Pray For The Wesson Family

August 8, 2015

 

Dear Preachers:

 

The Scriptures tell us in Hebrews 9:27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: 

Now, there is no one you’ve ever known more deserving of eternal punishment in the Lake of Fire than the author of the lines you are reading.   The ole poor boy from the Panhandle of God’s Texas was a wicked sinner, and did not deserve God’s Salvation.

 

Yesterday Mrs. Vineyard and I,  Tom and Melissa, and Joe and Sheryl Finn, visited Joel and Gwen Wesson, and their grand sons, Jimmy and Nathan Post.  Joel and Gwen’s son, Josh Wesson, one of the finest Christians I’ve ever been privileged to know, drowned yesterday in the ocean somewhere in the Dominican Republic as Josh was attempting to save the life of a sister church’s youngster who had gone down in the Ocean. 

 

In Psalms 116:13, the Psalmist declared:  Psalms 116:13 I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD.  14 I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all his people.

Joel Wesson told us how, Josh, as a little lad, called upon the name of the Lord.  That is THE ONLY WAY TO SALVATION OF OUR SINFUL SOULS.  In Enoch’s day, the Bible Declares in Genesis 4:16, “….then began men to call upon the name of the Lord.”   The Bible tells us about Abraham, “And he believed in the Lord:  and he counted it to him for righteousness.” 

 

My wife had me read for them then verse 15, which declares:  "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints."

 

As a little lad, when Josh Wesson called on the name of the Lord, God Almighty counted that to him for righteousness.   Sometime down life’s road Josh heard the CALL OF THE LORD and surrendered to take the LIGHT OF THE GOSPEL to the poor Dominicans.  In Bible college he met and married Joy.  In 1996, WHBC had the privilege of taking Josh and Joy on for monthly support, as the 31^st of 52 Missionaries we took on that year for monthly support as they raised support to go to the Dominican Republic.

 

GOD gave to Josh and Joy 4 children, Kimberly, Stephen, Ashlyn and Katelyn.  When those 4 younguns awoke yesterday they  didn’t know it would be the last day they would see their earthly father down here.  A time of grieving is going to be very painful for the Wessons.  We are asking for your prayers in their behalf.

 

Now, let me mention some other ‘LIGHT BEARERS’ whom God Almighty chose to bring home to heaven at a time we poor mortals would deem “early.” 

FIRST, ROBERT MURRAY McCHEYNE:

·       A beloved preacher in Dundee

·       A man of spiritual and forceful sermons

·       Died from typhus at age 29

Description

If we were to ask God to give us an example of how he can use someone to the full, even over a short period of time, then Robert Murray McCheyne would be a prime candidate.

He was the pastor of St. Peters, Dundee for seven years until 1843, a period of time which ended in his death when he was only in his thirtieth year. He preached 'as a dying man to dying men'.

His sermons were spiritual and forceful and attended with wonderful power and fruitfulness at a time of undeniable revival - they are still models for today's preachers.

As an eyewitness said of him 'He preached with eternity stamped upon his brow. I yet see his seraphic countenance, and hear his sweet and tender voice. I was spell bound, and would not keep my eyes off him for a moment. He announced his text - What a sermon! I trembled, and never felt God so near. His appeals went to my heart, and, as he spoke of the last day in the darkening twilight, for once I began to pray!'

McCheyne's life is an inspiration to us all. This popular biography tells us about his life and loves, indeed all that was dear to him, and humbles us to find a greater love for God in our daily lives.

 

SECOND, DAVID BRAINERD:

On 1 April 1743, after a brief period serving a church on Long Island, Brainerd began working as a missionary to Native Americans, which he would continue until late 1746 when worsening illness prevented him from working. In his final years, he also suffered from a form of depression that was sometimes immobilizing and which, on at least twenty-two occasions, led him to wish for death. He was also affected by difficulties faced by other missionaries of the period, such as loneliness and lack of food.

His first missionary task was working at Kaunameek, a Housatonic Indian settlement near present day Nassau, New York, twenty or thirty miles from missionary John Sergeant who was working in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Brainerd remained there for one year. During this period he started a school for Native American children and began a translation of the Psalms.

Subsequently, he was reassigned to work among the Delaware Indians along the Delaware River northeast ofBethlehem, Pennsylvania, where he remained for another year, during which he was ordained by the Newark Presbytery. After this, he moved to Crossweeksung in New Jersey, where he had his most fruitful ministry. Within a year, the Indian church at Crossweeksung had 130 members, who moved in 1746 to Cranbury where they established a Christian community. In these years, he refused several offers of leaving the mission field to become a church minister, including one from the church at East Hampton on Long Island. He remained determined, however, to continue the work among Native Americans despite the difficulties, writing in his diary:

'[I] could have no freedom in the thought of any other circumstances or business in life: All my desire was the conversion of the heathen, and all my hope was in God: God does not suffer me to please or comfort myself with hopes of seeing friends, returning to my dear acquaintance, and enjoying worldly comforts'.

