"To The Ends Of The Earth, Inc." is a multifaceted ministry. We are deeply involved in worship, and believe that worship is one of the gateways for entering the Presence of God/YAHWEH. Now, let me try to explain what these two words mean to me, and why. My first encounter was when I was in the sixth grade at San Marcos Baptist Academy, in San Marcos, Texas. Many of us had been at some type of evangelistic event, and I wanted to know what it meant. Many of the people that I knew attended the Baptist Church at the bottom of the hill, but for one reason or the other, I did not feel comfortable going there to inquire. Instead, I went to a little Presbyterian Church, and the pastor showed me the plan of Salvation. I accepted. Afterwards, my life took on new meaning and I began to read several books about the Bible.
After the year was over, and I went back home, I attended a Presbyterian Church. I remember going to Sunday School but I don't remember any of the actual services on Sunday morning. This was in the early stages of going to Junior High School. When I started going to High School, I attended a Methodist Church nearby. I remember the pastor's teachings, not so much about what he taught, but his style. He had a way with words and encouraging people.
After I graduated from High School, I went to Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas, and it was there that I had several encounters with God. First, some of the people at the Baptist Student Union radiated with joy, and I wanted that. Second, I attended a revival meeting at a little Baptist Church, and accepted the Lord there, and was baptized. Thirdly, I had a dream one night and it was Jacob's Ladder with angels ascending and descending. Fourth, at the Baptist Student Union, I took a course on the Epistles of Paul and I remember especially the verse that says, "Those men that...have come here also." Fifth, there was a cantata, called "Good News", and I got to sing in it. Two things that I remember specifically about the words are: "Sunday's Child, and other days a saint he aint", and the theme was "Good News being the way of living." We sang at prisons, schools, and even travelled to Guadalajara, Mexico, and shared and sang in many places there. It was a great experience. That was in the summer of 1969. (I am kind of old in the decaying sense of the body that my spirit and soul are in, but inside, I am a "new Creature."
I have stayed faithful for many years, but there have been many struggles along the way. There are many things that I could share, but how much can you remember. I met my second wife, Gayle, in June of 1983, and we married in December of 1983. We were in a whirlwind and many things happened. In December of 1991, we were sent out as missionaries from the church that we had been attending. We went to Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico, and stayed there for about two years. When the time was up for us to leave, we went to a little town south of Atlanta, Georgia, and bought a house, and have been there, now, for thirty-two years, and the time has passed, but all of this seems as if it happened, yesterday.
We came into the realm of Messianic Judaism, and found out that the term "God" is a title, and not the true Name. (Now if this is too hard for you to fathom, don't let it ruin your day or our relationship). I began asking God, what do you want to me to call you, and one day while digging post holes for the garden, He told me, "I bow down,". That was not His Name and that was not what He/God was saying, but it was a stirring. In my spirit, I felt to call Him by the name YAHWEH. There are many people that say His Name differently, but remember this: "Allah" is not His Name and can never be His Name. That is something entirely different.
Now, get this: in Hebrew, the letters can mean various things. For instance, each letter of the Hebrew "alef-bet" has a word picture and a number for counting associated with it. The Hebrew letters for "YAHWEH" are "yud", "hey", "vav", "hey". With the Word Pictures associated with these, you get a hand, behold, a nail, and reveal. YAHWEH's Name literally means: "Behold, the Hand and the Nail"! Jesus' hands were pierced with a nail which was a form of tying Him to the Cross of Crucifixion. What is this saying? Before time began, YAHWEH's Name has always been there to draw us to Him, through a sacrifice which is our Redemption should we accept it.
After the year was over, and I went back home, I attended a Presbyterian Church. I remember going to Sunday School but I don't remember any of the actual services on Sunday morning. This was in the early stages of going to Junior High School. When I started going to High School, I attended a Methodist Church nearby. I remember the pastor's teachings, not so much about what he taught, but his style. He had a way with words and encouraging people.
After I graduated from High School, I went to Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas, and it was there that I had several encounters with God. First, some of the people at the Baptist Student Union radiated with joy, and I wanted that. Second, I attended a revival meeting at a little Baptist Church, and accepted the Lord there, and was baptized. Thirdly, I had a dream one night and it was Jacob's Ladder with angels ascending and descending. Fourth, at the Baptist Student Union, I took a course on the Epistles of Paul and I remember especially the verse that says, "Those men that...have come here also." Fifth, there was a cantata, called "Good News", and I got to sing in it. Two things that I remember specifically about the words are: "Sunday's Child, and other days a saint he aint", and the theme was "Good News being the way of living." We sang at prisons, schools, and even travelled to Guadalajara, Mexico, and shared and sang in many places there. It was a great experience. That was in the summer of 1969. (I am kind of old in the decaying sense of the body that my spirit and soul are in, but inside, I am a "new Creature."
I have stayed faithful for many years, but there have been many struggles along the way. There are many things that I could share, but how much can you remember. I met my second wife, Gayle, in June of 1983, and we married in December of 1983. We were in a whirlwind and many things happened. In December of 1991, we were sent out as missionaries from the church that we had been attending. We went to Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico, and stayed there for about two years. When the time was up for us to leave, we went to a little town south of Atlanta, Georgia, and bought a house, and have been there, now, for thirty-two years, and the time has passed, but all of this seems as if it happened, yesterday.
We came into the realm of Messianic Judaism, and found out that the term "God" is a title, and not the true Name. (Now if this is too hard for you to fathom, don't let it ruin your day or our relationship). I began asking God, what do you want to me to call you, and one day while digging post holes for the garden, He told me, "I bow down,". That was not His Name and that was not what He/God was saying, but it was a stirring. In my spirit, I felt to call Him by the name YAHWEH. There are many people that say His Name differently, but remember this: "Allah" is not His Name and can never be His Name. That is something entirely different.
Now, get this: in Hebrew, the letters can mean various things. For instance, each letter of the Hebrew "alef-bet" has a word picture and a number for counting associated with it. The Hebrew letters for "YAHWEH" are "yud", "hey", "vav", "hey". With the Word Pictures associated with these, you get a hand, behold, a nail, and reveal. YAHWEH's Name literally means: "Behold, the Hand and the Nail"! Jesus' hands were pierced with a nail which was a form of tying Him to the Cross of Crucifixion. What is this saying? Before time began, YAHWEH's Name has always been there to draw us to Him, through a sacrifice which is our Redemption should we accept it.