Desert Highway Ministries

MY OATH TO YOU…

I received this poem from a friend:

MY OATH TO YOU…

When you are sad…………….I will dry your tears
When you are scared………..I will comfort your fears

When you are worried……….I will give you hope
When you are confused…….I will help you cope

And when you are lost………And can’t see the light
I shall be your beacon………Shining ever so bright

This is my oath………………..I pledge till the end
Why you may ask?…………..Because you’re my friend.

……………………………………..Signed: GOD

     I do not know who wrote this poem, but I am glad that it stirred up my thoughts.  When I read this, I thought, “How beautiful and how real this is of our God.” But then I thought about how God actually does these things.You and I both have heard so many times that you and I as Christians are the hands and feet of God on this earth. While you and I are not literally His hands and feet, we all realize that God uses people to accomplish His work on this earth in so many ways. Yes, I know he uses miracles, but isn’t the fact that His people do such wonderful things a miracle in itself?

MY OATH TO YOU…

When you are sad…………….I will dry your tears

     I will not turn my back on you during your time of sorrow. I will not depend on my ability to understand why you are crying. I will not make you justify your tears to me. I myself have cried and I will just be there for you because you are hurting.

When you are scared………..I will comfort your fears

     I will not judge you because of your fear, nor will I say that your fears are unfounded. God understands that man fears and his Word gives comfort to us in our fear over and over again. He does not condemn us of sudden fear, but rather says “Do not be afraid of…” what ever has caused our fear. He does not deny that the fear is real and neither will I. I, too, have been scared and I will just be there for you because you are afraid.

When you are worried……….I will give you hope

     I will not just say, “Don’t worry, be happy.” I will help you find hope in the situation you are in. I will help you look past the obstacles that stand before you and to see what is beyond the difficulties of today. I will help you see how God can use even these problems for your good in the future. I have fretted over things, also, and I will just be there for you because you are worried.


When you are confused…….I will help you cope

     If I know the answer to your confusion, I will give it to you freely. If I can not answer your questions, then I will help you find the answer you need. I have no doubt that Jesus has the answer to every problem that you or I could ever face. Too many times I have been confused and had to find the answer in Him and I will just be there for you because you are confused.

And when you are lost………And can’t see the light
I shall be your beacon………Shining ever so bright

     Nothing ever seems so bad as being lost in the dark and not being able to find your way. All of these other things find their way into our emotions. We find ourselves sad, scared, worried, and confused. The only way out of darkness is light and whatever light I have in Him to share; I will shine to light your path. I know what it is like to be lost and not know which way to go and I will just be there for you to help you find your way in the dark.

This is my oath………………..I pledge till the end

     This is not an empty promise, but a life long commitment. I am joined with you in this walk and will not abandon you when things get tough. I will not leave you for others who seem to have it all together. I will not hop from friend to friend looking for something better. I will just be there for you because we need each other.

Why you may ask?…………..Because you’re my friend.

     This passage rings true when Jesus tells us that WE should lay down our lives for our friends.

     John 15:12-14 NKJV This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.

     I love the way this is paraphrased in “The Message”: “This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you.”

     NOW BACK UP ONE VERSE and realize what this does for us…
Jesus has just spoken of us being part of Him. He is the vine and we are the branches. We are not to be separate in purpose, but rather part of the same plant. Life for us depends on us staying connected to the vine. And He says. “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.”

     My joy being full is dependent on my being God’s functioning parts in this oath to you. The vine provides what is necessary for the branch to produce the fruit, but the vine does not produce fruit, the branches do. God makes this promise to you and then he gives the rest of us the ability to carry it out.

How Do You Differ Your Sermons, Illustrations, Examples, Style?

A minister friend of mine whose husband is a prison chaplain emailed me and asked me this question…

“Duane, when you preach in prison, how do you differ your sermons, illustrations, examples, style?”

This is how I answered.

The only way I can speak about how I “differ” in ministry is to look at the ways I minister.  

    I “preach” the same for the most part wherever I am in a preaching setting, ie. church, church services in prison, a chapel service at Teen Challenge, church service in Africa or Mexico, etc.  I may at times use different illustrations and examples depending on what will relate to the people I am speaking to.  The same could be said for teaching in a class room setting.  I am who I am and my “style” is my style.  I do not try to be someone different.  I believe people see right through when you are not yourself or you try to “do” a particular style.  In fact, in prison I think they are even more aware of anyone who is trying to be something they are not.  They can recognize a con job a mile away.  

    When I preach it is predominately lecture, but even then I generally will find a way to interact and get responses from the crowd or single out individuals for a response.  When I teach I prefer to use a discussion style teaching environment.  I ask and answer questions.  Groups of four to forty are better for this than a large congregational setting.  In the prison this has worked very well once you have earned the respect of the men you are teaching and have made them feel comfortable sharing and asking questions in front of others. The biggest difference in prison is that you usually have more time to preach or teach than you do in a typical church setting.  That and the fact that no one can get up and leave if the clock strikes twelve. 

    I might add that I do my best to communicate in vocabulary that a twelve year old can understand no matter who i am speaking to.  If I do that then those with a college education understand as well as those who are young in either age or education.  Too many people think using more advanced vocabulary makes them sound smart.  My assertion is: What good does that do if I have not taught everyone?  Two events made me re-think my ways and adapt to this way of teaching.  One was in a church where a deacon came up to me after the service in a small community and said to me, “That was a great message, but only half of the people here understood what you said.”   The other event was in a prison when I used the KJV during a teachings session.  One of the more educated inmates asked me afterward why I would use the KJV when the majority of the men in the room did not understand the language used.  From then on I have concentrated on using simpler vocabulary as best I can.  It has become my habit even when I write.   Sure.  I do not write or sound as smart as some of my peers, but I do communicate and that is my goal.  I will let my peers be admired as the super intellectuals.  That does not matter to me as much as communicating to the masses.

    All of that said, there are times when I preach and teach in settings that are not typical or traditional settings.  Those are settings that are more similar to what Dr. Brad was talking about that he has in the cafe.  In those settings I do not usually have a prepared message, notes, or even a bible.  You do not preach at, but rather answer questions.  It is risky in some ways, because you are on the spot and must spend as much time listening to both the person and the Holy Spirit at the same time.  The Holy Spirit will use their background and ways of understanding to guide you in how to communicate to them.  What is most essential here is having the respect as a spiritual leader from the people you are speaking to.  This is done either by spending time with them and earning their respect or by having someone they respect vouch for you.  The later is the way I do ministry in the tattoo parlor in El Paso.  I might add that I do not know how the Holy Spirit gave George, the owner, the respect for my ministry that he as.  He contacted me and not the other way around.  I think it was just a pairing that God did for both he and myself.  God does that part.   George hand picks people who are showing they are susceptible to the gospel but do not trust traditional ministers.  He brings them in to meet me and may say something like, “You have a lot of questions and this is the guy with the answers.”  (Talk about being put on the spot)  Then there is a time of them checking you out to see if they can trust you and a bonding time.

In His Service,
R. Duane Gryder
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    R. Duane & Janet Gryder              Motorcycle Chaplain
    Assembly of God U.S. Missions           Acct. # 2605988
    PO Box 13383          Odessa, Texas          79768-3383
    telephone: 432-366-0909          mobile: 432-557-8417
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    A voice is calling,
              “Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness;
          make smooth in the desert a highway for our God.”  
          ……………………………………………………..Isaiah 40:3
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