Late Rev. Elisha James

March 25, 1910 to August 19, 1972

My dear brothers and sisters

I greet you all in the name of Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

I would like to present my Dad’s last letter to his dear family members.

Edwin James
Youngest son of Late Rev. Elisha James.

He was fully prepared to meet his LORD was evident from the fact that he had himself written

the Order of Worship for his own funeral service and the beautiful letter that he had written to his loving family. 

The first and last paragraphs of that letter, dated December 18, 1969 reads:

“There is no need for you to weep and spend your time in gloomy mood because I shall be in my father’s home in joy on that glorious land, waiting to see you all on that happy morning. 

I shall be closer to you than now in this life and will be seeing you all at all places and praying for you all.

God bless you all.

Good night till we meet at Jesus’ feet. My last word is that you all must be prepared to meet me on that Happy Land.

Ever Yours Lovingly
Sd/-
Late Rev. Elisha James.

Father God…You are Strong!

Psalms 18:32-34 

32 It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect.

33 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights.

34 He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

Micah 5:4 

He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth.

Isaiah 12:2-3 

2 Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The LORD, the LORD, is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.”

3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

Isaiah 41:10 

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Thoughts

Instrument of Peace

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace;

Where there is hatred, let me sow love,

Where there is injury, pardon;

Where there is doubt, faith;

Where there is despair, hope;

Where there is darkness, light;

And where there is sadness, joy.

- St Francis of Assisi

Feeling Bad Over Something That Happened

John 14:27 

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

John 16:31-33 

31 “You believe at last!” Jesus answered. 

32 “But a time is coming, and has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home. You will leave me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me.

33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Romans 8:28 

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Hebrews 4:16 

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

1 Peter 1:3-9 

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 

4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, 

5 who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 

6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 

7 These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 

8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 

9 for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

The book of MATTHEW - 4

What we can learn from the book of Matthew from its 28 chapters

14

Jesus is the Messiah:

The death of John the Baptist

Jesus feeds five thousand

Jesus walks on the water

Jesus heals sick people in Gennesaret

15

The teaching of the ancestors

What really makes people unclean

A woman’s faith

Jesus heals many people

Jesus feeds four thousand

16

A demand for a sign from Heaven:

The years of the Pharisees and Sadducees

Who is Jesus?

Jesus speaks about His suffering and death

17

The true glory of Jesus

Jesus heals a boy

Jesus again speaks about His death

Paying the temple tax

18

Jesus instructs His followers

Who is the greatest?

Temptations to sin

The lost sheep

When someone sins

Allowing and not allowing

An official who refused to forgive

God’s promise to answer our prayers

Psalms 91:15 

He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.

Isaiah 65:24 

Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.

Zechariah 13:9 

This third I will bring into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, ‘They are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The LORD is our God.’”

Luke 11:9 

“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.

Luke 11:10 

For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

John 15:7 

If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.

Matthew 18:19 

“Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.

Mark 11:24 

Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

James 5:16 

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

1 John 3:22 

And receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him.

The book of MATTHEW -3

What we can learn from the book of Matthew from its 28 chapters?

10

Jesus instructs the twelve apostles:

Instructions for the twelve apostles

Warning about the out trouble

The one to fear

Telling others about Christ

Not peace, but trouble

Rewards

11

Jesus faces opponents and their questions

John the Baptist

The unbelieving Towns

Come to Me and Rest

12

A Question about the Sabbath

A Man with a Crippled Hand

God’s chosen servant

Jesus and the ruler of the demons

A tree and its fruit

A sign from heaven

Return of an evil spirit

Jesus’ mother and brothers

13

Jesus tells stories about the kingdom of Heaven:

A story about farmer

Why Jesus used stories

Jesus explains the story

Weeds among the wheat

Stories about a mustard seed and yeast

The reason for teaching with stories

Jesus explains the story about the weeds

A hidden treasure

A valuable pearl

A fish net

New and Old Testament

The people of Nazareth turn against Jesus

God the Father - 4

God is omnipresent (is everywhere):

Psalms 139:23-24 

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.

24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

Hebrews 4:13 

Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

Acts 17:28-29 

28 ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’

29 “Therefore since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man's design and skill.

Jeremiah 16:17  

My eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from me, nor is their sin concealed from my eyes.

God is omnipotent (has all power):

Genesis 1:3 

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

Genesis 1:11 

Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so.

Psalms 33:8-9 

8 Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the people of the world revere him.

9 For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.

Jeremiah 32:17 

“Ah, Sovereign LORD, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.

Matthew 19:26 

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Revelation 11:17 

saying: “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign.

