P.O. Box 640109

El Paso, TX 79904

20-27 June, 1999

Dear Children,

Glory Hallelujah, Praise The Lord, and Thank You Jesus!!! Boy oh boy have I ever got a message for you this week! In fact this one’s so powerful that I’m not even going to beat around the bush before getting to the point. But before we get started let me give you some real good news that’s been a long time a coming. You see within the next few weeks the FMH Children’s Club International will publish it’s weekly sermonets on the World Wide Web at www.fmh-child.org. Because by the grace of God He has not only given me this very long "all expense paid vacation away from work" (I got the time because I got the axe), but also the tools and the finances to make it all happen. So very shortly now the Word Of God as spoken through "Dad" will be available for the entire world to see.

And even though our getting on the Web is definitely something to shout about, I’ve still got a whole lot more news to give. You see even though I could entitled the sermonet for this week The Good Fight Of Faith (The Spirit Of God Verses The Flesh Of Man) part IX, I would really be doing you a great injustice by only painting a "sermonet picture" in black and white. Because when we add a little color to this long running flesh fighting topic, we come up with the much more vivid and lively title for this week’s episode of Going Into The Promised Land.

So it was Wednesday night two weeks ago, after having just finished up with the sermonet for the previous two weeks, that the Lord started telling me what He wanted me to write about in the next one. In fact what He gave me was the main text of this message as found in Deuteronomy chapter 1. And even though there’s some really neat information in this Scripture, I still didn’t have the foggiest idea as to where we were headed. So after much prayer and study of The Word, the Lord finally gave me the rest of the story... and oh what a story it is! Because what He gave me are all the details needed to develop His message into a full color picture of the very near future at The Toro Company.

Now even though this message from God is going to confirm His promise to me concerning my long awaited new job at Toro (the one that I have but I don’t have), I’m not going to be any too specific on some of the details. Because you see even though the two main characters in this story are Moses, and Joshua, there are likewise two very real called-of-God people for Toro. In other words in this message for today God the Father is telling the future of The Toro Company with a Bible story from the past. Don’t you just love it?

And even though our main text will be taken from the first chapter in Deuteronomy, there are two other Scriptures in Acts and II Corinthians that will also be used to develop God’s intended message for today. So starting things off, let’s turn to and read from Acts 2:1-41: "And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all of one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven... And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine."

Now can you even imagine how this Scripture has anything to do with me and my present day unemployment with The Toro Company? Well for those of you who haven’t had the opportunity of experiencing it for yourself, accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in other tongues is both grand and glorious... but there’s a whole lot of "worldly" negatives that go along with it. In fact I can guarantee that any who accept this gift from God, and likewise use it the way God has intended for it to be used, will find themselves in a situation where other folks think they’re either as nutty as a fruit cake or just downright drunk. Because you see this "speaking in tongues" not only applies to foreign languages such as Spanish, French, German, and etcetera, but also anything said in the English language that can’t be understood by those who speak the language themselves. In other words the things that Spirit-filled people say are often times as incomprehensible to non Spirit-filled people as if it were being spoken in a foreign language! Understand?

And that brings us to the point about what the Holy Spirit has already had me to say to a few of those people at The Toro Company. You see because of what I’ve said there are a bunch of them folks who think I’ve completely lost all contact with reality. That’s what they think... but why should I waste my energy defending myself when Peter has already done such an excellent job for me. Because continuing on with the reading we find: "But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy..."

Now in order for me to help you understand how all of this applies to the real world of today, I’m going to be as honest as I know how to be. Because you see what I’m about to tell you in this little sermonet of the week is nothing less than a full blown prophesy of The Toro Company... as told through one Spirit-filled person "me". God the Father has given me a very clear and full-colored picture of the future events at Toro... and I’m just about ready to lay it all out just for you.

But not wanting to get ahead of the story, let’s get back to what Peter said in his Holy Ghost anointed speech to those ever so many unbelieving people: "Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it... Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both LORD and Christ."