In November 1746, he became too ill to continue ministering, and so moved to Jonathan Dickinson's house inElizabethtown. After a few months of rest, he travelled to Northampton, Massachusetts, where he stayed at the house of Jonathan Edwards. Apart from a trip to Boston in the summer of that year, he remained at Edwards's house until his death the following year. In May 1747, he was diagnosed with incurable consumption; in these final months, he suffered greatly. In his diary entry for 24 September, Brainerd wrote:

'In the greatest distress that ever I endured having an uncommon kind of hiccough; which either strangled me or threw me into a straining to vomit'.

During this time, he was nursed by Jerusha Edwards, Jonathan's seventeen-year-old daughter. The friendship that grew between them was of a kind that has led some to suggest they were romantically attached.  He died from tuberculosis on 9 October 1747, at the age of 29. He is buried at Bridge Street Cemetery in Northampton, next to Jerusha, who died in February 1748 as a result of contracting tuberculosis from nursing Brainerd. His gravestone reads:

Sacred to the memory of the Rev. David Brainerd. A faithful and laborious missionary to the Stockbridge, Delaware and Sasquehanna TRIBES OF INDIANS WHO died in this town. October 10, 1747 AE 32.

 

THIRD, JIM ELLIOTT [Whom Josh Wesson’s Nephew, Jimmy Post, favors, according to ole jav!]

As a little boy growing up in Portland, Oregon, Jim Elliot listened carefully as visiting missionaries told about life on faraway missions fields. He asked them questions and dreamed about being a missionary himself some day. It made him sad that so many people in other countries died without knowing about God.

The Long Boat Trip
On February 2, 1952, Jim Elliot waved goodbye to his parents and boarded a ship for the 18-day trip from San Pedro, California to Quito (Kee-toe), Ecuador, South America.

He and his missionary partner, Pete Fleming, first spent a year in Quito learning to speak Spanish. Then they moved to Shandia (Shan-dee-ah), a small Quichua (Kee-chew-wah) Indian village to take the place of the retiring missionary. Jim and Pete studied hard to learn the language and fit in. Their hard work paid off; in six months, both were speaking Spanish well enough to move to Shandia. When they arrived in Shandia, they also had to learn the speech of the Quichuas.

Planning to reach the Aucas
Three years later many Quichuas had become faithful Christians. Jim now began to feel it was time to tell the Aucas about Jesus.

The Aucas had killed many Quichuas. They had also killed several workers at an oil company-drilling site near their territory. The oil company closed the site because everyone was afraid to work there. Jim knew the only way to stop the Aucas from killing was to tell them about Jesus. Jim and the four other Ecuador missionaries began to plan a way to show the Aucas they were friendly.

Nate Saint, a missionary supply pilot, came up with a way to lower a bucket filled with supplies to people on the ground while flying above them. He thought this would be a perfect way to win the trust of the Aucas without putting anyone in danger. They began dropping gifts to the Aucas. They also used an amplifier to speak out friendly Auca phrases. After many months, the Aucas even sent a gift back up in the bucket to the plane. Jim and the other missionaries felt the time had come to meet the Aucas face-to-face.

One day while flying over Auca territory, Nate Saint spotted a beach that looked long enough to land the plane on. He planned to land there and the men would build a tree house to stay safe in until friendly contact could be made.

 The missionaries were flown in one-by-one and dropped off on the Auca beach. Nate Saint then flew over the Auca village and called for the Aucas to come to the beach. After four days, an Auca man and two women appeared. It was not easy for them to understand each other since the missionaries only knew a few Auca phrases. They shared a meal with them, and Nate took the man up for a flight in the plane. The missionaries tried to show sincere friendship and asked them to bring others next time.

For the next two days, the missionaries waited for other Aucas to return. Finally, on day six, two Auca women walked out of the jungle. Jim and Pete excitedly jumped in the river and waded over to them. As they got closer, these women did not appear friendly. Jim and Pete almost immediately heard a terrifying cry behind them. As they turned they saw a group of Auca warriors with their spears raised, ready to throw. Jim Elliot reached for the gun in his pocket. He had to decide instantly if he should use it. But he knew he couldn't. Each of the missionaries had promised they would not kill an Auca who did not know Jesus to save himself from being killed. Within seconds, the Auca warriors threw their spears, killing all the missionaries: Ed McCully, Roger Youderian, Nate Saint, Pete Fleming and Jim Elliot.

