took the vehicle into town to get the necessary papers.  To take a vehicle across the border, it costs several hundred dollars, and there is usually a cost if vehicles change owners in Mexico; plus, you always have to consider the Federales are good at extracting funds from those they deal with.  When Aurora arrived with the van and told them the story of how it came to belong to Tierra Prometida, they considered for a short time and then told her some exciting news.  Since Tierra Prometida was “such a great addition to Linares,” there would be no charge, and one of the Federales, who was a painter by trade, would paint Tierra Prometida on the side of the van, no charge.  I just love the Lord.  I can remember when Tierra Prometida was not welcomed in that city.  The Lord is faithful to His children!  Pastor Zuniga, Aurora and all the children are now coming into contact with Mexicans who walk in sowing and reaping.  What a Harvest at Tierra Prometida!  And look what the children are seeing first hand!  I am believing that one day soon that ministry will be totally supported by the wonderful Mexican people. 

Two things of great importantance:  One is the balance on the Loan, which is $4,584.19; and Gideon’s Army wants 42 more members and we will celebrate victory.  Come join us for $110.73 per person (make that 40—two people just joined!)  Also, there are six children who need sponsors at $28.00 per month.  Their names and ages are as follows:  Yadira Zuniga, age 13; Frances Adia, age 7; Brian Esparza, age 6; Alfredo Martinez, age 11; Gorka Hernandez, age 12; and Damaris Torres, age 11. 

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GOD’S GRACE HAS COVERED THE TABERNACLE

There is now a new roof covering the Tabernacle.  Each morning as we drive into the Promised Land, that is the first thing we see—the new roof among the pine trees.  We lack words to adequately thank the Lord and each of you for what you have accomplished.  The roof is paid in full.  Praise God!

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GREATER DAYS AZUSA STREET

Whoa!  The Lord was EVER PRESENT during those three days!  I would love to have everyone who was able to attend those meetings to sit down in a group and try to convey how their lives were changed and are still being changed.  We are asking each one to write their account of something they experienced and get it to us so we can have a regular Greater Days article in the Promised Land Newsletter.  Why don’t you be the first to send your testimony in?

I will begin.

VISIBLE FAITH

One evening the sound of worship began to fill the Tabernacle, then it filled the mouths of the people, then it filled the hearts of the people—and the presence of the Lord was mighty to behold!  I was sitting on the front row and I had looked down and there was a pair of scissors lying in the chair beside me.  I asked someone about them and they took them and said they belonged to Tehillah Ministry.  As the worship increased, Mark Bristow began to move as the spirit led, and the power of God was present to heal, save and deliver.  People were being slain in the spirit, and people were being healed as the ministry team prayed for individuals who came forward.  As Mark stood there speaking, I saw the anointing of the Lord all over him, and the Holy Spirit caused me to remember the account of Peter’s shadow falling on people and them being healed.  Also, the people took pieces of his clothing, and healing was imparted to those who believed.  The Lord said to me “go and begin to cut pieces of Mark’s shirt and give it to those who need healing.”  I said, “Lord, what do I use to cut the shirt,” remembering the scissors had been removed.  I looked down and there in the chair was a different pair of scissors.  So, I said ok Lord.  Mark was standing in front of the congregation ministering and I approached him and told him the Lord had spoken to me to cut his shirt into pieces for healing cloths.  His immediate response, without hesitation, was “Do it.”  I saw great faith.  He continued to minister as I began to cut the shirt into pieces.  All I could see were hands stretched out as far as they could reach—men’s hands, women’s hands, and young people’s hands.  I saw great faith.  I am persuaded that this is exactly what those hands looked like that belonged to the woman who had had the issue of blood for 28 years when she pressed in and reached out to touch the hem of the Lord’s garment.  Mark asked one of his ministry team to go to the van and bring him another shirt and he took off the shirt the Lord needed and gave it to the people.  What a time!  What joy!  What laughter!  What faith!  Those hands stretching, reaching and pressing in will forever flash in my mind when I hear the word "Faith.”  Faith can be seen.  We still have some of those pieces of the healing cloth and will send them to you upon your request.  Reach out and touch the Lord.

Nita Lee, a photographer, took approximately 600 pictures during the Greater Days Azusa Street and has made them available on a CD for $15.00.  You can call Promised Land to order.  These pictures tell the amazing story of the presence of the Lord.

GLORY FOR THE JOURNEY

PROMISED LAND FALL RETREAT

OCTOBER 20-22, 2006

Mark your calendars and make your plans to attend

Registration:  $35.00     Meals:  $34.00    Lodging:  $22.00