Ain’t it great the way the Lord works? First of all He gets those unsaved people’s attention with all that crazy tongue talking stuff, and then He follows it up by letting them know how deep in sin they really are. Because you see what Peter was telling these folks (after he got their undivided attention) was that The Man Who they had just killed on the cross was none other than The Son of God Himself. They were responsible for killing the One and Only Savior of The World, and all these crazy things going on around them was nothing more than the Spirit of Jesus (the Holy Spirit) coming on those who believed in Him.

But even though most people aren’t any too willing to be made fools of, those very few folks who are wise enough to overcome their sin problem by accepting both Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit will never regret their decision. Because what happened next in this story was: "Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation. Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls."

So you see what happened to some of those "unbelieving folks" was that they saw the Holy Spirit working in and through the Spirit-filled believers and they believed too. And of course that’s the way it’s suppose to work! But now that we’ve made that point, we can now go on into the main story for today concerning our two main characters Moses and Joshua. And just in case you don’t already know it, Moses was the man of God who was given that very special job of seeing to it that the nation of Israel made it on their very important journey from Egypt to the promised land (from point A to point B). And it just so happens that this fellow called Joshua was chosen by God to help Moses make it all happen. So picking up the story in Deuteronomy 1:1-36, "These be the words which Moses spake unto all Israel on this side Jordan in the wilderness, in the plain over against the Red sea, between Paran, and Tophel, and Laban, and Hazeroth, and Dizahab. (There are eleven days’ journey from Horeb by the way of mount Seir unto Kadeshbarnea.) And it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spake unto the children of Israel, according unto all that the Lord had given him in commandment unto them; After he had slain Sihon the king of the Amorites, which dwelt in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, which dwelt at Astaroth in Edrei..."

So that was the beginning of Moses story, but it was also the ending of his life. Because you see this book of Deuteronomy is what you might want to call a wrap-up of the last 40 years of Moses’ life. And what Moses is about to rehash in one day’s time (all 34 chapters) are the events of that very long 40 year journey that resulted in only two of God’s chosen people (the one’s originally delivered from Egypt) ever making it into the promised land of God. And seeing how Moses was finally in sight of God’s promised land, it was just about time for his very long speech to begin: "On this side of Jordan, in the land of Moab, began Moses to declare this law, saying, The Lord our God spake unto us in Horeb, saying, Ye have dwelt long enough in this mount: Turn you, and take your journey, and go to the mount of the Amorites, and unto all nigh thereunto, in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and in the south, and by the sea side, to the land of the Canaanites, and unto Lebanon, unto the great river, the river Euphrates. Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them."

You see it was 2 years after God’s chosen people (the nation of Israel) finally made their great escape from Egypt that the Lord command them to put it into high gear and head on into that long awaited promise land of Canaan. And even though the remaining part of this journey was only a hop, skip, and jump away from their intended destination, the resulting travel time ended up being something like 38 years. So what do you figure went wrong? Why did it take them so long to go such a short distance?

Well the truth of the matter is that when God finally decided they were ready to receive His promises, everything kinda like all the sudden went out of control. Because you see it was right about the time God turned on the green light that Old Splitfoot (the Devil) jumped slap dab on top of Moses head. And in an attempt to get rid of his throbbing migraine headache, Moses kinda like made a few very radical changes in his God-designed organization: "And I spake unto you at that time, saying, I am not able to bear you myself alone: The LORD your God hath multiplied you, and, behold, ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude. (The LORD God of your fathers make you a thousand times so many more as ye are, and bless you, as he hath promised you!) How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance, and your burden, and your strife? Take you wise men, and understanding, and known among your tribes, and I will make them rulers over you. And ye answered me, and said, The thing which thou hast spoken is good for us to do. So I took the chief of your tribes, wise men, and known, and made them heads over you... And I commanded you at that time all the things which ye should do."

So do you see what I mean? Well in the beginning Moses was "the God-called man in charge" of this great and mighty nation of Israel... and that’s the way it continued until Splitfoot gave him the headache that made it too much for him to handle (or so he thought anyway). And in order to get a better feel for the magnitude of Moses’ headache, let’s kinda like get an instant replay by turning to and reading from Numbers 11:1-29: "And when the people complained... Moses said unto the LORD, Wherefore hast thou afflicted thy servant? and wherefore have I not found favour in thy sight, that thou layest the burden of all this people upon me?... I am not able to bear all these people alone... kill me, I pray thee, out of thy hand, if I have found favour in thy sight; and let me not see my wretchedness."

