BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

Read Through the Bible MAY 2019 Old Testament / New Testament Wed 1 Jdgs. 20-21 / John 19 Thu 2 Ruth 1-4 / John 20 Fri 3 1 Sam. 1-3 / John 21 Sat 4 1 Sam. 4-7 Sun 5 Ps. 56-59; Prov. 11:24-12:11 Mon 6 1 Sam. 8-10 / Acts 1 Tue 7 1 Sam. 11-13 / Acts 2 Wed 8 1 Sam. 14 / Acts 3 Thu 9 1 Sam. 15-16 / Acts 4 Fri 10 1 Sam. 17 / Acts 5 Sat 11 1 Sam. 18-19 Sun 12 Ps. 60-63; Prov. 12:12-28 Mon 13 1 Sam. 20-21 / Acts 6 Tue 14 1 Sam. 22 / Acts 7 Wed 15 1 Sam. 23-24 / Acts 8 Thu 16 1 Sam. 25-26 / Acts 9 Fri 17 1 Sam. 27-29 / Acts 10 Sat 18 1 Sam. 30-31 Sun 19 Ps. 64-67; Prov. 13 Mon 20 2 Sam. 1-3 / Acts 11 Tue 21 2 Sam. 4-6 / Acts 12 Wed 22 2 Sam. 7-10 / Acts 13 Thu 23 2 Sam. 11-13 / Acts 14 Fri 24 2 Sam. 14-15 / Acts 15 Sat 25 2 Sam. 16-17 Sun 26 Ps. 68; Prov. 14:1-14 Mon 27 2 Sam. 18-20 / Acts 16 Tue 28 2 Sam. 21-22 / Acts 17 Wed 29 2 Sam. 23-24 / Acts 18 Thu 30 1 Kgs. 1 / Acts 19 Fri 31 1 Kgs. 2 / Acts 20 ***************************************** * * * * * continued from p. 13 * * * * * * Might as well get it over with and pay his dues. “Jesus said that He was the way, the truth and the life….” She was still droning on. Jessie tried to get up, but something powerful pinned him down. Another voice spoke. It wasn’t hers. This one was loud, authoritative. If he didn’t know any better, he’d think it was the voice of God. 'Sit down, shut up and listen or you’ll die tonight and go to hell.' A Future and a Hope “When I heard those words,” Jessie remembers, “I lay back across the deck and listened to her talk. As I listened, I sobered up. A while later, my friend’s daughter came home. I remembered that someone had given her a student Bible, and I asked to see it. I still didn’t believe there was any hope for me to escape hell, but I stayed up all night reading that Bible, looking for the words that doomed me there. “Hours later, I found what I was looking for in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10: ‘Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God’ ("New International Version"). “There it was in black and white. It was clear. I was doomed. Then I saw something I didn’t know existed. The next verse said, ‘And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.’ “I was stunned as I read and reread that verse. For the first time in my life, I knew I wasn’t hopeless. I opened the phone book to the church section and saw a listing for Bethel Temple. I read the Bible for the rest of the night and showed up at the church the next morning at 7:15. When someone arrived, I asked when there would be a service. There would be one that evening. I spent the whole day reading the Bible, then borrowed a truck and went to church that evening. “During worship, I felt something wash over me. I’d never experienced anything like it, but it was the love of God. Pastor John Stout knelt in front of me and led me to the Lord. After service, he took me out to eat. I went back to my sofa that night knowing that I was a different person.” Surrounded by Love Not sure what to do with himself the next day, Jessie showed up at the church. The pastor put him to work painting and doing odd jobs. He spent the money he earned buying his first Bible. Each day over lunch, Jessie’s pastor taught him about the Lord. When Calvary Cathedral International Church in Fort Worth held a revival, Jessie attended each night. “Calvary Cathedral has a Bible college,” Pastor Stout explained. “If you want to attend, I’ll pay your fees.” Jessie enrolled in the program, moving to Fort Worth and living with another student and his father. He joined the church and became a member of the choir. Looking up from his songbook one morning, he noticed a beautiful woman. 'That’s the one I have for you.' Jessie sought counsel about the situation and was advised to wait and see what God would do. Months later, at the choir’s Christmas party, the woman, Shelly, came as a guest. They became acquainted, and soon after Jessie proposed. In March 1999, the two were married. Both Jessie and Shelly graduated from the Bible college in 2000. That summer, they went on a mission trip with the church to Romania. As they ministered, Jessie and Shelly saw many certifiable miracles. Blind eyes opened. Deaf ears healed. One girl in a gypsy camp had been born deaf and dumb. She’d never heard or spoken. Following prayer, she could both hear and speak. She spoke fluent Dutch and Romanian. A Family and a Career “In 2001, my company transferred us to Austin,” Jessie says. “While we were there, I started my own IT company. I didn’t have enough capitol and got us into $100,000 of debt. I didn’t want to let Shelly down, so I kept trying to figure out a way to fix the problem. When I realized we would have to declare bankruptcy, I was sure Shelly would leave me. I always expected that she would, but she didn’t. She said she’d made a vow to God and to me and was staying. “I was always hesitant about having children, because I didn’t know how to be a father. I hadn’t learned that at home. But after five years, we had a son, Matthew. He was still little when my parents moved into a big house on 14 acres. They invited us to move in with them so Shelly and I could go back to school. I’d worked hard to develop a better relationship with them over the years. Neither of them knew the Lord. So, in 2005, we moved to Arkansas to live with them. * * * * * * * contnues on p. 16 * * * * * 14 : BVOV

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