Dear Friends,
I heard the Gospel when I was 12 and accepted Christ immediately after my 13th birthday. By the time I was 17, I had read much of the Bible and attended lots of church meetings. It was also at that time that my mom's very best friend, Pauline, was diagnosed with cancer.
The church we were going to at the time said that if we prayed and believed, God would heal Pauline. I had read the verse many times, "…For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you" (Matthew 17:20 ESV).
I had the faith of 10,000 mustard seeds! And cancer cells were certainly easier to move than an entire mountain! So, I prayed harder than anything I had prayed for in my life. I stood up at church services while Pauline was having treatments and led the congregation in prayer proclaiming her healing.
The more the cancer spread, the more I prayed. When others lost faith, I doubled up my own refusing to have any doubt. The senior pastor also continued to proclaim that, if we had faith, if we only believed, Pauline would be healed.
After a grueling six months, Pauline died. I was devastated. At the funeral I asked the senior pastor why she wasn't healed. "I believed with all my heart," I told him. He said God did heal Pauline, by taking her to heaven. I thought it was a cowardly answer. During the previous six months, he had failed to mention that this manner of healing was a possibility if we prayed and "only believed."
At 17 years old my faith was shattered. I was confused and a bit angry. My mom cried for months.
At 17 years old my faith was shattered.
I was confused and a bit angry.
Forty years later, I have never forgotten Pauline's death and my fervent prayer. And I have never come to an understanding of what Jesus meant when He said that if we had the faith of a mustard seed, we could move a mountain – until now!
This year Deb and I planted a small garden. It's nothing to brag about. I simply used some big black tubs as containers. We grew peppers, tomatoes, squash, cantaloupe and a few other things.
I don't really have a green thumb but I was amazed at how these little seeds produced such amazing fruit and vegetables. The lesson goes back to the garden, when man was told he would have to cultivate the ground for food. |
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| (Images above from the Garden of Eden in iBIBLE Chapter 01.) |
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I was then reminded of the mustard seed and the mountain. I thought of iBIBLE. It started as an idea, a vision and a leading from God. At that point it was tiny and insignificant, like a seed.
We began to cultivate the vision for iBIBLE, and it began to grow. It took hard work, prayer, resources, years of dedication, and lots of friends to share the vision. iBIBLE, while young, is now like a small tree. Roots are forming and soon it will begin to produce fruit.
iBIBLE, while young, is now like a small tree. Roots are forming and soon it will begin to produce fruit.
Then I realized iBIBLE will move mountains! There are significant barriers to reaching the unreached. There is a mountain called "illiteracy." There are mountains called "language barriers." There is a mountain called "persecution."
iBIBLE will help move these mountains. It will minister to those who cannot read, it will be available to freely translate in any language, and it cannot be confiscated or contained by a hostile government.
For 40 years I questioned what Matthew 17:20 meant. For 40 years I questioned the pastor who told me that if we just believed, God would answer our prayer.
I now realize I was looking at the Scripture through the temporal and through eyes of this world. It is equivalent to when Jesus said, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up" (John 2:19 ESV). Jesus obviously wasn't speaking about the physical temple, but of his own life. He was speaking of the eternal.
I believe many great missionaries have moved countless mountains and with the faith of only a mustard seed that was properly cultivated. How easy it is to look at Scripture verses for our own benefit without considering the spiritual significance. We want a great job, more money, a bigger house, and happiness. Yet the Holy Scripture tells us we will be like lambs led to slaughter, that the world will hate us, and that he who loves his own life shall loose it.
There are significant barriers to reaching the unreached. There is a mountain called "illiteracy." There are mountains called "language barriers." There is a mountain called "persecution."
I love to be encouraged by preachers as I'm driving and tuning in to their broadcasts. However, I have to say, I think some of them have a tendency to turn every Bible verse into a personal benefit to us here and now if "we only believe."
Today, I again have the faith of 10,000 mustard seeds, and I believe mountains are about to be moved. As I look to the eternal and the advancing of God's Kingdom, my faith grows unlike it ever has before. God has given me a new understanding of the words He spoke concerning the grain of a mustard seed.
When you join in helping us with the iBIBLE, you are also cultivating seeds of faith to move mountains. Over 800 people have joined as "producers" with a monthly contribution. As more and more people join, we will begin to enlarge our animation and creative teams and accelerate the production. No mountain will be too big!
Thank you for taking the time to read our emails. Thank you for your faithful prayers, words of encouragement, and financial support.
Thank you for helping us as we look forward to moving a few mountains together!
Steve Cleary
CEO/Founder
RevelationMedia
To join our iBIBLE team simply visit www.i.bible. Join as a Producer with a monthly contribution and receive your free rewards.
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