The Hill family was founded on June 29, 1973, when Jimmie Baxter Hill married Linda Jean Mooneyham in Orlando, Florida.  Their life followed the typical American pattern until January of 1982 when Jimmie gave up his job as plant manager to a door manufacturing company to enter the Florida School of Preaching in Lakeland, Florida.  Linda continued to live and work in Orlando so that the two of them could eat.  A six-week campaign to Ghana, West Africa, in 1983 convinced both of them that they wanted to do mission work when Jimmie completed school...and they had completed their family.  On January 7, 1985, Julie Hester Renee Adjuah Hill was born and the Hills prepared to move.
 But after planning and raising support to do full-time work in Ghana, the Ghanaian government suddenly stopped issuing permanent resident visas in 1986 and the Hills couldn’t get in.  So they switched to the exact opposite side of the world and moved to American Samoa in 1987, where they lived for the next 5 years.  Following their return to the States, Jimmie worked with congregations in Florida and Tennessee while he went back to school.  But he continued to make campaign trips to the South Pacific and Africa, and the family planned to return to full-time foreign mission work.  Before that plan was finalized, though, Truth for the World called in September of 1998.  Jimmie had already recognized the tremendous good being done by TFTW and the fantastic potential for even more in the future, so he didn’t hesitate an instant.
 Jimmie is well qualified for the work he is doing.  Educationally, he completed both the 2-year and 3-year programs at FSOP, then earned B.A. and M.A. degrees at Tennessee Bible College in Cookeville, TN.  Experience-wise, he has preached in Ghana, Togo, Malawi, Zambia, American Samoa, Western Samoa, Tonga, Fiji, and Tuvalu, in addition to various stateside mission efforts.  Most recently, the entire family helped with a door-knocking campaign in South Haven, Michigan.
 Jimmie, Linda, and Julie Hill are all excited bout joining Truth for the World.  And all are involved.  Jimmie, of course, is working full-time with the Bible correspondence program and staying extremely busy.  The number of students has increased by 40,000 just since he joined the staff last December.  Linda is training to take over secretarial duties when the move to Duluth is made since the current secretary will not be moving with the group.  And Julie (who is home schooled) often does volunteer work when her day's lessons are completed.
 All of the Hills are eager to get settled in Duluth, and are looking forward to working with and getting to know everyone at the congregation. 

 (We’ll “meet” another Truth for the World family next week.  Let’s keep these families and their work in our prayers.)
 
 

Psalm 27:  Let Me Recommend Someone to you: The Lord
“Wait, I say, on the Lord.”
 
 
 
 

This psalm begins and ends with “THE LORD.”  Throughout the entire poem, He is recommended to the reader.  One way to see this is to note the following:  “When it comes to my life, THE LORD is—”
The light (v. 1).
The salvation (v. 1).
The strength (v. 1).
The confidence (v. 3).
The beauty (v. 4).
The hiding place (v. 5).
The joy (v. 6).
The help (v. 9).
The care (v. 10).
The teacher (v. 11).
The goodness (v. 13).
The courage (v. 14).
(The idea for this list comes from an anonymous outline in my files).

The author had a clear desire to recommend Jehovah to all of us, and made five main points in doing so, ending with a strong summary statement in verse 14 to “wait on the Lord.”

The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?  When the wicked came against me to eat up my flesh, My enemies and foes, They stumbled and fell.  Though an army may encamp against me ,My heart shall not fear; Though war should rise against me, In this I will be confident
(vv. 1-3).
In this first section, David taught that in times when fear might conquer, the Lord can be recommended for His STRENGTH.  Life is filled with potential fearful situations.  Let us rely on the Lord to provide light, salvation, strength, and confidence for these times.  If we do this, we need not fear (see Hebrews 13:5,6). 

One thing I have desired of the LORD, That will I seek:That I may dwell in the house of the LORD All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD,And to inquire in His temple.  For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the 
secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me ;He shall set me high upon a rock (vv. 4,5).
In this second section, David taught that in times of trouble, the Lord can be recommended because He has a HIDING PLACE.  The Psalms are filled with descriptions of the troubles that we all encounter in life.  Troubles are permitted by God, sometimes caused by God, caused by friend and foe, and caused by ourselves.  Let us focus on His beauty by staying close to Him in the shelter of His fellowship.  This is done “inquiring” (meditating) on Him and His ways and submitting to Him for safety and concealment from trouble (see Genesis 50:19-26).

And now my head shall be lifted up above my
 enemies all around me; Therefore I will offer 
sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the LORD (v. 6).
In this third section, David taught that when faced by enemies, the Lord can be recommended to LIFT us above them.  The people of God have always had enemies (political, religious, moral, family, bold, secretive—note this principle in the lives of David and Jesus, for example).  Let us realize their power, but let us also realize His power to handle them (see Romans 8:31-39). 

Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice!  Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.  When You said, "Seek My face, "My heart said to You, "Your face, LORD, I will seek."  Do not hide Your face from me; Do not turn Your servant away in anger; You have been my help; Do not leave me nor 
forsake me, O God of my salvation.  When my 
father and my mother forsake me, Then the LORD will take care of me (vv. 7-10).
In this fourth section, David taught that in times of being alone, the Lord can be recommended to CARE FOR ME.  In a world full of people, one of the growing problems for now and the near future is loneliness.  Personally, I am seeing more and more signs of this as a reality and as a serious threat to people.  But it is not new!  So let us rely on the Lord for help and care when this terrible threat moves in on us (see Joshua 1).

Teach me Your way, O LORD, And lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies.  Do not 
deliver me to the will of my adversaries; For false witnesses have risen against me, And such as breathe out violence.  I would have lost heart, unless I had believed That I would see the goodness of the LORD In the land of the living (vv. 11-13).
In this fifth section, David taught that in times of a variety of evils, the Lord can be recommended for His GOODNESS.  Again, it does not take much thinking to know that the devil is using an almost endless variety of evils to sway souls today.  Almost every source of information in our information-saturated generation contains some evil or reminder of evil.  BUT THIS IS NOT NEW EITHER!  So, let us accept the recommendation that we look to the Lord as our teacher, as our source of goodness, and for courage (see Matthew 11:28-30).

Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD! (v. 14).
As the psalm ends, David made the recommendation that all should WAIT ON THE LORD.  This recommendation is totally suitable for all situations in life, for the five sections of the psalm clearly demonstrate that the Lord is “able to deliver thee” (see Daniel 3:16-18).

May I conclude this study by recommending that you WAIT on Him for salvation by complying with His terms through His Son (Matthew 28:18-20; Hebrews 1:1-3):

Hear the gospel (Mark 4:24).
Believe the gospel (Romans 1:16).
Repent of all sin (2 Peter 3:9).
Confess your faith in Christ (Romans 10:9,10).
Be immersed for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38).

    — Skip Andrews
 

Next Week:  Psalm 28:
In my valleys and at my peaks I will go to Him.
 
 
 
 

Verse of the Week: 
“Righteous art thou, O Lord, 
and upright are thy judgments”

(Psalm 119:137).
 
 

VOLUME 1:28        SEPTEMBER 12, 1999