What the Bible says about Old Age - 1

What the Bible says about Old Age - 1

Ecclesiastes 12:1-7 

1 Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, “I find no pleasure in them”—

2 before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars grow dark, and the clouds return after the rain;

3 when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men stoop, when the grinders cease because they are few, and those looking through the windows grow dim;

4 when the doors to the street are closed and the sound of grinding fades; when men rise up at the sound of birds, but all their songs grow faint;

5 when men are afraid of heights and of dangers in the streets; when the almond tree blossoms and the grasshopper drags himself along and desire no longer is stirred. Then man goes to his eternal home and mourners go about the streets.

6 Remember him—before the silver cord is severed, or the golden bowl is broken; before the pitcher is shattered at the spring, or the wheel broken at the well,

7 and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

Job 11:17 

Life will be brighter than noonday, and darkness will become like morning.

Ecclesiastes 7:10 

Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?” For it is not wise to ask such questions.

Titus 2:3 

Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good.

Ruth 4:15 He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.”

Proverbs 17:6 

Children's children are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of their children.

Psalms 148:12 

Young men and maidens, old men and children.

Deuteronomy 33:25 

The bolts of your gates will be iron and bronze, and your strength will equal your days.

The book of MATTHEW -2

What we can learn from the book of Matthew from its 28 chapters?

6

Giving 

Prayer

Worshiping God by going without eating

Treasures in Heaven

Light

Money

Worry

7

Judging others

Ask, search, and knock

The narrow gate

A tree and its fruit

A warning 

Two builders

8

Jesus heals many and works miracles:

Jesus heals a man

Jesus heals an army officer’s servant

Jesus heals many people

Some who wanted to go with Jesus

A storm

Two men with demons in them

9

Jesus heals a crippled man

Jesus chooses Matthew

People ask about going without eating

A dying girl and a sick woman

Jesus heals two blind men

Jesus heals a man who going to talk

Jesus has pity on people

The book of MATTHEW -1

What we can learn from the book of Matthew from its 28 chapters?

1

Where Jesus came from:

The ancestors of Jesus

The birth of Jesus

2

The wise men

The escape to Egypt

The killing of the children

The return from Egypt

3

Preparing the way for Jesus:

The preaching of John the Baptist

The baptism of Jesus

4

Jesus and the Devil

Jesus begins His work

Jesus chooses four fishermen

Jesus teaches, preaches and heals

5

Jesus teaches the crowds from a mountain:

The sermon of the mount

Blessings

Salt and light

The law of Moses

Anger

Marriage

Divorce

Promises

Revenge

Love

God the Father - 3

God is omniscient (knows everything):

Psalms 139:2-4 

2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.

3 You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.

4 Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD.

1 Chronicles 28:9 

“And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.

Matthew 10:29-30 

29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 

30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

Romans 11:33-36 

33 Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!

34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?”

35 “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him?”

36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.

God is omnipresent (is everywhere):

Jeremiah 23:23-24 

23 “Am I only a God nearby,” declares the LORD, “and not a God far away?

24 Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him?” declares the LORD. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the LORD.

Psalms 139:8-12 

8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,

10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.

11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,”

12 even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.

The Holy Spirit in the Bible

Ephesians 1:17-20 

17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 

18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 

19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 

20 which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,

Ephesians 3:14-19 

14 For this reason I kneel before the Father, 

15 from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. 

16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 

17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 

18 may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 

19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

1 John 2:20 

But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.

1 John 2:27 

As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.

1 John 4:1-3 

1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 

2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 

3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.

1 John 5:6-12 

6 This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 

7 For there are three that testify: 

8 the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. 

9 We accept man's testimony, but God's testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. 

10 Anyone who believes in the Son of God has this testimony in his heart. Anyone who does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because he has not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. 

11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 

12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.

The book of PSALMS - 10

One hundred fifty messages from the book of Psalms.

136

God’s love never fails

137

A prayer for revenge

138

Praise the LORD with all your heart

139

The LORD is always near

140

A prayer for the LORD’s help

141

A prayer for the LORD’s protection

142

A prayer for help

143

A prayer in time of danger

144

A prayer for the nations

145

The LORD is kind and merciful

146

Shout praises to the LORD

147

Sing and praise the LORD

148

Come praise the LORD

149

A new song of praise

150

The LORD is good to His people

Complete Self-sacrifice

Hebrews 13:15-16 

15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name. 

16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

Hebrews 3:6 

But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast.

2 Corinthians 6:16 

What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”

1 Corinthians 6:19 

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;

1 Corinthians 3:16 

Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?

Romans 12:1 

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship.

