Today there are numerous organizations claiming to be representatives of Jesus Christ, yet not all truly live up to the standards of the “Cross”! Ministries everywhere compete for donations, but most have a high percentage of funds going to pay for overhead. All claim to be Christ’s ambassadors on Earth but not all really live up to the standards of the Master!
I have no interest in glorying the “House of Blessing”, but, I do see it as a missionary organization to be honored because of their one main goal; that is to magnify the LORD of Heaven and Earth, Jesus Christ! H.O.B has no overhead. The missionaries of H.O.B. have no income. They survive by the provision of the LORD of Heaven and Earth! Are they special? Yes! But, only because they have been covered and forgiven by the BLOOD spilled on the cross at Calvary! They are also some of the most courageous and dedicated people I have ever had the privilege of being associated with.
The people in the Middle East today are facing a desperate situation—not only because they don’t know how they are going to survive the physical situations they are facing, but more importantly, the spiritual need is so great. They need to know that GOD forgives sin! Does Allah? NO! There is not a Muslim on Earth—nor any any other religious person on this planet, no matter how devoted to ‘God’ he or she might claim themselves to be’, who knows if they will be allowed passage into paradise! According to then Koran, at judgment time, his works will have to be weighed! The bad works will be weighed against the good, and if there is enough good, then he might be “good enough” to earn passage into paradise. The truth is, there is only one way for anyone to really know for sure of their eternal reward, and it is by the “Blood of ‘The LAMB’, Jesus Christ. Has His provision been appropriated for the total eradication of sin? NOTHING else works!! Most do not apply this miraculous remedy! Romans 6:6 tells us this:
For we know that our old self was crucified with Him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. (Romans 6:6-7, New International version).
Many Muslims in the Middle East are ashamed of their own religion. If there are not any “infidels” to kill, they will kill each other! They know that the world is beginning to see it as it really is. There is no denying it anymore. According to some former Islamic jihadists, Christians are the only ones whom the jihadists like ISIS fear! They have never seen anyone who will allow themselves to be butchered and not bend in their faith! Who does this? There have been isolated cases of ISIS members refusing to execute those who claimed to be in love with Yeshua, the Saviour of the world; in fact, even proclaiming a love for them, their killers! They found themselves unable to kill those who were so committed to this Nazarene Messiah!
This last weekend’s call from Syria was another report of what is so often the case with the volunteer missionaries that House Of Blessing sends out into these ISIS mission field. Once again, as they have for the last three years since we have been involved with this project, more of the volunteer missionaries sacrificed their lives to present the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Six men made this sacrifice last week. Near the same period of time, five of those that belonged to the “Widow Sisterhood” led by Mofida, submissively gave their lives as they were again going through the fields of the dead and dying, looking for anyone who could still respond so that they could offer the good news that would lead them into eternity with their sins forgiven. What a legacy they will have when they present themselves before the LORD of Heaven and Earth!
As these new martyrs were fulfilling the Great Commission of Mark 16, they were killed—once again by Assad’s missiles in his attempt to stay in power; killing those aligned against him, and any innocents happening to be in the way. Unfortunately, tens of thousands of innocents are being killed–not just by Bashar Assad, but by all sides in this hellish war.
As Pastor R***** told me the story of the last few days, he shared how one of Assad’s bombs landed outside of his tent where he was meeting with three of HOB’s missionaries for an update from their areas of responsibility within the Middle East. All three of these committed missionaries were killed by the bomb blast. These three were in addition to the ones already mentioned above. The tent was burned, falling in on those within it, and Pastor R***** was seriously injured as he was hit with shrapnel–yet not killed. Because he has little feeling in his lower extremities since being critically injured about two years ago, he could not feel the full extent of what had happened to him. He however saw that he was bleeding profusely, and having eight separate injuries from shrapnel. Since there was no hope of immediate medical attention, he pulled all eight pieces of twisted metal out of this legs. R***** is still very much alive, and once again realizing that God spared his life. Apparently his task on this earth had not been completed yet and so He has requested prayer that the wounds do not become gangrenous.
I then received e-mails from the HOB staff and another from an HOB prayer partner a couple days after I spoke with Pastor R*****. It appears that he once again had to be taken to a hospital due to significant blood loss from the wounds. He was reported to be receiving blood intravenously at the time of the e-mails.
I am asking that we all pray for him and the HOB missionaries with true earnestness. These brethren are putting their lives on the line every single hour of the day. I have come to realize, especially in the last three years, how much freedom I still enjoy. I go to town whenever I want to. I can go and buy food because I have the means to do so. Whenever I want water, I just go to the tap and pour myself a glass. If I need the restroom facilities, I always have one available. The refugees nor the missionaries have any of these things. Not only that, I have a study full of books, including numerous Bibles. I cannot conceive of not having a Bible to take into my hands and read! How is that I have so much and my brethren have so little? I don’t know. I do know that I dare not ignore them and live my life as if they do not exist. After all, what you and I have been blessed with does not really belong to us. Everything is on loan from God Himself. As God lays it on our hearts, it is important for us to follow His leading in what to do with what He has blessed us with. We are at the very end of the age, and we have the privilege of being part of what God is doing on this earth. There is no greater investment we can make than to invest in souls. Also, even though it should never be our reason for giving, we will never be able to outgive Him! I do want to give a special word of thanks for those that have already given so sacrificially, many doing this over and over. God does not miss a thing! Soon, we will all be reunited in the presence of the One who gave His life for our eternal freedom. What a glorious reunion this will be!
During my personal devotions I was reading in the book of Zephaniah. I have printed out verses 1-3 below:
Collect yourselves and gather yourselves, O nation without shame, before the decree bring forth, before the day pass away as chaff, before the fierce anger of Jehovah come upon you, before the day of Jehovah’s anger come upon you. Seek Jehovah, all you meek of the land, who have performed His ordinances; seek righteousness, seek meekness, it may be that ye be hid in the day of Jehovah’s anger.
We live in a time when none of us is guaranteed tomorrow. Jesus encouraged us to work while it is day because night will come when no man can work. The HOB missionaries in the Middle East are in a field that is ripe for harvesting. With the chaos of war, adding to the murder-lust of jihadists for anyone who does not to believe in their own brand of Islam, people have very little appetite for food. They often don’t even search for water even though the need is great. They only want to find peace and safety…and truth! This is why any promise of peace, safety, and security by anyone—be they a good person, or a devil, will be tempting. These people need to be reached before the Antichrist gets their attention with his own counterfeit plan for these very things! This passage of Scripture is very applicable to our day.
Our job here in the West is the same, but we also have the opportunity to be a small part of what God is doing in places across the globe from us. We are the ones that have been blessed with means that others maybe have not. The souls of men are worth infinitely more than the new cars, homes, boats, etc. that we can buy. All of our possessions will soon burn, but souls saved from an eternity without God will last forever. You and I are not able to go to this mission field, but we can help those who are sacrificing their lives to be on the front lines. HOB missionaries have reached hundreds of thousands in the last three years, and there is not a week that goes by without hundreds more becoming followers of Messiah Jesus. Let’s give them the tools to work with, praying earnestly and daily for them and supporting their efforts as we are able.
God Bless you all!
Jake Geier
House of Blessing (HOB); P.O. Box 2093; Redmond, OR 97756