Letters From Grandpa #527

• LETTERS FROM GRANDPA
• 527

Dearest Grandchild,

Today’s letter will be about Joseph, the boy with a coat of many colors. As you know, Joseph was a dreamer. Sadly, many don’t seem to like a dreamer. So when "Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it to his brethren: and they hated him yet the more" (Gen. 37:5). "And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh. Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we shall see what will become of his dreams . . . . " (Gen. 37:19-20).

But for all the criticism of Joseph he stands unique in the midst of his nation. As a stripling lad enslaved to Potiphar, his crisp imagination and reliability made him ruler of the house (Gen. 39:5-6). Unjustly imprisoned his indomitable will could not be smothered by a dreary dungeon and once again he rose to preeminence and was given authority over all the other prisoners (Gen. 39:21-23). In spite of every obstacle and injustice, by the time that Joseph was 30 years of age he had risen to the position of the second most powerful man in all the world (Gen. 41:40). God seems to bless men with wild imaginations. Moses dreamed of liberating Israel forty years before it came to pass (Acts 7:25). Caleb and Joshua dreamed of victory in Canaan when virtually everyone said it could not be done (Num. 14:6ff). David dared to dream of victory with only a sling in his youthful hand. The unlettered Apostles of Jesus stood on tiny mount Olivet with world wide ambitions.

There is something to be said for the man who bets on a sure thing. There are certain virtues associated with caution and deliberation. There may be times when it is just and proper to turn back to Egypt rather than hazard the dangers of an unmapped wilderness. But there are also times when men of faith and vision cannot look back without being condemned. Too long society has "played it safe" and buried dreamers in pits of criticism. Soon we grow weary of their wild ideas and barter away their dreams and return to our mediocrity undisturbed. The world that crucified Jesus and destined Christopher Columbus to die in chains is very much alive.

Napoleon Hill relates in his book on The Law of Success, the amazing story of a young preacher named Frank Wesley Gunsaulus . Frank announced in a Chicago newspaper that his sermon for the following Sunday would be - "WHA T I WOULD DO IF I HAD A MILLION DOLLARS?" It is difficult to imagine a subject with less practical significance for the average church member. Yet this strange topic caught the eye of Philip D. Armour, the wealthy packing house mogul. When Gunsaulus delivered his message, Mr. Armour was present, listening attentively to every word. The preacher dreamed of a new concept in education. He dreamed of a school where students would learn to think in practical rather than theoretical terms. When the sermon was over Mr. Armour stepped down the aisle and announced that a million dollars would be made available to the preacher the very next morning. Thus the Armour Institute of Technology became a reality. The school opened in 1893 and Amour claimed it was one of the best investments he ever made. On April 23 1940 the Institute merged with another college and became known as the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Few men have ever attained success by accident. Invariably it is the result of dreams that came true with years of planning and creative meditation shaping and molding their lives and destiny. Earl Nightingale said on one of his daily broadcasts that Neil Armstrong dreamed of being the first man on the moon since he was five years old. How bold and brazen! Armstrong was born August 5, 1930 and died August 25, 2012, but his dream did come true! He must have disgusted his playmates and amused his parents when he shared with them his audacious dream. Yet throughout his life this dream became the star by which he steered. It was not an accident that he entered Purdue University studying aeronautical engineering. It was not an accident in 1949 when he took another step in making his dream come true by becoming a naval aviator. It was not an accident when he became a test pilot flying

the high speed North American X-15. Nor was it an accident when Neil joined NASA in 1962. This enabled him in March 1966 to command the Gemini 8 spaceflight. On July 20, 1969 his amazing dream came true when the Apollo 11 Lunar Module landed on the moon and he and Buzz Aldrin were the first human beings to make footprints in moon dust.

Here is another interesting part of his historical trivia. His companion, Buzz Aldrin, was an elder in a church outside of Houston. He was searching for something appropriate to commemorate the first moon landing. When the Apollo 8 astronauts circled the moon on Christmas Day 1968 they read the creation story from the book of Genesis. Aldrin, a devout Christian, chose to celebrate his special occasion by observing the Lord’s Supper. He reverently placed the bread and the wine in his personal preference kit. After stepping on the moon he placed these sacred elements on a small table in front of his computer. Then he keyed his mike and said: “Houston, this is Eagle. This is the LM Pilot speaking. I would like to request a few moments of silence. I would like to invite each person listening in, wherever and whomever he may be, to contemplate for a moment the events of the past few hours and to invite each person listening, wherever and whomever he may be, to contemplate for a moment the events of the past few hours and to give thanks in his own individual way.” Aldrin then read John 15:5 then reverently ate the bread and drank from the cup. Since gravity on the moon is only 1/6th of the gravity on earth the wine curled slowly up the side of the cup in an unforgettable way. How beautiful! “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.” (1 Corinthians 10:16-17)

Please don’t be a spiritual zombie. Dare to dream a dream! With the help of Christ your wildest dreams can come true! Please prayerfully have the courage to announce your impossible dreams and then watch Jesus help you make those dreams come true!

I love you,

Grandpa Boyce