Malachi 1:11 

My name will be great among the nations, from the rising to the setting of the sun. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my name, because my name will be great among the nations,” says the LORD Almighty.

Isaiah 66:21 

And I will select some of them also to be priests and Levites,” says the LORD.

Revelation 3:12 

Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name.

1 Peter 4:11 

If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

The book of PSALMS - 9

One hundred fifty messages from the book of Psalms.

121

The LORD will protect His people

122

A song of praise

123

A prayer for mercy

124

Thanking the LORD for victory

125

The LORD’s people are safe

126

Celebrating the harvest

127

Only the LORD can bless a home

128

The LORD rewards His faithful people

129

A prayer of protection

130

Trusting the LORD in times of trouble

131

Trust the LORD!

132

The LORD is always with His people

133

Living together at night

134

Praising the LORD at night

135

In praise of the LORD’s kindness

The book of PSALMS - 8

One hundred fifty messages from the book of Psalms.

106

A nation asks for forgiveness

107

The LORD is good to His people

108

With God on our side

109

A prayer for the LORD’s help

110

The LORD gives victory

111

Praise the LORD for all He has done

112

God blesses His worshipers

113

The LORD helps people in need

114

The LORD works wonders

115

The LORD deserves to be praised

116

When the LORD saves you from death

117

Come praise the LORD

118

The LORD is always merciful

119

In praise of the Law of the LORD

120

A prayer for the LORD’s help

Ways

For all His ways are:

Deuteronomy 32:4 

He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.

They do not know its ways:

Job 24:13 

“There are those who rebel against the light, who do not know its ways or stay in its paths.

Is the first of the ways:

Job 40:19 

He ranks first among the works of God, yet his Maker can approach him with his sword.

Show me Your ways:

Psalms 25:4 

Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths;

Transgressors Your ways:

Psalms 51:13 

Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you.

Would walk in My ways:

Psalms 81:13 

“If my people would but listen to me, if Israel would follow my ways,

I thought about my ways:

Psalms 119:59 

I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes.

Familiar verse from the Bible…

Matthew 28:18 

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

The book of PSALMS - 7

One hundred fifty messages from the book of Psalms.

91

The LORD’s my fortress

92

Sing praises to the LORD

93

The LORD is king

94

The LORD punishes the guilty

95

Worship and obey the LORD

96

Sing a new song to the LORD

97

The LORD brings justice

98

The LORD works miracles

99

Our LORD is king

100

The LORD is good

101

A king and His promises

102

A prayer in time of trouble

103

The LORD’s wonderful love

104

The LORD takes care of His creation

105

The LORD can be trusted

God’s Promises to me

 About your Self-Worth

Psalms 139:13  

13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.

14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

Matthew 10:29-31  

29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 

30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 

31 So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Ephesians 5:1-2  

1 Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children 

2 and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

About trying to earn Salvation

Romans 5:1-2  

1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 

2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Isaiah 55:7  

Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.

1 John 5:11-12 

11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 

12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.

That God wants you to belong to Him

Psalms 103:2  

2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits—

3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,

4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,

Zephaniah 3:17  

The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”

1 Corinthians 7:19  

Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God's commands is what counts.

1 Corinthians 7:23  

You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men.

The book of PSALMS - 6

One hundred fifty messages from the book of Psalms.

76

God always wins

77

In times of trouble God is with His people

78

What God has done for His people?

79

Have pity on Jerusalem

80

Help our nation

81

God makes us strong

82

Please do something, God!

83

God rules all the earth

84

The joy of worship

85

A prayer of peace

86

A prayer of help

87

The glory of mount Zion

88

A prayer when you can’t find the way

89

The LORD’s agreement with David

90

God is eternal

The book of PSALMS - 5

One hundred fifty messages from the book of Psalms.

61

Under the protection of God

62

God is powerful and kind

63

God’s love means more than life

64

Celebrate because of the LORD

65

God answers prayer

66

Shout praises to God

67

Tell nations to praise God

68

God will win the battle

69

God can be trusted

70

God is wonderful

71

A prayer for God’s protection

72

A prayer for God to guide and help the king

73

God is good

74

A prayer for the nation in times of trouble

75

Praise God for all he has done

The book of PSALMS - 4

One hundred fifty messages from the book of Psalms.

46

God is our mighty fortress

47

God rules the nations

48

The city of God

49

Don’t depend on wealth

50

What pleases God?

51

A prayer for forgiveness

52

God is in control

53

No one can ignore God

54

Trusting God in times of trouble

55

Betrayed by a friend

56

A prayer of trust in God

57

Praise and trust in times of trouble

58

A prayer when all goes wrong

59

A prayer for protection

60

You can depend on God