Now that’s what you call a pretty radical headache! And seeing how Moses was so determined to get rid of it (even unto death!), the Lord obliged him with the following solution... which was really not a solution at all: "And the LORD said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel... and bring them unto the tabernacle of the congregation... And I will come down and talk with thee there: and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not thyself alone."

And that my friend was what the Lord proposed as a cure for Moses’ headache. But was it really a cure at all? Well the truth of the matter is that in the beginning God gave Moses everything he needed (the Holy Spirit) to be able to handle the nation of Israel. So you see Moses already had the solution to his problems if he would have only made use of it. But seeing how Moses didn’t give God any other choice, God did exactly as He had promised: "And Moses went out, and gathered the seventy men of the elders of the people... And the LORD came down in a cloud, and spake unto him, and took of the spirit that was upon him, and gave it unto the seventy elders: and... they prophesied, and did not cease."

So getting down to the basics, what has just transpired was that Moses turned over a very large part of his God chosen job to 70 other people... and all because he had a headache. And one very important part of this work reduction contract was that Moses not only gave up some of his leadership position but he also gave up a very large portion of the most important helper that he ever had (the Holy Spirit). And do you really think these 70 elders respected the commands of God the way that Moses did? Do you really think they were going to use this gift of the Holy Spirit to do the will of God?

Well reading on down just a little bit further we find the answer to that one: "But there remained two of the men in the camp, the name of the one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad: and the spirit rested upon them; and they were of them that were written, but went not out unto the tabernacle: and they prophesied in the camp... And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of Moses, one of his young men, answered and said, My lord Moses, forbid them. And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? would God that all the LORD’s people were prophets, and that the LORD would put his spirit upon them!"

Now I’m here to tell you that the problems Moses was getting ready to face were going to be a whole lot worse than his original little migraine headache. Because you see Moses was putting his trust in these 70 "men of God", but not all of them were dedicated men of God. And it was this "lack of dedication" which showed up very quickly when two of them didn’t even follow God’s orders to show up at the tabernacle for the anointing ceremonies. Talk about getting off to a bad start!

But even though Moses had made a terrible mistake, the problem could have been corrected very quickly if he would have only listened to Joshua’s concern. Because you see Joshua was in the Spirit, which allowed him to recognized that these men were not in the Spirit, but Moses refused to listen. And what do you figure happened next?

Well picking the story back up in Deuteronomy 1:19 we find: "And when we departed from Horeb, we went through all that great and terrible wilderness, which ye saw by the way of the mountain of the Amorites, as the LORD our God commanded us; and we came to Kadeshbarnea. And I said unto you, Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which the LORD our God doth give unto us. Behold, the LORD thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged. And ye came near unto me every one of you, and said, We will send men before us, and they shall search us out the land, and bring us word again by what way we must go up, and into what cities we shall come. And the saying pleased me well: and I took twelve men of you, one of a tribe..."

OK, so let me paint you a very clear and colorful picture of what’s taken place up to now. God commanded the nation of Israel (through Moses) to take the promise land that He’d already given them. And without a doubt, God made it perfectly clear that there was absolutely nothing to worry about in possessing this land ("fear not, neither be discouraged"). But... seeing how these 70 elders didn’t respect God the way that Moses did, they made the recommendation to "check out" the land before taking full possession of it. In other words they didn’t trust in God’s Word!!! And... seeing how Moses put so much faith in these 70 Holy Ghost anointed elders, he kinda like became the fish that took the bait... hook, line, and sinker.

And even though they weren’t following God’s orders, Moses followed right along behind them... and the rest of the story is history. Because you see the twelve spies (the ones that were sent out to see if God was telling the truth) kinda like took a hike, "And they turned and went up into the mountain, and came unto the valley of Eshcol, and searched it out. And they took of the fruit of the land in their hands, and brought it down unto us, and brought us word again, and said, It is a good land which the Lord our God doth give us. Notwithstanding ye would not go up, but rebelled against the commandment of the LORD your God: And ye murmured in your tents, and said... The people is greater and taller than we; the cities are great and walled up to heaven; and moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakims there."

