Hello Everyone,

I would like to ask ya’ll for prayer for me and my family. My grandfather passed away last night. He was 89 and had Alzheimer’s and had been fighting some kind of infectious virus that gave him diarrhea that he never got over. His mind went first but his body stayed healthy for a few years but he dwindled fast after he got that stomach virus. He had quit eating and all his organs where shutting down. We thought that he would be released from the hospital to die at home with his family but he quit breathing yesterday morning. He was revived but they broke a rib, all his organs where shutting down and he was in allot of pain. My aunts finally made the decision to take him off of the breathing machine and he only breathed on his own for about 30 minutes before he peacefully passed. It was a hard decision for them and to be honest my aunt that is the power of attorney is taking it as like she killed my grandpa even though she is a Christian and the decision was made by all the family, and she only signed the papers and she had to leave. I know how hard it was for her to sign that paper. Me and my Mom had to do the same thing for my Dad. But with him it was obvious that he was in so mush pain and he asked three times to be allowed to die because he had cancer all in his body (even in his bone marrow). We had to cut his legs off because they died and was causing septic shock and they where poisoning the rest of his body. My grandfather was a good man in worldly terms. He raised four kids by himself being both a father and a mother to my Dad and his sisters. He even adopted my uncle and treated him like his own. My uncle was my Grandpa’s third wife’s son and even though my uncle was not related by blood he says that my grandpa was the only father he ever knew and he loved him very very much because he was a good man. They don't make them like him anymore he said.

This is what I am asking ya’ll to pray about. I hope I can say it well and don’t drag on. My aunt’s are real religious. They have a Pentecostal background and emphasize holiness. But it is my belief that they put holiness before God’s grace. They have no peace about my pappa’s passing. My one aunt is feeling like she killed my pappa. It reminds me of when me and my mom made the decision to take my Dad off life support and my grandfather cried out “you killed my boy�? He did not say it to hurt us but it did. I can understand because at that time he was still struggling with faith. But the thing is that it hurts my soul to see my aunt so upset and taking responsibility as like she killed my pappa. They have always been the type to pray a lot and depend on God a lot.

There was talk about whether my Pappa was saved or not. From hearing the talk it seems that they are not seeking to be saved by God’s grace but by obedience and temperance. My Pappa said for years that he was getting ready to meet his maker. And then he got really depressed and I asked him why he never said he was getting ready to meet his maker anymore. He said he was afraid that he would not make it to heaven because he was not good enough. I told him that is great pappa your almost there. Now that you realize that your not good enough to get to heaven you must know that none of us are. We either get to heaven by God’s grace or we don’t get there at all. I asked him if he was ready to take Jesus as his savior and he froze up. He had a hard time believing that God would forgive him. He felt like he had to earn heaven. My aunt’s adopted daughter supposedly has visions and stuff. My Aunt is proud to say that Rebecca talked to Jesus one day and he told her that “if you don’t live for Jesus your gonna go to hell�?

I hate to see people under bondage. For along time my pappa and my dad would never talk about God. My Dad would make fun of people who believed in God and he would get mad when Mom would take me and my brother to church. I remember when my dad told me only fools believe in God. For years after I got saved by trusting that Jesus died for my sins and to make me acceptable to God,, my Dad would never talk to me about God. Before he died he told me that he believed in God and Jesus and all of that but that his aunts and cousins told him that if he was not a Pentecostal that he would go to hell. I told him the gospel of the grace of Jesus as simply as I could using scripture and it took a hold of him. After we cut his legs off he came back for awhile and he did accept Jesus as his savior. For that I am so thankful but I wish to see my family set free.

My aunts said that my pappa did finally ask Jesus to forgive his sins but they could not say that “he made it�?or was saved. It just breaks my heart to see people I love to be so burdened that they think they have to earn heaven. It frightens me that they will not be saved if they are trying to be saved by their own effort. It is sad to see them struggle with “how good do ya have to be to be saved?�? When they said Pappa had asked Jesus to forgive his sins I said well then he is saved,,,, that is the only way he can be saved because no one can be saved by their own efforts. Salvation is a gift from God and we work for rewards in heaven but salvation is a free gift from God. I would have loved to hear a big amen and some praise for our precious savior at that point. But they looked like they was struggling to believe what I said. I guess they have been taught otherwise for a long time.

I don’t know what else to do or say to them. We have to opposing theologies. They believe salvation is a result of their own efforts and I could be accused of being antinomian before anyone could say I am a legalist.

I ask ya’ll to pray that God will break my aunt's self will and attempts to save themselves. It would be safe to say that my aunts feel they have more faith than the average Christian. But I see their faith failing them. I told my aunt that feels responsible for my pappas death because she signed the papers to remove life support that God is the one who appoints the specific day that we all physically die and it is Him that calls us home on His time. Her signing the paper and life support had noting to do with it. But she is burdened. It is my prayer that they will one day major on grace instead of obedience. It is my prayer that if they are not saved that they will be. I would love to see them in love with a savior that did not leave their salvation to chance or to them but instead did it all for them and he is just waiting for them to say “God have mercy on me,,, I am a sinner and cannot save myself�?/FONT>