 

FOURTH, BORDEN OF YALE:

 

William Borden was born in 1887 in Chicago to the very wealthy Borden family. This is the Borden Dairy Co., known for its mascot, Elsie the Cow. When William was a young man, his mother became a Christian and started taking William with her to church, and he too became a Christian. He was sent off to the Hill School, a boarding school in Pennsylvania, for his high school education.

When he graduated at the age of sixteen, his parents gave him a gift: a trip around the world. He was not on his own as a sixteen-year-old; he was with Walter Erdman, a minister and a missionary. They visited numerous countries, and along the way, Borden’s calling became very clear to him: he would be a missionary. On this trip, he saw firsthand what they called in those days “heathenism”— entire people groups without a gospel witness. This left such an impression on this young seventeen-year-old that he knew he wanted to give his life to missions.

When he returned to the United States in 1905, he went to Yale University. There, he excelled at academics and in all sorts of athletics. He was on the boxing team, he was involved in yachting, and he was engaged in track and field. Between his academic and athletic abilities and his leadership skills, Borden clearly stood out. And with his family connections, Borden could’ve done anything with his life, but he remained committed to his calling to be a missionary.

When he graduated from Yale, he knew he needed more education and training, so he enrolled at Princeton Theological Seminary. He was there from 1909 to 1912. This was still the conservative era at Princeton Seminary, before the liberal takeover. He had J. Gresham Machen as a professor.

When he graduated in 1912, he was ordained and came under the auspices of the China Inland Mission. He spent a few months in New York City working with some missions agencies to learn firsthand, similar to an internship, how missions work operates. And it was about this time that he became aware of a people group in China—ten million Muslims without a gospel witness among them. This was a very difficult people group to reach and a very difficult people group to get to, but Borden was committed to this group as his calling.

He decided that he would go to Cairo to learn Arabic so that he could minister to these Muslims in China. He left America in December 1912. On March 21, he was taken ill with spinal meningitis; nineteen days later, he died. April 9, 1913, was the date. He never made it to China.

We should note two things about his legacy, however. The first is his will. In his will, he left his entire fortune, well over one million dollars, to Christian causes. But he also put in his will this specification: this money was to go to missionaries and teachers who are sound in the faith, believing in such fundamentals as the doctrine of the divine inspiration and authority of Scripture, the doctrine of the Trinity, including the deity of Christ, and the doctrine of the atonement through the substitutionary death of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The other piece of his legacy is his Bible. When he died, his Bible was returned to his parents. When they opened it, they saw on the flyleaf these words, written by William Borden: “No reserves.” Those words were written over the date when he decided that he would not take up a role in the family business but that he would become a missionary. At a later date, he wrote these words, “No retreat.” And then, during his illness after March 21 and shortly before his death on April 9, he wrote these words: “No regrets.” No reserves. No retreat. No regrets. This is the life of William Borden.

 

Yesterday Josh Wesson “crossed the river” and he “rests now in the shade on the other side.”  Josh was a tremendous vocalist.  My Favorite Song he sang was ‘THERE IS A RIVER!’  I TOLD HIS FOLKS YESTERDAY THAT I WOULD GUESS I HEARD JOSH SING THAT SONG 100 TIMES.  JOSH AND HIS DAD, WOULD GO TO CANADA FISHING WITH RUSSELL ANDERSON AND I.  RUSS WOULD SAY, “JOSH, SING THAT RIVER SONG.”  JOSH WOULD.  [I AM NOT SURE THIS IS THE EXACT VERSION SANG FROM, BUT, I SHALL PUT IT IN.]

There is a river, and it flows from deep within
There is a fountain, that frees the soul from sin
Come to this water; there is a vast supply
There is a river, that never shall run dry.

There was a thirsty woman,
She was drawing from a well
You see her life was ruined and wasted
And her soul was bound for hell
Oh but then she met the Master

And He told about her sin
And he said "if you drink this water,
You'll never thirst again.'

There is a river, and it flows from deep within
There is a fountain, that frees the soul from sin
Come to this water; there is a vast supply
There is a river, that never shall run dry.

 

RUSS REALLY LIKED JOSH.  HE ASKED HIM ONE DAY, “JOSH, TELL ME THE SECRET OF YOUR SUCCESS AS A COLLEGE STUDENT.”  JOSH REPLIED, “JUST DO WHAT YOU ARE TOLD AND DON’T ASK ANY QUESTIONS!”

 

JOSH WESSON HAS CROSSED THE RIVER.  HE RESTS NOW IN THE SHADE ON THE OTHER SIDE.  PRAY MUCH PLEASE FOR  Joy and her 4 children, Kimberly, Stephen, Ashlyn and Katelyn!  Pray for Joel and Gwen.

 

PRAY FOR THE PEACE OF JERUSALEM!

 

JIM VINEYARD

YEDIDIM OF ISRAEL