So what do you think about them apples? Are you starting to see the mess that Moses got himself into by allowing others to do the job that he was called by God to do? And do you remember that little headache he had way back when? Well read on and see how his headache cure has all-of-the-sudden become a headache maker: "Then I said unto you, Dread not, neither be afraid of them. The LORD your God which goeth before you, he shall fight for you... Yet in this thing ye did not believe the LORD your God... And the LORD heard the voice of your words, and was wroth and sware, saying, Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers..."

Now just in case you didn’t know it, the one thing that you never want to do is make God "wroth". Because you see once God gets "wroth" it’s guaranteed that a few heads are going to roll. And it’s very sad to say but not only did most of the nation of Israel lose out on God’s promises, but so did Moses: "...Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers, Save Caleb... because he hath wholly followed the LORD. Also the LORD was angry with me for your sakes, saying, Thou also shalt not go in thither. But Joshua the son of Nun, which standeth before thee, he shall go in thither: encourage him: for he shall cause Israel to inherit it... But as for you, turn you, and take your journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea."

And that my friends is what the Lord has given to me to give to you about the future of the Toro Company. Moses was the chosen by God to lead the nation of Israel into the promised land. But because of his failure to take total control of his responsibilities he was forced by God to turn over his leadership position to his God called helper (minister) Joshua. And of course it was only the two men Joshua and Caleb, out of all those chosen to receive God’s promised blessings, who actually made it into God’s promised land.

But even after having said all that... that ain’t even all! Because the third and final part of this "message from God to Toro" is found in II Corinthians 13:1-10, and it goes like this: "This is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established. I told you before, and foretell you, as if I were present, the second time; and being absent now I write to them which heretofore have sinned, and to all other, that, if I come again, I will not spare: Since ye seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, which to youward is not weak, but is mighty in you. For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God toward you."

Now you’ll just have to believe me when I say that this message was given to me from God to give to those in The Toro Company. And He not only gave me the three specific Scriptures but He also told me the order in which to use them. And as I hope you can see by now, it’s this third and final part of God’s message that’s not only a little bit strong but also a very important part of what God wants said to Toro.

But in order to try and tie this whole thing together, let’s take it on back to the start. You see God will do everything in His power to save a lost and dying world. And of course that’s the reason why He allowed His Only Begotten Son to die on the cross so that all who trust in Him can escape the everlasting burning fires of Hell. But Jesus’ death on the cross was not all that there was to God’s Salvation Plan. Because you see it was through Jesus’ perfect death on the cross that believers are able to have the Spirit of God living inside of them and empowering them to do great and mighty things for the cause of Christ. And seeing how these great and mighty things are all done through the power of God Almighty, it is very important that everyone respect these things as being from God.

And even though Moses was the man of God chosen to lead the nation of Israel out of Egyptian slavery and into the promised land, he was a man very capable of reacting to the desires of his flesh. And of course that’s the very good reason why God the Father gave him a Holy Spirit anointed helper named Joshua. But you see that Holy Spirit anointed helper couldn’t do Moses one bit of good unless Moses believed in what he was telling him. And it was likewise through the Spirit of God that Joshua saw the evil that was working against Moses, but Moses refused to believe that it was the Spirit of God talking through Joshua. And because of his very fleshly problem, Moses never made it into the promised land. Moses failed God because he didn’t recognize the Spirit of God working through his anointed helper. And because of this very serious error, God replaced Moses with Joshua.

So you see what I have been speaking of is nothing less than the Word of God as it applies to The Toro Company... and I’ve been speaking it for some time now. God has a very special plan for this company but those in control have continued to ignore the Word of God as spoken through the Spirit of God in me. I have not only been ignored but also terminated for speaking out on "what thus saith the Lord". So please take this message to heart and: "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?... Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the power which the Lord hath given me to edification, and not to destruction."

My God is The Great God of the Universe and I will Keep on Keeping The Faith In Jesus!!!

Love,

Dad (Bruce Hallman)